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tigermn
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 1:53 pm 
In light of the poodle thread... Just wondering how many people have had an unfriendly confrontation with another hiker on the trail or in the backcountry. I can't recall anything major. About the worst off the top of my head was an older Mt. Rainier volunteer ranger telling me to stay on the trail rather firmly when I was only stepping off (on a rock no less) to let him pass as I was heading out, he was coming in. He was concerned I'd be damaging the fragile meadows, I guess or just on a power trip wearing the uniform. I suspect I may thing of something else later, but I pretty much keep to myself on a hike unless somebody is maybe doing something really bad, even then you have to tread lightly as you never know who you are dealing with...

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Kim Brown
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 3:31 pm 
Only on this site.

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HitTheTrail
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 3:47 pm 
Kim Brown wrote:
Only on this site.
Oh, c'mon leave Backpacker Joe out of this.

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Ski
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 5:25 pm 
"unfriendly confrontation.. on the trail or in backcountry" wow... I must be hanging out on the wrong trail... I cannot recall ever having what could really be defined as an "unfriendly confrontation" on a trail. I've had parties of idiots camp nearby... one mentioned in a TR a couple years ago... another camped about 200 yards upstream from me in the mid-1990s... but other than their obnoxious behavior there wasn't any sort of "confrontation". < edit 17:44 PDT> had a nutty experience in an NFS campground, but not on a trail.

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
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Boywonder
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 5:32 pm 
I have never had a negative encounter with anyone once I hit about 4-5 miles away from any trail head. What I have found out is the closer to the big parking lots up on Rainier (Paradise / Sunrise) the less folks want to say hi or look in your direction and give a smile or nod. Basically the closer I am to 'civilization' the ruder people seem to get. I am generally outgoing and say hi to just about everyone I pass when out on the trail. I solo 99.99% of the time so this allows me to chit chat a bit more when folks stop and want to talk. In the backcountry either up on Rainier or the Olympics I have never come across anyone yet that has been unfriendly or confrontational.

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Schroder
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 5:45 pm 
In over 50 years on the trail I can't think of a single one.

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I'm Pysht
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 6:15 pm 
I can't think of a really negative one (not including dogs). As an introvert, even I don't really understand the folks who completely ignore a friendly "Howdy" as we pass one another, but that could be my problem...

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llamero
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 7:11 pm 
Negative encounters are very rare, but I have had about half a dozen in the last 15 years (since I started hiking with llamas). Not all encounters started or ended badly, but they all had to do with my llamas. The most terrifying and dangerous situations involve unleashed dogs barking and attacking at my llamas, spooking them and nearly causing a stampede or worse. Some backpackers have made nasty comments about my animals and refused to step off the trail for us. Horse packers have also taken exception to my right to co-exist, even when I grant them safe right of way. I prepare for the worst and expect the best. By far the majority of people I meet are friendly and quick to exchange information and greetings. I really, really enjoy my llamas, but I understand if everyone doesn't share my passion. Please show some respect and keep your animals under control. My llamas are always on a leash. Dogs should be also. Safety first. Peace and joy to you.

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nuclear_eggset
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 7:20 pm 
I can't think of one other one than the one I wrote about. Maybe one or two "non-friendly" ones, but not "unfriendly". (More the sort of actively ignoring you, not being rude/mean/etc.) That statement is with the exception of two incidents that were on the part of people I was traveling with. One of them I was sympathetic to, even if I wouldn't have made the same decision. The other, well... I'll never go anywhere with those people again.

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Magellan
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 7:33 pm 
I yelled at a lady whose off leash dog was snarling and barking and bluff charging me. Maybe she can chime in on whether or not it was unpleasant.

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RichP
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 8:46 pm 
I find most people are on their best behavior when hiking because they are happy to be doing something they enjoy. I haven't had a single negative encounter that I can recall. I don't usually hike super popular trails, but when I do, I go mid-week.

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Alpendave
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 9:33 pm 
Yes, once. I got after some kids that were making a very, very conspicuous ring of rocks in a snowfield just before the first saddle you come to on the Ptarmigan Ridge hike from Artist Point. The problem is that the pass beautifully frames Mt. Baker as you approach it from the east. Since people literally come from all over the world to see and photograph the scenery up there, I did not particularly appreciate something so obtrusive (and obviously man-made) being added to it. And yes, if wanting to photograph Baker from this point, the rocks, so unnaturally arranged on the white background of snow, would have immensely degraded the photographic quality of the scene. So as I was chiding the kids (not belligerently, mind you), mamma bear (see Angry Hiker's rendition of the kind of mom I'm talking about) came out of hibernation to tell me I had no business talking to her kids about wilderness etiquette. She didn't appreciate me explaining to her that if she had been doing her job as a parent, I never would have wound up admonishing her kids. Unfortunately for her, she never did see it my way rolleyes.gif

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hiker1
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PostMon Apr 14, 2014 10:43 pm 
Ski wrote:
had a nutty experience in an NFS campground, but not on a trail.
So did I, twice that I remember. One in Douglas Fir CG with the camp host, giving me a hard time every time he saw me, all because I asked if I could book a specific site. Other time in Rasar SP: camp host didn't like me complaining about the showers and how they didn't accept coins because the boxes were full, a common problem. He said, "I don't use the washrooms or showers, I have one in my RV". I thought one of his jobs was to inspect them, but I guess not. Later that day I found one of my car's taillights was smashed. Probably not a coincidence. OK so those were slightly off topic, being in CGs. On the trail, like a couple others wrote, hikers are usually happy to be where they are on the trail, so no bad interactions to report. Except those involving menacing dogs, a couple of times bites. Oh and with girls who wouldn't have sex with me, but that kind of thing happens anywhere and everywhere. Bummer.

falling leaves / hide the path / so quietly ~John Bailey, "Autumn," a haiku year, 2001, as posted on oldgreypoet.com
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herdingcats
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PostTue Apr 15, 2014 8:15 am 
Only one really bad interaction: an off-leash German Sheppard repeatedly getting in my face. The dog's owner insisted that the dog was a wonderful family pet and that I should like it. Mind you, the dog was barking in my face. That dog and possibly that guy were seconds from a different outcome, but thankfully he finally leashed it. I called the cops to the scene afterward to discuss the matter since I had run into this fella and his mutt before. The responding officer not only agreed with me, he also said I would have been fully in my rights to protect my son and I as a dog (in that situation) would be seen as a deadly weapon and that, according to him, I could and should respond accordingly as needed. He then sought out the other fella and, while explaining his errors, gave him a ticket for the off-leash dog. Dog owners, I hope you are listening. I'm not a dog hater. In a way, they are like our children. We all hope that others like our kids, but in truth not everyone does. In truth, no one else is required to like or appreciate your prized family pet. The only other incident was a group of three folks that set up camp near my lakeside campsite. I really liked this trio... very cool folks. Their dog was a sweetie too, though no leash. It just wanted to be friendly, but it kept getting near my cooking activities. When I explained how an alcohol stove works, the owners finally got that their lack of a leash was a real error for everyone including the dog. We ended up enjoying each other's time over a campfire that night... again, good folks. I just think they didn't "get" that there are certain behaviors that can create unnecessary risk for everyone. They get it now. Pretty much dog owners are the only problems I've had on the trail. Everyone else seems to know how to behave themselves. And as others have noted, I too think good behavior increases the further one gets from the trailhead.

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tigermn
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PostTue Apr 15, 2014 8:19 am 
llamero wrote:
Negative encounters are very rare, but I have had about half a dozen in the last 15 years (since I started hiking with llamas).
FWIW I've run into llamas a few times on the trail. One that sticks in my mind is on the Tubal Cain trail a few years ago a group of young girls (with adult supervision of course) was herding them up the narrow trail. They were even picking up the poop behind them. I thought it was kind of cool, and they moved aside so I could pass (I was coming out, they were going in). Never anything negative, in fact I always thought it was kind of cool. Sure beats the guy with the big dog running back and forth ahead of his owner almost knocking you off the trail. lol.gif

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