OriginalCyn Loc: Connecticut

I arrived at the falls today, really looking forward to uninterrupted hours of shooting. About a half an hour into my hike I stopped where I though I might snap a few. There was a young family nearby...mom, dad, 4 kids. All of a sudden I hear the mom screaming "no, no, no!!!!!!!" One of the kids, maybe 4 yrs old, got into her camera bag and out came the camera rolling down several rocks, landing at the feet of the dad, in pieces. Mom went running up the rocks to the boy, and I turned away, hoping I wouldn't see her beat the kid, as she was pretty pissed off. I'm a mandated reporter, and if she lost it on this kid, it would have made the whole thing ten times worse. She didn't beat him, but she grabbed him, and brought him even further up the rocks,away from the fam, and sat him on his own little time out rock. She was so full of adrenaline, it didn't take much for her to scale the rocks with him in tow.

She climbed back down, the boy at the top crying and scared. Mom sat on the rock where her camera had landed and was in a heated argument with her husband. I couldn't hear most of it because the falls are so loud. I only heard her screaming when the boy initially picked up the camera.

It got worse. Two of the older kids were out closer to the water...but they seemed to be ok. The baby, who was plopped down still in the back pack carrier that he came in on wedged between a few rocks, started to reach for something and was tipping his carrier. I screamed to the parents, in their heated discussion,but they couldn't hear me. I was many rocks and crevices away from being able to get to the baby if I needed to, but I started over that way anyway, just because. He tipped again, and again I yelled. This time loudly enough for dad to look up at me. I screamed " your baby" several times but he wasn't looking at the baby...then the baby reached too far, and tipped over, his face in a pool of water, his head hit the rock. I put my camera down and started crawling over the rocks still trying to get dad to go to the baby. He finally tooled the baby head down in the water...and got there before I did. The baby was breathing and seemed pretty unscathed, except for the bump on the forehead that was now bleeding. Dad said thank you and sat on the rock with the baby, mom still screaming about her camera.
Jeez. I don't think they know just how seriously their baby almost died. I was shaken after the fact, and walked away from them they're re just another accident waiting to happen.

Further down the falls I found a quiet spot and spent a couple of hours. I saw the family hiking the rocks ...still not holding the kids hands nor watching all four of them. My god. Today they got lucky and they don't even know it.

pbearperry Loc: Massachusetts

They evidently took photography lessons but not parenting lessons.

Joe F.N. Loc: Oshawa, Ontario

Unfortunately there is no cure for stupid.

Malcolm B Loc: Leicester (UK)

One needs to get ones priorities right, camera or kids, kids or camera? Difficult decision - not.

SteveR Loc: Michigan

Cyn...I ran across one of these stressed out on the edge Mom's once in a library. Her kids had been out of control and the librarian had already chastised her. At check out she was told she shouldn't put her toddler on the check out cabinet (so he wouldn't fall) and that did it....she took him outside and put him on the sidewalk ...just feet away from the library drive, and then she came back in to check out. It was his four year old brother that went out to watch over him. This lady needed CPS to help her cope.

BTW...good to see you again.

big d Loc: Rossendale Lancashire

Beggers belief! when my brood was young (5 girls) spent years not relaxing on any days (trips) out are holidays watching them constantly.Last year went to a wrestling weekend at Pontins ( holiday park ) one evening at the club guy seated at the back of us so drunk bounced his head on floor a couple of times ? perhaps not a problem but he had two young girls with him 5 and 7 and apparently a single divorced person! Informed Pontins staff, outcome unknown?

tlbuljac Loc: Oklahoma

some parents don't appreciate how fortunate God has been to them by making them parents in the first place, while others try and try and can not conceive but would give anything to have a child

OriginalCyn Loc: Connecticut

Right you are. Too many people struggle to conceive while that would make wonderfully loving parents.

OriginalCyn Loc: Connecticut

Hi Steve. I can understand a person's breaking point...but honestly, both of these parents forgot they were near a very dangerous area with lots and lots of waterfalls, and a baby unattended. What killed me is they went though the rest of the day with nary a thought.

OriginalCyn Loc: Connecticut

Right you are PBear and Joe.

SteveR Loc: Michigan

It sounds like this just was not the kind of area for children these ages.

braindamage Loc: Appley Bridge, Lancs, U.K.

Lucky you were there-or was it fate?

Nikocarol Loc: NM & FL

OMG! I would forever be in your gratitude. It is amazing how some kids survive. They must have angels protecting them and clearly you were that babies that day.

I am always surprised how some kids make it to adulthood. Some parents and I use that lightly just drag the kids along and oh well...

sb Loc: Florida's East Coast

I am amazed at how often I see people hiking up steep mountainsides with babies strapped to their backs, or with their dogs who are having trouble negotiating large boulders. I guess they think their kids and dogs will enjoy the day also, but I think they are either slightly insane or just too cheap for a babysitter. Disaster can be one slippery rock or one turned back away, as you witnessed.

sb Loc: Florida's East Coast

When traveling out west, we discovered that the gift shop at Yellowstone had a very interesting book written by a park historian called "Death at Yellowstone". Most of these deaths were totally Darwinian events - people who were just too stupid to live (no, the boiling pools are not like hot tubs....). But often they were due to parent's stupidity - not watching their kids near huge cliffs ("Well why wasn't there a fence here in the wilderness"?) or even placing their kid on top of a bison for that perfect vacation photo! When we went to the Grand Canyon my kids - who loved the Yellowstone book, went right to the gift shop to see if they had an equivalent book - and they did - and it is called: "Over the Edge - Death at the Grand Canyon"!!

NOT a HOT TUB!