The Strange Tale of the Killer Spider!

Early last year I met a man on the train from Raumati to Wellington. He was middle aged from what I could tell, about 50 or maybe he was in his late 40's. We started talking, and he told me he had been a soldier in the Vietnam war. Obviously I was keen to change the subject, so I asked if he was interested in mysteries, the unexplained. He laughed slightly and said, 'You won't believe me, but in 'Nam I nearly got my head ripped off by a spider the size of a car. Do you believe that?"
I stared for a moment, then, ignoring the question asked, 'Could you tell me the story?'
He grinned, then complied.

He wasn't an overly good soldier apparentally. He could barely handle a gun and had trouble taking orders. This didn't make him hugely popular with the commanders, but he was adored by his fellow soldiers. He described himself as "A bit of a clown in those bad times"
It was during a long tramp through dense jungle that he became seperated from his platoon and became lost in the bush.
Panicing, he ran madly through the jungle, and suddenly tripped on a tree root and was sent tumbling into a small valley, mostly hidden by vegetation. After pulling himself off the ground he observed his surroundings. He saw that the valley walls were too high and too steep to climb out of, and that there appeared to be no other possible exit route. He considered shouting for help, but decided against it as there could easily be enemy troops nearby, and assuming he hadn't strayed too far from his platoon he didn't want to put his fellow men in danger. So he began wandering around the valley edge, looking for possible means of escape.

After about two hours of doing this he heard a rustling sound behind behind him, accompnied seconds later by a disturbing clicking noise. He stood still for some time, but eventually decided it had just been a common animal like a bird. He continued on walking.

After what the man assumed was around an hour he began to feel thristy, and had still found no means of escape. Hoping that the valley would end with a dip that would be easy to walk up, he travelled forward. Suddenly he heard another rushing and clicking noise near his sie. Again he stood and waited. As he looked around for the cause of the noise, there was another, closer sound, and he turned in the direction of it. He nearly screamed when he saw it; through a gap in some tall, long stemmed plants, was the expressionless face of a spider, making a slow clicking noise. But it was not that which made him recoil in shock, it was the fact that the creature he was looking at was larger than a man.

He was motionless for a time, his breath stuck in his throat. He stred at the monster. It stared back with eight eyes. After what must have seemed like an eternity, he turned and sprint, only to hear with horror the sound of scuttling behind him. Eventually the beast caught up with him, push him to the ground with two small front claws, and circled him with the other eight legs. Twice he attempted to get up, but was violently whacked back into the dirt. On the third attempt he escaped, but was almost immediatlly then caught by its front claws, which dangled him in front of the arachnids jaws. He thrashed and kicked, causing the spider to grip more tightly with its claws, leaving bloody gashes in his shoulders. He managed to kick it in one of its eyes, which made it relinquish him and cower. Using this to his advantage the man began to climb up the valley wall, despite knowing that it would be impossible to reach the top. He spotted a small ledge, andclimbed onto it.

Below him the gagantuan animal clicked loudly, thrusting out its claws and legs, but unable to climb up the wall.

After some time, he realised the creatures was never going to stop pursuing him, and that he had to climb from the ledge out of the valley. He eventually did so using a fallen tree branch that was hanging precariously on the edge of the valley wall, and sprinted as fast as he could from the spiders lair.

After two days of wandering the jungle, he was discovered by a member of his platoon, who took him back to base, where his wounds were immediatlly treated.
Upon telling the other men what had happened, they assumed he had become uncouncious, and the whole event was an hallucination after he sustained the injuries from ordinary events that would occur to someone lost and panicing.

He maintains to this day, however, that hs story is true.

From a biological point of veiw, it is highly unlikely that any spider could grow so big through freak mutation or a genetic anamoly, but not entirely impossible. It is also not impossible, but highly unlikely, that the spider was a species ofarachnid which had adapted to being large, but is now rare or extinct.

The man could be lying.

But how much more romanic it is to think that deep within the Vietmenese jungle, there lurked the last of some prehistoric species, or some freak monster, hunting those that found themselves in its lair.

And as one final note, may I add, the man whom told me this story, showed me his shoulders as evidence, and indeed, from the top of the shoulder to the chest, they had long time faded wounds, just as his story claimed.

I'm a Vietnam veteran myself and I'm inclined to regard this as fiction. For obvious reasons.

But I'm also one of the veterans who came back from that war with memories that don't seem to fit what is supposed to have happened. It's possible that what this man recalls is a screen memory and the truth lies somewhere behind it; that's more likely than this being literally true.

I don't generally have much confidence in the war stories soldiers tell, even the mundane ones. Veterans have a need to justify what they have done, and very often are drawn to lie to accomplish that. I remember how on the plane back to the States the soldiers with me began immediately lying to one another, seemingly for practice. The people with real experience do not talk about it much.

The concept of a giant spider dwelling deep within the hostile jungle is an attractively dramatic one, but there was scarier stuff than that.

I once met a veteran who invaded Vietnam after the war ended; if you are going to lie, it's best to lie about things that can't be proven.

Jimmy T
American Shaman

I am sorry to hear you were part of a war. I could try to offer sympathy but nothing I say could really make any difference to anyone who does not tuly understand, who was not truly there.

I too assumed a screen memory might be at work, the mans story has the typical features of one.

Great story, USkep, and well written. A couple things come to mind. It's doubtful a man could outrun a similarly sized spider. Nor outclimb the creature. The last thing is that all spiders are venomous. Why didn't it poison him?

Still, I very much enjoyed your posting!

The story definately is a fanciful one, but I posted it more to excite the imagination then to seriously considering such a thing existing.

However,

He never actually said it bit him, it attacked with its front claws the whole time. This in itself is very doubtful, as it is unlikely the spider would only attack with the frontal claws.

About him outrunning it, if this monster did exist, which Im definately not saying it did, wouldn't it be quite awkward due to its body layout and size vs the forces of gravity?

Im glad you enjoyed the post!

C'mon Undead, you should have straight away remembered Giant Spider+High Calibre Bullet=Goop.
And any soldier who's scared of spiders is only scared of the hairy ones that are at least 10 times bigger than the biggest example you can find
You can gaurantee that the one that crawls into your boots will be the size of a rat

But Evang, this thing was as big as a man! I swear Im tellin' da truth!

You know what that means? Somewhere out there, a huge 60' godzilla spider's just biding her time. You better learn to sleep with one eye open. Mwahahahahahahaha*cough*cough*choke*splutter*wheeze* hah.

Nice story Undeadskeptic, Keep them coming.

yeah, I think the guy was spinning a tall tale... c'mon, the spider couldn't climb a rockface, but the man could...

Evangium, you truly do know how to give me nightmares.



Thanks evancj, sure will.



I wondered if it would be because the spiders body structure vs its size wouldn't allow for climbing up steep walls, which could possibly loop around as to why it was a secret for so long, trapped in the valley that no one had stepped a foot in to without being ripped to peices before. But I agree, it sounds like a tall tale, albeit quite a cool one, wouldn't you agree?

But just in case this thing does exist, never go anywhere in Vietnam without bug spray...

I was under the impression that spiders and other exoskeleton creatures (bugs) cannot be that large due to physics. Something about the exoskeleton containing the "goop" in our gravity.

Even the giant insects and spiders of the past didn’t get as big as this fellow is claiming, and they only got that big back then because the oxygen levels were much higher than today... insect and spider exoskeletons and respiratory systems get less efficient the larger they get... so it’s practically impossible for a spider to get as big as this fellow claims... IMO

Yeah, it is kind of a cool story, except it sounds like a man with a walking stick, that kept his wits, could have defeated the spider...

Thi why, in the bioglogical veiwpoint I included in the first post, I listed possible, but enormously unlikely reasons as being a species of spider that had evolved to be that large, or a bizarre freak, a genetic anomoly. Both are very unlikely though.

I believe that can now be disputed by the discovery of an over six foot long scorpion, that appeared to be a land dweller, but this story was surely a tall tail or haullicination.

But on the other hand, there seems to be something to some of the many dragon tales that have come out of Vietnam.

Sure does.

I'd be interested in a reference to that scorpion.
And no one asked about DRAGONS in Viet Nam. That has NOTHING to do with this topic.

I wonder if he told you this story before or after he saw Harry Potter?

I agree very strongly with Eggumby, no one asked about dragons in Viet Nam. That has NOTHING to do with this topic.

Thank you for serving in Vietnam. Much love, Jody

Saying thank you may not be so appropriate...

Good story...

Wow! What a pic. I specially like the bottom right corner where we can see a big fat juicy spider leg. Creeeeepy!

I thought it was a great story... sounds fictional, but still a great story. It kept my attention.

Wrong again, DC. The fossil discovered was a giant sea scorpion and because of it's size it could not crawl on dry land.

Link



This thread is about a giant spider (real or not), so please keep your dragons out of this.

Thanks for the link. I had a feeling it would be an aquatic species. DC loves to twist up facts it seems. Amen on the Dragons...is he still trying to hawk his book?

You're welcome. Yup, classic DC.



As far as I know, he's still working on it. The release date may be around June...

...of 2099.

Sounds a little too narrative to be real. With the clicking and all. Like the legend of the hook man.

He hears a scratching on the car and dismisses it. Hears it again and on the radio they hear a broadcast of a killer on the loose with a hook. They drive away and when they finally stop they find the hook on the door.

He hears a clicking and dismisses it as imagination. Hears it again and thinks it may be a bird. He hears it a lottle closer and turns to see a spider the size of a small car watching him.

And the guy was under it... and kicked it in the eye? An upside down spider?
And seeing as how easy it was to harm the spider and disarm it it is probable that the spider has had some experience with other large game and would attack from behind before it's prey sees it.

Well told story...I just find it hard to believe that there is no evidence today of any history of giant spiders attacking humans or even a dead sample or anything to give scientists a clue that these giant spiders exist today...prehistoric times of course...then again Loch Ness hasn't been caught......also I find this story intriguing to the fact it was told after the release of the Lord of the Rings which I think that Vet caught a glimpse of while smoking on a bong BIGGER than a MAN!

OH MY GOD, get those guys outta there!



Feels good standing up to DC lol



I did not exaggerate the story or change details, bt the reason you may find it narritive is because thats how I wrote it, in my own words to entertain and intriuge. Comparing it to that urban legend, well you may as well compar the number 7 to the word "of", it doesn't really work like that.

It was holding him above it with its front claws, not below it.



Laugh out loud at that, I think you might be right my dude.

Im an Astral Projection! Yay! Champagne, champagne for everyone!

That story makes me want to shoot a giant spider with a M-16 for some reason.

Maybe he had an encounter with The Predator and it let him go because he wasn't much of a trophy?

Not calling you or he a lier. Just saying. Still, if you are under a giant spider how do you kick it in the eyes when they are on top of it?

Hasn't anybody seen the documentry called "Eight Legged Freaks" ? It was of so good

HE WAS ABOVE THE SPIDER! I said that before, he was being held above its head with the front claws when he kicked it in the eye.

Not that I expect you to answer, but why didn't the creature, at that point, inject venom with its fangs?

Wouldn't a man in his 'late forties-early fifties' be a smidge young for active duty in Viet Nam conflict.

Of course, the is the most mundane truth stretches, compared to giant spiders and such....

If you come across a thread where the vast majority of posts are from the dude who started it you know that its a waste of time hmm why am i typing end transmission

Okay. That makes even less sense. It lifts him up like a baby for what purpose? I am sure that a giant spider needs and values sustanance so why wait so long to kill him?

There was another thread where someone demonstrated that spiders can only get so big because of their exoskeletons - 2 feet tall or something like that. Nowhere near as big as the bug in the story.

It's a great story, but yet another war exaggeration or example of PTSD and the other mental afflictions that result from similar situations. =)

Sounds to me like the guy may have suffered a serious head injury and is experiencing false memories. It would truly be awesome if there were giant spiders though, unfortunately this guy may have been mistaken.

I dont know, I assume that the man knew very little about spiders when he told this story, as that would probably be the first thing it would do.



The majority of posts on this forum are not by me. You cannot count and are clearly an arrogant creep.
oo, kitty got claws.



I think so to, always good to have you in a thread Wraith!

I beleive that the actual number is 17/43 posts just from you that my oh so insecure friend is a ratio of around 45/46% now if i appear arrogant please beleive me when isay that its only because im rich handsome and incredably talented so its entirely justified oh and its still a crap thread

That isn't the majority of posts. m no good at math, but I can tell you just pulled that out of your ass.

You aren't rich handsome or talented. You are an insignificant pesty blip on the radar of my also insignificant, but far more important than yours, life.

This is not a crap thread. Unlike you I have more than two brain cells and will give reasons for thinking so.

1. Everyone but you who has commented has said it was a good story many asking for more in a similar vein.
2. It is a break from the typical bigfoot threads that only a week ago completely dominated the forums.
3. It focuses on an unknown cryptid, rather than a largely well-known one and thus is that little bit more intriguing.

Now I feel sad for beng mean to most people, but you are an exception. You are a troll. I hope you leave these forums soon or you are banned. No one will care when that happens because you are merely a troll.

Ouch, that was so harsh it even hurt me just writing it. I will never write a post this mean again...

I really hope that this is not your best effort cause if it is your in trouble! now lets talk numbers there are 46 posts on this thread from that number 20 different good people have contributed 28 posts which is roughly breaks down to 1.12 posts per person you singlehandedly account for 18 posts that my two brain celled friend is the vast majority now ive tried to explain it as slowly as i can (i know that you struggle to understand sometimes its okay)
secondly everybody knows that you did not meet a ex veitnaam vet and this entire thread is a way for you to gain the attention that you so desperatly need furthermore furthermore furthermore furthermore ive lost count of the times when you have slammed other peoples threads for no good reason if you cant take it dont dish it out

also all i have to do is look in a mirror to see how handsome i am all i have to do is look at my bank accounts to see how rich i am and as far as my talents and importance go well lets just say that i am equally secure basicly those insults would only hurt if they were true which of course they arent but the fact that you think they would tells me that you were projecting your own shortcommings

Finaly mr undead i intend to be on these forums for ever!!! you take care and have a nice day

I will just ignore you now.

*SNIP*

I enjoyed the topic, Undeadskeptic. Still, it might be time for you two to take this to PMs.

I agree, sorry its just when someone winds me up like that I sorta explode.

Thanks again for the compliment, I'll keep em coming.

That's a bit harsh. Some of the worst threads on this forum are the ones where the OP does one post (usually htt]p://check out this video.com), then is never heard from again.
Then we've got those threads where 1 or 2 fanactical individuals spam the threads with numerous off topic posts that comprise their 'evidence' for their argument (just have a look in the ET board).

Speaking of bad threads/threads gone bad, the debate tends to lose focus on truth, fact, evidence when it turns tit for tat. There's a nice feature in 'MY Controls' that lets you ignore posts from other members.
Might be something that all parties to the argument might want to consider
It's a much more civilised alternative to bringing down the wrath of Mod