Moose Droppings

Photo Courtesy of Mike Noles

Back in April Mike Noles from Conman’s Guide Service shared with me some photos of a monster bruin he had on one of his places in the Eastern part of North Carolina. They are calling this bruin Maximus and he will likely tip the scales at over 800lbs.
This past weekend I was down at Conman’s for our annual fishing trip and our wild game cookout. Almost as soon as I saw Mike he told me he had something I just had to see.

Saturday morning a few of us piled in Mike’s truck and he drove us into Maximus territory, some of the thickest overgrown swamp land that was ideal cover for bears. What I saw next was jaw dropping when I saw the first tree that had been marked by Maximus.

This is a bite on a tree and given the size and the height there is little doubt this was done by a very large bear. There was a number of these bites throughout the area, Mike believes that there is at least one if not two other sizeable bears using this same area and probably why we saw so much bear markings.

Here is a video that I ran across that explains a little bit about bear tree bites.

Although we never saw Maximus I did see a 200-250 lb bear early on Saturday morning. My attempts to get close enough to him to get some photos did not work so you’ll have to settle for a photo of his track on the dirt road.

The wildfire is having a lot of impact on everyone and everything in the area. The good news is that the fire never spread in this area to this land although the impact is still being felt with many critters being forced on to new land, crowding of the species, heavy smoke, and drought conditions. The roadblock for the fire line is right at the end of Conman’s Guide Service driveway.

With the long term prospect of the Pocosin fuel burning for a long time till the land is soaked or flooded to extinguish it. Food and cover will be an issue for the foreseeable future until the fire is out and life can return to normal in the burn area.

I did not ask Mike if they have any bear hunts open for this year but I’m sure you can give him a call and find out.

Story & Photos (unless otherwise credited) by Dan McLaughlin AKA Moose

(Photo courtesy of Harnett County Animal Control and WRAL)

Well maybe a bit of a stretch but animal control and North Carolina Wildlife officials captured another 8 foot gator that was snarling up traffic earlier this week highway 401. This is less then a year since they relocated another 8foot gator to a more secluded part of the county. In case you were wondering if this was the same gator it is not according to the Dunn Daily Record;

Mr. Ellington speculated it was possible the alligator is the one captured and released in a pond on Christian Light Road near Angier in August. Residents caught the alligator in a pond with the assistance of animal control officers. It was then taken to another pond with an undisclosed location, still in Harnett County, where Mr. Ellington said, to his knowledge, it has continued to live.

He said the owner in that case was comfortable with the large reptile in his pond.

“The gentleman last year said he didn’t have a problem with it and said he would keep an eye on it,” Mr. Ellington said. “It is possible it migrated up to the location where we found the alligator Sunday.”

Animal Control Supervisor Tino Medina said the owner of the pond where the alligator was put last year reported to his office that the alligator is still in the pond.

“We figure it has to be a different one,” he said

I was alerted to this story by one of my reader’s Chuck who lives in Harnett County and has been trying to get me down there to catfish with him and his boys. I’m not sure emailing me stories like this makes me any more inclined to join them for a fishing outing.
This particular gator has been relocated to an undisclosed area closer to the coast where it is more common to find them. Two 8 ft gators in less then a year makes me think the population must be growing if they are looking to expand their territory this far up the Cape Fear River.

Story by Dan McLaughlin

Photo Credit Jeff Schmaltz MODIS Land Rapid Response Team,NASA GSFC

Interesting photo from NASA showing a satellite’s view of the smoke from the Evans Road Wildfire in Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge as well as the much smaller wildfire burning in the Dismal Swamp.

Thick smoke from two large fires in North Carolina and Virginia traveled up the East Coast in mid-June 2008, affecting air quality in numerous cities and towns, including the nation’s capital. The Evans Road Fire had burned over 41,000 acres of the Pocosin National Wildlife Refuge as of Sunday, June 15, while the South 1 Fire in the Great Dismal Swamp had burned about 1,500 acres.
This natural-color image of Virginia and North Carolina was captured by the MODIS on NASA’s Aqua satellite on Saturday, June 14, 2008. Places where the sensor detected actively burning fires are outlined in red. Smoke billows out over the sounds that separate mainland North Carolina from the islands known as the Outer Banks.

The good news is that the fire is 70% contained and not growing the bad news is that the amount of fuel (peat) is significant so this fire will continue to smolder and burn for weeks if not months. The smoke will be a problem for air quality and for those with respiratory problems for the foreseeable future. It will take a significant soaking from a hurricane or tropical storm to fully extinguish this fire.

Story by Dan McLaughlin

A US Forest Service-contracted Heavy Air Tanker has been brought in to assist firefighters on the Evans Road Fire. This tanker can deliver 3,000 gallons of fire retardant in one drop.
Credit: USFS-Chris Carlson

Two weeks after lighting started the massive wildfire in Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge the weather has aided firefighters in getting the upper hand. The fire is now 60% contained and there is only about 5 miles of containment line to dig. Pumping operations from Lake Phelps and New Lake are allowing fire fighters to put 92,000 gallons a minute on to the still smoldering Pocosin fuel.

That is a massive amount of water.

The operations involve 35 high-volume pumps that can move about 92,000 gallons of water per minute, according to representatives from the incident command center for that fire.
“That would fill a normal-size in-ground swimming pool six times in one minute,” spokesperson Greg Pate said.
The pumps will run continuously, stopping when an area is completely flooded and the units need to be moved to another location.
The firefighters are authorized to draw down Lake Phelps by up to 5 inches.

Pilot online

I understand that evacuees have been allowed to return to their homes and the main concern is the air quality with the heavy dense smoke this fire is still putting up. Hopefully the weather will continue to be helpful in the fight and total containment will be reached soon. I will continue to follow this story and bring you additional updates.

Story by Dan McLaughlin AKA Moose

Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge Manager Howard Phillips (far right) looks over high-volume pumping operation while George Constantino (back to camera) discusses the Water Handling Operations with Rowan County Assistant District Forester David
Credit: USFWS

That is what the latest reports from what is currently the largest wildfire burning in the United States. The Evans Road fire continues to grow in Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge and with only 40% containment it will take some time and some help from above to put this fire out.

Earlier on I reported about Mike Noles and his family having to evacuate because of the fire. They have returned home for now and hopefully the fire danger for them has subsided. Mike was interviewed by an NBC news crew today and featured on a number of NBC stations across the state. Here is a link to the short video.

For many in other parts of the country that is use to experiencing wildfires there is one major difference, many places a wildfire rolls through and an area burns and the fire keeps moving. In the Pocosin terrain that this fire is burning that after the flames on the surface move on the thick peat continues to smolder and burn. So basically much of this 65 square miles is still hot and burning and will not be extinguished until the peat gets a good soaking and that will likely have to come from a tropical type storm.

Charges have yet to be filed in the double homicide in Pisgah National Forest where John and Irene Bryant were abducted robbed and murdered. North Carolina and Federal officials have said that convicted murder Gary Hilton is the prime suspect in the double homicide as well as a homicide in Florida.

Gary Michael Hilton is charged in the death of 46-year-old Cheryl Hodges Dunlap, a nurse from Crawfordville, Fla., whose body was found Dec. 19 in the Apalachicola National Forest.
He already has confessed to killing a Georgia hiker after abducting her on New Year’s Day.
The 61-year-old Hilton admitted killing hiker Meredith Emerson and was sentenced to life in prison. Officials have not released details of Hilton’s transfer Friday from the state prison in Jackson, Ga.
Federal authorities have said they are leading the investigation into the Bryants’ killings.

Asheville Citizens Times

Hopefully justice for the Bryant’s will happen soon.

The wildfire continues to rage in the eastern part of the state in some of the most remote areas you could ever see. Mike Noles owner of Conman’s Guide Service had to evacuate the area with his family because of the fire burning his direction. I’ve received some good news from him this evening in regards to his family’s situation

We’ve been allowed to come back in to our homes for now. Only homeowners are being allowed in. The fire has turned to the east (away from us) and is now burning at about 1 mile per hour toward the Alligator River. It has a tremendous fire wall of over 3 miles wide and is picking up speed. They have burned 2 successful back fires between us and the main blaze and that gives us a 3/4 mile burn break should the fire try to turn. It’s black, scortched, plowed earth from the east end of Phelps Lake south to Hwy 45 in Ponzer with a path over 4 miles wide. Last report has over 12,000 acres burned and no real containment in sight. The fire marshalls are predicting another fire of ‘85 when a total of over 90,000 acres of the pocosin burned.

Please keep the men and women that are fighting this monster in your prayers as well as the ones that are now in it’s path. It’s mostly pocosin and farm land in the path, but there are homes scattered through out if it makes it to Hwy 94 out of Columbia.

Here is a recap from the Pilot of today’s events,

A North Carolina wildfire gained new intensity Wednesday, becoming so large that it had created its own weather system with billowing clouds and lightning.
About 10,000 acres were burning Wednesday in North Carolina’s Hyde, Washington and Tyrrell counties, sending smoke as far north as Hampton Roads more than 60 miles away.
The fire, which may have been started by lightning Sunday, burned in a national refuge and threatened to destroy farmland south of Columbia. Firefighters had it contained to about 1,700 acres Tuesday, but dry, windy weather fanned it and pushed it northeastward.
A wall of thick, gray smoke and ash reached east Wednesday across the Alligator River and Pamlico Sound to the Atlantic Ocean. At times, it could be smelled around Hampton Roads and produced a heavy haze that obscured the sun Wednesday evening along the Outer Banks. The fire is about 50 miles west of Hatteras Island in a rural, sparsely populated area.

So far I’ve only seen reports of two minor injuries to firefighters. We pray for their continue safety and the quick containment of this wildfire.
Story by Dan McLaughlin

A lighting strike on Sunday is believed to be the cause of a large wildfire burning in eastern North Carolina.

A wildfire burning more than 10,000 acres in Hyde and Washington counties in North Carolina has forced evacuations and created dangerous conditions in surrounding areas.
The fire, which may have been started by lightning on Sunday, jumped containment lines last night and spread to the northeast, according to officials. Smoke from the fire could be smelled around Hampton Roads.
Firefighters are working to make new containment lines and battling hot, dry, windy conditions.
Ed Christopher, district forester for the N.C. Division of Forest Resources, said Wednesday afternoon that what they are calling the Evans Road fire may be the largest wildfire the area has seen in more than 20 years. He feared the fire could double in size by the end of the day, and said firefighters are looking at weeks or even months, not days, to have it extinguished.
Officials have declared a state of emergency in Washington and Hyde counties, and Washington County has started a mandatory evacuation for people living in the Lake Phelps community. About 40 homes are threatened, according to a statement from the North Carolina Forest Service.

Pilot Online

This is an area I’m very familiar with having hunted and visited the area a lot. A good friend of mine Mike Noles and his family run a guiding business, Conman’s, on the shores of Lake Phelps. I know they have safely evacuated the area but the fate of their home and business is unknown at this time. Keep them in your prayers as well as the other people living in the area and the fire fighters and emergency folks dealing with this fire. Hot dry conditions for the foreseeable future is not really what is needed as they try to battle this fire.

Updates when I have more news

Story by Dan McLaughlin AKA Moose

NCCE

After being treated for a rattlesnake bite a week ago Pamela Summers died at her home in Marion North Carolina from complications of the bite.

On Monday afternoon, Gregory found Summers dead in her home, apparently from complications due to a rattlesnake bite. Gregory said the snakebite occurred early last week while she and her husband, Jimmy Gregory, were away. Pamela had been trimming weeds.
“She was wearing jeans,” Barbara said. “When we got back, she called me and said she didn’t feel good. She said she’d either been bitten by a dog or a snake. I went and looked; it was on her right leg. It had two holes and it didn’t look good.
“She said she wanted to go to sleep,” she added, “and I said ‘Pam, don’t you go to sleep on me.’ Then I called 911.
“The responders said it didn’t look like a snakebite,” she stated. “They thought maybe she’d gotten into a bees’ nest. But the guy from EMS said it was a rattlesnake, so they took her to the hospital.”
Gregory added that Summers had suffered from high blood pressure and several other ailments.
Summers spent the night in the intensive care unit and returned home the next day with orders, said Gregory, “to keep her leg elevated for a month.” She had respiratory problems for several days after the incident, but she would not rest and keep her leg elevated as the doctor had directed, she added.
“She didn’t like to be sitting in the house,” said Jimmy Gregory. “She had to get out and do something.”
On Memorial Day, Barbara received a call from Summers’ sister, she said, asking her to go and check on Pam. When knocking and calling out got no response, Barbara used a spare key and entered the home.
“She was laying on the couch with her leg elevated and she was blue around the mouth and she was cold,” she remembered tearfully. “I’m afraid to go down to the mailbox now.”

McDowellnews.com
With the advances in medical care fatalities from snake bites are rare. North Carolina leads the nation in snake bites with only 3 fatalities since 2000.

Snakebites frequently go unreported. Approximately 4000-7000 bites are reported to national centers each year. North Carolina has the highest frequency, with 19 bites per 100,000 persons. The national average is approximately 4 bites per 100,000 persons.

E Medicine

There is no doubt that with the warm weather snakes are out and about across the state. Rattlesnakes can be found across most of the state as well as a number of other venomous snakes. A neighbor earlier this week killed a copperhead in our subdivision. Be careful and if you get bit seek medical attention immediately.

First Aid for Snakebites
(This first aid for snakebites information was provided by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and the American Red Cross)

According to the American Red Cross, these steps should be taken:

Wash the bite with clean water and soap.
Immobilize the bitten area and keep it lower than the heart.
If the bite is on the hand or arm remove any rings, watches or tight clothing.
Get medical help immediately.
Most bites don’t occur in isolated situations where the victim may be a long distance from medical help. Some medical professionals, along with the American Red Cross, cautiously recommend two other measures:

If a victim is unable to reach medical care within 30 minutes, a bandage, wrapped two to four inches above the bite, may help slow venom. The bandage should not cut off blood flow from a vein or artery. A good rule of thumb is to make the band loose enough that a finger can slip under it.
A suction device may be placed over the bite to help draw venom out of the wound without making cuts. Suction instruments often are included in commercial snakebite kits.
How NOT to Treat a Snakebite
Snakebite first aid methods are not always agreed upon by U.S. medical professionals, but they are nearly unanimous in their views of what NOT to do.

NO ice or any other type of cooling on the bite. Research has shown this to be potentially harmful.
NO tourniquets. This cuts blood flow completely and may result in loss of the affected limb.
NO electric shock. This method is under study and has yet to be proven effective. It could harm the victim.
NO incisions in the wound. Such measures have not been proven useful and may cause further injury.

Desert USA

N&O

Joe Fuller from Holly Springs may have killed a new world record gobbler or at least a new North Carolina state record. The bird had 8 beards and scored a whopping 195.5 and is just waiting to be certified. The Thursday Outdoor section of the N&O had the story;

At first glance, Fuller thought the bird had two beards but when he got it back to his truck and laid it out on the tailgate, he and his hunting partner, Russ Zaft from Fuquay Varina, were amazed to find this bird had eight beards.
Each beard contributes to the total score along with weight and spur length by the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) scoring method. The total score of 195.5 points, when certified and registered with the NWTF would best the previous world record by one and a half points.

Turkeys have really taken off in North Carolina and this is great to have a potential new world record coming out of our state. Go check out the rest of the story and find out what part of the state this big boy came out of.

Story by Dan McLaughlin AKA Moose

North Carolina State Parks continue to evaluate barriers and signs at Chimney Rock after this past weekend’s tragic death when a toddler fell under a barrier and off a cliff. The state has no plans to close or limit access to potentially dangerous areas to children. Rather they attempt to educate parents through signage and park staff so parents can decide on the appropriateness for their own children.

“To say no, children should not go on this trail, or children should not go near this water feature — I’m not sure we want to take that responsibility entirely, and I’m not sure our visitors want us to take that responsibility,” said parks and recreation spokesman Charlie Peek.
Chimney Rock general manager Mary Jaeger-Gale said Giovani Chávez’s death was a devastating accident and a rare occurrence at the highly visited park.
The boy had been hiking with his parents Bibiana and Arturo Chávez, of Spartanburg, S.C., and a group of about 15 people, Peek said.
Jaeger-Gale said park staff suggests that families with children use lower trails, and the Skyline-Cliff Trail had signs in English and Spanish warning hikers to take safety precautions.

Citizens Times

Outdoors and nature can be a very unforgiving and there is no way that it can be made safe. I agree with the state that individuals need to take responsibility for themselves and their children. With that said I’m sure I won’t be seated on the jury that hears this case. In this day and age with people suing over much less frivolous things I’d be surprised that a death inside a state park would not bring a suit.

Authorities have had little to say about the accident that happened earlier this holiday weekend when a toddler fell 200 feet off the rock to his death.

Aura Maas of Raleigh was standing near the family.
“I heard this screaming,” she said. “In my mind I thought perhaps they had seen an animal and that was the commotion. As I got close, I realized what had happened. The child went down.”
Her husband John, also there, said, “They ran after the child; they they…they jumped the fence and tried to get down.”
The sight stunned the couple as well as the young victim’s family.
“Oh..my gosh..it was horrible..my wife was with the mother..she was frantic..everyone was dazed and confused,” said John Maas.
Falling two hundred feet to a trail below the skyline loop was the fatal move. It’s an advanced trail, with a fence, and the boy appears to have slipped under.
Aura Maas spoke to the boy’s mother, who claims she was holding her son’s hand and he slipped out of her grip.

News 7

The bottom railing is about 2.5 feet off the ground, according to park visitor Richard McGinnis, who was at the scene during rescue efforts.
McGinnis, of Boiling Springs, arrived at Chimney Rock Park about the same time as emergency crews. He said he frequently hikes at the park and decided to tag along with rescue crews in case they needed help with directions.
“It would be easy for a toddler (to go under the fencing) if they broke loose from their parents,” McGinnis said.

Citizen Times

A really sad story of how a family’s outing turned tragic in a split second. Language barriers were a factor in gathering information after the accident unknown if that contributed to the accident as well. I’ve been up on Chimney Rock when it was privately owned and there was signs warning people to be careful because of the slippery conditions as well as the rather steep drop offs. Common sense would tell someone that the area is dangerous for the little ones. This appears to be the first fatal accident at the park in recent history.

Story by Dan McLaughlin AKA Moose