Unusual Items you've come across abandoned on trail.

[econnofoot]

I'm pretty avid backpacker and have spent tons of time doing Springer Mtn to Nantahala since I moved to SC. Kinda my hiking trip of choice aside from the Foothills Trail here in SC. was talking to an old Thru hiking friend other nite who recently had done Katahdin down to CT and we were talking about various things we've found abandoned by people along the AT. She one upped me on this, as mostly I've found 'true gear' cooking gear, water filters, bottles(lotta SS ones lately ) Airmatresses/sleeping pads etc.

My friend came across a relatively small stuff sack which out of curiosity opened up finding certain battery powered 'massage device' and a slew of aa batteries. I asked her if she kept it to which she replied 'ewwwwwww no freaking way....I did keep the brick of batteries though....'

Anywho what's the oddest piece of 'gear' or item you've come across on a trail?

I've not had any 'weird' items like my friend.

[golfer1555]

weirdest thing i ever found is a baby turtle in a plastic bag with some apples in it canoeing and the bag was completely sealed so i ponderd quite a bit how a baby turtle got in the bag

[8thsinner]

Not come across much weird gear, just the usual I suppose, beer opened and not, compression bags, sleeping bags, backpacks usually small, tents, mre's, tins of beans, chairs, BBQ's, plastic sheets, water bottles, Gloves, cord and rope, tent pegs.
And thats all in less than 10 trips out.

[DancesWithaTrout]

We seem to find antique tractors in very odd places.

Weirdest piece of gear would be an 1861 Civil War rifle leaning against a tree that the tree closed over the muzzle area and the ram rod was still in the muzzle, all the way down on an emptycap lock chamber. We cut that whole burl out of the tree and that is now on display in my gun shop. I often wondered if I should restore it, but have always decided not to, just for the sake of the oddity and its natural history. The rifle is in pretty bad shape rust and rot wise with maybe 75% metal and wood left. Stabilized the rot and rust, left it all on and display it as we found it.

We found it in Tenn, near our fam homestead and was private land. The tree was a very old knarly and much abused Oak, still alive though. We cut the burl out and had a tree surgen rair the area. The Oak is still alive today.

[Ranger]

Wife and I found a dog collar and leash and a rolled marijuana joint on the side of a trail about 5 miles from nowhere a couple of weeks ago. Very strange! Never saw a K9 track or saw any evidence of recent human activity in the area either.

[One Legged Josh]

I was hiking/flyfishing one of our local parks and found an enema bag with hose and "applicator" hanging about waist high from a tree.

Thats pretty weird.

[Adventure Sworn]

I guess it's strange in general, but not strange for the New England... I'll be miles off-trail in the woods and come across a random cast-iron woodstoves, half-buried by leaves & dirt. I also come across big stone foundations. In one of them there was a very old flashlight (60+ years old) that I found.

Coming across stuff like this isn't rare (this one was two miles down a trail, and then at least a mile off-trail). Makes you wonder what kind of life experiences past people had here.

weirdest thing i ever found is a baby turtle in a plastic bag with some apples in it canoeing and the bag was completely sealed so i ponderd quite a bit how a baby turtle got in the bag

I bet some kid found the turtle & tried to keep it in the bag, and fed it apples. He must have lost it afterwards... was the turtle ok?

[DancesWithaTrout]

I was hiking/flyfishing one of our local parks and found an enema bag with hose and "applicator" hanging about waist high from a tree.

Thats pretty weird.

I am sure it was used as a coffee or hot chocolate dispenser into camp cups.........LaLaLaLaLaLaLaLa....I can't hear you Josh LOL

On Second thought

I think I would move upstream w/o casting of that particular hole....On the stream that is

[Whiskey]

Around here, its your usual condom wrappers and beer cans. I did find a discarded Kansas City Royals T-shirt though... There is also an older piece of farm equipment I cannot ID.

[insector]

Probably the wierdest was a moose calf hung up in a barb wire fence line that we had spooked............she just lay there in a coma.........then I clipped the wire and released her unharmed. She ran like a scalded dog back to her Mama who was making me real nervous by standing nearby in threat mode.................yeah, that was pretty wierd.........

I'm lucky I did not get moosed on that one