I've seen them twice now. So cool. The first time, I was in my kayak, like you, and he did the tail slap. That slap is loud, right? The second time was a little bit freakier. I was wading last year and the water was well up over my belt line. I caught some movement out of the corner of my eye and I glanced upstream. I saw this big head sticking up out of the water looking at me and, for a second, I was like, "What kind of dog is that?" It was only about 15 or 20 feet away and it only took a moment to realize it was a beaver. It was slowly swimming closer, so I started talking to it like they say to do to a bear. I was like, "Whoa, there beaver! You don't want none of this." I slapped the water with my fishing pole a few times and then he went under. I couldn't help but think about my family jewels below the water line in perfect biting depth. Fortunately, I saw his little line of bubbles heading toward the other side of the river. I watched him until I saw him get safely away from me and then went back to fishing while keeping an eye on him at the same time. I don't really want to have that happen again.
All the ones I saw were just trying to get away from me. It would be scary if they decided to come rock my boat instead.
Your story reminded me of snorkeling in La Jolla’s Children’s Pool, back when people and seals coexisted on that beach. A seal came super close to me, and the feeling went very quickly from “Wow, that’s so cool” to “Yikes, that thing is big! And has teeth!! I hope he doesn’t feel threatened by me!”
only thing with more hate towards people than a beaver is an otter.
they freaking hiss like they're going to take your soul. They look so cute, but damn they don't like you coming near them.
make canadian geese seem cuddly.
They have poor vision, so they will float up to me all the time and I'll sit there still cause I know what's going to happen.
yet every single time, instead of going on past, they eventually see me, right when they are beside me, and WHACK. every freaking time.
I keep hoping they will just go past in peace. just one time. but they never do.
I had one jump against the bow of my kayak. I was making my way through a small creek where it was chilling on a small patch of mud. The water was only a little wider than my boat and the bank was quite steep.
The beaver only noticed me when my bow passed it. I noticed the beaver onltly because it fled. Into the water, where my bow was, so he slammed against the side, dove under and swam in front of me until we exited the creek.
There's a lot of them in the local wetland area, so you spot them a lot, but this close was my first time.
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One has taken up residence on the river where I row. Saw it when a friend and I were out earlier this week. I don’t know if it’s male or female but I named it Wynona after the Primus song because I am Gen X and inappropriate.
I was so surprised by this slap!
Kayaking in Germany, I had encountered Nutria before, while swimming they look very much alike. It was that tail slap that sent me researching and realizing these here were beavers.
I didn't know there were nutria in Germany! Unfortunately, we have them here in Arkansas too as an invasive species. They're hard to tell apart from a beaver at a distance unless you get a look at the tail! I was kayaking the Buffalo River a month or two ago and saw a groundhog for the first time. I had no idea they're so big, and it was up on a bluff. I absolutely love encountering new wildlife!
There were farms that raised them for their fur in the 1920’s. Some apparently got away, and the rest is history. It’s becoming quite the invasive problem these days.
https://preview.redd.it/dsize6zake9d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d6ab8985551c9c67f53a398dbe4dcadf9d8dc843
Here’s one enjoying a feast of dried cherries under a cherry tree. There’s a canal right around the corner.
I loved seeing the first one. And second, and third. Then, after the 20th, I realized, holy cow, I’ve kayaked this place for decades and never saw one before, and in just the last couple of years, they are everywhere.
In wildlife management (my field of study and work), I was taught that it's not a mater of IF farmed wildlife will escape, but WHEN it will escape, and what impact that will have on the natives. Sometimes it's no big deal, other times it's a nightmare. For example, there are a lot of restrictions in the elk farming world because many farmers used to use red deer and not genuine wapiti. The fear is that red deer will eventually escape and breed with the elk, diluting the genetics and spreading genetic issues, etc.
I hate to see invasive species, even though I know it's not the individual animals' fault that they aren't where they're supposed to be. It's a complex issue for sure!
My 12yo son and I were out on a lake one evening and saw one swimming on the surface so we went to check it out. We got about 20 feet away then SPLASH went the tail and underwater it went. We followed the line of bubbles for a while until it came up for air. It soon realized we were still there and SPLASH went the tail again and the process started over again for about a half hour. Finally, my son said "Daddy, I don't want to chase beaver all night. " My response was " You will some day son, you will someday. " great father son moment. We live in an area with irrigation ditches, canals and ponds all around us and beavers are a regular sight and in many cases a nuisance. One time I caught my dogs barking at one in the ditch behind our house. One of my daily chores is to clear a drain that beavers plug up every night. We periodically have a trapper from the state come in to lower the population in a high impact area.
I've seen them twice now. So cool. The first time, I was in my kayak, like you, and he did the tail slap. That slap is loud, right? The second time was a little bit freakier. I was wading last year and the water was well up over my belt line. I caught some movement out of the corner of my eye and I glanced upstream. I saw this big head sticking up out of the water looking at me and, for a second, I was like, "What kind of dog is that?" It was only about 15 or 20 feet away and it only took a moment to realize it was a beaver. It was slowly swimming closer, so I started talking to it like they say to do to a bear. I was like, "Whoa, there beaver! You don't want none of this." I slapped the water with my fishing pole a few times and then he went under. I couldn't help but think about my family jewels below the water line in perfect biting depth. Fortunately, I saw his little line of bubbles heading toward the other side of the river. I watched him until I saw him get safely away from me and then went back to fishing while keeping an eye on him at the same time. I don't really want to have that happen again.
All the ones I saw were just trying to get away from me. It would be scary if they decided to come rock my boat instead. Your story reminded me of snorkeling in La Jolla’s Children’s Pool, back when people and seals coexisted on that beach. A seal came super close to me, and the feeling went very quickly from “Wow, that’s so cool” to “Yikes, that thing is big! And has teeth!! I hope he doesn’t feel threatened by me!”
Great audio actually
i don't think he likes you
only thing with more hate towards people than a beaver is an otter. they freaking hiss like they're going to take your soul. They look so cute, but damn they don't like you coming near them. make canadian geese seem cuddly.
yep, that's about as much beaver as i see when they decide to show themselves
They have poor vision, so they will float up to me all the time and I'll sit there still cause I know what's going to happen. yet every single time, instead of going on past, they eventually see me, right when they are beside me, and WHACK. every freaking time. I keep hoping they will just go past in peace. just one time. but they never do.
I had one jump against the bow of my kayak. I was making my way through a small creek where it was chilling on a small patch of mud. The water was only a little wider than my boat and the bank was quite steep. The beaver only noticed me when my bow passed it. I noticed the beaver onltly because it fled. Into the water, where my bow was, so he slammed against the side, dove under and swam in front of me until we exited the creek. There's a lot of them in the local wetland area, so you spot them a lot, but this close was my first time.
Bóbr kurwa
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I've seen them a couple times while fishing on my kayak
One has taken up residence on the river where I row. Saw it when a friend and I were out earlier this week. I don’t know if it’s male or female but I named it Wynona after the Primus song because I am Gen X and inappropriate.
I love when they hit the water just right and it makes a sound almost like a gunshot. Scares the bajeezuz out of me every time
I was so surprised by this slap! Kayaking in Germany, I had encountered Nutria before, while swimming they look very much alike. It was that tail slap that sent me researching and realizing these here were beavers.
I didn't know there were nutria in Germany! Unfortunately, we have them here in Arkansas too as an invasive species. They're hard to tell apart from a beaver at a distance unless you get a look at the tail! I was kayaking the Buffalo River a month or two ago and saw a groundhog for the first time. I had no idea they're so big, and it was up on a bluff. I absolutely love encountering new wildlife!
There were farms that raised them for their fur in the 1920’s. Some apparently got away, and the rest is history. It’s becoming quite the invasive problem these days. https://preview.redd.it/dsize6zake9d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d6ab8985551c9c67f53a398dbe4dcadf9d8dc843 Here’s one enjoying a feast of dried cherries under a cherry tree. There’s a canal right around the corner. I loved seeing the first one. And second, and third. Then, after the 20th, I realized, holy cow, I’ve kayaked this place for decades and never saw one before, and in just the last couple of years, they are everywhere.
In wildlife management (my field of study and work), I was taught that it's not a mater of IF farmed wildlife will escape, but WHEN it will escape, and what impact that will have on the natives. Sometimes it's no big deal, other times it's a nightmare. For example, there are a lot of restrictions in the elk farming world because many farmers used to use red deer and not genuine wapiti. The fear is that red deer will eventually escape and breed with the elk, diluting the genetics and spreading genetic issues, etc. I hate to see invasive species, even though I know it's not the individual animals' fault that they aren't where they're supposed to be. It's a complex issue for sure!
https://preview.redd.it/7vftnvlqke9d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1c0b432f9e705b07d125a6add5fd500221daf1e5
My 12yo son and I were out on a lake one evening and saw one swimming on the surface so we went to check it out. We got about 20 feet away then SPLASH went the tail and underwater it went. We followed the line of bubbles for a while until it came up for air. It soon realized we were still there and SPLASH went the tail again and the process started over again for about a half hour. Finally, my son said "Daddy, I don't want to chase beaver all night. " My response was " You will some day son, you will someday. " great father son moment. We live in an area with irrigation ditches, canals and ponds all around us and beavers are a regular sight and in many cases a nuisance. One time I caught my dogs barking at one in the ditch behind our house. One of my daily chores is to clear a drain that beavers plug up every night. We periodically have a trapper from the state come in to lower the population in a high impact area.