4 Insane Outdoor Videos, 3 Lessons for Outdoorsmen

I’d rather deal with all three of the others combined than this one…

Some outdoorsmen actively seek out danger. Others just seem to attract it. These are their stories…

YouTube is glutted with hunting, hiking, extreme rock climbing, and mountain biking videos, most of which are really only there to give you a few seconds’ thrill before the next video starts auto-rolling–but not these four. These brief-but-thrilling vids offer object lessons for the alert outdoorsman; after all, even if you’re already aware on an intellectual level that these things can and do happen, there’s nothing like seeing it for yourself to really drive the moral of the story home…

1. Yes, Virginia, Black Bears Can Charge

What I love about this one is that it’s the perfect setup: We have two alert, intelligent hunters here who have been caught out in the open with a very large black bear. The canon on black bears is, of course, that they’re not terribly aggressive and that you can usually get them to shove off by yelling at them. The key word there, of course, is “usually.” Watch to see what happens next…

2. Wu-Tang Clan? Ha! Cape Buffalo Ain’t Nothing to F With

The Cape Buffalo is not a predator; it has no fangs or claws, and it cannot climb trees with a 400-pound gazelle in its mouth. None of that means that this massive pile of muscle, bone, and bad attitude doesn’t deserve its spot in the “Big Five” African dangerous-game animals, right there with lions, leopards, rhinoceri, and elephants. As this video proves, wounding one is one of the most dangerous things any outdoorsman can do. (It also proves that filming in vertical mode is really irritating to the viewer, but it’s still a great video.)

3. Rock Climbing While Mountain Biking is Possible (But You’re Not Right in the Head)

Some of us love to hang by a single knuckle from the sheer face of a cliff at the summit of a 500-yard drop. Some of us love to grab our mountain bikes and see just how extreme a trail we can run it on. Some of us want to do them both at the same time–and this guy proves that yes, it’s possible. However, when even the mountain sheep are nope-ing out of whatever insanity you have going on, that’s how you know you’re not right in the head. I suppose that there isn’t really a “lesson” to be learned here–but that doesn’t mean you won’t enjoy this video (and the sheep’s “you’re on your own, buddy” moment)!

4. Flash Floods Should Scare You More Than They Probably Do

About five years ago, a sudden storm in Utah resulted in a massive flash flood that killed seven people in Zion National Park. Although experienced outdoorsmen know the dangers of flash floods, watching how quickly it happens and how helpless humans are against millions of tons of rushing water and debris is a sobering experience. Personally, I would rather deal with all three of the above scenarios at once than this one. Take a deep breath, remember that the cameraman did survive, and watch…

What’s the most terrifying thing you ever faced in the outdoors? Tell us in the comments–your story might be featured in a future article!