# Have you ever felt like you just dodged a bullet?



## guzzo (Apr 12, 2011)

Have you ever had an experience that left you thinking…..sheesh that was a close one!

Here is one of mine that sticks in my mind and I often think about it still. 

About 3 years back I was living in Jabiru and found a great fishing hole. I would not catch big fish but would always catch something…usually small barra or Saratoga…great fun.

I would always look out for crocs and after going there about 20 times without seeing one I must confess I got complacent.

So on this particular afternoon I had decided to change my lure and crouched down at my tackle box near a big tree. 

I was about 1.5meters from the water and side on while I tied my lure.

When I stood up and faced the water, I froze…..there less than 2 meters away was a 4mtr croc, nosed in to where I was standing. It was on the surface and I remember it being so dark in colour and its eyes were so bright….almost bright yellow as they caught the sun.

It seemed like a long time but it was only seconds when the water exploded In a blur of motion and for a split second I could not tell if it was coming at me or what and before I realised what had happened it had turned on itself and was gone.

I was dripping with water from its splash and could not believe what had just happened.

I have given this much thought.


It must have been watching me and perhaps thought I was a wallaby or something when I was crouched.
It must have not made a decision to stalk me as it was on the surface in full view and I know that when they usually stalk something they slip under the water and explode without warning.
It must have been curious and when I stood up I might have startled it or something as it suddenly vanished.
If it had made the decision to get me I would have not had a chance and am sure it would have been over before I would have realised what happened.
 
A point of interest…a full sized horse was killed by a croc a couple of days later about 500meters away. 

Anyhow I learnt a couple of lessons….complacency…in relation to anything is never a good thing……and just because you can’t see a danger does not mean it is not there.

Because lets face it the most valuable thing any of us have is life!!

I am sure some APS member’s who keep Vens must have had some close calls that made them re think things….please feel free to share or any other close calls you have had.


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## Nighthawk (Apr 12, 2011)

Woah that would've been a rush!


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## guzzo (Apr 12, 2011)

When you think about it humans are really not equipt for being prey.....soft without any real defence esp against a real predator....I mean if something can bring down a full grown horse a stupid fisherman not paying attention would be like crushing a marshmellow with pliers haha


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## gex13 (Apr 12, 2011)

about three years ago me and my little brother him being 6 and me being 11 were looking for blue tongues and i lifted up a big rock and i turned around to my little brother walking to me with a red belly in his hands i stood up and said drop it and run the other way and he dropped it and stayed there it slithered towards me and reared up scary


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## guzzo (Apr 12, 2011)

Interesting, I have heard of other stories such as this with kids picking up venomous snakes without incident. Maybe their lack of fear because they do not know the danger somehow does not alarm the snake....who knows.....I know if I did it how it would end!!!


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## snakes123 (Apr 12, 2011)

I got chased by a red belly when i was 5?

Ben


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## longqi (Apr 12, 2011)

Since Ive been in Bali I have had three near misses brought into the shop
One was supposed to be a harmless reed snake and turned out to be the exact opposite when I opened the bag and it came out pretty pissed off
Other two were people walking in with a a blue banded krait sitting in their pocket
[their reaction when I very quietly put on a pair of gloves before going anywhere near it were interesting]

Then there is the main reason I ended up playing with reptiles
I was born in Ireland.... No snakes
raised in New Zealand.... No snakes
Came to Aus and went trout fly fishing near Goulburn
Lying on the bank after creeping up the rivers edge and this thing lifted its head up and looked at me
Mate said 'Brownie Dont move"
It slid through the crook of my arm and went away

Until then I thought if a snake saw you you died or at least got chased for a long way etc etc
Here was a so called deadly snake that couldnt care less
If that had not happened I probably would not have become so fascinated by this lovely animals


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## guzzo (Apr 12, 2011)

longqi said:


> Since Ive been in Bali I have had three near misses brought into the shop
> One was supposed to be a harmless reed snake and turned out to be the exact opposite when I opened the bag and it came out pretty pissed off
> Other two were people walking in with a a blue banded krait sitting in their pocket
> [their reaction when I very quietly put on a pair of gloves before going anywhere near it were interesting]
> ...


 
Interesting stories longqi....how venomous is a blue banded krait? ie would an untreated bite be life threatening?


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## Audio_anthrax (Apr 12, 2011)

From memory im kinda sure that a blue banded krait is pretty damn dangerous, being a type of sea snake? 
Only just remember seeing a doco on asian and indonesian snakes...


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## guzzo (Apr 12, 2011)

Audio_anthrax said:


> From memory im kinda sure that a blue banded krait is pretty damn dangerous, being a type of sea snake?
> Only just remember seeing a doco on asian and indonesian snakes...



Right....curiosity has been ignited.....I am about to google that blue banded krait!!!

Right just returned from Google

About 50% of all bites from this krait results in human death – even with the administration of anti-venin. Death is the usual result if no treatment is given. The closely related Bungarus multicinctus is ranked 3rd in the world for toxicity of venom (terrestrial snakes). Do be careful.

It appears it is a dangerous thing!


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## snakes123 (Apr 12, 2011)

longqi said:


> If that had not happened I probably would not have become so fascinated by this lovely animals


 
That happens to me allot. If i wasn't chased by a red belly when i was 5 i probably would have never new about this website and been fascinated with reptiles. I have been noticing lately that the smallest things you can change your life completely.

Ben


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## sookie (Apr 12, 2011)

Sometimes its a whole build up of little things that can lead to a whole life changing course.it is easy to see the one big moment when it all became clear,but all the little things leading up to the big moment we hardly notice.


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## snakes123 (Apr 12, 2011)

Yep.


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## Kyro (Apr 12, 2011)

My 11 yr old daughter recently had a very close call, she & her older brother had gone for a short bushwalk down to the local creek & on the way back they were walking up the hill backwards because it's supposedly easier, well she saw something flick out past her leg & thought it was just a stick but when she spun around she realised it was an adult RBB. As soon as she realised she slowly backed away from it then ran home bawling her eyes out the poor little darlin. I have never seen her so terrified but I think she learnt a big lesson, do not walk backwards through the bush lol.


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## snakes123 (Apr 12, 2011)

Another one.

If anyone knows Wideview rock climbing at the end of Wideview RD in Berowra, well this is where it happened.

My friend and i were walking along the 20 meter cliff right next to the edge. My friend steps on the leaves of a black boy getting her inside foot caught in the leaves and nearly fell over the edge. i hate heights so i was already scared but this has made me watch out when ever im walking anywhere that is taller than me... :/

Ben

Another one.

If anyone knows Wideview rock climbing at the end of Wideview RD in Berowra, well this is where it happened.

My friend and i were walking along the 20 meter cliff right next to the edge. My friend steps on the leaves of a black boy getting her inside foot caught in the leaves and nearly fell over the edge. i hate heights so i was already scared but this has made me watch out when ever im walking anywhere that is taller than me... :/

Ben


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## longqi (Apr 12, 2011)

Blue Banded Krait is very small but pretty deadly 500mm is a BIG one
Killed two people just in Bali last year

Its a land snake usually only found at ground level


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## Audio_anthrax (Apr 12, 2011)

Ahh so i stand corrected, it isnt a relative of the sea snake ^_^


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## kawasakirider (Apr 12, 2011)

*Cars:*
The year before last I was in a car with my mate and we rolled 3 times at 100. Just missed a powerpoll and we hit a tree, which stopped us from rolling anymore. If the tree wasn't there we woulda gone off an embankment and down into a creek. My gf was in the back if the car and she's lucky to have survived. There was about 3 grand worth of tools in the back of the car (we were doing an engine conversion on my car) and tue toolbox flipped over and all the tools came out. A 3 ft long breaker bar just missed my gf's head, along with sockets, spanners, knives, etc. Very lucky. The car was ruined.

Then a few months earlier hit a tree head on at 100, the tree was lying across my side of the car winscreen, fairly scary stuff.... This accident was never meant to happen (because my mate wasn't meant to be out driving) and my mate that was driving had a hardass father... So we got a dead rabbit, cut it open and smashed it all over the front of the car and said it was a kangaroo, and then staged an accident scene elsewhere, made skid marks and threw bits of car into the bush.

When I was about 8 I crashed a brand new mustang at Sydney airport. I was there with my grandparents to pick up my uncle, who was flying in from nz. We parked next to a brand new cobra. Anyway I was raving on about it and when we finally left to go outside, the owner of the car was putting his luggage in it.

My grandfather asked him if he wouldn't mind me having a look at the car. He did one better, he sat me in the drivers seat, started it up and let me rev the ******* out of it. The parking spot infront of the mustang was empty, and beyond that was a lane between parks where the cars follow to exit the carpark. 

Anyway something happened and the car took off. I ran over the guys foot, straight through the empty space and t boned an oncoming Nissan pulsar lolol. I looked up to see this young couple, the girl was NOT impressed. Then I turned around and waved at everyone through the back windscreen. 

Turns out I ran over the owners foot, and my uncle and grandfather went *** up... For some reason they tried to grab onto the car. The car launched at about 7k rpm and took off fairly quick, hahaha. I don't know why they tried to grab on.

The owner of the car told us to get away from the scene of the accident as soon as possible and he would fix it all up. I'm guessing he settled the other party with cash and no insurance companies were informed, hahahaha.

*Snakes:*
In regards to snakes, no one here will believe this story, but I'll tell it anyway.

I came home from school during the middle of october about 4 years ago and it was a hot day, so I took my shoes, socks and shirt off and only had a pair of boxer shorts on. One of my dogs was elderly at the time, and the heat was too much, so she was an inside dog for the last few years of her life.

Anyway, I decided to let her out onto the grass for a wizz and I was standing on the verandah at the front door calling her for about 5 minutes (she was deaf). Eventually she came out (she was a maltese terrier, so only a small dog) and I shut the flyscreen door. She was at my feet growling and I looked down and a few feet away from us was a snake that I *believe* was a taipan. The house is 35km north of Gympie and there are supposed to be taipans up there. It was a really light golden colour and its head was even lighter, it's body fairly slender but around 6 ft long. It could have been a brown, but someone told me that taipans are occasionally seen, and I've seen a couple of browns out there and they look darker. The pics I've seen of taipans look very similar to the snake that scared (I won't say attacked) me.

Anyway I scooped down really quickly and grabbed my dog like a football and at that moment it lunged at us and it brushed my arm, ddin't bite, but it touched me. Anyway, I was frantic and screaming out for help while dancing around and it kept striking (but not close enough that it could get me, since I've been researching snakes, I've seen videos of them bluffing). My grandfather came to the door and banged it with his walking stick and the snake struck at the flyscreen.

As soon as I jumped over the garden bed and got out of its way, it took off straight away. I doubt it wanted to get me, because it was so close it could have at any point. Has anyone else experienced an adult snake snap at them but not actually bite?

The two next stories are from when I lived in Tasmania...

I was walking to my neighbours house, who lived up the hill and I didn't realise they weren't home. Anyway I had no shoes on, it was a VERY hot day (yes, they do get hot days down there  ) the next thing I know, people were yelling at me to run and I turned to see my neighbours driving up the road yelling at me. Anyway I was in long grass so I had no idea what was happening and kept walking (lol) and they sped past me. The mother ran out of her ute holding a shovel and was sprinting toward me and I was like ***, and she killed a tiger snake exactly where I was. They all saw it and said it followed me for about 15 meters. It was a big snake, too. Now, I don't think it wanted to get me, because I was only going at walking pace, but perhaps I disturbed it and it was curious?

The second one is also fairly unbelievable, but it did happen. My grandmother was mowing the front part of the lawn with a push mower, and my grandfather (who has chronic arthritis and couldn't get to her) was yelling that a snake was coming toward her. She is deaf, and the sound of the lawnmower drowned out the sound of my grandfathers yells, anyway he threw something at her to get her attention and a large black snake (would have been a tiger, we didn't see anything else on our property town there) was going straight toward the lawnmower. She ran away, leaving the lawnmower running and the snake went straight toward it and kept on going.

You guys don't have to believe these snake stories, as I know they seem far fetched (especially the part about the large brown or taipan touching me) but I have no reason to lie. I've always been interested in snakes, sharks, crocodiles and fast bikes/cars though.... Anything to get the blood pumping is good.

This is quite a cool video, obviously the snake wanted to be left alone, but after provocation it really chased for a fair way. I'd hate to be in this situation and fall over hahaha.

YouTube - Don't chase Brown Snakes (Pseudonaja nuchalis)



Kyro said:


> My 11 yr old daughter recently had a very close call, she & her older brother had gone for a short bushwalk down to the local creek & on the way back they were walking up the hill backwards because it's supposedly easier, well she saw something flick out past her leg & thought it was just a stick but when she spun around she realised it was an adult RBB. As soon as she realised she slowly backed away from it then ran home bawling her eyes out the poor little darlin. I have never seen her so terrified but I think she learnt a big lesson, do not walk backwards through the bush lol.


 
This is true, it's much easier to walk backward up a hill lol!


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## Snakewoman (Apr 12, 2011)

Back in 2006 I was on a train on the way up to Melbourne, the train was nearing Corio station when suddenly there was a loud thud. The next thing I know the carriage is shaking and there are rocks and debris flying everywhere. There were so many rock flying past both sides of the train, moving very quickly, and I remember a thought popping into my head that if those rocks started coming through the windows I was going to be dead.

When I first heard the thud the driver of the train took a while to put the brakes on, and then released them, and applied them again. I later found out that he was new to the job, he must have been given a real fright. When the train finally stopped everyone was very quiet, and just sat still. Luckily nobody on the train was hurt. A lady sitting a bit further up in the carriage from me stood up, looked out the window and swore. I stood up at looked down at the front of the train where I saw a white Holden Commodore... well, what was left of it. The back half was wedged underneath the front of the train. The driver got out and went to inspect the situation, and when he did, I went to the other side of the train and stuck my head out the door where I saw the other half of the car's twisted metal and various engine parts trapped under the train's wheels.

One man who worked for Vline told us there wasn't anyone in the car but I'd seen two firefighters walk up the the front of the train. One stood back while the other went to look at the car. He then looked back and the other man and shook his head. The expression on his face told me there was in fact someone there and they were dead. The SES turned up later and put black tarp over the car. 

On a different train trip after the accident a Vline staff member was speaking to me about the accident and said the trains usually traveled at about 90k's through that crossing, and I can't help thinking that the train could possibly have derailed that day and I could have been killed along with a packed train of people on their way to see the football. I managed to find out who the deceased man was and went to his funeral, I figured since I was there when he died that it was the right thing to do, and I also thought it might help me deal with what happened, and it did. Sorry for the long story.


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## Snake_Whisperer (Apr 12, 2011)

Congrats on your near-life experience! Since it didn't kill you, you will be stronger for it!


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## zack13 (Apr 12, 2011)

Im originally from the US and when I was three someone told me that you could tell if a snake was venomous by looking in their eyes. While we were at our mountain house I was just below the porch when my mom found me laying about 20 centimeters from a huge eastern diamondback rattle snake looking into its eye to see if it was venomous or not.


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## kawasakirider (Apr 12, 2011)

zack13 said:


> Im originally from the US and when I was three someone told me that you could tell if a snake was venomous by looking in their eyes. While we were at our mountain house I was just below the porch when my mom found me laying about 20 centimeters from a huge eastern diamondback rattle snake looking into its eye to see if it was venomous or not.


 
LOL that is scary.

I was on a plane from Sydney to Mudjimba once and it was storming when we were trying to land. The pilot came in WAY too fast, hit the tarmac and only JUST had a chance to get off the runway again before going into the bush.

The "near death" experiences I've had haven't been really scary (except the brown snake one, I was petrified), everything slows down and you can sort of anticipate what is going to happen.


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## SarahFH (Apr 12, 2011)

My first two experiences were when i was very young living in PNG.

The first time my family and I were in a dash 8 landing at mendi airport when someone in a cesna decided to taxi out in front of our plane - all i can remember is the plane swerving and people screaming though.
The second was when I was in preschool and a group of rascals tried to rob an armorguard truck which lead to a shoot out right outside of the class room which I will never forget. 

My only other experience like that was a car crash. Lane cove road in sydney - some idiot clipped a car, came over the traffic island, hit us, we spun out and on to the other side of the road into oncoming traffic. 6 cars were involved. I was lucky to suffer no injuries.


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## HOM3L3SS (Apr 12, 2011)

Ok...my stories not so good but, i nearly got hit in the face with a soccer ball today at soccer training...

Harry


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## dangles (Apr 12, 2011)

In my younger days I was at a mates place having a few drinks when his neighbour, over the back, came and told us off for making noise at 630pm. After planning and grabbing supplies we decided a couple of midnight explosions would go well in front of his house. 2 of us snuck into his driveway and lit the fuses. Something went wrong with mine and flared up straight away only giving me time to turn my head before it went off. After running back to mates place shellshocked they drove me to the hospital. 9 stitches in my left thigh and many lacerations to my hand that was holding it was enough to wake me from my childish behaviour


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## guzzo (Apr 12, 2011)

Wow some amazing stories. I think everybody at some time or another has a brush with disaster....


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## pseudechis4740 (Apr 12, 2011)

When I was about 7 or 8 I discovered a black snake of a reasonable size (I won't try to guess for the sake of exaggeration) down in the entrance way of the local fire brigade which had an inset veranda / entrance way. Back then most of information on TV about snakes involved a tour guide standing near a snake charmer with a monocled cobra in a basket. So my solution was to run home and ask for wicker basket. I chose not disclose for what purpose the basket was for. Luckily my grandfather (god bless him RIP) chose to follow me out of curiosity more than any other reason and he just happened to have the dutch hoe in hand that he was using at the time to garden. Once I arrived back at the fire brigade with my grandfather just behind he then proceeded to dice up the snake before I had a chance to try and stuff it into the basket. Although it was only a black snake it would have been more than sufficient to knock a 7 year old on their ***.



guzzo said:


> Interesting stories longqi....how venomous is a blue banded krait? ie would an untreated bite be life threatening?


The kraits are amongst the deadliest snakes in asia. The many banded krait is the most venomous snake in asia. Australian snakes are great but if you are truly interested in snakes you should also seek out information about all the snakes of the world. There are some remarkable species out there both biologically & toxicologically speaking that nothing in Australia comes close to.


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## snakeluvver (Apr 12, 2011)

Mine isn't that good...
It happened last July while I was in scotland with my cousin and friend. We were at his/my friends house and we saw a grass snake slither under a big rock. It took 3 of us but we managed to tilt the rock up. It was on top of a small hill and i was holding the back end of the rock (so I was lower down than the others). I slipped and let go of the rock, it came rolling down while i was on the ground, straight for my head. I got up and ran. I got pinned against a fence with my foot under the rock (which weighed about 20kg BTW) but i was so happy that i had got up in time otherwise it wouldve crushed my head. No idea what happened to the snake :?


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## [email protected] (Apr 12, 2011)

*yep i dodged a front end loader off a bob cat*

i was in this trench standing on top of a steel cage scraping the left over concrete out of the bucket.......when i copped a face and mouth full of oil after the hydraulic hose's snapped off with high pressure and it was hot,,,,in a split second i jump back(lucky my feet were not beneath the steel or i would not have been able to jump back as quick...) any way the bucket fell at the same time as the hose snapped and landed right on top of where i was standing like a guillotine......wedged into the steel cage.....the operator didn't put the bucket on properly..........i wasn't happy.....:evil:
i could have been chopped in half.....





yeah i felt like i dodged a bullet

cheers steve


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## guzzo (Apr 12, 2011)

[email protected] said:


> i was in this trench standing on top of a steel cage scraping the left over concrete out of the bucket.......when i copped a face and mouth full of oil after the hydraulic hose's snapped off with high pressure and it was hot,,,,in a split second i jump back(lucky my feet were not beneath the steel or i would not have been able to jump back as quick...) any way the bucket fell at the same time as the hose snapped and landed right on top of where i was standing like a guillotine......wedged into the steel cage.....the operator didn't put the bucket on properly..........i wasn't happy.....:evil:
> i could have been chopped in half.....View attachment 195137
> 
> 
> ...


 
Whoa, thats all it takes....one mistake...sad thing is often it is not the one making the mistake that cops it.....lucky escape elapid


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## woody101 (Apr 12, 2011)

i was in the army back in 08 and i got a new bit of kit called a bivy bag its a waterproof sleeping bag cover anywho not knowing anything about the damn thing it was p+++ing down one night out field and i thought good chance to see if it works so when i finally got to get my 2hrs sleep i zip up my sleeping bag zip up my bivy bag not know that when its completly done up its airtight like a zip lock bag i woke up about 10mins later coughing and struggling for air lucky enough i was able to open it up intime before passinh out i didnt think much of it then but now i think about it if i passed out i wouldnt be here today.

thats my story


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## MathewB (Apr 12, 2011)

This isn't very good at all but..... When I was 6 I was riding my bike up and down and across my street when this car came up it. I thought 'How cool would it be if I rode in front if that car?!?!'. Well as it turned out it wasn't a very good idea at all, as the car came down the street and was about 10 metres from me I took off and the car was going faster then anticipated and I got passed by about 1metre. 

I have one about a Red Backed spider but meh


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## smigga (Apr 12, 2011)

Noone will believe mine but here goes......
I was at my dads jobsite and got bored so decided to go for a walk along the cliff (4-5m) edge. As i'm walking a rock crumbles, i fall and land on my back in the sand between some rocks. As i walk back up the stairs to the jobsite a pretty large brown snake slithers straight across my path, scary stuff.


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## SteveNT (Apr 12, 2011)

I lived out at Cobourg Peninsular in NW Arnhem Land (paradise) for 3 years and met crocs almost daily. One day I let my guard down.

I was checking out a rock pool on the edge of the water, I had crushed a small crab and all sorts of amazing fish and crustaceans were coming out of the corals and crevices for a feed. I was squatting down (sound familiar Guzzo?) totally engrossed.

I went to stand up and the water behind me exploded! A 4m saltie had snuck up thinking I was wallaby size and lucky for me he got a surprize and bolted. But he came back and followed me along the coast as I walked the 3km home. That got my attention back where it was supposed to be ha ha!

Another time I got flattened by one a similar size. There are sea lice the size of mice out there and they get between the croc's scales for a bit of blood sucking. Obviously there is no joy in this for the crocs. To get rid of them the crocs go up the beach into small freshwater pools above the high tide mark. I was aware of this practice and checked that where there was a track going up there was another one coming down. If there wasn't I would circle around the back of the pool. 

One beautiful afternoon I was walking along a beach mesmerised by a pair of huge manta rays feasting on juvie prawns in the shallows just a couple of meters from shore.
I heard a noise and spun around to see a big saltie flying down the slope and there was no time to do anything. He flattened me and ran straight over the top of me and into the sea. I was up in a flash and he was still heading out and you could see the spray flying as the manta rays bolted too.

There was a perfect impression of me in the sand with old mate's track over the top. It usually took me 45 minutes to get home from that spot but that day I did it in 15! Another reminder to PAY ATTENTION in the realm of the world's biggest reptile.

Anyway when I got back I grabbed my girlfriend and a dinghy and took her back to show her where it happened. While we there two crocs popped up off the shore, it was like one was saying "see, this is where the human tried to trap me!"


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## kawasakirider (Apr 12, 2011)

SteveNT said:


> I heard a noise and spun around to see a big saltie flying down the slope and there was no time to do anything. He flattened me and ran straight over the top of me and into the sea. I was up in a flash and he was still heading out and you could see the spray flying as the manta rays bolted too.


If that is no joke, that is the scariest story in this thread. Isn't a saltie that size atleast 400kg though? I've been hammered by bulls about 800 KG, so I guess you could get away with it. That is crazy.


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## Xcell (Apr 12, 2011)

I was at an outdoor concert in a small victorian contry town, i was sitting on the ground. a mate walked past and i asked him to give me a hand up, he grabbed my hand and pulled me up, then straight away jumped back and yelled, i looked down and saw a baby brown snake slither through my legs. I dont know if i was sitting on it or it was curled up next to me or even just moving through at the time. But it nearly gave me a heart attack, lol. A local i.d. It then picked it up with a help from a stick and moved it into the buah away from people.


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## saximus (Apr 13, 2011)

Call me silly but I never realised crocs were that sneaky. I always knew they were good but figured that for us "smart" humans it would be easy to spot them in the day time even without paying that much attention. I can't imagine what you'd think in the seconds between seeing that and the thing deciding not to eat you. Like you said Guzzo, we really are useless animals when it comes to physical attributes.


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## guzzo (Apr 13, 2011)

SteveNT said:


> I lived out at Cobourg Peninsular in NW Arnhem Land (paradise) for 3 years and met crocs almost daily. One day I let my guard down.
> 
> I was checking out a rock pool on the edge of the water, I had crushed a small crab and all sorts of amazing fish and crustaceans were coming out of the corals and crevices for a feed. I was squatting down (sound familiar Guzzo?) totally engrossed.
> 
> ...


 
Man that takes the cake, not once but twice........I have often wondered how many times a croc has snuck up for a look and I have not even known....You sure were lucky Steve



saximus said:


> Call me silly but I never realised crocs were that sneaky. I always knew they were good but figured that for us "smart" humans it would be easy to spot them in the day time even without paying that much attention. I can't imagine what you'd think in the seconds between seeing that and the thing deciding not to eat you. Like you said Guzzo, we really are useless animals when it comes to physical attributes.




They are the master of sneaky.....that is the thing with reptiles very paitent efficient predators.


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## sarah_m (Apr 13, 2011)

When I was 3 I fell head first out of a 2 story building onto concrete. I had been looking out the window of a car dealership while mum and dad were signing papers, and decided to put my hands on the window and look down. There was no glass on the window and the fly screen was rotten, so I went straight through.
Luckily, I landed with my arm under my face, which the paramedics thought saved my life, or at the very least my face.
The only injury I had was a broken wrist and a concussion.


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## guzzo (Apr 13, 2011)

sarah_m said:


> When I was 3 I fell head first out of a 2 story building onto concrete. I had been looking out the window of a car dealership while mum and dad were signing papers, and decided to put my hands on the window and look down. There was no glass on the window and the fly screen was rotten, so I went straight through.
> Luckily, I landed with my arm under my face, which the paramedics thought saved my life, or at the very least my face.
> The only injury I had was a broken wrist and a concussion.


 
That would be a parents nightmare.....wow lucky escape.

On another note - 


When I get home I will post a pic of my friend I took out fishing in croc waters for the first time. He had his camera out and was snapping pics of crocs. We were in my 12ft tinnie (I called it the Beige Mist..haha always leaked and I would get cracks welded up all the time.....it was a junky boat but we had some adventures for sure....anyway) My friend saw a big croc on the bank and asked me to nose the boat in so he could take a pic......As I was taking a pic of him taking a pic that croc exploded straight at us and belted across the surface before slipping under the boat. Got a pic of it coming straight at us.


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## shell477 (Apr 13, 2011)

when i was 13, my friend and i went to the local skate park with our scooters. we put them down and a little while later saw a woman walking off with her 2 kids and they had our scooters. 

we went and confronted her and demanded them back. she said no so i tried to grab mine of the girl and the mom belted me over the head. so we left them and let them go home. we knew where they lived so went and got an adult and went round there. 

kids were playing with their new toys on the footpath so i grabbed mine. the kid started screaming, mum comes out, chases me round and round and round the car trying to get me. our adult friend intervened and they had massive fight. we finally escaped and went straight to the police. 

turns out after we drove away, the psycho woman went inside her house and stabbed her flatmate heaps of times for not coming out to help her. imagine if she'd grabbed the knife on her way out the first time! she went to jail for a little while i think. at 13, it was bloody scary


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## saximus (Apr 13, 2011)

This doesn't match some of the stories on here but when I was 17 I got my motorbike Ls. We went go-karting for a friend's birthday and on the way out I dropped the bike on the gravel driveway which caused two issues. The first was that for some reason the bike kept stalling unless I kept the revs up quite high. The second was that dirt got caught in the throttle so it wasn't springing back to it's normal position and kept getting stuck. So these two issues, combined with my inexperience on the road and on a bike, meant that I was concentrating too hard on keeping it from stalling and not on the road. I came up to a corner (going way faster than I would have been if I was concentrating) and went to release the throttle only to have it stick open so I ended up going straight and into a drainage ditch. The bike followed the ditch till the end where it promptly came to a stop. However, I didn't and ended up flying through the air, landed on my butt and rolled under a bush. Luckily all I ended up with was a bruised bum and a written off bike but going back there later I realised that there was a telegraph pole and a brick wall that I could have hit which may not have been so kind to me.


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## kawasakirider (Apr 13, 2011)

I was at a motocross park a while back and was riding with one of my mates. It is a place you can camp at and you can't ride until a certain hour of the morning. Anyway we got up really early and waited for the time to come when we could ride. It was a really cold foggy morning, so visibility was low on certain parts of the track.

I hit a kicker in 3rd gear pinned but got cross rutted and had to bail. My bike landed on me from about 25 feet in the air. Couldn't walk for quite a while, but later that day I was shredding again.

Moto crashes don't really bother me, and this one doesn't still to this day, but a crash that heavy I was lucky to walk away from it.


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## waruikazi (Apr 13, 2011)

Steve and Guzzo- I'd love to have a similar awesome croc story to share, but those giant reptiles scare the crap out of me so i never take any chances around the water up here.

The worst croc story i've got was a recently shot 3.8m jobbie get a bit nervy and wriggly on me when i was pulling it out of the water. I jumped pretty quickly onto the back of my ute when that happened.


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## SteveNT (Apr 13, 2011)

saximus said:


> Call me silly but I never realised crocs were that sneaky. I always knew they were good but figured that for us "smart" humans it would be easy to spot them in the day time even without paying that much attention. I can't imagine what you'd think in the seconds between seeing that and the thing deciding not to eat you. Like you said Guzzo, we really are useless animals when it comes to physical attributes.



They were around before the dinosaurs, they ate dinosaurs (google supercroc) and they will probably outlast us also. They are superb ambush predators and I am aware that whenever I am near their water I am being watched. After 35+ years up here mostly in remote areas I have had many many close ups with these guys. If you get near a big one your heart races no matter how familiar you are with them.


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## mungus (Apr 13, 2011)

Well.........I was lucky enough to marry the right girl..............
Some of my mates not so lucky...........
Some have almost died trying to get away from the Ex.........


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## hrafna (Apr 13, 2011)

in high school i had a gun held to my head and the guy pulled the trigger, only to realise he left the safety on. i was stabbed twice in the same school. recently we had someone try to break into our place, i was at home with 2 kids sleeping and the wife was at work, guy attacked me with a knife and i had cuts on my hands, stomach and a deep gash in my arm. when i was a kid i was at surfers paradise and i was stuck for 1.5 hrs while a 3 metre tiger was cirling a couple of us, i was on my boogie board!


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## Sezzzzzzzzz (Apr 13, 2011)

hrafna said:


> in high school i had a gun held to my head and the guy pulled the trigger, only to realise he left the safety on. i was stabbed twice in the same school. recently we had someone try to break into our place, i was at home with 2 kids sleeping and the wife was at work, guy attacked me with a knife and i had cuts on my hands, stomach and a deep gash in my arm.


 

Exactly why i am getting my daughter out of sydney before she starts school.... OMG...


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## kawasakirider (Apr 13, 2011)

*** school was this?


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## hrafna (Apr 13, 2011)

marsden high school in west ryde! this is why i am sending my kids to a performing arts school when they hit high school!


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## kawasakirider (Apr 13, 2011)

That's crazy man. Did the guy who pulled the gun get arrested?


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## snakeluvver (Apr 13, 2011)

How thats terrifying hrafna!
That stabbing thing reminded me of a sorta near death experience. When I was 5 my mum was cooking and chopping stuff up with one of those big serrated knives. A spider ran up her leg, she screamed and THREW the knife in the air, I just moved out of the way and it landed on my foot. I got 3 stitches but thats nothing compared to what would've happened if I hadn't moved!
So it wasn't really dodging a bullet, more like trying to dodge a bullet and getting hit in the foot then yelling loads of swear words that my mum was shocked a five year old boy knew :lol:


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## MathewB (Apr 13, 2011)

snakeluvver said:


> more like trying to dodge a bullet and getting hit in the foot then yelling loads of swear words that my mum was shocked a five year old boy knew :lol:



hahahahaha!!!!!


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## dossy (Apr 13, 2011)

i went down to a small river near my house with 2 mates (ones a girl and the other acts like a girl ) and we went to a part of the river that not many people go to and i put my bag down ( food and water) and the 3 of us jumped in to the water. after about 2 hours we jumped out to grab some food and water i stuck my hand in and pulld foos and water out then ziped up the bag again. at the end of the day we started walking back up the hill ( ita about 1hr 20min walk to help) i felt somthing movin in my bag so i took it off and opend it up to have a look. i droped the bag and took a few steps back and out came a brown with a rat in its mouth.both my mates racked off very fast and made the long up a steap hill walk in about 15min

the lesson i lernt from this was never stick my hand in a bag but insted always get a mate to do it


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## Southern_Forest_Drag (Apr 13, 2011)

Had a few very surprised im alive to this day haha, the 2 most unique are probally: 
also had numerous car accidents etc

1) - Im sure most of you heard of Black Saturday 2008, i live in Kinglake so i was effected anyway i was living at home with just my mum who was at work and i had a big friday night so i got home and was hangover i was sleeping and i must of heard the phone ring about 16-17 times but i just couldnt be bothered answering this was at like 6pm? then all of a sudden the phone exploded (heard a huge bang) so i got up to see *** was going on and the curtains were open i look out side and the sky is red and the neighbours houses are on fire as wel as all of my fence and the road/grass/trees quickly grabbed a few lizards i could get to and got in my car had to drive down this bush road and trees were falling it felt like it was 70 degrees i was getting radiant burns etc a massive tree was blocking my path i had to reverse and just flaw the car over the tree very surprised i got over it, was pretty sure i was going to die that day. Was a long 8 or 9 hours in a open paddock hoping i wasnt going to die, not something i talk about.

2) when i was about 3-4 i was at my aunt/uncles in queensland and they lived on alot of bush was by a pool my cousin was ment to be supervising me but was busy on the phone to his girlfriend and walked away for 10 or so mins anyway this huge monitor limped over to the edge of the pool and it must of had a broken leg because it was very slow anyway i got out of the pool and dont ask me why but i was a kid i decieded to hug the monitor lol.... obviously wouldnt of died but it could of done ALOT of damage he seemed complacent he just let me touch him and didnt hiss or tailwhip cousin quickly got him away when he returned though lol.


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## hrafna (Apr 13, 2011)

kawasakirider said:


> That's crazy man. Did the guy who pulled the gun get arrested?


yeah cops went to his place and grabbed him because he did a runner. the school was getting such a bad rep they tried to keep everything under wraps, cops were still called out just about every second day though! thankfully i got a scholarship to a performing arts school for drama and i did yrs 11 and 12 there, otherwise i would never have hung around to do my hsc!


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## kawasakirider (Apr 13, 2011)

Southern_Forest_Drag said:


> Had a few very surprised im alive to this day haha, the 2 most unique are probally:
> also had numerous car accidents etc
> 
> 1) - Im sure most of you heard of Black Saturday 2008, i live in Kinglake so i was effected anyway i was living at home with just my mum who was at work and i had a big friday night so i got home and was hangover i was sleeping and i must of heard the phone ring about 16-17 times but i just couldnt be bothered answering this was at like 6pm? then all of a sudden the phone exploded (heard a huge bang) so i got up to see *** was going on and the curtains were open i look out side and the sky is red and the neighbours houses are on fire as wel as all of my fence and the road/grass/trees quickly grabbed a few lizards i could get to and got in my car had to drive down this bush road and trees were falling it felt like it was 70 degrees i was getting radiant burns etc a massive tree was blocking my path i had to reverse and just flaw the car over the tree very surprised i got over it, was pretty sure i was going to die that day. Was a long 8 or 9 hours in a open paddock hoping i wasnt going to die, not something i talk about.
> ...


 
That second one is funny, first one is scary as mate.

hrafna - sounds like an american school haha.


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## guzzo (Apr 13, 2011)

saximus said:


> This doesn't match some of the stories on here but when I was 17 I got my motorbike Ls. We went go-karting for a friend's birthday and on the way out I dropped the bike on the gravel driveway which caused two issues. The first was that for some reason the bike kept stalling unless I kept the revs up quite high. The second was that dirt got caught in the throttle so it wasn't springing back to it's normal position and kept getting stuck. So these two issues, combined with my inexperience on the road and on a bike, meant that I was concentrating too hard on keeping it from stalling and not on the road. I came up to a corner (going way faster than I would have been if I was concentrating) and went to release the throttle only to have it stick open so I ended up going straight and into a drainage ditch. The bike followed the ditch till the end where it promptly came to a stop. However, I didn't and ended up flying through the air, landed on my butt and rolled under a bush. Luckily all I ended up with was a bruised bum and a written off bike but going back there later I realised that there was a telegraph pole and a brick wall that I could have hit which may not have been so kind to me.




Hey mate there are more people who meet their maker from motorbike and car crashes than from croc attacks....getting behind the wheel or handlebars is probably the most dangerous thing we do! Qualifies for a bullet dodge to me!!



Southern_Forest_Drag said:


> Had a few very surprised im alive to this day haha, the 2 most unique are probally:
> also had numerous car accidents etc
> 
> 1) - Im sure most of you heard of Black Saturday 2008, i live in Kinglake so i was effected anyway i was living at home with just my mum who was at work and i had a big friday night so i got home and was hangover i was sleeping and i must of heard the phone ring about 16-17 times but i just couldnt be bothered answering this was at like 6pm? then all of a sudden the phone exploded (heard a huge bang) so i got up to see *** was going on and the curtains were open i look out side and the sky is red and the neighbours houses are on fire as wel as all of my fence and the road/grass/trees quickly grabbed a few lizards i could get to and got in my car had to drive down this bush road and trees were falling it felt like it was 70 degrees i was getting radiant burns etc a massive tree was blocking my path i had to reverse and just flaw the car over the tree very surprised i got over it, was pretty sure i was going to die that day. Was a long 8 or 9 hours in a open paddock hoping i wasnt going to die, not something i talk about.
> ...



I know a fellow who was a cop in that area looking for survivors....that was some terrible stuff



waruikazi said:


> Steve and Guzzo- I'd love to have a similar awesome croc story to share, but those giant reptiles scare the crap out of me so i never take any chances around the water up here.
> 
> The worst croc story i've got was a recently shot 3.8m jobbie get a bit nervy and wriggly on me when i was pulling it out of the water. I jumped pretty quickly onto the back of my ute when that happened.




Gordo you are probably the most at risk of getting nabbed by a croc out of all of us.....



guzzo said:


> That would be a parents nightmare.....wow lucky escape.
> 
> On another note -
> 
> ...


View attachment 195272

View attachment 195273


Found the pics......They do not do the situation justice but it was hairy seeing that belting straight at us across the surface only at the last minute to go under the boat....funny thing is my friend froze and did not move the whole time. I am yet to see his picture haha maybe he never got to take it haha.


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## Renenet (Apr 13, 2011)

hrafna said:


> in high school i had a gun held to my head and the guy pulled the trigger, only to realise he left the safety on. i was stabbed twice in the same school.



Sheesh, hrafna - is that why you took up medieval sword fighting and started wearing armour?


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## guzzo (Apr 13, 2011)

hrafna said:


> in high school i had a gun held to my head and the guy pulled the trigger, only to realise he left the safety on. i was stabbed twice in the same school. recently we had someone try to break into our place, i was at home with 2 kids sleeping and the wife was at work, guy attacked me with a knife and i had cuts on my hands, stomach and a deep gash in my arm. when i was a kid i was at surfers paradise and i was stuck for 1.5 hrs while a 3 metre tiger was cirling a couple of us, i was on my boogie board!




I missed your post....thats crazy intense stuff....wow...u really dodged a bullet there!!!


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## hrafna (Apr 13, 2011)

Renenet said:


> Sheesh, hrafna - is that why you took up medieval sword fighting and started wearing armour?


 not quite, i had an interest in medieval stuff to begin with but i must admit now that i am teaching people, i do teach what to do if someone confronts you with a knife and you can't get away!


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## SteveNT (Apr 13, 2011)

View attachment 195272

View attachment 195273


Found the pics......They do not do the situation justice but it was hairy seeing that belting straight at us across the surface only at the last minute to go under the boat....funny thing is my friend froze and did not move the whole time. I am yet to see his picture haha maybe he never got to take it haha.[/QUOTE]

Looks like a Mary River Houseboat hire dinghy on Coroboree eh? A couple of years back we had two big boys smashing eachother in front of the houseboat. They were so enthusistic they crashed into us but didn't let up for a minute. November is always good for territorial disputes!


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## Red-Ink (Apr 13, 2011)

I grew up in Southeast Asia... I have dodged a few bullets... well more like they missed really.


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## Renenet (Apr 13, 2011)

Some close calls here, especially with crocs and homicidally inclined students (or teachers?). I didn't realise school in some parts of Sydney was that bad.

When I was 20, I went on a solo trip to Indonesia. A week into it I was on the west coast of Java, feeling overwhelmed and wondering what the hell I was doing here. So naturally I went for a walk, hoping to find some peace. I chose a path through the jungle that led to a waterfall. 

Soon after I'd reached the waterfall, two young men showed up. They pestered me continuously, asking me if my father or brother was coming. Bloody annoying! Plan scuttled, I gave up and walked back, the bothersome men following. 

When I was almost back at the main road, I met an Australian who was about to take the same walk I'd been on. We introduced ourselves – I'll call him Troy for the sake of this story – and had a short conversation. 

The two young men stood to the side and waited until Troy left. Moments after he’d gone they closed in on me, one in front, one behind. The one behind put his hands around my neck and started to squeeze. 

I automatically went limp, arms dangling down by my sides. But I could still breathe, so I took in as much air as I could and yelled for Troy. Even though the noise sounded pretty weak to me and I was almost certain Troy was already out of earshot, it startled the men, who scampered off towards the road like rabbits. 

Released suddenly, I staggered for a moment, shocked and breathless, then bolted in the opposite direction, heading for the waterfall and Troy. I've always been a bit of a runt and athleticism and I usually cannot coordinate with each other, but I was a cross-country star that day. I bet I covered that distance in half the time it took me to walk it.

I realised later they'd decided it was safe to attack me because I'd told Troy I was travelling alone. I had bruises on my neck in the shape of fingers for around a week. 

At the time I wasn't all that scared, more stunned, and all of that was quickly overcome with adrenaline. The experience didn't even put me off travelling, although it does make me warier – I continued my trip then and continue to travel now. It's only when I hear about backpackers who go missing and turn up dead in suspicious circumstances that the room goes chilly for a second, when I think: _Had I done just one thing differently or had those men been more determined, that could have been me_. 

Creepy, creepy, creepy.


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## guzzo (Apr 13, 2011)

SteveNT said:


> View attachment 195272
> 
> View attachment 195273
> 
> ...


 
Looks like a Mary River Houseboat hire dinghy on Coroboree eh? A couple of years back we had two big boys smashing eachother in front of the houseboat. They were so enthusistic they crashed into us but didn't let up for a minute. November is always good for territorial disputes![/QUOTE]


Great spotting there....yes it was an ex mary river hire boat..... tired old thing



Renenet said:


> Some close calls here, especially with crocs and homicidally inclined students (or teachers?). I didn't realise school in some parts of Sydney was that bad.
> 
> When I was 20, I went on a solo trip to Indonesia. A week into it I was on the west coast of Java, feeling overwhelmed and wondering what the hell I was doing here. So naturally I went for a walk, hoping to find some peace. I chose a path through the jungle that led to a waterfall.
> 
> ...


 
They would have been after your kidneys for sure haha......not funny though....scary story


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## saximus (Apr 14, 2011)

guzzo said:


> They would have been after your kidneys for sure haha......not funny though....scary story


 lol you're terrible


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## Renenet (Apr 14, 2011)

guzzo said:


> They would have been after your kidneys for sure haha......not funny though....scary story


 
 

Hadn't thought of that possibility. Doubt they would have known where the kidneys are.


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## KaotikJezta (Apr 14, 2011)

hrafna said:


> marsden high school in west ryde! this is why i am sending my kids to a performing arts school when they hit high school!


Haha, I went to Marsden High School, wasn't that bad when I went there. I left in 78


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## LullabyLizard (Apr 14, 2011)

hrafna said:


> marsden high school in west ryde! this is why i am sending my kids to a performing arts school when they hit high school!


 
Which one? I go to Newtown


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## guzzo (Apr 14, 2011)

LullabyLizard said:


> Which one? I go to Newtown



Quick....get out while you still can....that place sounds crazy


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## hrafna (Apr 14, 2011)

LullabyLizard said:


> Which one? I go to Newtown



mcdonald college of performing arts!


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## discomat (Apr 14, 2011)

guzzo said:


> When you think about it humans are really not equipt for being prey.....soft without any real defence esp against a real predator....I mean if something can bring down a full grown horse a stupid fisherman not paying attention would be like crushing a marshmellow with pliers haha


 
Humans are probably the most equipped animals on the planet for being prey. We have ingenuity and the ability to use tools and create things. Being clever is handy in the animal kingdom.


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## saximus (Apr 14, 2011)

Yeah we have big brains but we have nothing going for us physically. It's just the different evolutionary path (if you believe in these things ) that we took. I think chimps are a pretty good example since they are so close to us but they make up for their smaller brain capacity by having strength that is almost unfathomable to us from such a small human-like body shape.


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## guzzo (Apr 14, 2011)

discomat said:


> Humans are probably the most equipped animals on the planet for being prey. We have ingenuity and the ability to use tools and create things. Being clever is handy in the animal kingdom.



Agreed....the human mind is a very powerful adversary and puts humans at the top of the food chain without a doubt........A crocodile is no danger to a human sitting in a M1A1 Abrams tank...but take him out leave him in his natural state equipped with no claws, and soft skin with blunt teeth or any real effective defence....... then he is of no match against a mass of scales teeth and massive jaw pressure..........unless.....of course......he is Chunk Norris!!


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## saximus (Apr 14, 2011)

lol Guzzo I just got an image of you sitting in a tank with an army helmet - "Go on croc, splash me now...I dare you"


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## Tristan (Apr 14, 2011)

hmm i have a couple.

when i was knee high to a grass hopper, i lived in Kununurra, my parents and i were at a friend’s house for a BBQ they had a pink and grey in a cage that would bob up and down if you did and say hello, so I’m playing with the bird bobbing up and down, and then my dad yells "Tristan don't move" so being confused i looked around and right near my left leg was a lovely King Brown, reared up looking at me, now stand still i did not, i did that Cat trick where from a standing position i jumped up and sideways to safety, unfortunately the snake could not do the same and was quickly dispatched.

the other one happened last year i was free diving/fishing off Perth coast, i was catching crayfish by hand, and i spotted one so i took a breath, dove down to assess the size and location, go back up get another breath and dive down this time i grabbed him but he ducked back into his hole in the reef so i thrust my arm in after him and i had a weak hold and could not dislodge the bugger so i go to pull my arm out, but i knocked a Sea Urchin loose and it wedged between my arm and the wall and i was stuck.

so 5 or 6 meters underwater running out of breath and stuck in a reef, i remembered i had that panic any one gets when they realize they have their finger stuck in an object etc. so thought start racing through my head "*** am i going to do **** this is it it’s all over.. this is kind of a gay way to go..." i recall i have my diving knife strapped to my leg and the idea of using it crossed my mind, this mind you all happens in about 2-3 seconds, i ended up clearing my head and re look my situation and how i was stuck, so i then moved my arm forward again moving the sea urchin and freeing my arm.

then believe it or not i did the same thing all over again the next day


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## guzzo (Apr 14, 2011)

saximus said:


> lol Guzzo I just got an image of you sitting in a tank with an army helmet - "Go on croc, splash me now...I dare you"


 

haha I had the same thought!!



Tristan said:


> hmm i have a couple.
> 
> when i was knee high to a grass hopper, i lived in Kununurra, my parents and i were at a friend’s house for a BBQ they had a pink and grey in a cage that would bob up and down if you did and say hello, so I’m playing with the bird bobbing up and down, and then my dad yells "Tristan don't move" so being confused i looked around and right near my left leg was a lovely King Brown, reared up looking at me, now stand still i did not, i did that Cat trick where from a standing position i jumped up and sideways to safety, unfortunately the snake could not do the same and was quickly dispatched.
> 
> ...



Hey! thats strike two.......strike 3 and your out......please give up diving before the crayfish win!


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## saximus (Apr 14, 2011)

Tristan said:


> ...this is kind of a gay way to go...


 lol
"How did Tristan die?"
"Sea urchin..."


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## LullabyLizard (Apr 14, 2011)

hrafna said:


> mcdonald college of performing arts!


 

McDonald College?? Pfffft... you have to pay to go there. They're so desperate for kids to go there that they have to advertise on busses and at cinemas... Chose Newtown 



guzzo said:


> Quick....get out while you still can....that place sounds crazy


 
Newtown is the best! Nothing *ever* bad has happened there. This is my fifth year there. Yeah, there are a few "druggo's", but hey, they're at every school.


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## Renenet (Apr 14, 2011)

guzzo said:


> ..........unless.....of course......he is Chunk Norris!!



Chunk Norris? I like it.


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## guzzo (Apr 14, 2011)

Renenet said:


> Chunk Norris? I like it.



Well it's the only thing i can think of more frightning than fear itself!!


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## eitak (Apr 14, 2011)

I'm 21 and had some digestion problems that occurred a few times but never really continued, I got referred by my mother to a specialist (to ease my mind), who suggested a colonoscopy (also to ease my mind) he didn't think it was necessary but thought it would be the best way to reassure me I would be fine . . he removed 9 pre-cancerous polyps . . I'm a healthy 21 yr old female with no family history . . I feel like I dodged a bullet purely because no-one expected anything to be wrong with me due to my age, health and lack of this being a heredity issue, all the steps I took were only done to reassure myself not because they were thought to be necessary (luckily I am still under my mother health care as I doubt the public health would have done this for me)

My sister when she was about 7/8 stepped out our back door (which was on a stilted house about 2.5 mtrs from the ground) while my stepdad was building a deck, there was nothing for her to step onto and she fell straight to the ground . . My stepfather then picked her up and took her to hospital . . nothing was wrong with her bar a few bruises, sooo lucky


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## hrafna (Apr 15, 2011)

LullabyLizard said:


> McDonald College?? Pfffft... you have to pay to go there. They're so desperate for kids to go there that they have to advertise on busses and at cinemas... Chose Newtown
> 
> 
> 
> Newtown is the best! Nothing *ever* bad has happened there. This is my fifth year there. Yeah, there are a few "druggo's", but hey, they're at every school.


 none of that stuff happened at mcdonald college and i am sorry to say but mcdonald college has a far better rep than newtown! esp if you want to get acting work after school!


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## LullabyLizard (Apr 16, 2011)

Not a better reputation? There is one student I know who auditioned from Darwin to get in. People travel from Wollongong and the Central Coast to come here, every single day. McDonald college doesn't care how good you are. You could act as badly as an inadament object, but if you can pay, you're in. 800 kids auditioned last year, for about 120 spots. I think that's great reputation!


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## Defective (Apr 16, 2011)

iin 2009 i was leaving the hospital after having a nerve study done and it had been raining, my ankle went and i fell a metre onto the road and was nearly killed by a car at the lights as it was doing 80 in a 40 zone.
slight concussion, gravel rash and avulsive tears through all my ankle ligaments and tendons but crawled out the way enough not to be hit.

ambulance came screaming down and i was treated for concussion and the gravel rash but the tears, nothing could be done, am due to see a specialist about surgery to fix it but they cant do anything really. scared the life out of me, who knew going to hospital could be so dangerous.....i have weak ankles


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## SteveNT (Apr 16, 2011)

guzzo said:


> Wow some amazing stories. I think everybody at some time or another has a brush with disaster....


 
Just those of us left.......

When I was 14 my father told me " if you dont take risks you dont have adventures, if you dont have adventures you dont have a life."

I took it seriously and ran away from home, never looked back. Still love the Old Man and still love my adventures, another one coming up this week and I'm 54 in May


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## guzzo (Apr 17, 2011)

SteveNT said:


> Just those of us left.......
> 
> When I was 14 my father told me " if you dont take risks you dont have adventures, if you dont have adventures you dont have a life."
> 
> I took it seriously and ran away from home, never looked back. Still love the Old Man and still love my adventures, another one coming up this week and I'm 54 in May




Thats great Steve, Thats why I live in the Teritory too


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## Cockney_Red (Apr 17, 2011)

Over the years I've dodged the Mag from an AK-47...Mentioned them, in a couple of earlier threads of this Ilk...not again..


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## mmafan555 (Apr 20, 2011)

guzzo said:


> When you think about it humans are really not equipt for being prey.....soft without any real defence esp against a real predator....I mean if something can bring down a full grown horse a stupid fisherman not paying attention would be like crushing a marshmellow with pliers haha


 
Kraits(land Kraits...Bungarus) are easily among the most venomous of ALL snakes species in the entire world... 

I will make a thread later..and yes a bite from any type of Bungarus is potentially life threatening( some more so than others)...Sea Krait seem to cause less severe bites but Bungarus are extremely dangerous. During the day they are very docile and sluggish( and rarely bite people) but at night they can be pretty aggressive and fast and bite people when they are sleeping. They are one of the few snakes that actually goes into peoples homes and aggressively bites people when they are sleeping.



Audio_anthrax said:


> From memory im kinda sure that a blue banded krait is pretty damn dangerous, being a type of sea snake?
> Only just remember seeing a doco on asian and indonesian snakes...


 

Their are 2 different types of Kraits. Land Kraits are Bungarus and Aquatic Sea Kraits are Laticauda..Both are extremely venomous but Laticauda tend to dry bite or give warning bites to humans and bites only occur on extremely rare occasions and significant envenomations are very rare..

Bites from some Bungarus species are pretty common in certain areas of Asia and they cause serious respiratory problems in humans. Bungars are highly nocturnal so 80%+ of bites occur at night and mostly when the victim is sleeping on the floor of their home.



longqi said:


> Blue Banded Krait is very small but pretty deadly 500mm is a BIG one
> Killed two people just in Bali last year
> 
> Its a land snake usually only found at ground level


 
The ones I have seen aren't that small( assuming you are talking about Bungarus Candidus)...In fact I have seen quite a few 3-4+ ft long ones. I think its probably because island populations(Bali) tend to be smaller than the ones found on mainland Asia. But that is not always true as the Kraits( Bungarus Caeruleus) in Sri Lanka can be pretty large like the ones in India.

I think either Bali has smaller than normal kraits (for Bungarus Candidus type) or you just saw juveniles...As the ones I have seen in Thailand and Vietnam were pretty good sized snakes.


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## longqi (Apr 20, 2011)

Just googled Bungarus Candidus and yes pretty sure that is the same one
One difference was the shape of the body in that the ones I googled seemed to have that 'triangular' mid body look that some boigas and pytas koros have
These looked more rounded and had clearly defined bands and look a bit like a small banded king snake or corn snake so maybe they were just juveniles
I have only seen three and they were all small but I tend to try to avoid anything small and pretty over here
Locals told me they only ever see them that size but not many people wander around here at night in the jungle/forest
Both victims here were near Ubud/Gianyar and in an area being cleared for housing
Both victims picked the snake up to show friends
Ty for the great info
And the warning not to sleep on the floor too often


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## moosenoose (Apr 20, 2011)

Great story Guzzo...i would have absolutely shat myself! :lol:


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## guzzo (Apr 20, 2011)

moosenoose said:


> Great story Guzzo...i would have absolutely shat myself! :lol:



I sure did too....haha I am a lot more careful these days. After reading some of these horror stories it is a wonder there is anyone left alive on APS.

How about you moosenoose, have you been tagged by any of those vens? Great Album and pics BTW


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## mmafan555 (May 7, 2011)

longqi said:


> Just googled Bungarus Candidus and yes pretty sure that is the same one
> One difference was the shape of the body in that the ones I googled seemed to have that 'triangular' mid body look that some boigas and pytas koros have
> These looked more rounded and had clearly defined bands and look a bit like a small banded king snake or corn snake so maybe they were just juveniles
> I have only seen three and they were all small but I tend to try to avoid anything small and pretty over here
> ...


 

I will make a thread later about them and their bites....I'm guessing that you probably saw a candidus but that the ones in bali are just smaller than the ones in say Thailand or Malaysia. Many times inland snakes are smaller than on the mainland..through not always and like I said Caeruleus in Sri Lanka get pretty big (2.5ft on average and up to 4.5ft+) most Bungarus species are very very dangerous and venomous snakes and strictly nocturnal. Antivenom also seems to be much less effective against them than for other snakes.


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## bigfella77 (May 7, 2011)

Several years ago we were clearing powerlines between Taree and Kew, I put a climber up a big blackbutt tree to take out a single limb about 10-12m up. He cit off the limb which opened up a pipe into the heart of the tree. Well, in this tree was the biggest bee hive ive ever seen and by god did they give the climber some curry.
The poor bugger was stuck there for atleast ten minutes getting absoloutely drilled by bees, from the waist up he was just a solid mass of bees I could hear him screaming and chocking on the bees. Eventually he managed to release his pole strap and drop 10m to the ground where I dragged him as far from the bees as possible. 
A 000 call later he was choppered to Newcastle hospital with suspected spinal injuries, but turned out he only fractured his pelvis and ruptured adrenal gland. Oh and not forgrtting the several hundred bee stings they took out of him.


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## CrystalMoon (May 7, 2011)

Had a bad experience with croc as well(own stupid fault though)Was fishing for Barra on the western side of the gulf(top barra spot)had been walking and luring(gold bomber/or red DK calcutta reel t curve rod)got hot bothered and dam thirsty(creek was brackish)got back to cruiser grabbed UDL/S chair and smokes, dragged all down to the edge of water. Some time later feeling quite relaxed but still hot, checked for crocs.....none.....slipped chair into water up to waist deep when sitting, drop off in veiw. Had a wonderful time, got pretty inebriated(sp)dropped smokes in water, got cross stomped out of the water on the way up the sand heard what I thought was a massive Barra chopping the suface water... looked down only to see a pretty big croc right where I was sitting...still makes the hairs on my neck stand up....I did not go get the rest of UDL/s I kept going...it cured my ignorant complacency of their territory and power.......


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