Those Little "white" lies:

[shadowcat]

nice reply stan

really really nice reply
but if you think that was deserved then hey who am i to judge?

 

[vegematic]

Years ago a couple of friends and I hiked Mt Greylock on a chilly, very windy fall day. At the summit we found a little clearing sheltered amid some bushes and huddled in there to eat lunch while "spying" on other folks through the bushes. There was a woman just on the other side of our hedge who had pretty obviously driven up. She was dressed in a cute little white skirt, perfectly clean little white sneakers, some thin t-shirt and was complaining on and on to her male companion about the wind messing up her carefully styled hair and she was cold and quite frankly she was spoiling my meal. So in between bites of my sandwich I decided to growl in her general direction. Her reaction was priceless. Suffice it to say we got to finish our lunch in peace, after about 5 minutes of hysterical, gut-wrenching laughter.

Did we cause her stress? Undoubtedly. Was it undue? Well, that's a matter of opinion.
-vegematic

 

[carole]

The joke was on me but I wasn’t laughing.

I set out on my familiar trail only to be stopped near the trailhead by a booth set up in the middle of the trail. I was told it would now cost $1.00 to hike the trail.
“You have got to be kidding me, I hike here all the time and now I have to pay $1/each time?”
“This is to pay for improvement to the trail.”
“Well, I don’t carry money hiking.”
“Are you sure? You don’t have any change? Could you go back to your car for something?”
“No, I don’t have any money in my car either.” (I was fuming!)
“Well, we can let you pass this time but remember to bring money next time.”

I, still fuming, start up the trail and see a van. A person comes out from the van and says, “Congratulations, you’re on Candid Camera!”

Now I don’t like my picture taken, never mind being on TV so I still wasn’t laughing. Apparently (and good for me) I wasn’t the best of the angry people that day as I didn’t make the cut for the program.

I can smile now when I think about it. I don’t get fooled very often but they got me that day.

 

[Rik]

It was my comments that SC is referring to in her original post. The reason I didn't say what I was thinking was that I thought the humor would be lost on these folks. My wife and I had a good chuckle after they left but I doubt they would have "gotten it" or appreciated it. Of course there was another time on Whiteface where someone asked "what do they do with all the snow?" Since it was May I couldn't help myself and answered "they put it away for the summer". Fortunately they seemed to "get it".

 

[rhihn]

My cousins and I once pretended to be British when hiking up Blue Mountain, putting on ridiculously bad accents.

One of my sons and a friend from France did something similar, pretending they spoke no English. My son doesn't speak French at all, but he knew a few words and was good at faking the sound of the language (there's a comedian who made a living doing this, but I forget his name). They were both good at keeping a straight face, especially his friend, who must have come close to cracking up over my son's phony French. They got quite an earful from some kids!

Dick

 

[sierra]

Once I got flamed to know end, either on this site or the AMC's for telling of a day after rockclimbing on cannon, that when asked by tourist "wheres the old man? I pointed to Eagle Cliff, there where 50 or so that looked where I pointed. IM not much for pranks, or malicious behavior but I did it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Now I feel better. I know they found the Old Man sooner or later. There are or where only about 20 signs telling his location. I guess after 20 yrs in the mtns. tourist sometimes make it so easy.

 

[BLE]

In the parking lot of Welch-Dickey after hiking the loop, the guy who had just gotten out of his car next to us with a Bud in his hand, no slight on domestic beer , asks me "A lot of uphill out there." My reply of "just as much up as down" got a friendly laugh from everyone.

 

[Rick]

...My son doesn't speak French at all, but he knew a few words and was good at faking the sound of the language (there's a comedian who made a living doing this, but I forget his name)....

Dick

"Oof means Egg, Chapeau means hat..... It's like THOSE French have a DIFFERENT word for EVERYTHING!!!!!!"
"Doo Doo dez Sway, doo doo Des Swa???"
Anybody remember Steve Martin??

 

[Raymond]

Carole, I don't think they could put you on "Candid Camera" unless you signed a waiver.

It wouldn't occur to me to tease anyone I didn't know. I remember when we climbed the Adirondacks' Haystack we met three or four guys loaded with GPSes who thought they were on Marcy. I simply pointed out the much higher mountain over there and Susan, Cam, and I did our eye rolling after we'd parted their company.

 

[rondak46]

"How Much Farther?"

People who ask this question are usually stressed already. Its a toss-up as to what would stress them more. Personally, I think that telling them that "It's just around the corner" is more cruel. So I usually tell them that it is much further than it is. I get to see the reaction and if they start to turn around or become truly despondant I'll fess up. I know, however, that if they think that they have a half mile, and they get there in a couple hundred yards they will be very happy; in fact, if the whole trip had seemed a burden, it will not feel like that any longer.

Mike

 

[Bob Kittredge]

When I leave the summit, I try to note the time. If someone on the way up asks, I can look at my watch and say "well, I've been descending for x minutes".

 

[TenPeaks]

I love being asked "how much further?" since my usual reply is "you're almost half way there" no matter where I am on the trail. After an "ugghhh..." from my wife I'll tell the hikers going up the truth.

Another one of my favorites is telling people to watch out for bears up the trail, but since they got "Dave" they should be well fed. Or "I hope you brought enough rope to swing across the ravine."

 

[jbrown]

(there's a comedian who made a living doing this, but I forget his name).

Perhaps Sid Caesar?

We've done imitation french at a thruway rest-stop on the way to a hike. "You hev, zee, 'ow do you zay...creme de le creme?" Nobody else got it, but we were rolling.

 

[1ADAM12]

Ausable Club Ranger

About a month ago when I climbed Sawteeth we signed in at the register. The ranger came out of that shack and asked us where we were going and what our itinerary was. I looked at him serious and said were going for a swim in the Ausable Lake. He looked at me like ummmmmmmmm you cant do that if your not a member. I could not keep a straight face anymore and after seconds passed I told him we were joking and we were climbing Sawteeth. He was just a young ranger probably in his early 20's. Probably a summer job

I am a pratical jokester look out!!!!!!

 

[Steve-o]

Sometimes on Mt. Washington we'll ask someone;
who obviously came up the auto road or cog,
" where's the burger king ? "

always good for a strange look or remark.

 

[AntlerPeak]

A friend of mine told me this story one day, it is one of those I wish I was there stories. He had just finished building the bridge ( walkway ) at Avalanche Lake. Yes it was the "Hitch up Mathilda" bridge. This was a replacement in the late seventies. After driving the bolts into the rock and completing the work the crew left and he remained. Jim told me he had no idea why he stayed behind. It was just by impulse to enjoy a moment of solitude. When examining his day pack he discovered he had a can of Elmers woodfill. So for the fun of it he covered the holes made in the bridge by the recessed bolts. He commented that "you could not see a bolt" when he was done. As he was leaving a couple who were backpacking approached from the other end. They crossed the bridge marveling at how new it was. Jim opened his pack and produced a bottle of Elmers wood glue. Holding it up he quipped "we didn't have any bolts. I hope this stuff is as strong as they say it is." The hikers looked at the bridge, amazed and fearful having just crossed it and were speechless. My friend tells me the look on their faces was priceless. He did overtake them on the way out and fessed up. The hikers said he had them almost convinced but they reasoned it was a joke but were not sure.