Unexpected but memorable

[straitera]

On another thread a fellow got caught across a rising creek in a rainstorm and had to sleep there away from cozy comforts. These unexpected predicaments or changes of plans make some fine memories when recalling or retelling later on. Might not be fun at the time either. Ever get lost, lose your backpack, fall through the ice. etc? Fred Bear noted the same in his "Adventures of". Got any you care to relate?

 Near 30 years ago, I was set for a weeks worth of hunting completely w/o radio, TV, phone, or outside contact. A blistering blue norther came through one morning while I was in the woods far from camp. The black cloud front was clearly evident and moving quickly. Sure enough it got way cold in minutes combined with liquid sunshine. Could have been big trouble. (Later read 30 degree drop in 30 minutes and temps went down all day) Luckily, my old stashed wool sweater came in handy under a Patagonia vest while I counted rain drops dripping off the brim of my Stetson. I crouched under a tree shielding my longbow where I stayed reasonably dry & warm as possible until the rain stopped. Shortly after, a nice 6-point passed through the woods. No shot but the air suddenly smelled good. Perfect reminder of why I hunt.

[Swamp Pygmy]

Around february last year me and a friend were doing some scouting when a storm rolled in. We started heading back when it started drizzling. We opened up umbrellas and then a lightning storm started in the next few minutes. Giant bolts hitting the trees around our heads every few minutes. We had to close the umbrellas and run in the freezing rain. We got to the parking lot and had to strip and dry off with whatever we had in the car. I was rolling on my back seat like a dog after a bath.