... Just as I hit the half-way point across the side creek, I hit a batch of quicksand -- yeah really -- and immediately sunk to my knees in sticky sand. Didn't know sand could suck you like muc, but take it from me, it does. Anyway, knowing the movies showing people slowly sinking and disappearing were totally false Hollywood antics, I tried to "walk" my way out. All that happened was I sunk another 2 inches, tried it again, sunk another 2 inches --- hmmm, starting to look just like the old Hollywood movies. So I stand still for a few seconds thinking and watch my legs get another inch shorter... About now I figure it's time to act. I remember one Hollywood movie where Tarzan tells somepoor schmuck to "swim" out of the quicksand, so I figure WTF. I quickly take my pack off and hurl it to the dry bank -- all of 8 feet away mind you, but an 8 feet I cannot traverse. So now for the humiliation --- I lay down in the muck and try to swim crawl out. Well, the sand has a solid hold on me and I cannot make any forward progress, but at least I'm no longer sinking. Oh, the Gitzo... It's still being held high above the sand in one hand so as not to get it dirty, wet or sandy. It is also the only tool I have -- no branches to grab, nothing but what looks like perfectly dry sand all around me. So in a flash, the new Gitzo becomes a three legged spike. I shove the legs into the ground ahead of me and pull myself toward shore. I have to repeat this three times before I can pull one of my own legs free and get it on solid enough ground to get my other one un-stuck ...
Hee hee - I have an almost identical story but in the middle of the meadow across from the chapel in Yosemite. In my case it was last February after a particularly picturesque snow storm overnight and I was walking across what turned out to be 1ft snow, a thick ice layer, another 1ft snow, another ice layer and then the bottom layer of snow/frozen vegetation.
For the first 30ft all was well and it was just a wander through the snow. Suddenly it's 'crack' and I dropped a ft or so and was up to my knees and was now starting to flail about through the snow. Then, 'crack' again and now it's thigh deep but really tough to break through to move - every climb up out of the snow/ice would get me to the next layer up but then 'crack' and down again. Finally I'm up to my waist and figure what the heck - set up the tripod & camera and shoot the lifting mist & snow and the scenery but from my new waist deep nest in the snow. Now I have to get back out to the path before I freeze my balls off so I end up having to throw the backpack forwards a few feet and ended up almost having to do the same pathetic swimming motion to push through the powder. Every step forward was a climb up followed by a crack and drop back down as the ice layers broke. I tried the crawl, the hop, the ice-breaker (crack the ice/snow in front & try to barge through it), even the swim/snow angel impression ...
I decide then to use my CF Gitzo as a staff - BIG mistake. Firstly, it turns out that Gitzo tripod leg cement isn't great at 5f ... one of the legs starts to get loose and then finally drops off. I launch it like a javelin to the 'shore'. Next, it turns out that CF gets brittle when cold enough too - 'crack' - suddenly the bottom 6in of my $700 tripod looks like a shark just ravaged it and there's the equivalent of the bloody stump left. Somewhere out in that meadow I'm sure there was wonderment in the spring about the chunk of CF tubing sticking out of the ground.
So, after about 15 minutes of rolling around, clambering, flailing arms, cursing, sweating, grunting, groaning and finally stupid laughter, I manage to reach the edge of the meadow, fence and the safety of footpath. Of course, my shooting buddy has been watching me all this time laughing his head off and offering helpful 'advice'. :toocool:
So, nett result was only a half decent shot, a one & half leg tripod and an extremely chilly snow bath. :ROTFL:
(Btw, this is a good advertisement for Gitzo standing behind their products because they fixed my tripod - replacing the legs, one for free and the other snapped one on my dime for a total good as new tripod for $120. :thumbs
Then there was the sunset of a lifetime shot in Sydney with the Opera house & bridge behind it taken at the botanical gardens with my XPan outfit. Fifteen minutes of carefully hand metered shooting ... with the lens cap on. :ROTFL: :thumbdown:
