Being surrounded by trees and the expansive night sky is half the fun of camping in the outdoors, and little thought is usually given to the dangers mother nature can employ as you sleep soundly under the stars. Such was the case for Eric Schniter, a Research Associate in the Economic Sciences Institute at Chapman University and a scientist with the Tsimane’ Health and Life History Project, who recently had a close encounter of his own while at a campground by Pismo Beach, California.
“After a fun night by the campfire and out on the dunes and the beach I made it to sleep about 1 am. At 4:30 I heard loud cracking of tree branches somewhere a bit off in the distance. The sound woke me up and got my attention, but I assumed it was a branch falling out of a tree and I was almost ready to go back to sleep. A friend from the next tent over was outside my tent asking if I was alright. I opened the tent flap and immediately saw a large tree trunk from a fallen tree–right in my face. Then I realized that the corner of my tent was collapsed under the tree’s trunk … I’m still shocked and feeling rather lucky.”
Wow.
(For those of you who are worried, Schniter’s tent is doing just fine.)
[Via: Eric Schniter]
[Photo Via: Eric Schniter]
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I had a very similar thing happen to me on a backpacking trip in the Trinity Alps in N California. There were 1-foot long slivers of tree UNDER one of the tents – we were pretty shaken, and you can be darn sure I check my campsite for sketchy trees now!