I had lightning strike 12 feet away from me and hit a tree when I was neck deep and filming myself many years ago.
I also had police walk up with guns pointed at me thinking I was the guy they were looking for but I ended up not being the guy they were looking for.
When I was MUCH younger I got caught by hunters on their land mudding in a ditch with nothing on but a towel.
(they told me not to come back).
I went back many times lmao.

Anyone have any stories they want to share? I'm curious.

Many years ago in the UK countryside a messy friend and I were about waist deep in some mud in a remote field. We'd been there with some other guys the day before with no problem and didn't see anything. But the next day with just the two of us, we suddenly heard a small group of folks in the distance, possibly heading our way. Bird watchers, we assumed. We hightailed it out of there, fortunately barely muddy. I believe that was also the weekend we then tried gunge for the first time and made a batch so thick that we ultimately had to throw the entire bucketful out in a public park's garbage can.

I would be scared shitless a lightning struck 12 feet from me if I was in mud up to my neck deep. You Are brave enough to sink down up to your neck in a thunderstorm you put mud sinking in a hole new way there tanner. I am glad that you were ok. I found a mudspot town over for me so I was like okay I'll ride my bike over there is only an hour and 17 minutes getting realized it got up to105 with the heat index around noon few days ago I almost give myself a heat stroke if a farmer didn't walter and the farmer give me a ride back home to Winterset Iowa i was 50 minutes away from home I was overheated the temperature said 80 degrees outside but I didn't look at the heat index before I left well I'm not going to make that mistake again.

Similar lightning experience here. Had a trip to the 'ol mud hole planned for a hot summer afternoon. On the way out I could see some storm clouds building on the horizon. Didn't think too much about it. Got out to my spot, hiked in, had my fun slipping, sliding and swimming around in the mud. Noticed the sun went away and clouds rolled in. As a nice treat, about the time I was hitting the big "O" in the mud, a few sprinkles of rain started. I laughed a bit thinking about how I had my big release and mother nature was having hers!

Anyway, I crawled out and started getting cleaned up. Suddenly noticed the western horizon was BLACK with clouds and I could hear rumbles of thunder getting closer with each moment. I scurried around cleaning up, grabbing clothes, trying to pull on my socks, shoes and shorts while soaking wet. Storm was moving in fast. Wind picked up, driving rain...I was trying to decide if it was better to stay put near the water or take cover in the woods among the lightning attractors....um I mean trees.

About that time... KA-BOOM!! Bolt of lightning hit the opposite side of the mud hole, not more than 100 yards away...bright flash and instant sound - no delay at all. I just stayed there for a few moments crouched down low in the grass.

Just about as fast as it rolled in, the storm rolled out and I started making my way back to the truck. Actually a very nice hike through the fresh rain / damp woods smelling forest. I was totally soaked, but with the heat and humidity, it hardly made a difference.

Overall, quite a unique and exciting trip!


As far as getting caught - it's pretty remote around many of these spots. Have gone out for multiple years and never seen another person. But one time, I'd finished my mud fun and hiked the ~mile back out. There is a car parked by my truck and some chick just out wandering around. I kind of wondered if she was trying to get into my truck, or if she was going to fake having trouble then her boyfriend jumps out of the bushes and grabs me. But we started chatting a bit and apparently she was just out 'enjoying nature'. Hmmm....possibly I should have done more to invite her to 'really' enjoy nature...swimming in a big mud pit.

Then just recently, I drove out... it's pretty rare to even see another car on the road to this parking spot. This time I did see one car a mile or so away. Didn't think much about it as the parking spot is fully public and figured 99.99% chance they just drive on by. Just about the time I grab my backpack and jump out, they pull in! Again, not crazy - it's a public place - just usually very deserted. My only worry is that if I say I'm hiking and they want to follow along or something! Anyway, after some chit-chat, apparently they were just there to release a raccoon which had been stalking their chickens and they finally caught in a live trap. They dumped him out of the cage, told me to have a good hike and took off!

Not a near death experience but I once found a great mud spot, went there at night and got down deep in the mud.
The mud pool was at the edge of a military training area and possibly just into the area itself, although as it was usually underwater there was no fence or anything (I guess they started where the solid ground was).
Anyway, I'd just about finished the session in the mud and was beginning to move back towards the edge of the pool, when I hear the sound of a helicopter.
At first I thought it was maybe a rescue helicopter as they also patrol that same area, and so I started moving quickly to the edge of the pool as I didn't want them to see me in the mud and think I was in distress.
As I got to the edge the sound was getting loud but I couldn't see any helicopter, but I thought I had better hide in the trees - incoming big time so didn't have time to put on clothes - just hide, still naked and covered in mud.
Just as I got well hidden, two Apache Gunships come over low, scanning the terrain. They have thermal imaging so it's possible they saw me, but I was also well into the trees so again possible they didn't. Guess I'll never know, but I actually think I probably remained undetected given the angles and timings. I stuck around for a skinny dip to wash off all the mud before the trek out of there. Phew!

Not near-death, but frightening just the same. I used to own land and I had a shallow creek that flowed by, over flat rocks and clay. I had managed to make a small dam out of clay and as the water pooled into a small pond, I used my feet and legs to mix the water with the underlying clay. Soon it became soft and mushy. I would enjoy it, then rinse off upstream. Each time I visited, the clay area got a little deeper. One day when it was quite deep, my foot suddenly sank VERY deep into the clay, as I felt pain around my ankle. Deep below was a rock that had broken and I had stepped into the crack between the sides of the rock, with the surrounding clay pressing this against my ankle. My foot was stuck, because when I'd try to lift it, the sharp edges of the rocks would dig in, not just to the skin but the flesh beneath as well. I was trapped and sort of panicked. Then I calmed down and slowly did micro-sized foot movements until I could slowly pull up my foot and get it out from between the jagged-edged rocks. I was only a quarter-mile from home and hobbled back, after cleaning up in the creek. The mud on that foot was going from brown to red as I rinsed it, and I realized that I had quite a gash in my foot. Luckily, I wasn't stuck there for long. Now I'm more careful as I realize clay often appears with rocks in nature. I still went back to that spot, but avoided the 'leg trap' after that.

That gave me goose bumps reading that. Wow.
My worst flesh wounds was with a osyter cluster with my first tidal mud experience barefoot.
Ruined me and my friends vacation.
Bleeding so much it we went through a whole med kit
Which I kept the shell and it always goes with me when I go to dangerous mud spots.

I've been sliced up by oyster shells over the year but no "Near Death Experiences". The worst one was after a session I was cleaning up and lost my balance. I caught my balance by landing wrist first on some rocks. I lifted my hand and an small arterial squirt out of my hand. I knew what to do and didn't panic, but watching blood squirt out of your wrist is worrisome.

I broke my fall the other day sliding down the bank by accident.
It was painful but I swear the only reason my wrist didn't snap was because my wrist get worked out properly with weights at the gym.
But damn
I would of immediately got my shirt or something and wrapped it asap.

Sinking in river mud, and realizing either going in or out, that there's a broken bottle or unraveling aluminum can right up against my boot... those are close calls!

Angry little copperhead going into a threat display once on the river trail - older ones generally slip off unseen (especially in the middle of the night, if they're out and about, which I don't think they are...) - but those were the ones I worried about the most; the ones I didn't see and accidentally stepped on or too near.

Standing in knee deep water trying to clear out the culvert at the bottom of the driveway, knowing I was standing over the buried electrical lines... but wanting to keep my driveway from washing out again... and then lightning strikes a tree on the other side of the small cul de sac. I ran up to the porch and gave up then. The next day, the water revealed that the lines buried allegedly 3' down were... not. I had been standing directly on them.

And... not me, but on the same night, at the same time as I was taking pics to post here and was waist to tits deep in my river... a boater a mile downstream tried to get to shore from an island and... he never made it.

I can relate to this! One night in Estuary mud, I cut my foot on a broken bottle buried deep. The mud was sublimely stinky, and I played there for a long time...

When I slunk back home later, totally caked, and I cleaned up, I realised the cut was deep... I was very lucky to avoid a very serious infection - must have been the cask strength malt whisky I sacrificed on the wound. I did enjoy some internally too....

When I lived in Wyoming many years ago, mud was hard to find - only existed after a substantial rain, which was rare. However, when it DID rain, there was a 48 hour window to find some exquisite mud. I knew of a couple good spots, both with a creek nearby that also only ran after a rain. After a good downpour, I ventured out, found my favorite spot, and sauntered in, eventually rolling around, getting completely coated, then burying myself up to the face with the warm mud. I might have fallen asleep, but heard a rustling near me - and looked up to see two coyotes only five feet from my face. Their looks were either hunger (which was scary) or curiosity - not being sure, I was a bit frightened at first. When I began to sit up, they bolted - I'm sure they had never seen such a creature emerging from the bowels of the earth! It was only a momentary "danger", but memorable nonetheless.

A boater not making it to shore.
Was he trying to get across like a rushing river? Very ominous.

Coyote are skiddish unless hungry
Got it.

The river is big, generally on the shallow side (with drop offs, of course), and I'm not sure exactly what it's like in the stretch he was in...

But it can definitely catch you off guard, especially in floodier conditions (it wasn't at the highest point I'd seen it, but... it was still muddy and over the "usual" banks.

You have to be really careful in natural areas - mud or water - because there's a lot more risks that just aren't present in a homemade mud pit under much more controlled circumstances.

Just my luck that the natural areas call to me so strongly!