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Hiker shaken after realising strange find in woods could've killed them

A hiker on an off-road trail stumbled upon a very odd object, which turned out to be something quite sinister.

The hiker shared a picture to a Reddit page dedicated to trying to figure out what random objects actually are.

The object in question appeared to be cylindrical and had 'spikes' coming out of one end.

"Object found while hiking off-road in Bosnia. Notice the spikes near the end! Wondering what it is," the hiker said on Reddit.

The sub-Reddit's moderator quickly jumped in and said it appeared the hiker had found an unexploded ordnance – an explosive – that hadn't gone off.

A hiker found what looked to be some sort of explosive device while on a hike. Source: Reddit
A hiker found what looked to be some sort of explosive device while on a hike. Source: Reddit

"If you're unsure, the first thing to do is LEAVE IT ALONE. Do not shake it, attempt to open it, or disturb it at all," the moderator said.

"Next step would be to CONTACT THE PROPER AUTHORITIES. If you're unsure who that is, call your local police or emergency number for instructions."

It seemed clear to pretty much everyone on the Reddit thread that the object the hiker found was some sort of explosive.

Hiker's 'regret' after finding explosive

The hiker even said the group they were with figured it might have been a bomb, so they backed off immediately.

"Now that we’re safe, we’re wondering what exactly we encountered. In hindsight, I can assure that we regret walking up there uninformed," they said.

One person told others they should not go hiking in Bosnia unless they know where they're going as it is "full of unmarked minefields".

Another person in the comments said they went to Bosnia in 2011 and were told by several different people to not hike off trail due to landmines.

The hiker said they regretted going off the hiking trail. Source: Getty Images, file
The hiker said they regretted going off the hiking trail. Source: Getty Images, file

In the comments, the hiker said they were "shook" after finding the likely explosive and realising its potential harm.

"It is disturbingly close to our stay and we definitely will not wander around again!" they said.

Someone else responded saying rain can dislodge mines and take them away from where they once were.

It is not known if the find was reported to local authorities.

Migrant died from land mine in Croatia this year

According to the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, there are thousands of unexploded mines left over from wars.

"The Bosnia and Herzegovina Mine Action Centre estimates that there are 180,000 unexploded mines left over from the wars of the 1990s," OCHA said.

"Over 130,000 have been removed, and 617 lives have been lost. A migrant died in a land mine explosion over the border in Croatia earlier this year, illustrating the need for outreach on the dangers of mines."

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