Yes indeed , stick happens! (-:That happened to me last week and to think I could have avoided it by going around the spruce bough. It snapped and a large chunk of it jammed into the drivetrain almost in the same spot where the branch ended up in your cassette. It broke the cap and sheared through the housing and cable. Fortunately, I was able to limp home with the few remaining strands still intact.
I'm just up the road from you, in southwest Wake County! Been checking Google Maps for sand roads down your way for some rides - would be neat to meet up for a ride, if you're interested.
Yes indeed I had heard this fellow making those crazy sounds last year in the middle of the night outside my window a few times but this is the first time I actually laid eyes on him. It is huge.
A few years ago I saw a half dozen or so all together in a 'smallish' tree. You could walk right up and stand under the canopy and they were mere feet away, and they never even budged. They are indeed huge and beautiful.
