The Unknown

[Burnhard Rooknee]

Hello, I'm new. I'm interested in talking about non-ordinary reality events whilst being out there, away from the known so to speak.

[Burnhard Rooknee]

Too scary? I'll start. How about flashes of intense light in the twilight as if emanating from trees or shrubs? Shadows, darker than the pitch black night, that dart around? A sudden sense of silence accompanied by the sense of a presence/presences? Something that seems to be following as you walk, sending shivers up the spine? Someone told me lately of being by a fire alone at night and seeing an aboriginal running at full speed downhill through impossible terrain - a story I've heard once before in these parts; but many runners instead of just one.

[MartyGwynne]

MMmm once you have spent a few nights camping alone by the campfire you start to see/imagine all sorts of things.
After a while you get used to them and invite them in next to the fire with you for a chat.....
But be careful as soon as you think you are alone and about to have a good chat to the spook next to you, someone invariably comes walking into your camp and sets up their tent.

[weetbix456]

one time while camped on the southern ranges i woke up and there was a cookoo clock in my tent

[SteveJ]

good score....

[Burnhard Rooknee]

one time while camped on the southern ranges i woke up and there was a cookoo clock in my tent

How did it get there?

[Nuts]

there was a cookoo clock in my tent

did it make you breakfast?

[HitchHiking]

Camping and walking alone is a great way to scare some life back into you! I guess you dont have to be alone to see some very strange things. Many of the strange and unnerving sights are now documented by science and would be a very neat thing behold in front of you. Such as

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Will-o'-the-wisp

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Elmo's_fire

As for UFOs, Yowies, Black Panthers, Tassie Tigers, and some big lizard in the Wollemi (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGMGeGFrhz0) we can only hope

[Swifty]

Hello, I'm new. I'm interested in talking about non-ordinary reality events whilst being out there, away from the known so to speak.

I saw some really strange lights from Mt Mawson in 1978. Like a curtain blowing in the sky (at night this was) beautiful greens and reds. I thought it was non-ordinary, but it was an ordinary Aurora australis . Still beautiful though.

Another time in 2007 my walking companion "suffered" a bout of deja vu. I said something, and he swore that he knew what i was going to say that, he knew it six months before. However that was quite ordinary as well ( though extraordinary in some sense of the word). He swore me to secrecy about what I actually said. There was nothing special about what I said, mind you.

I explained that there is a known mechanism in the brain for deja vu, and that epileptics experience this all the time before a seizure. He was unconvinced. I told him he should try contacting the post-realists who could confirm for him that anything he thought was true, is true.

[ULWalkingPhil]

I saw a bright object it was huge changing in color from orange to blue hovering over trees, I think it was about 1987, moving slowly over the trees about a km away from where I was. It stayed for a minute or two than disappeared in a streak of light, I never seen anything move as fast as this thing did, The following day, I head on the radio I was not the only one that seen this object. Checks were done with Nasa and the Government, they had nothing in the area that could have caused that. They never found out what it was.

[Size 11]

I have been camping solo on fishing trips heaps of times, and have had nothing out of the ordinary happen, exept for two occasions.
The first occasion was whilst walking up a fire trail on a hot summers day, when i normally would have just sat in the shade and waited for the sun to go down before getting active. As I walked up this trail i noticed that the slight zephr of a breeze that had been blowing, had stopped, and a that the hair on my arms was standing on end, and i had a cold shiver running up my spine that spread to my whole body. Upon realising that something was'nt right, i also noticed that it was deadly quiet, and there was not a sound to be heard. As mentioned earlier, i also had the feeling i was being watched or followed, and this cold feeling stayed with me until i got back too camp where i had started to sweat as i did before getting on the trail because of the heat of that day.
The other time was the same feeling of the cold shiver and the silence, but this was at nightime (summer) in a forest off the Albany highway about an hour south of Perth where i had too go camp for the night because I had arrived in Perth two days too early too stay at a mates house as he was still at the mines. Here too I had the feeling I was being watched and it was an experience that i will never forget.
I have also had an experience with what looked like a panther or perhaps a native cat. I was coming back from Singleton on the Putty rd and saw what i thought was a large brown cat. It looked way bigger than a house cat, but not as big as a panther. After seeing this I don't doubt people who say that they exist.

Cheer Jez

[Burnhard Rooknee]

Thanks for the responses. People seem to look for things that are like what you see on television, but that's still the known; even if its fantasy or whatever. Things do happen out there but on the whole they're rather unnoticeable. If one is in a traumatic situation, say of hunger or thirst or tiredness, there is more likelihood that perception will shift more, even if uncontrollably. The known is flimsy in such circumstances. We structure the known and give it reality through the social order, and are bogged down by that most of the time. We are bogged down by talk - inner dialogue as much as any. Getting 'out bush' naturally loosens the pressure to perceive reality in defined ways and to talk less to oneself. The experience of the man who had Deja-vu is common; one senses other possibilities in ones perception in such experience. To say its all about the brain is demeaning and nonsensical - as the experience is obviously highly subjective and objective analysis becomes inappropriate.

Yes, there are aspects of the world we have not become familiar with - such as seeing the aurora Australis at Mt Mawson - and they are utterly magical when we first experience them. The whole world is like that when we are first born.

[gayet]

Size11 said
... I was coming back from Singleton on the Putty rd and saw what i thought was a large brown cat. It looked way bigger than a house cat, but not as big as a panther......

I am originally from Singleton and, in my youth, travelled the Putty Rd frequently.I didn't see big cats or suchlike (too busy being car sick) but I do recall various stories about big cats/panthers over the years. Certainly you aren't the first to see strange cat like animals along that road.

[Nuts]

Burnhard, so the Aurora is 'known'. These other realities you talk of, the 'unknown', how do you 'know', what is there to say?. Dismissing the credible conclusions of others for something more exotic, isn't it more a case of wishful thinking?

So what exactly is it you want to talk about?, will people keep giving examples until they hit on something You don't already 'know'? Even then, if 'someone' knows its 'known' and outside the topic....

[Nuts]

Hold on, i think i have an 'un usual' one!

(No joke)... I was walking past Artist pool and happened upon a platypus crossing the track (lots of people never thought of them moving across land, probably never had the occasion to need that thought)... anyhow... as i looked down it cocked its head and winked at me... i kid you not... winked...

It occupied my mind all the way to Lake Rodway... what do animals 'think', maybe they dont communicate (usually) cause they are more 'intelligent', 'arrogant', 'shy' even? Us getting stuck on the reality of the small brain might hide other levels of intelligence?. Then again, while I was certain it was a wink (it seemed to smile too), maybe it had something in its eye?

[weetbix456]

i kid you not... winked...

hahahahahaha! i just lost my S#!T...what a whacky world of wonders

[Burnhard Rooknee]

Burnhard, so the Aurora is 'known'. These other realities you talk of, the 'unknown', how do you 'know', what is there to say?. Dismissing the credible conclusions of others for something more exotic, isn't it more a case of wishful thinking?

So what exactly is it you want to talk about?, will people keep giving examples until they hit on something You don't already 'know'? Even then, if 'someone' knows its 'known' and outside the topic....

You know, its kind of fun talking about such things, but it easily degenerates. How does one know? Is it because neurons fire in the brain sending sensations? No. Life itself is more exotic than we can ever imagine, and so anything less than exotic, is, in part at least, a form of death. Getting bush is for many a way of revivifying and bringing life into dead corners of our lives. If you step back and consider what those corners are, you'll see they are creations of our social order, of which we have become unwittingly or wittingly a part. Being in a black night alone out there can give a minimal halt to the constant pressures of the mind and heart. Other pressures of different orders inevitably come to bear: perhaps it is from trees, or the stars or fog - the sound of rain falling outside a cave. The sense of unknown invisible presences amid a sudden sort of silence, is not uncommon either, and certainly never occurs during coffee break at the office. I was 'tapped' once by one of those presences in the Blue Mountains - it was a long rather unwelcome experience that was rewarding in a strange way. By tapping I mean a sense of something tapping on the back, or back of the neck.

[Out_Walking]

All I can say is this is a pretty bizarre thread! So weird I thought it's best to add to it. I used to think I would get spooked sleeping alone at night out in the bush, until I realised that night time is just the same as day time, but with less light

I do remember a night in the middle of nowhere whilst I was in the army and one of the other blokes woke up screaming. I still remember my heart racing as I woke up thinking we were under attack from a bunch of rogue Yowies. The end result was not really scary, but more entertaining as we found out that somehow he had accidently crapped in his sleeping bag. If you think about it, I reckon anyone can understand the reason for such a blood curdling scream. Truly the devil was in his pants so to speak

[Jellybean]

So ... everything that is known was unknown once (before it was known) and whether something is known or unknown depends, to a good deal, on one's age and experience (and how much time you spend alone out bush or imbibe in mind altering substances)? And everything that is unknown is just waiting to be known by someone to whom it was previously unknown? .... Phew! I'm glad we got that sorted!

Nuts, your story about the platypus reminded me of an incident described in Winterdance (a book about the Iditarod dog sled race in Alaska - a great read for anyone who loves the outdoors, animals - especially dogs, and challenging yourself both physically and mentally. I think there'd be a few takers on this forum!). Because the race is so demanding, a great comaraderie develops between drivers. Drivers look out for each other along the way. At one point during the race, one of the key “characters” comes across an empty dog sled. The dogs for this sled are lying down, but the sled’s driver is nowhere to be seen. As the driver who has come across this empty sled looks around for the missing driver to ensure he’s ok, he spots him lying up on a nearby snowbank, peering over the top, and goes over to him. The driver on the snowbank notices him and cautions him to stay quiet and low. He then points over the top of the snowbank and beckons him to watch. Over the other side of the snowbank is a frozen lake and playing on the ice (taking turns to slide down another snowbank, onto and across the ice and doing 360s) are a bunch of elk. I guess we never think of animals playing like that – just eating, sleeping, maybe engaging in a bit of chasy or biffo, but not that!

Cheers,

JB

[Nuts]

Ha, ha, animal behaviour is fascinating. I wonder if the started acting like elk should when they were seen?
I guess this is looking outward though, whereas mr Burns is talking about looking in?

(I was starting to wonder what happened around here over summer, weetbix uncontrolled laughter is promising)

[Son of a Beach]

True story:

I was once on a day walk to Holwell Gorge (West Tamar, Tasmania) with my family and another family. We all got lost on the way back to the cars, and ended up wandering around for hours, well after dark. Eventually, getting close to midnight, I think, we all stumbled on a farm house, and they fed and watered us, while we all de-leeched. And the day was saved. BUT, during the period where we were wandering around in the dark, there were several REALLY WEIRD things that happened.

I won't tell all of them, but only the most weird of the strange series of events that happened that night.

While we were all exhausted, and taking a break, sitting on a grassy hill in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night and trying not to panic, I was staring a few gum trees, which I could see silhouetted against the night sky. As I stared and stared at them, I realised that they were shaped exactly like monsters. And the more I stared, the more they actually became monsters. They had eyes, arms, mouths (with big teeth). I was absolutely terrified for a short while.

At the time I was about 5 years old.

But I've never been back there since, even though it's just up the road from where I live. My daughter is nearly 5. Maybe it's nearly time for another family walk to Holwell Gorge.

True Story!

[Son of a Beach]

PS. Come to think of it, it's strange that I still go bushwalking at all.

[Burnhard Rooknee]

That is a good example of how our interpretation system of what is out there easily breaks down, and it is more common with kids who haven't built up their perceptual description of the world.Gazing into the trees in the middle of the night helped ease your sense of panic minimally, because of it being something at least vaguely familiar, rather than just total darkness and uncertainty. By then seeing monsters you were creating a description; ANY DESCRIPTION to yourself, even if subconscious, of what was in front of you is better than nothing. That your environment, or aspects within it, was somehow able to conform to the monster description is not quite an illusion. There is an inter-relationship there.

[Jellybean]

Ha, ha, animal behaviour is fascinating. I wonder if the started acting like elk should when they were seen?

Like the cows in that Far Side cartoon? (Bunch of cows standing on their hind legs in a paddock having a chat when one spots a car approaching and issues the warning, "Quick, act like cows, humans approaching!")

I guess this is looking outward though, whereas mr Burns is talking about looking in?

..or looking out from deep within?

[SteveJ]

I live on a farm with no nearby neigbours, I also spend about 6 or 7 weeks a year in the bush walking/camping in some pretty remote and seldom visited spots and I never feel spooked or see 'weird stuff'. On the seldom occasions I go to the city, I see freaky stuff the frightens the beggusus out of me every 10 minutes, the place is full of all kinds of demons. I guess it's what you understand.

Steve

[justacouch]

If one is in a traumatic situation, say of hunger or thirst or tiredness, there is more likelihood that perception will shift more, even if uncontrollably.

You could also try mescaline.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Doors_of_Perception

[bushwak]

Hey Burnhard Rooknee, thought you might be interested in the 100+ stories posted in this Aussie forum about freaky/weird moments people experienced out in the bush:

http://www.4wdaction.com.au/forum/viewt ... 8d184bcd3d

Its a great read if you have the time. Lots of legitimate freaky stories like angry packs of dogs, waking up with a snake curled up on your chest, running into weird people out in the middle of nowhere, screaming sounds in the middle of the night (randy koalas usually), min min light experiences and other weird 'light' experiences, and some of the more 'unnatural' things. Good read if you believe it or not.

[Minty]

A few months ago, I was going for a solo 2 day walk on the Ben Lomond plateau. I did a high camp where there wouldn't have been anyone else for about 10 km in any direction. That night just as I was drifting off to sleep, I realised I could hear a really quiet rhythmic thumping sound. I thought it was just my heartbeat at first so I ignored it and rolled over. But even when I moved it was still there. It was incredibly faint but I could definitely make it out. It began to sound musical, like tribal drumming. By now I was quite freaked out so I got out of my tent. A fog had settled in so I couldn't see anything, but as far as I was aware the drumming had stopped. So I climbed back into my tent and tried to get back to sleep again. At first it was fine, but sure enough just as I was about to drift off it started again and this time it was more complex and definitely musical. And as I listen harder, I was sure I could hear some sort of chanting. It wasn't just my imagination, I could hear human voices. And then, just as I was about to start screaming at them to go away, I realised the chanting sounded suspiciously like "Kashmir" by Led Zepplin.
Moral of the story: Make sure your iPod is turned off before you go to sleep.

[Tortoise]

[Kinsayder]

Great thread!

I don't have anything to add though. I see/hear lots of stuff in the mountains but I'm acutely aware that my imagination is completely hyperactive.

Love the winking platypus!