WEBVTT 1 00:00:10.080 --> 00:00:16.039 Growing up in central Florida. My interest in our Florida sasquatch or skunk cape 2 00:00:16.079 --> 00:00:20.280 began when I was eleven years old. It was at the right age for 3 00:00:20.320 --> 00:00:25.359 an impressionable young mind. In early nineteen seventy four, there was a rash 4 00:00:25.440 --> 00:00:30.719 of bigfoot or skunk ape sightings all over Florida, and this fueled my imagination. 5 00:00:31.800 --> 00:00:36.000 Even some of my friends told me of experienced they had while camping and 6 00:00:36.000 --> 00:00:41.200 seeing the skunk ape or sasquatch. My best friends and I would tell the 7 00:00:41.240 --> 00:00:45.679 scariest stories and scare the bejeebis out of each other. I was with my 8 00:00:45.759 --> 00:00:50.600 boy Scout troop camping at a Scout camp on the edge of Okalla National Forest. 9 00:00:51.560 --> 00:00:55.840 Years later I would learn that there were also many reports of sightings within 10 00:00:55.880 --> 00:00:59.640 a few miles of this area, as well as a couple of strange encounters 11 00:00:59.640 --> 00:01:03.879 of my own that I couldn't explain at the time. My best friend Tim 12 00:01:03.920 --> 00:01:08.400 and I were the youngest kids on the troop camp out. After nightfall, 13 00:01:08.560 --> 00:01:14.079 the older kids decided to hike to a small general store two or three miles 14 00:01:14.120 --> 00:01:18.640 away. Tim and I weren't interested in doing that, so we sat around 15 00:01:18.640 --> 00:01:22.920 the campfire and told each other scary stories to get each other riled up, 16 00:01:23.640 --> 00:01:30.079 especially a frightening incident out in Oklahoma where campers were torn to bloody ribbons by 17 00:01:30.120 --> 00:01:34.560 a monstrous bigfoot with long, sharp fingernails. Well, unbeknownst to us, 18 00:01:34.640 --> 00:01:40.159 scout Master Bruce, who was also the Church of Youth pastor, heard us 19 00:01:40.239 --> 00:01:45.200 loudly carrying on. He came up and told us, boys and y'all quit 20 00:01:45.239 --> 00:01:49.040 fooling around and help out with the kp wash the pots and pans from supper, 21 00:01:49.560 --> 00:01:53.079 take two buckets down to the picture pump and fill them up with water. 22 00:01:55.840 --> 00:01:59.799 Saying back then that I was naive would be an understatement, because I 23 00:01:59.840 --> 00:02:01.519 did. I hadn't noticed that. As soon as we grabbed the pails to 24 00:02:01.560 --> 00:02:08.120 fill up, scout Master Bruce immediately disappeared. The old iron hand crank pitcher 25 00:02:08.199 --> 00:02:14.120 pump was about fifty yards away, maybe less, but the distance at night 26 00:02:14.240 --> 00:02:17.759 seemed like a mile for Tim and I. The pump needed to be primed 27 00:02:17.800 --> 00:02:22.280 badly, which took a lot of work. There was a jug of stale 28 00:02:22.360 --> 00:02:24.960 rust water next to the pump that I poured down the chef of the pipe 29 00:02:24.960 --> 00:02:30.439 to prime it, and after much cranking of the old iron handle, the 30 00:02:30.479 --> 00:02:35.639 water began to flow. Finally, Tim and I were filling up the buckets, 31 00:02:35.919 --> 00:02:38.800 and the nearby bushes started to rattle and come to life. And then 32 00:02:38.840 --> 00:02:44.199 there were loud grunts. Maybe it was a wild hog or bear, or 33 00:02:44.360 --> 00:02:49.159 even a bigfoot with long fingernails. I grabbed the buckets and told Tim in 34 00:02:49.199 --> 00:02:53.280 a trembling voice, I think we have enough water. And we scurried back 35 00:02:53.319 --> 00:02:57.479 to the camp like squirrels on a hot pavement. As Tim and I were 36 00:02:57.599 --> 00:03:02.400 washing pots and pans, scout Master reappeared, laughing. He let us know 37 00:03:02.560 --> 00:03:07.800 that it was him rattling the bushes, But the story of our trip to 38 00:03:07.840 --> 00:03:12.840 the picture pump became Troop folklore. It was retold by my Eagle Scout Awards 39 00:03:12.919 --> 00:03:17.000 ceremony by the former Scout Master Bruce, who came back for the occasion and 40 00:03:17.039 --> 00:03:24.400 repeated my famous quivering line, I think we have enough water. Another story. 41 00:03:25.199 --> 00:03:29.319 It was in the mid nineteen nineties after I got out of the Army 42 00:03:29.319 --> 00:03:32.719 and returned home to Florida. But this time nearly all of my friends had 43 00:03:32.759 --> 00:03:38.360 moved elsewhere. I was between jobs and I wasn't really liking being around people, 44 00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:43.000 and I took trips out of the Ocala Forest and I hiked alone. 45 00:03:43.879 --> 00:03:46.280 I was starting to notice things in the woods that did not seem natural, 46 00:03:46.800 --> 00:03:52.759 like a tree top twisted off. One afternoon, I was at home and 47 00:03:52.800 --> 00:03:57.159 I was lounging around. My Dad comes in the room. Dad grew up 48 00:03:57.199 --> 00:04:00.879 in New Jersey and had a tough childhood, but severed and became someone who 49 00:04:00.960 --> 00:04:06.520 could endure hardships but still keep his sense of humor. At the same time, 50 00:04:06.599 --> 00:04:11.400 he had a moral and ethical standard, and he went to church twice 51 00:04:11.400 --> 00:04:15.439 a week and always looked out for other people, and he could fix and 52 00:04:15.520 --> 00:04:19.279 repair anything. My dad was my role model, but he would not stand 53 00:04:19.319 --> 00:04:27.199 for any foolishness. Dad knew about my interests for the Exclusive Cryptid and he 54 00:04:27.279 --> 00:04:30.759 came in the room and he said, very seriously, my son, I 55 00:04:30.800 --> 00:04:34.360 need you to promise me one thing. He would not tell me what he 56 00:04:34.560 --> 00:04:39.120 was making me promise until I agreed to it, whatever it was going to 57 00:04:39.199 --> 00:04:44.160 be, and this meant that he was deadly serious. I was thinking that 58 00:04:44.240 --> 00:04:46.959 he was going to tell me to stay out of jail. He had previously 59 00:04:47.000 --> 00:04:50.079 said that if I ever went to jail that he would not bail me out. 60 00:04:50.720 --> 00:04:54.879 Well, I love my dad, and I knew that his advice was 61 00:04:54.959 --> 00:04:58.839 always sound, so I relented and agreed to do whatever he asked me. 62 00:05:00.079 --> 00:05:03.399 He said, about these big hairy things, I want you to promise me 63 00:05:03.480 --> 00:05:08.720 that you will never go chasing after them. Well, I was stunned and 64 00:05:08.800 --> 00:05:13.800 speechless, so he repeated the request and I said, yes, sir, 65 00:05:13.839 --> 00:05:18.639 I promise. My dad passed away ten years ago. I never did ask 66 00:05:18.720 --> 00:05:23.759 him why he made me promise that, but he said it was such conviction 67 00:05:24.160 --> 00:05:28.560 and such seriousness that I know he had a good reason, which I will 68 00:05:28.600 --> 00:05:32.000 never know the truth. Growing up in the South, when your father tells 69 00:05:32.000 --> 00:05:35.720 you to do something as serious as he was, you don't question him. 70 00:05:36.480 --> 00:05:41.279 He was a tough old Korean War veteran, and I had no doubt that 71 00:05:41.360 --> 00:05:45.879 he could still whip my bottom if he had the notion. I believe that 72 00:05:45.920 --> 00:05:48.199 I have kept that promise, but I did not think at the time that 73 00:05:48.240 --> 00:05:54.560 those big hairy things might find me. Ten years later, I got a 74 00:05:54.639 --> 00:05:59.000 job working for the Florida Park Service. I was working at a preserve on 75 00:05:59.040 --> 00:06:02.639 the edge of the Everades in South Florida. At first, there was no 76 00:06:02.839 --> 00:06:06.959 available residence at the park, so I had to live in town, and 77 00:06:08.040 --> 00:06:13.000 after a year the park acquired property as part of the Everglades restoration project. 78 00:06:13.959 --> 00:06:16.800 The parcel had a few abandoned trailers, and with a little work, I 79 00:06:16.800 --> 00:06:23.279 would get my small retreat in paradise, including the frogs, the mosquitoes, 80 00:06:23.360 --> 00:06:27.360 and the alligators. It was a bit out of my way. It was 81 00:06:27.399 --> 00:06:30.480 about eight miles from the main area of the park where I worked. It 82 00:06:30.560 --> 00:06:35.160 was accessible after going down a two mile road grade that would sometimes flood in 83 00:06:35.199 --> 00:06:41.439 the summertime, but it was solid enough to get through. I moved into 84 00:06:41.480 --> 00:06:46.079 an abandoned double wide trailer that did not take much work to make habitable. 85 00:06:46.160 --> 00:06:50.360 I thought that it was actually very spacious inside. I think that it was 86 00:06:50.399 --> 00:06:56.199 bigger than the apartment where I now live. It looked a bit mysterious that 87 00:06:56.279 --> 00:07:00.879 the front door was gone, having been ripped off the frame mall section of 88 00:07:00.040 --> 00:07:04.000 wall. But I found another door, and I rebuilt the wall in the 89 00:07:04.040 --> 00:07:09.759 frame, and I salvaged other parts from other trailers nearby, and I had 90 00:07:09.759 --> 00:07:13.800 a new well pump installed, and it made a decent place to live. 91 00:07:14.920 --> 00:07:18.600 The electric company reinstalled a meter, so I had electricity, and I had 92 00:07:18.639 --> 00:07:24.759 no telephone except my primitive cell phone. If I stood by the kitchen window, 93 00:07:24.839 --> 00:07:28.079 I might get a signal. Otherwise, to make a phone call, 94 00:07:28.199 --> 00:07:30.439 I had to drive two miles down a dirt road to the paved road. 95 00:07:31.839 --> 00:07:35.839 In front of my trailer was a large canal. It was dug out decades 96 00:07:35.879 --> 00:07:40.639 ago to help drain the everglades, and later on it would be filled in 97 00:07:40.759 --> 00:07:45.319 as part of the Everglades restoration. But I would live here for two years 98 00:07:45.439 --> 00:07:50.240 until that happened. Behind my trailer was a retention pond, and at night 99 00:07:50.319 --> 00:07:55.399 in the summer, the noise made by the peeping frogs was deafening. And 100 00:07:55.480 --> 00:08:00.639 beyond that was a cypress swamp. I found another abandoned trailer in the woods 101 00:08:00.680 --> 00:08:05.120 that was collapsed and it had fallen down. And there was an abandoned house 102 00:08:05.439 --> 00:08:09.399 with stories that the former owner buried a fortune that no one had ever found. 103 00:08:11.279 --> 00:08:15.519 There was even a tale of a forming Cuban insurgent camp that I was 104 00:08:15.519 --> 00:08:20.959 trying to find. The Remains of wildlife abounded. A Florida panther was seen 105 00:08:22.000 --> 00:08:26.519 by a co worker. Black bears were common, and occasionally I had to 106 00:08:26.600 --> 00:08:31.199 chase an alligator off the road in order to pass. Another time, I 107 00:08:31.240 --> 00:08:35.039 had to stop in the road to pick up a baby soft sealed turtles who 108 00:08:35.080 --> 00:08:39.120 had recently hatched, and I put them in the canal. I was keen 109 00:08:39.200 --> 00:08:43.480 on spotting baby turtles on the roadway. There was a hawk nest in a 110 00:08:43.519 --> 00:08:48.399 pine tree outside my trailer, and she would wake me up at dawn. 111 00:08:48.759 --> 00:08:52.720 I didn't need an alarm clock to get ready for work. I loved my 112 00:08:52.879 --> 00:08:56.320 non human neighbors, and I would occasionally say good morning to them, although 113 00:08:56.360 --> 00:09:01.960 they did not reciprocate. I saw more water moccasins than I care to count, 114 00:09:03.360 --> 00:09:07.519 and we seemed to agree not to bother each other. At first, 115 00:09:07.639 --> 00:09:13.399 everything seemed natural for the outdoors, but as the months went on, I 116 00:09:13.519 --> 00:09:16.799 noticed a few things that seemed a bit off. Things in the back of 117 00:09:16.840 --> 00:09:22.559 my pickup truck sometimes moved around at night, which I blamed on the raccoons. 118 00:09:22.360 --> 00:09:26.720 One night, I got a quick glance of something large and hairy that 119 00:09:26.840 --> 00:09:31.159 went by my big picture window. I thought that it was probably a bear. 120 00:09:31.480 --> 00:09:35.039 Another time, I woke to a thud that hit the side of my 121 00:09:35.200 --> 00:09:39.480 trailer. I supposed that it was an owl that impacted the side, or 122 00:09:39.519 --> 00:09:45.919 that it was just a dream. On a very still and quiet night. 123 00:09:46.159 --> 00:09:50.080 I swore that I heard voices in the distance, but they were too faint 124 00:09:50.120 --> 00:09:54.200 to hear what they were saying. I figured that it must be fishermen on 125 00:09:54.240 --> 00:09:58.639 the canal, or maybe campers. About every week I would borrow the riding 126 00:09:58.720 --> 00:10:03.200 lawn more from the shop and mow the grass around my trailer. I noticed 127 00:10:03.200 --> 00:10:07.919 that on the east side that faced the Cypress Swamp, the grass seemed flattened 128 00:10:07.919 --> 00:10:13.360 down, and I never had to mow that area, especially not under the 129 00:10:13.399 --> 00:10:18.039 awnings of the two large picture windows. I only used the blinds on the 130 00:10:18.039 --> 00:10:22.519 windows to keep out the sunlight from heating up the inside. No one else 131 00:10:22.639 --> 00:10:24.519 was supposed to be out there, so I felt no need to close them 132 00:10:24.519 --> 00:10:28.000 at night. But I found it odd that I never needed to mow the 133 00:10:28.039 --> 00:10:33.080 grass under those large windows. Not only did the grass seem to be beaten 134 00:10:33.120 --> 00:10:37.519 down, but there was a game trail that went from them straight back into 135 00:10:37.559 --> 00:10:43.840 the Cypress Swamp. November rolled around and I was off work the next day, 136 00:10:43.960 --> 00:10:48.440 so I was looking forward to sleeping late. At about four thirty am, 137 00:10:48.519 --> 00:10:52.000 I got up to get a drink of water. I walked into the 138 00:10:52.080 --> 00:10:56.159 kitchen and it was dark, and it was quiet. I checked the front 139 00:10:56.159 --> 00:10:58.919 door and it was closed up tight. Everything was good, and I went 140 00:11:00.080 --> 00:11:03.720 back to sleep. I woke up late that morning, later than usual, 141 00:11:05.080 --> 00:11:07.279 and the sun was high up in the sky and it was sunny but breezy 142 00:11:07.320 --> 00:11:13.480 outside, but the breeze was blowing inside my trailer, and I woke up 143 00:11:13.480 --> 00:11:16.799 to a draft. I got up and the front door was wide open, 144 00:11:18.120 --> 00:11:22.840 swinging on the hinges, and there was a faint musty smell in my trailer. 145 00:11:22.960 --> 00:11:26.759 I didn't think that was unusual because it was old and moldy with the 146 00:11:28.039 --> 00:11:31.320 occasional mice. I didn't know how the door opened by itself, though, 147 00:11:31.360 --> 00:11:35.919 and I sat out loud. I don't mind if you visit, just close 148 00:11:35.000 --> 00:11:39.440 the door when you go. I never woke to another door opening again. 149 00:11:41.320 --> 00:11:46.519 There was a nearby citrus grove of tangerine trees. Since the park acquired the 150 00:11:46.559 --> 00:11:52.159 property, the trees were now abandoned and wild. This winter, they had 151 00:11:52.159 --> 00:11:56.000 a bumper crop of fruit. And one of my coworkers had emigrated from Central 152 00:11:56.000 --> 00:12:01.360 America as a youth to escape the Civil war that killed many of his friends 153 00:12:01.360 --> 00:12:05.559 and family, and besides being one of the hardest working people I know, 154 00:12:05.080 --> 00:12:11.240 he was an expert at survival due to his background. The saying among us 155 00:12:11.399 --> 00:12:15.799 was that he could find food in a parking lot. Well, one day 156 00:12:15.879 --> 00:12:20.360 he came back to the park workshop with a bushel full of tangerines, and 157 00:12:20.440 --> 00:12:24.480 I thought that he went a little overboard, picking more than would probably be 158 00:12:24.679 --> 00:12:28.799 eaten. But that evening, when I went back to my trailer, I 159 00:12:28.879 --> 00:12:33.759 passed by the tangerine grove and I spoke out to the treeline of the cypress 160 00:12:33.759 --> 00:12:37.080 swamp, you better take some fruit before my coworker and all the tourists get 161 00:12:37.120 --> 00:12:41.240 at it. The next week, I asked my coworker if he was going 162 00:12:41.279 --> 00:12:46.320 to get any more tangerines. He said that he had gone back and all 163 00:12:46.360 --> 00:12:50.679 the tangerines had been picked clean. He said, those darn tourists must have 164 00:12:50.759 --> 00:12:54.639 taken it all. I did explore around a lot, and I still hadn't 165 00:12:54.639 --> 00:13:01.360 found any hidden treasure or stash. I did find where the former Cuban insurgent 166 00:13:01.559 --> 00:13:05.039 camp used to be the only thing that was left was the concrete slabs of 167 00:13:05.080 --> 00:13:11.399 the former buildings. The government cleaned that place up really good. One evening, 168 00:13:11.440 --> 00:13:16.840 at sundown, I walked outside my trailer about one hundred and fifty yards, 169 00:13:16.919 --> 00:13:22.559 I heard a loud scream erupt The volume in length was about fifteen seconds, 170 00:13:22.679 --> 00:13:26.480 and it was more than anything I had ever heard. No, it 171 00:13:26.600 --> 00:13:31.559 was not a Florida panther. We were familiar with the Florida panthers and I 172 00:13:31.600 --> 00:13:33.759 had one scream at me the first month that I was on the job. 173 00:13:35.480 --> 00:13:39.720 That scream was terrifying and it curled the hairs on my arms, and I 174 00:13:39.759 --> 00:13:46.240 decided that my evening walk was over one of the invasive plants in the area, 175 00:13:46.480 --> 00:13:50.480 or the Brazilian pepper trees. The limbs are like rubber and they don't 176 00:13:50.519 --> 00:13:56.279 easily lop off, and they don't snap off. Even using a machete is 177 00:13:56.320 --> 00:14:01.600 difficult with the elastic limbs bouncing back. The park purchased several sharp, sweetish 178 00:14:01.759 --> 00:14:07.200 axes to chop the limbs from the trees. It also takes constant chainsawing, 179 00:14:07.720 --> 00:14:11.360 and they grow so thick that they will take over an area and nothing else 180 00:14:11.480 --> 00:14:16.000 grows through their thick canopy. We worked most of the day to cut a 181 00:14:16.120 --> 00:14:20.279 pathway inside the canopy where we could get to the tree truck to cut and 182 00:14:20.360 --> 00:14:26.039 spray, and sometimes on hands and knees to get through the thick brush. 183 00:14:26.600 --> 00:14:31.879 Imagine my amazement when I found a tunnel that went right through the Brazilian peppers, 184 00:14:31.159 --> 00:14:35.159 about one hundred yards in the length. One end of the tunnel ended 185 00:14:35.159 --> 00:14:41.679 at the canal, with the entrance slightly hidden so a passerby would not notice. 186 00:14:41.720 --> 00:14:45.519 The inside of the tunnel had a seven foot ceiling, and the branches 187 00:14:45.559 --> 00:14:48.919 were not cut, but they were snapped off and made to a carpet of 188 00:14:48.960 --> 00:14:52.799 branches on the ground. There were no branches to duck under, which was 189 00:14:52.840 --> 00:14:58.039 impossible, and the far end of the tunnel ended at the beginning of the 190 00:14:58.080 --> 00:15:03.039 Cypress swamp, and it was pa to go from Cypress swamp to canal without 191 00:15:03.120 --> 00:15:07.559 walking out in the open. It was a very nice pathway, and it 192 00:15:07.679 --> 00:15:11.480 was the area where the scream had come from. Well. I decided that 193 00:15:11.519 --> 00:15:16.879 whoever my unseen neighbors were, I must have been very entertaining for them, 194 00:15:16.720 --> 00:15:22.200 crawling under my trailer to fix a leaking pipe, having to do various odd 195 00:15:22.279 --> 00:15:26.320 jobs, and sometimes quite poorly, and on the side of the roof of 196 00:15:26.360 --> 00:15:30.919 the trailer. They don't have TV, so I must have been the main 197 00:15:30.960 --> 00:15:35.720 attraction. Maybe they thought of me as their pet. One November night, 198 00:15:35.759 --> 00:15:39.919 when the moon lit up the whole area. I was sitting in the living 199 00:15:39.000 --> 00:15:43.480 room watching TV and with my back to those big windows that faced the Cypress 200 00:15:43.519 --> 00:15:48.639 Swamp. I think it was around eleven PM at night and I was watching 201 00:15:48.679 --> 00:15:56.159 a weird sci fi show, Cleopatra twenty five twenty five. Suddenly on one 202 00:15:56.200 --> 00:16:00.399 of the back windows was a loud sound of fingernails tapping tap, tap tap. 203 00:16:00.879 --> 00:16:06.720 The sound was unmistakable. Thoughts came to mind if times passed when I 204 00:16:06.799 --> 00:16:11.240 was misbehaving as a child and Mom would tap on the window at me. 205 00:16:11.440 --> 00:16:17.360 Maybe the visitor wanted me to change the channel. I ran outside to face 206 00:16:17.399 --> 00:16:19.840 the intruder and I got to the other side of the trader, but I 207 00:16:19.879 --> 00:16:26.759 didn't see anything, only a pretty moonlit night with frogs serenading in the retention 208 00:16:26.919 --> 00:16:32.159 pond. Was I the victim of a ding dong dash? I decided that 209 00:16:32.240 --> 00:16:36.240 whatever it was had a good laugh watching me run outside in my boxers and 210 00:16:36.279 --> 00:16:41.320 my boots. Maybe that was their objective. I bought a decent sized queen 211 00:16:41.399 --> 00:16:45.759 mattress for my bed. Unfortunately I didn't have a frame for it, so 212 00:16:45.840 --> 00:16:51.080 the mattress was on the floor. It was a warm spring night and I 213 00:16:51.120 --> 00:16:55.440 had just a single cotton flannel blanket for covering, And in the middle of 214 00:16:55.480 --> 00:16:59.840 the night, something grabbed my legs on the calves above my ankles, and 215 00:17:00.120 --> 00:17:03.240 it slid me from the bottom end of the mattress onto the wooden floor blanket 216 00:17:03.279 --> 00:17:07.640 and all. I was not roughly handled, and I was not hurt at 217 00:17:07.680 --> 00:17:11.480 all. It was like a friend pulling a practical joke on me, but 218 00:17:11.559 --> 00:17:17.200 it was startling. I didn't look behind me. I didn't want to know 219 00:17:17.279 --> 00:17:21.200 who or what it was. I figured that if they wanted to kill me, 220 00:17:21.279 --> 00:17:26.720 they would have done so quickly and brutally or quietly. They could have 221 00:17:26.799 --> 00:17:30.279 eaten me and I would have never known. So I decided that if I 222 00:17:30.319 --> 00:17:34.079 showed humor and laughed it off and I might de escalate the situation. So 223 00:17:34.160 --> 00:17:37.880 I laughed, and I crawled back into bed, and I rolled back up 224 00:17:37.920 --> 00:17:44.400 in my blanket. And then it happened again in the same way. Well, 225 00:17:44.440 --> 00:17:48.079 I crawled back in again and again, and I was pulled out of 226 00:17:48.079 --> 00:17:52.480 bed the same way five times that night. I looked back on the final 227 00:17:52.519 --> 00:17:59.240 time, but I did not see anyone. These incidents might make me pause 228 00:17:59.319 --> 00:18:03.359 and think. Many people would attribute this to the sasquatch behavior, but I 229 00:18:03.440 --> 00:18:07.119 never got a good look at any of the night visitors. I didn't see 230 00:18:07.119 --> 00:18:11.160 who was tapping on the window, and I didn't see who pulled me out 231 00:18:11.160 --> 00:18:15.039 of my bed. And I kept my promise to my dad and I did 232 00:18:15.079 --> 00:18:19.640 not go chasing after these things. Sometimes you have strange neighbors, and I 233 00:18:19.799 --> 00:18:26.079 just left it at that. It all came to an end when a Category 234 00:18:26.160 --> 00:18:30.559 four hurricane came through. It ripped off the side of my trailer. I 235 00:18:30.599 --> 00:18:33.480 tried to repair it, and I hammered the wall back together, but I 236 00:18:33.519 --> 00:18:37.680 never found my water heater. That meant I had to take cold showers for 237 00:18:37.720 --> 00:18:42.319 a few months until I moved out. It is possible to take a cold 238 00:18:42.319 --> 00:18:47.480 shower in the Everglades in January, just do it in the evening while the 239 00:18:47.519 --> 00:18:52.400 pipes were warmed up from the sun. The park was fixing up another ranger 240 00:18:52.480 --> 00:18:56.920 resident. So it was time to move to a sturdier building anyway, and 241 00:18:56.000 --> 00:19:00.720 this was right where I worked, so I could walk to work less the 242 00:19:00.759 --> 00:19:06.880 mosquitoes prevented it. But there was one more strange incident. When I left 243 00:19:06.920 --> 00:19:10.799 the trailer for the final time to move into my new house. I left 244 00:19:10.839 --> 00:19:14.640 a deer knee joy bone in the grass outside of the front door of the 245 00:19:14.680 --> 00:19:18.880 trailer. I thought, I don't need this for anything. And a few 246 00:19:18.920 --> 00:19:22.839 months later, when I walked out the door of my new residence onto my 247 00:19:23.000 --> 00:19:27.400 driveway, I felt something under my boot and I looked down, and I 248 00:19:27.480 --> 00:19:33.720 was surprised with what I found. It looked like the exact same deer bone 249 00:19:33.759 --> 00:19:37.400 that I had left in the front yard of my trailer, but my trailer 250 00:19:37.680 --> 00:19:44.240 was eight miles away. I moved five hundred miles north in twenty and thirteen. 251 00:19:44.960 --> 00:19:48.519 I was back down south for a visit last January, but after a 252 00:19:48.519 --> 00:19:53.920 succession of hurricanes and floods, the area looks completely different. And the rider 253 00:19:55.079 --> 00:19:59.319 signs off, and that's a This is a single guy living out in the 254 00:19:59.359 --> 00:20:03.920 Everglades by himself, working for the park service man. What a life? 255 00:20:03.039 --> 00:20:07.039 What a life? Is a young guy just out on his own doing his 256 00:20:07.079 --> 00:20:11.519 own thing. But he did have a bunch of strange things going on in 257 00:20:11.559 --> 00:20:14.559 this place, and it is some interesting stuff. And what do you guys 258 00:20:14.640 --> 00:20:18.680 think? Was it the skunkp messing with him or was it some other person 259 00:20:18.799 --> 00:20:22.039 messing with him? As far as getting pulled out of a bed. I 260 00:20:22.039 --> 00:20:26.440 don't think any animal on the planet is just gonna grab you by the ankle, 261 00:20:26.079 --> 00:20:30.400 jerk you out of bed, and then leave just for fun, unless 262 00:20:30.440 --> 00:20:36.559 it's another human or a bigfoot. What do you guys think? Appreciate the 263 00:20:36.640 --> 00:20:40.279 story? The writer did a great job right in it. Let's go to 264 00:20:40.319 --> 00:20:47.839 another one. Okay, here's a story that you guys. Give me a 265 00:20:47.880 --> 00:20:51.680 comment. Let me know what you think. Is this a skinwalker or just 266 00:20:51.759 --> 00:20:57.799 a shape shifter? What is this this guy encounters in this story. Let's 267 00:20:57.799 --> 00:21:03.440 get into his story right here we go. This isn't my story, but 268 00:21:03.519 --> 00:21:07.039 it was told to me firsthand by a close army buddy some years ago. 269 00:21:07.279 --> 00:21:14.160 His name is Benton. The military frowns on us talking about sensitive material outside 270 00:21:14.200 --> 00:21:18.680 of our unit. Well, most of the time we would swap stories around 271 00:21:18.720 --> 00:21:22.559 the campfire pit in the summer, but on those chilled winter nights, we'd 272 00:21:22.559 --> 00:21:27.480 be inside a medium army temp huddled around a lightly glowing potbell eat stove. 273 00:21:29.279 --> 00:21:32.519 Well, these were some of the only safe havens we had to get some 274 00:21:32.640 --> 00:21:37.920 of the crazy encounters off our backs. But this story didn't come from around 275 00:21:37.960 --> 00:21:41.920 any campfire, and neither was it burnt around a potbell eat stove. It 276 00:21:42.000 --> 00:21:48.119 couldn't wait for that late Saturday night, I was alone, sitting in my 277 00:21:48.240 --> 00:21:52.839 Barracks dorm room, enjoying a scary movie and a night away from a thunderous 278 00:21:52.880 --> 00:21:57.319 and rudely loud Nco club. The handle on my door jiggled a half a 279 00:21:57.359 --> 00:22:03.000 second before a soldier pled in. It was Woodsey. He was another army 280 00:22:03.039 --> 00:22:08.240 buddy. Woodsey would be Robbin if Benton was Batman. And to me, 281 00:22:08.400 --> 00:22:14.079 Woodsey looked sort of like a Pringle's Potato Chip guy minus the smirk, and 282 00:22:14.160 --> 00:22:17.720 he spoke like a Harvard professor, and I would bet that he was at 283 00:22:17.799 --> 00:22:22.599 least that smart. And Woodsy was funny, unpredictably funny. His jokes would 284 00:22:22.680 --> 00:22:27.599 knock you over because he always kept that straight professor face that never let on 285 00:22:27.880 --> 00:22:33.400 where or when or if a punchline was coming. There was a slightly stretched 286 00:22:33.519 --> 00:22:38.559 pause that waited for some kind of explanation from him. But yet there he 287 00:22:38.599 --> 00:22:42.640 stood, awkward and uncomfortable, with his butt against the door in hands seeming 288 00:22:42.640 --> 00:22:48.559 to clench the doorknob behind him. If nothing was said, then there's a 289 00:22:48.599 --> 00:22:52.200 code that Woodley was violating. You don't just go barging in a soldier's room 290 00:22:52.279 --> 00:22:56.039 without a warning. I mean a soldier could have company, or a card 291 00:22:56.079 --> 00:23:00.119 game going on, or anything that could require more than a split second to 292 00:23:00.160 --> 00:23:06.440 get things squared away before letting anyone in. Still, Woodsy just stood there, 293 00:23:06.480 --> 00:23:08.839 all poker faced. Well, that was eerie to me, and I 294 00:23:08.920 --> 00:23:15.079 knew then that this was no joke. I could hear that his breathing was 295 00:23:15.119 --> 00:23:19.119 slightly labored, and glimpse of TV light only lit fractions of his poker face, 296 00:23:19.200 --> 00:23:23.119 which would normally be frustrating. And I wouldn't mind that if he'd do 297 00:23:23.359 --> 00:23:29.359 something anything that gave me a sign that he was all right. You could 298 00:23:29.440 --> 00:23:33.480 stab the tension in the air with a bayonet, and I could feel him 299 00:23:33.519 --> 00:23:37.039 about to say something, so I fought to hold my own tongue and wait. 300 00:23:37.119 --> 00:23:41.200 I could taste the words, come on, man, get it out, 301 00:23:41.440 --> 00:23:45.880 ready to dive out of my mouth and become spoken impatient words. But 302 00:23:45.960 --> 00:23:51.400 he beat me to it. Benton's acting funny, he said him and I 303 00:23:51.440 --> 00:23:53.160 had a little bit too much to drink, and we both figured it was 304 00:23:53.200 --> 00:23:57.279 a good time for him to learn to ride a motorcycle and take my motorcycle 305 00:23:57.319 --> 00:24:02.519 out for its first solo spin. So he jumped on the bike, and 306 00:24:02.559 --> 00:24:06.279 after my quick lesson and how to make it go off, he went into 307 00:24:06.319 --> 00:24:10.720 the night. Well he was gone for two hours, and I was a 308 00:24:10.759 --> 00:24:12.880 little worried that he had wrecked my bike, but I gave him the chance 309 00:24:12.920 --> 00:24:17.839 to get it done on his own. Then he staggered into our room, 310 00:24:17.960 --> 00:24:22.640 all scratched up and dirty, and all he kept saying was go get the 311 00:24:22.759 --> 00:24:26.680 sergeant. I told you this was odd, said Woodsy as he went silent 312 00:24:26.839 --> 00:24:30.920 and wait for some response for me. Okay, so did he crash the 313 00:24:30.960 --> 00:24:34.799 bike, I asked, leaping to my feet. He could have a concussion. 314 00:24:36.640 --> 00:24:40.680 I'm not sure what a concussion looks like, said Woodsey. He's acting 315 00:24:40.839 --> 00:24:44.319 strange, though, that's for sure, and he's saying things that we wouldn't 316 00:24:44.319 --> 00:24:48.480 want anyone else to hear. I've seen at least a couple of men crack 317 00:24:48.680 --> 00:24:53.039 wrestling to hold this stuff in, only to succumb to an explosive episode of 318 00:24:53.160 --> 00:24:57.480 diarrhea of the mouth, which would end in a visit and an escort to 319 00:24:57.640 --> 00:25:03.720 mental hygiene, never to return to our section, but be replaced with a 320 00:25:03.759 --> 00:25:07.960 new boot. Well, we didn't want Benton getting a visit, so off 321 00:25:08.000 --> 00:25:11.920 to his room. We trotted before anyone else picked their head in his room 322 00:25:11.960 --> 00:25:17.039 and got an ear full of ship talk if they weren't prepared to carry I 323 00:25:17.079 --> 00:25:21.400 thought we were too late as we approached and already a jar door to Benton 324 00:25:21.440 --> 00:25:25.680 and Woodsey's room. But sure, Sugar, Benton was sitting up at the 325 00:25:25.680 --> 00:25:30.559 foot of his bunk, even more disheveled than Woodsey had described. Man, 326 00:25:30.559 --> 00:25:33.720 are you all right, I said. Benton began his attempt to answer my 327 00:25:33.880 --> 00:25:40.200 question, but the words were snatched away by dry heaves. His bedroom bucket 328 00:25:40.279 --> 00:25:42.640 was at his feet, which confirmed that he had been doing this a while. 329 00:25:44.160 --> 00:25:47.559 I don't think so, Serge, I don't think so, he replied, 330 00:25:47.599 --> 00:25:51.839 as water began dripping from his mouth. Woodsy and I jumped back at 331 00:25:51.839 --> 00:25:56.400 the same time, and Benton exploded into a full round of dry eaves. 332 00:25:56.559 --> 00:26:00.359 He waved us to close the door tight as he wrapped and wiped his mouth 333 00:26:00.440 --> 00:26:06.319 with his bdu shirt. I'm waste deep this time, Sorge, I am, 334 00:26:06.759 --> 00:26:10.240 Benton stated. He then looked at me square in the eye, and 335 00:26:10.240 --> 00:26:14.599 he spoke again, You'll be signing me into the crazy house. You'll say 336 00:26:14.640 --> 00:26:18.839 I'm crazy for this one. Well, Benton paused, with his glazy eyes 337 00:26:18.920 --> 00:26:22.880 fixed on me. Well, I was motionless, and I caught his gaze 338 00:26:22.920 --> 00:26:26.720 and hanging on the edge of whatever had him so out of sorts, and 339 00:26:26.799 --> 00:26:30.839 I reached back and I made sure his door was closed fully unlocked. Well, 340 00:26:30.880 --> 00:26:34.799 tell me what you can, Benton, I coaxed. Well, Benton 341 00:26:34.839 --> 00:26:40.559 gathered himself and he began his explanation, and he started by looking directly at 342 00:26:40.559 --> 00:26:45.759 Woodsey. I am going to be a good motorcycle rider someday, he said, 343 00:26:45.799 --> 00:26:48.519 with a grin. Well, that light in the mood a bit, 344 00:26:48.200 --> 00:26:52.400 but it just won't be on your motorcycle. Woodsey. You wrecked my bike, 345 00:26:52.480 --> 00:26:56.839 didn't you, said Woodsey. I didn't really crash it, he said, 346 00:26:57.359 --> 00:27:02.440 but I did trash it pretty good good, And Benton clammed up and 347 00:27:02.480 --> 00:27:07.119 wait for Woodsy's response, And as if on Q, Woodsey did, okay, 348 00:27:07.160 --> 00:27:11.039 So what do you mean by trash, he asked, and Benton went 349 00:27:11.079 --> 00:27:15.880 into what happened. Well, I was doing good. I was up shifting 350 00:27:15.920 --> 00:27:21.359 and down shifting and clutching and all that, and I went down custra hill 351 00:27:21.680 --> 00:27:26.359 around and up the backside where there wouldn't be any traffic. Everything was going 352 00:27:26.480 --> 00:27:30.519 fine, and then I felt the urge to puke. I figured i'd stay 353 00:27:30.559 --> 00:27:33.839 on the bike and let the vomit blow behind me. And when I let 354 00:27:33.880 --> 00:27:37.279 it blow, I closed my eyes. I guess it's natural function of the 355 00:27:37.359 --> 00:27:42.160 human body when you blow gritch to close your eyes, but it was terrible. 356 00:27:42.359 --> 00:27:45.160 I felt like I was in a car wash of vomit, and it 357 00:27:45.240 --> 00:27:49.599 was blowing all back in my face. When I could finally get my eyes 358 00:27:49.640 --> 00:27:53.440 open, I was already in a grove of fir trees, and branches were 359 00:27:53.480 --> 00:27:57.440 whipping me in the face, and I was sure I could maneuver around the 360 00:27:57.480 --> 00:28:00.160 trees and get back on the road, but I ended up in a ditch 361 00:28:00.200 --> 00:28:04.759 and everything went black. I don't really know how long I was in that 362 00:28:04.880 --> 00:28:08.680 ditch, but that bike must have flung me through the handlebars like a marble 363 00:28:08.720 --> 00:28:12.759 through a wrist rocket. I was still hanging on to a bent handlebar when 364 00:28:12.799 --> 00:28:18.000 I came to. I scanned the darkness until my night vision kicked in. 365 00:28:18.680 --> 00:28:22.680 There was no way I was going to pull this bike out of that ravine, 366 00:28:22.720 --> 00:28:26.079 and so I pushed it with my feet until it blended in and was 367 00:28:26.119 --> 00:28:30.559 all covered with leaves and dirt. There want anybody to steal it. I 368 00:28:30.599 --> 00:28:33.799 grabbed roots and limbs and I made my way up the ravine. It wasn't 369 00:28:33.839 --> 00:28:38.039 easy wearing sandals on my feet, but I finally got up to the road 370 00:28:38.079 --> 00:28:41.960 and a car came by after half an hour, but I was too embarrassed 371 00:28:42.000 --> 00:28:45.960 and ashamed, and I acted like I was just out for a walk, 372 00:28:45.440 --> 00:28:51.039 and the car passed by, and I wouldn't see another car until later in 373 00:28:51.079 --> 00:28:56.039 the night. I could see shapes of things in front of me, but 374 00:28:56.119 --> 00:28:59.880 they were all hazy looking because the night miss must have begun to move for 375 00:29:00.079 --> 00:29:04.000 And in the distance I saw something white, and within a few minutes I 376 00:29:04.079 --> 00:29:08.759 was close enough to read it. It said the fort Riley Buffalo Corral. 377 00:29:10.000 --> 00:29:12.680 Do not enter. Well. I look both ways on the road, and 378 00:29:12.759 --> 00:29:17.039 I was thinking on a way to get back, and I saw the two 379 00:29:17.039 --> 00:29:21.839 big hills to climb in both directions. Right and straight in front of me 380 00:29:22.000 --> 00:29:25.319 was the field and it was the shortest distance for me to get back. 381 00:29:25.359 --> 00:29:29.119 Here. I was going to have to cross the field the Buffalo Corral. 382 00:29:29.759 --> 00:29:33.119 It was the shortest shrout, but not the safest because there are buffalo in 383 00:29:33.200 --> 00:29:37.759 there, and buffalo do not put up with humans. However, I figured 384 00:29:37.799 --> 00:29:44.519 they did sleep fairly sound on cool nights, but there were still buffalo I 385 00:29:44.599 --> 00:29:47.920 knew this was a risky move, and I even knew this in my drunken 386 00:29:48.000 --> 00:29:51.799 condition, but there was no turning back now that I had this in my 387 00:29:52.000 --> 00:29:56.759 head. I grabbed the fence and I began to climb, thanking god it 388 00:29:56.799 --> 00:30:00.920 had not been electrified, and I climbed into the old like a wrestler climbs 389 00:30:00.960 --> 00:30:07.480 into a ring. Inside the pen, everything felt different. There was a 390 00:30:07.519 --> 00:30:11.720 heavier mist inside the gate, and an eerie separation and a different vibe. 391 00:30:12.519 --> 00:30:17.480 My vision was impaired greatly by the mist, and it was so dark that 392 00:30:17.559 --> 00:30:22.160 I had to walk in this weird sort of sideways crouch with my arms spread 393 00:30:22.200 --> 00:30:26.400 out, feeling for anything in front of me. After one hundred yards, 394 00:30:26.440 --> 00:30:30.680 the mists started to lighten and I could see just a little better, and 395 00:30:30.720 --> 00:30:33.440 I had made it up a hill and I was heading to the center of 396 00:30:33.480 --> 00:30:37.559 the corral. The air felt warmer here and the mist turned a fog which 397 00:30:37.640 --> 00:30:41.640 was easier to see through. And by this time I had to be close 398 00:30:41.720 --> 00:30:45.160 to the herd, but I couldn't see them around me, and I stopped 399 00:30:45.160 --> 00:30:49.160 and I looked a little closer, and through the patches of fog, I 400 00:30:49.240 --> 00:30:55.680 realized I was at ground zero. Those hulking beasts were all around me and 401 00:30:55.839 --> 00:31:00.599 grunting in their sleep and blowing short towers of steam with ea each of breath 402 00:31:00.640 --> 00:31:03.599 through their noses. I got so close to one that I could see the 403 00:31:03.599 --> 00:31:08.480 big male's eyes open briefly and then close as he went back to sleep. 404 00:31:10.400 --> 00:31:12.799 He had not realized what I was, and that was a streak of luck, 405 00:31:12.880 --> 00:31:18.640 I guess. So I kept moving and creeping around the monsters and admiring 406 00:31:18.720 --> 00:31:22.440 how massive and beautiful these creatures were, and thankful that they apparently were tired 407 00:31:22.480 --> 00:31:27.839 from the day. I kept moving while the buffalo remained calm and sound asleep. 408 00:31:30.160 --> 00:31:33.359 On top of the hill. It was muddy, and with each step 409 00:31:33.440 --> 00:31:37.160 there was a sucking noise from my sandal. I heard another sound just like 410 00:31:37.240 --> 00:31:41.559 that behind me, and at first I thought that it was an echo in 411 00:31:41.599 --> 00:31:45.559 the fog, but that didn't make sense to me, and I wondered what 412 00:31:45.759 --> 00:31:49.440 was walking behind me. Maybe it was a bison. So I kept walking 413 00:31:49.480 --> 00:31:53.960 and listening, and then I stopped, and whatever was making that sound kept 414 00:31:55.000 --> 00:32:00.039 walking, and it was gaining on me. It was not an animal on 415 00:32:00.200 --> 00:32:04.920 four legs. This thing was on two feet. So my pace quickened to 416 00:32:04.920 --> 00:32:09.839 gain some distance, and the noise was still gaining on me. The bison 417 00:32:10.000 --> 00:32:15.599 still surrounded me, but they were sleeping like babies. I didn't have another 418 00:32:15.680 --> 00:32:19.279 place to hide other than behind one, so I duck down and I became 419 00:32:19.440 --> 00:32:22.839 very still. My heart was in turbo mode, and it thumped in my 420 00:32:22.960 --> 00:32:28.960 ears, drowning out the sound of the footsteps that were surely approaching. And 421 00:32:29.039 --> 00:32:31.880 I waited, and I let my heart settle, and I listened, and 422 00:32:31.920 --> 00:32:36.960 I couldn't hear the sucking sounds of whatever was following me, so I thought 423 00:32:36.960 --> 00:32:40.039 maybe I was safe. It was so quiet that I didn't even hear the 424 00:32:40.079 --> 00:32:45.039 sleeping bison around me breathing. A few feet down the hill, I saw 425 00:32:45.079 --> 00:32:50.640 the largest bison in the group. He had to be Even though my vision 426 00:32:50.799 --> 00:32:52.559 was bad due to the fog, I had not seen a bigger one than 427 00:32:52.599 --> 00:32:58.359 this one. Obviously, he was the big boss male. I wanted to 428 00:32:58.400 --> 00:33:02.160 get to that big one, because whatever was following me surely wouldn't risk waking 429 00:33:02.200 --> 00:33:07.599 this monster up. So I crept slowly down the slope and I got behind 430 00:33:07.680 --> 00:33:12.680 him. He never showed any sign of waking, and I admired his massive 431 00:33:12.720 --> 00:33:16.319 figure. As I duck down below the ridge of his back for a moment, 432 00:33:16.440 --> 00:33:20.640 there was a break in the fog and a clear patch of air that 433 00:33:20.720 --> 00:33:25.359 I had not seen since being in the Buffalo Corral. His silver dollar eyes 434 00:33:25.519 --> 00:33:30.400 were wide open, and he was watching every move I made, expecting him 435 00:33:30.440 --> 00:33:35.200 to erupt in anger and plow me into the mud. I was surprised that 436 00:33:35.359 --> 00:33:39.359 my presence seemed not to bother him at all. Was this beast tamed well? 437 00:33:39.359 --> 00:33:44.319 I didn't know, but since he didn't seem disturbed, I moved closer 438 00:33:44.359 --> 00:33:49.440 and tried to blend in better with him and hide. The closer I got 439 00:33:49.480 --> 00:33:52.039 to this creature, the less I could hear. Like all the night sounds, 440 00:33:52.079 --> 00:33:57.640 and there weren't many, seemed muffled as if I had hearing protection on. 441 00:33:58.920 --> 00:34:00.799 While I was finally closer that I thought I was out of sight in 442 00:34:00.920 --> 00:34:05.759 my pursuer, and without touching the bison that I was so close to, 443 00:34:06.279 --> 00:34:10.239 I listened for anything approaching. Now I felt like I was in a sound 444 00:34:10.280 --> 00:34:15.119 proof room, or that I had earplugs in because I couldn't even hear the 445 00:34:15.239 --> 00:34:20.639 natural noise that happens in my ears. Was this animal soaking up all the 446 00:34:20.719 --> 00:34:24.719 sound around me. As afraid as I was. This was so odd to 447 00:34:24.760 --> 00:34:30.800 me. And then I heard a buffalo hoff. There was an immediate and 448 00:34:30.880 --> 00:34:37.000 distinct sound, a huff, and then an exil. I raised my head 449 00:34:37.119 --> 00:34:40.400 instinctively, and I was getting ready to run because I thought I had awakened 450 00:34:40.400 --> 00:34:45.840 the buffalo and that I had crossed the boundary between just a guy walking through 451 00:34:45.880 --> 00:34:51.039 a field to something that annoyed the bison. I knew how they reacted to 452 00:34:51.119 --> 00:34:54.239 those threats, and I stopped and stood still, and I got ready for 453 00:34:54.320 --> 00:35:00.320 the rampage. But this huge beast just lay there, following me with his 454 00:35:00.440 --> 00:35:06.320 eyes and not moving. So I stood up and I found myself staring into 455 00:35:06.400 --> 00:35:10.800 one big buffalo eye again, and I was faced to chest with that I 456 00:35:10.800 --> 00:35:17.280 can only describe as a half man and half buffalo. From the waist down 457 00:35:17.360 --> 00:35:22.880 it was human and the chest to the head was a full on massive bison, 458 00:35:22.039 --> 00:35:27.760 with the exception of human arms and hands where a bison's front leg should 459 00:35:27.800 --> 00:35:31.679 be. Its head was enormous, with dark curly hair on top and down 460 00:35:31.719 --> 00:35:36.519 the back of its neck, and the human parts of the creature seemed to 461 00:35:36.519 --> 00:35:38.599 be brown or black, but there was no way to know it was so 462 00:35:38.760 --> 00:35:46.159 little light Around its waist was an animal skin, loincloth or skirt. This 463 00:35:46.239 --> 00:35:52.880 thing was a First Nations man and half bison. It huffed two shots of 464 00:35:52.960 --> 00:35:59.519 steams from its nostrils and lowered its human hand to me and pointed and gave 465 00:35:59.599 --> 00:36:04.239 me the unmistakable motion with its hand for me to leave. Well, I 466 00:36:04.320 --> 00:36:07.599 didn't need time to figure out what he was trying to tell me, so 467 00:36:07.679 --> 00:36:10.639 I backed away slowly for ten or twelve yards. I turned away from this 468 00:36:10.719 --> 00:36:15.480 weird creature, and then I took long strides heading out of that field. 469 00:36:16.519 --> 00:36:20.639 Well. I heard it behind me, pacing me in an effort to push 470 00:36:20.719 --> 00:36:25.679 me faster. It maintained a persistent pace behind me, and twice I could 471 00:36:25.679 --> 00:36:30.559 feel it gaining on me, pushing me harder, and I would switch to 472 00:36:30.639 --> 00:36:34.000 a try to let it know that I fully understood that I was to get 473 00:36:34.039 --> 00:36:37.960 out of there. To me, it seemed like forever getting across that field 474 00:36:37.960 --> 00:36:42.079 to the road, and I wondered if I had taken off in the wrong 475 00:36:42.199 --> 00:36:45.760 direction, because I should not have taken so long. But eventually I saw 476 00:36:45.840 --> 00:36:51.920 the lights of a couple of cars passing by on the main road. The 477 00:36:51.960 --> 00:36:54.880 third car pulled over as I stepped to the edge of the road. I 478 00:36:54.920 --> 00:37:00.000 felt lucky they had seen me, and a woman's face peered through the open 479 00:37:00.159 --> 00:37:05.639 glass with a smile. The driver poked his head next to hers and said, 480 00:37:06.000 --> 00:37:08.840 few more hours than you'd have beaten the dare. He was referring to 481 00:37:08.880 --> 00:37:15.079 the legendary stories of drunk soldiers that had been picked up by the MPs after 482 00:37:15.119 --> 00:37:19.800 making it through the Bison Corral on a dare from their buddies. Ah, 483 00:37:19.920 --> 00:37:22.840 this wasn't a dare, I said. I wrecked my friend's bike over there 484 00:37:22.840 --> 00:37:25.679 on the mountain, and this was the fastest way back to the base. 485 00:37:27.360 --> 00:37:30.800 I did make it all the way through alive, though. Well, jump 486 00:37:30.880 --> 00:37:34.719 on in, said the driver. I assume you're heading back to Custer Hill, 487 00:37:34.840 --> 00:37:37.639 right, yep? I said, man. Was I glad they had 488 00:37:37.679 --> 00:37:42.639 stopped to give me a hand. They opened the door for me and I 489 00:37:42.719 --> 00:37:45.440 jumped in the back seat before they could change their mind, and before they 490 00:37:45.480 --> 00:37:49.960 pulled away, I was looking out into the field through the fog, and 491 00:37:50.079 --> 00:37:53.000 it had diminished a bit, and I was wondering how close the buffalo man 492 00:37:53.079 --> 00:37:58.519 had been. When I finally reached the road, I couldn't see anything there, 493 00:37:58.559 --> 00:38:01.599 and I turned my attention back in front of me. Looks like someone 494 00:38:01.719 --> 00:38:05.639 followed you. It's a good thing you stayed ahead of it, said the 495 00:38:05.639 --> 00:38:09.159 woman in the passenger's seat. Well, I yanked my head around to look, 496 00:38:09.199 --> 00:38:13.880 and sure enough I could make out the enormous head of a large male 497 00:38:14.000 --> 00:38:19.760 bison through the fog, and steam was expelling through its nostrils. Its head 498 00:38:19.800 --> 00:38:23.840 turned and its eyes followed our departure until it was out of sight. Ah, 499 00:38:23.880 --> 00:38:27.639 that thing wouldn't have hurt him, said the driver. I think the 500 00:38:27.679 --> 00:38:31.239 bisoner used to dumbasses walking around through the area. Where do I need to 501 00:38:31.320 --> 00:38:37.119 drop you off? I paused him minute and finally said one hundred and twenty 502 00:38:37.119 --> 00:38:40.800 first Signal Battalion, I replied, Headquarters Company, the first building on the 503 00:38:40.800 --> 00:38:45.320 top of the hill on the left. After they headed this way, we 504 00:38:45.360 --> 00:38:51.039 didn't talk much until they dropped me off. Benton gave us more thoughts on 505 00:38:51.199 --> 00:38:54.679 that night. There were only his opinions on what this thing was. He 506 00:38:54.800 --> 00:39:00.159 was never the same after that. You might say, well, he was 507 00:39:00.239 --> 00:39:04.119 drunk and he was seeing things, or maybe you might say that he made 508 00:39:04.199 --> 00:39:07.880 up the story to take the attention off the expensive bike he had wrecked. 509 00:39:07.519 --> 00:39:12.639 We'll never know for sure, but in the years that I served with him, 510 00:39:12.920 --> 00:39:16.760 I never heard him tell a tall tale either before and never again after 511 00:39:16.800 --> 00:39:22.480 that night. All I can say is this is exactly what he told Woodsy 512 00:39:22.559 --> 00:39:28.199 and I that night. There are other odd things that happened on that base, 513 00:39:28.320 --> 00:39:30.559 and I can only think that the natives who still live in the area 514 00:39:30.840 --> 00:39:36.679 know about these things, but they're just not talking about it. Okay. 515 00:39:37.840 --> 00:39:40.639 As the first for this channel, a buffalo man's story, I've never heard 516 00:39:40.679 --> 00:39:45.639 one, but it was very interesting and the way the story happened was kind 517 00:39:45.639 --> 00:39:50.519 of funny actually, But I enjoyed it and I appreciate the writer. Thank 518 00:39:50.559 --> 00:39:53.320 you very much for sending it. You guys, comment in the comment section 519 00:39:53.400 --> 00:39:57.800 what you think this was? Was it a shape shifter? What do you 520 00:39:57.840 --> 00:40:02.320 call him? A skinwalker, spirit walker, whatever those Native American things are. 521 00:40:02.519 --> 00:40:06.119 I don't know what do you all think it is? Give me a 522 00:40:06.119 --> 00:40:09.880 clue. Thanks again to the writer. Is a great story, all right? 523 00:40:09.920 --> 00:40:14.119 That'll wind things up for this podcast. I hope you guys enjoyed it 524 00:40:14.159 --> 00:40:17.039 and we will catch you on the next one. Thanks and see you next time.