Predator worries? Fahgettaboutit! Watch those trees!

[BillyBob58]

OK, one does need to at least consider what is in the woods with you and behave appropriately. Bears, coyotes, mountain lions, wild dogs, packs of non-wild dogs just out for an adventure, snakes, disease from insect bites. And the biggies number wise I'm sure: falls, drowning and lightning.

Still, lately- and more and more- it's the trees that are on my mind. The trees and their large branches. So here we go again. This happened here in MS just a month or two back when all the tornadoes were blowing through. A father was killed by a tree while he tried to cover his daughter. This time they ( an infant and great grandmother) were not in a tent, nor a hammock, but in a camper:

http://nems360.com/view/full_story/1...es_left_column

Sad but true! The child was taken to Tri-Lakes Med Center in Batesville, MS where I often work.

Be careful guys! Of course, I doubt that any amount of careful- other than just not going outside- would help in these cases.

[OutandBack]

Wow, what a sad story.
I know the woods I frequent seem to be loaded with widow makers.
Every Spring the trail had many down trees from the Winter storms and Spring rains.

Falling branches and falling trees are my number one concern when in the woods.

[BillyBob58]

Wow, what a sad story.

For sure. The surviving family members must be going through terrible times.

I know the woods I frequent seem to be loaded with widow makers.
Every Spring the trail had many down trees from the Winter storms and Spring rains.

Falling branches and falling trees are my number one concern when in the woods.

Me Too! And the last time I was, more or less, in your neck of the woods- some hours NW in the Wind Rivers of WY, the abundance of widowmakers almost ruined the hammocking aspect of the trip. Some days we really had to spend a lot of time trying to find a reasonably safe place for 4 people to hang. Of course, we would have had the same problem with tents, but at least I could have gotten far enough away from the trees for safety, out in a meadow.

However, all of that was ~ 9400 ft, in a region of very large trees. But when we finally got up to one lake at about 10,000 ft, the trees were not nearly as big. But plenty big enough and in much better shape, with very few widow makers noticed.

But I wouldn't be surprised if in this tragedy that no widow maker was involved. I have seen so many apparently strong and healthy and very large trees come down lately.

[kkilgroe]

Hangers in the southeast need to be especially aware of hanging near trees that have been infected by the blight. The widow makers are first togo.

[mtbikernate]

on a recent trip, I had a hard time finding a good spot just to string up my tarp to stay out of the rain from an incoming storm. And by the time I did find a reasonable spot, I was only a couple hours away from the car, so I finished the hike out.

[dla]

Fortunately, (but not as scenic), the areas in Idaho I haunt are mostly lodge pole pine. The stuff goes in about 40 year cycles (burn, birth, growth, beetle kill, burn, etc.) so it never gets very tall. So as long as I stay away from a recent burn, where the snags just topple over for no reason, I really don't have much widow making material. And as you get into the alpine lakes the trees get smaller and smaller

[BillyBob58]

Update on this very sad camping/tree related story:
http://nems360.com/view/full_story/1...ames-released?

[JaxHiker]

We had some crazy storms this week. The two pines in the middle of my yard are both healthy and I still ended up with large limbs in the yard. These were good limbs, not dead stuff just waiting to fall. There was also a guy (85 fwiw) that missed being killed by 6" when a tree landed on his car while he was driving.

You just never know with trees. I forget the state park but last year or year before last a park ranger was killed. He was driving through the park when he came upon a tree that had fallen across the road. While he was there another tree fell and killed him.