WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.040 --> 00:00:01.600 Today, I want to tell you about a journey that 2 00:00:01.600 --> 00:00:03.879 I've been on for most of my life. Ever since 3 00:00:03.919 --> 00:00:05.799 I was a kid, I've heard tales of bigfoot and 4 00:00:05.839 --> 00:00:08.320 wild men while spending time with my friends and family. 5 00:00:09.039 --> 00:00:11.439 As I grew older and read more about the paranormal, 6 00:00:11.599 --> 00:00:14.679 my interest in encryptids and other things strange only deepened. 7 00:00:15.240 --> 00:00:17.160 That's why I'm so excited to share with you what 8 00:00:17.199 --> 00:00:21.640 I've personally become involved with the Untold Radio Network. The 9 00:00:21.719 --> 00:00:25.280 Untold Radio Network is a live streaming podcast network that 10 00:00:25.359 --> 00:00:29.359 airs a new show every day across all podcast platforms, YouTube, 11 00:00:29.359 --> 00:00:32.119 and more. They have eight different shows on all sorts 12 00:00:32.159 --> 00:00:36.119 of exciting topics such as bigfoot, cryptids, UFOs, aliens, and 13 00:00:36.200 --> 00:00:39.479 much more. I even have my own show called Weird Encounters, 14 00:00:39.479 --> 00:00:42.439 where I talk about all things strange. This is more 15 00:00:42.479 --> 00:00:45.280 than just a podcast network. It's a community that allows 16 00:00:45.320 --> 00:00:47.759 me to meet so many amazing people who share their 17 00:00:47.799 --> 00:00:51.520 stories and experiences with strange. If you're interested in hearing 18 00:00:51.520 --> 00:00:53.880 more of these stories and learning more about the paranormal 19 00:00:53.960 --> 00:00:56.679 and encryptids, make sure you check out the Untold Radio 20 00:00:56.759 --> 00:01:00.640 Network for all kinds of exciting shows. It's free to subscribe. 21 00:01:00.679 --> 00:01:04.400 So what are you waiting for visit www dot untold 22 00:01:04.519 --> 00:01:06.560 radionetwork dot com today. 23 00:01:06.760 --> 00:01:09.680 Now, what are your reporting? I got a screen going 24 00:01:09.719 --> 00:01:12.120 on here. Something just kid with my dog, something to 25 00:01:12.200 --> 00:01:15.280 kill your dog? My dog. We're flying through there over 26 00:01:15.319 --> 00:01:20.079 the tree. I don't know how it did it? Okay, damn, 27 00:01:20.159 --> 00:01:22.640 I'm really confused. All I saw was my dog coming 28 00:01:22.680 --> 00:01:24.480 over the fence and name was dead once you hit 29 00:01:24.519 --> 00:01:26.560 the grill. I didn't see any cars. All I saw 30 00:01:26.680 --> 00:01:45.120 was my dog coming over the fence. Sat, what are 31 00:01:45.120 --> 00:01:49.959 you reporting? We got some wonder or something crawling around 32 00:01:50.040 --> 00:01:58.640 out here? Did you see what it was? It was 33 00:01:59.359 --> 00:02:01.480 enough out here. Look, I'm near the window now and 34 00:02:01.480 --> 00:02:05.000 I don't need anything. I don't want to go outside. 35 00:02:05.120 --> 00:02:12.400 Its hello, hit the boddy out here? What quen? I'm 36 00:02:12.400 --> 00:02:15.159 out there? It's thought of a mention about text nine. 37 00:02:15.240 --> 00:02:18.280 I don't know easy, I'm out there. Yeah, I'm walking right, heady. 38 00:02:19.159 --> 00:02:21.919 My name's Bill, and I just retired after twenty five 39 00:02:22.000 --> 00:02:25.039 years with the Forest Service. Spent most of that time 40 00:02:25.080 --> 00:02:27.840 in the deep woods of the Pacific Northwest, but also 41 00:02:27.919 --> 00:02:33.000 worked assignments in Montana, Alaska, Colorado, and a few other places. 42 00:02:33.439 --> 00:02:35.199 I've seen a lot of things in those woods that 43 00:02:35.240 --> 00:02:40.360 most people never will Some of them I can explain. Others, well, 44 00:02:40.800 --> 00:02:43.000 let me tell you what happened, and you can decide 45 00:02:43.000 --> 00:02:46.599 for yourself. I'm telling these stories because I'm done worrying 46 00:02:46.639 --> 00:02:50.159 about what people think. I've got my pension, my cabin, 47 00:02:50.520 --> 00:02:53.439 and nothing left to prove. These things happened to me, 48 00:02:54.159 --> 00:02:57.080 all of them. And if you think I'm lying or crazy, 49 00:02:57.400 --> 00:03:00.280 that's your business. But I know what I saw and 50 00:03:00.319 --> 00:03:03.759 I know what I experienced. This was early in my career, 51 00:03:04.159 --> 00:03:07.280 maybe my second year on the job. I was stationed 52 00:03:07.280 --> 00:03:10.280 at a remote outpost on the Olympic Peninsula, one of 53 00:03:10.319 --> 00:03:13.560 those places where you might not see another person for weeks. 54 00:03:13.960 --> 00:03:17.319 The job was mostly firewatch and basic maintenance, but in 55 00:03:17.439 --> 00:03:19.840 late fall of seventy eight, I had an experience that 56 00:03:19.960 --> 00:03:22.879 changed how I looked at the forest. I was working 57 00:03:22.919 --> 00:03:25.599 a night shift, doing routine patrols on some of the 58 00:03:25.639 --> 00:03:29.039 back roads. It was around two a m. When I 59 00:03:29.080 --> 00:03:31.719 decided to check on a small ranger cabin about eight 60 00:03:31.759 --> 00:03:35.080 miles from the main station. The cabin was used by 61 00:03:35.120 --> 00:03:38.879 researchers sometimes, but it had been empty for weeks. When 62 00:03:38.879 --> 00:03:42.120 I got there, something felt wrong. The front door was 63 00:03:42.120 --> 00:03:46.039 standing wide open, which wasn't normal. I parked the truck 64 00:03:46.039 --> 00:03:49.439 and grabbed my flashlight and radio. The cabin looked fine 65 00:03:49.439 --> 00:03:52.599 from the outside, but when I stepped inside, I could 66 00:03:52.639 --> 00:03:57.039 smell something, not like garbage or decay, more like wet animal, 67 00:03:57.680 --> 00:04:00.240 strong and thick, like when you walk past at a 68 00:04:00.319 --> 00:04:04.400 zoo exhibit. I called out, thinking maybe someone had broken in. 69 00:04:05.199 --> 00:04:08.159 No answer. I checked all the rooms with my flashlight. 70 00:04:08.759 --> 00:04:11.879 Everything was where it should be, nothing missing or damaged. 71 00:04:12.520 --> 00:04:15.199 But the smell was getting stronger, and I started hearing 72 00:04:15.280 --> 00:04:18.560 something moving around outside. I went back to the front 73 00:04:18.600 --> 00:04:23.279 door and listened heavy footsteps, but not like boots, more 74 00:04:23.360 --> 00:04:26.000 like bare feet, but way too heavy for a person. 75 00:04:26.959 --> 00:04:30.480 The steps went around the cabin, slow and deliberate, like 76 00:04:30.519 --> 00:04:33.920 whatever it was was checking the place out. I stood 77 00:04:33.959 --> 00:04:36.680 in that doorway for maybe ten minutes, listening to those 78 00:04:36.680 --> 00:04:40.680 footsteps circle the building. Then they stopped right behind the cabin, 79 00:04:41.079 --> 00:04:43.920 and I heard a sound I'll never forget. It was 80 00:04:44.000 --> 00:04:48.160 like someone clearing their throat, but deeper, much deeper, and 81 00:04:48.240 --> 00:04:50.959 loud enough that I felt it in my chest. I 82 00:04:51.040 --> 00:04:55.000 decided to investigate. Stupid, probably, but I was young and 83 00:04:55.000 --> 00:04:58.199 thought I could handle anything. I walked around the back 84 00:04:58.240 --> 00:05:00.959 of the cabin with my flashlight, expecting to find a 85 00:05:01.000 --> 00:05:04.480 bear or maybe some drunk hiker. What I found was 86 00:05:04.519 --> 00:05:06.800 a set of footprints in the dirt behind the cabin. 87 00:05:07.439 --> 00:05:11.399 They were huge, had to be eighteen inches long, maybe more. 88 00:05:12.120 --> 00:05:15.560 They looked human, but the size was impossible. I could 89 00:05:15.560 --> 00:05:19.560 see tow impressions, the heel of the foot, everything, but 90 00:05:19.600 --> 00:05:22.959 they were deeper than any human print would be. Whatever 91 00:05:23.000 --> 00:05:26.839 made these definitely weighed way more than a person. I 92 00:05:26.920 --> 00:05:29.839 followed the trail for maybe twenty yards before it disappeared 93 00:05:29.839 --> 00:05:33.560 on rocky ground. But I'd seen enough. I went back 94 00:05:33.600 --> 00:05:36.279 to my truck and got out of there. Never filed 95 00:05:36.279 --> 00:05:39.199 a report about it, just marked the cabin as secure 96 00:05:39.279 --> 00:05:42.040 and moved on. But I went back the next week, 97 00:05:42.439 --> 00:05:45.360 had to see if those prints were still there. They were, 98 00:05:45.759 --> 00:05:48.360 and there were more of them. It looked like something 99 00:05:48.360 --> 00:05:52.319 had been visiting that cabin regularly, walking around it, maybe 100 00:05:52.360 --> 00:05:55.639 looking in the windows. I never spent another night alone 101 00:05:55.680 --> 00:05:59.240 at that outpost without thinking about those footprints, and I 102 00:05:59.319 --> 00:06:03.160 never went back to that cabin after dark. In nineteen 103 00:06:03.199 --> 00:06:06.240 eighty seven, I got assigned to a research project in Alaska. 104 00:06:06.879 --> 00:06:09.040 I was supposed to spend six weeks at a remote 105 00:06:09.079 --> 00:06:13.199 station helping with a wildlife survey. The station was about 106 00:06:13.240 --> 00:06:16.800 forty miles from the nearest road, supplied by helicopter once 107 00:06:16.839 --> 00:06:20.600 a month. Beautiful country, but isolated in a way that 108 00:06:20.639 --> 00:06:23.360 could get to you if you weren't careful. I was 109 00:06:23.399 --> 00:06:26.360 there alone most of the time, just me and all 110 00:06:26.399 --> 00:06:30.480 the monitoring equipment. Radio contact with the outside world twice 111 00:06:30.519 --> 00:06:35.160 a day, but otherwise complete silence. The work was routine, 112 00:06:35.759 --> 00:06:40.839 checking instruments, recording data, maintaining the equipment. About three weeks 113 00:06:40.839 --> 00:06:44.000 in I started noticing that my equipment was being moved, 114 00:06:44.240 --> 00:06:48.839 not damaged, just repositioned. I'd place a camera in one spot, 115 00:06:49.079 --> 00:06:51.800 come back a week later and find it twenty feet away, 116 00:06:52.439 --> 00:06:57.079 still functioning, still recording, just moved. At first I figured 117 00:06:57.120 --> 00:07:01.160 it was bears. They're curious animals, and I'll investigate anything 118 00:07:01.199 --> 00:07:05.240 new in their territory. But bears don't relocate equipment carefully. 119 00:07:05.720 --> 00:07:08.560 They knock it over, maybe chew on it, but they 120 00:07:08.560 --> 00:07:11.959 don't move it intact. I decided to review the footage 121 00:07:11.959 --> 00:07:14.120 from the cameras see if I could figure out what 122 00:07:14.279 --> 00:07:17.480 was moving them. What I found on those recordings still 123 00:07:17.480 --> 00:07:21.279 gives me chills. There was something out there, something big 124 00:07:21.319 --> 00:07:24.759 and covered in dark fur, walking upright like a person, 125 00:07:24.800 --> 00:07:28.040 but way too large to be human. The footage showed 126 00:07:28.079 --> 00:07:31.519 it approaching my cameras, sniffing them, picking them up, and 127 00:07:31.600 --> 00:07:35.199 examining them like a curious animal might. But what got 128 00:07:35.240 --> 00:07:38.199 to me was how careful it was. Bears will bat 129 00:07:38.240 --> 00:07:42.319 at things, knock them around. This creature handled my equipment 130 00:07:42.399 --> 00:07:45.199 like it understood it was fragile. It would pick up 131 00:07:45.199 --> 00:07:48.560 a camera, turn it over, smell it, then set it 132 00:07:48.639 --> 00:07:52.160 down somewhere else. Over the next two weeks, I captured 133 00:07:52.199 --> 00:07:55.639 more footage. The creature was around the station almost every night. 134 00:07:56.199 --> 00:08:00.680 It would investigate everything, my supply, cash, my equipment, even 135 00:08:00.720 --> 00:08:03.959 my WISTE disposal area, like it was trying to understand 136 00:08:03.959 --> 00:08:07.399 what I was doing there. The thing was massive. Even 137 00:08:07.439 --> 00:08:09.639 on the grainy footage, I could tell it had to 138 00:08:09.680 --> 00:08:13.800 be eight feet tall, maybe more. The shoulders were enormous 139 00:08:13.800 --> 00:08:16.720 and the arms hung down almost to its knees. But 140 00:08:16.800 --> 00:08:20.759 it moved quietly, carefully, like it was being deliberate about 141 00:08:20.800 --> 00:08:25.319 not damaging anything. I never felt directly threatened, but knowing 142 00:08:25.360 --> 00:08:29.279 something that large was watching me every night, studying my routines, 143 00:08:29.839 --> 00:08:33.000 that changed how I felt about being alone in the wilderness. 144 00:08:33.360 --> 00:08:36.200 I started keeping my rifle closer, even though I wasn't 145 00:08:36.200 --> 00:08:39.440 sure bullets would do much good against something that size. 146 00:08:39.559 --> 00:08:42.519 When my assignment ended, I packed up everything and never 147 00:08:42.519 --> 00:08:45.840 looked back. I kept copies of the footage, but I 148 00:08:45.919 --> 00:08:49.600 never showed them to anyone. The quality wasn't great, and 149 00:08:49.679 --> 00:08:52.240 most of it just showed a large, dark shape moving 150 00:08:52.279 --> 00:08:55.679 around in the darkness. I requested transfer back to the 151 00:08:55.720 --> 00:08:59.399 Lower forty eight after that assignment. Told my supervisors I 152 00:08:59.399 --> 00:09:03.039 didn't like the isolation, which was true, but not for 153 00:09:03.080 --> 00:09:06.600 the reasons they thought. In nineteen ninety five, I was 154 00:09:06.639 --> 00:09:10.799 working in the bitter Root National Forest in Montana, beautiful country, 155 00:09:11.080 --> 00:09:14.639 but remote and wild. I was doing a routine patrol 156 00:09:14.679 --> 00:09:17.120 in late October when I came across a hunting camp 157 00:09:17.320 --> 00:09:20.120 that had been abandoned in a hurry. The camp was 158 00:09:20.159 --> 00:09:24.919 set up properly, good location, well organized, all the right equipment, 159 00:09:25.559 --> 00:09:29.279 but everything was just left there, tents still standing, gear 160 00:09:29.360 --> 00:09:33.320 scattered around, food left out like the hunters had dropped 161 00:09:33.360 --> 00:09:36.840 everything and ran. I found the hunters about a mile away, 162 00:09:37.200 --> 00:09:40.159 holed up in their truck on a forest road. Three 163 00:09:40.200 --> 00:09:43.240 guys from back East experienced hunters, but new to the 164 00:09:43.279 --> 00:09:46.960 Western Mountains. They were pretty shaken up. Said they'd had 165 00:09:46.960 --> 00:09:50.960 to abandon their camp because of dangerous wildlife. It took 166 00:09:50.960 --> 00:09:53.039 some talking to get the full story out of them. 167 00:09:53.639 --> 00:09:56.399 They'd been camped in that spot for two days, having 168 00:09:56.399 --> 00:09:59.519 good luck with elk, but on their second night they 169 00:09:59.559 --> 00:10:03.120 started he hearing things that didn't belong, trees being broken, 170 00:10:03.360 --> 00:10:07.240 loud crashes echoing through the forest. The oldest hunter, a 171 00:10:07.279 --> 00:10:10.159 guy named Frank, said it sounded like someone was clearing 172 00:10:10.240 --> 00:10:13.440 land with heavy machinery, but they were eight miles from 173 00:10:13.519 --> 00:10:16.639 the nearest road, no way to get equipment into that area. 174 00:10:17.480 --> 00:10:19.960 When they investigated in the morning, they found trees that 175 00:10:20.000 --> 00:10:22.320 had been broken off about eight feet from the ground. 176 00:10:22.960 --> 00:10:28.360 Not cut down, broken snapped like twigs. These were mature furs, 177 00:10:28.799 --> 00:10:31.919 six and eight inches across. Whatever broke them had to 178 00:10:32.000 --> 00:10:35.759 be incredibly strong. Frank had been logging before he retired, 179 00:10:35.799 --> 00:10:37.480 and he said it would take a machine to break 180 00:10:37.519 --> 00:10:40.919 trees that size, but there were no tire tracks, no 181 00:10:41.039 --> 00:10:44.600 signs of machinery. The second night, they heard something moving 182 00:10:44.639 --> 00:10:49.879 around their camp. Heavy footsteps, but careful and deliberate, like 183 00:10:49.960 --> 00:10:53.279 something large was walking around their tents, checking them out. 184 00:10:54.080 --> 00:10:57.960 They stayed inside and waited for morning. When they emerged, 185 00:10:58.279 --> 00:11:01.840 they found footprints all around their camp. Frank showed me 186 00:11:01.879 --> 00:11:05.919 photos he'd taken with the disposable camera. The prints were enormous, 187 00:11:06.200 --> 00:11:09.200 clearly showing tow impressions and the shape of a human foot, 188 00:11:09.200 --> 00:11:12.000 but way too big for any person. But what really 189 00:11:12.039 --> 00:11:15.000 spooked them was what they found at their truck. They'd 190 00:11:15.039 --> 00:11:17.679 parked it about a quarter mile from camp, thinking it 191 00:11:17.720 --> 00:11:20.399 would be safer there. When they checked on it the 192 00:11:20.440 --> 00:11:23.960 next morning, something had been examining it. There were large 193 00:11:23.960 --> 00:11:27.120 handprints on the windows and body panels, like something had 194 00:11:27.159 --> 00:11:31.159 been pressing against the glass trying to see inside. Frank 195 00:11:31.200 --> 00:11:35.159 said the handprints were huge, much larger than human hands, 196 00:11:35.440 --> 00:11:39.840 but they showed finger impressions, thumbs, everything you'd expect from 197 00:11:39.840 --> 00:11:44.519 a hand, just impossibly large. The third night, they didn't 198 00:11:44.519 --> 00:11:47.159 wait around to see what would happen. They packed up 199 00:11:47.159 --> 00:11:49.360 their essential gear and hiked out to their truck in 200 00:11:49.399 --> 00:11:53.200 the dark, leaving most of their equipment behind. I went 201 00:11:53.240 --> 00:11:56.279 back to their campsite after talking to them. Everything was 202 00:11:56.440 --> 00:12:01.519 just as they described. Broken trees, footprints, gear left scattered around, 203 00:12:02.960 --> 00:12:05.320 and stay tuned for more Sasquatch ott to see We'll 204 00:12:05.360 --> 00:12:12.919 be right back. After these messages, the footprints were deep 205 00:12:13.000 --> 00:12:16.159 and clear, showing details that convinced me these weren't fake. 206 00:12:16.919 --> 00:12:19.759 I took some photos and measurements, but I never filed 207 00:12:19.759 --> 00:12:23.200 an official report. What was I going to say that 208 00:12:23.320 --> 00:12:27.480 some unknown creature had harassed hunters and left impossible footprints. 209 00:12:27.799 --> 00:12:31.039 I kept the documentation, but it stayed in my personal files. 210 00:12:31.679 --> 00:12:34.919 The hunters never came back to Montana. Frank sent me 211 00:12:34.960 --> 00:12:37.480 a letter a few months later saying they decided to 212 00:12:37.519 --> 00:12:41.320 stick to hunting closer to home. Can't say I blame them. 213 00:12:41.879 --> 00:12:44.360 I was doing a training assignment in Colorado in two 214 00:12:44.360 --> 00:12:48.080 thousand and three, working with rangers in the Roosevelt National Forest. 215 00:12:48.879 --> 00:12:51.039 That's where I met a family who'd had an experience 216 00:12:51.080 --> 00:12:53.720 that still bothers me when I think about it. They 217 00:12:53.720 --> 00:12:59.240 were from Denver, mother, father, teenage daughter, experienced campers who'd 218 00:12:59.279 --> 00:13:02.679 been visiting the now National Forests for years. They came 219 00:13:02.720 --> 00:13:05.879 to our office after a backcountry camping trip, asking if 220 00:13:05.919 --> 00:13:09.200 we'd had any reports of unusual wildlife activity in the 221 00:13:09.240 --> 00:13:13.080 area they'd been visiting. The father was an engineer, very 222 00:13:13.120 --> 00:13:16.279 methodical guy. He laid out their story like he was 223 00:13:16.279 --> 00:13:20.200 giving a technical presentation. They'd been camping near a remote 224 00:13:20.240 --> 00:13:22.840 lake three days and two nights in an area where 225 00:13:22.879 --> 00:13:25.919 they didn't see another person the whole time. First two 226 00:13:26.000 --> 00:13:31.759 days were perfect, good weather, nice fishing, saw the usual wildlife. 227 00:13:31.799 --> 00:13:35.000 The daughter was into photography and had been taking pictures constantly, 228 00:13:35.519 --> 00:13:40.080 documenting everything from wildflowers to wildlife. On their last night, 229 00:13:40.360 --> 00:13:42.840 they were sitting around the campfire when they heard something 230 00:13:42.879 --> 00:13:46.840 moving in the forest across the lake. Heavy sounds, like 231 00:13:46.919 --> 00:13:50.480 something large was walking through the trees, but not random 232 00:13:50.519 --> 00:13:54.679 like an animal foraging, more purposeful, like it was patrolling 233 00:13:54.759 --> 00:13:57.960 or searching for something. The father scanned the tree line 234 00:13:58.000 --> 00:14:01.639 with a flashlight but couldn't see anything. The sounds continued 235 00:14:01.679 --> 00:14:06.200 for maybe an hour, something moving through the forest, stopping occasionally, 236 00:14:06.600 --> 00:14:10.840 then moving again. Sometimes they could hear branches breaking, like 237 00:14:10.919 --> 00:14:14.519 whatever it was didn't care about moving quietly. Then they 238 00:14:14.519 --> 00:14:17.519 smelled it. The mother described it as like a zoo 239 00:14:17.559 --> 00:14:21.000 on a hot day, thick and musky. The smell got 240 00:14:21.039 --> 00:14:23.960 stronger as whatever was out there got closer to their camp. 241 00:14:24.600 --> 00:14:28.240 It was so strong it made them gag. The daughter 242 00:14:28.279 --> 00:14:30.600 had been experimenting with the night vision setting on her 243 00:14:30.600 --> 00:14:33.240 camera and she managed to get one shot of something 244 00:14:33.279 --> 00:14:36.600 standing at the tree line. The image showed a massive 245 00:14:36.639 --> 00:14:40.600 figure covered in dark hair, standing upright between two pine trees, 246 00:14:40.679 --> 00:14:44.240 maybe sixty yards from their camp. The thing was huge, 247 00:14:44.840 --> 00:14:47.120 had to be at least seven feet tall, with shoulders 248 00:14:47.159 --> 00:14:51.200 that looked impossibly broad. It was just standing there, and 249 00:14:51.279 --> 00:14:53.399 in the night vision image you could see it was 250 00:14:53.480 --> 00:14:58.159 looking toward their camp, not moving, just watching them. They 251 00:14:58.200 --> 00:15:01.039 hiked out that night five mi aisles of rough trail 252 00:15:01.080 --> 00:15:04.639 by flashlight. Said they'd rather risk getting lost than spend 253 00:15:04.639 --> 00:15:07.840 another hour in that place with something that size watching 254 00:15:07.919 --> 00:15:11.120 them from the darkness. The father brought the camera to 255 00:15:11.200 --> 00:15:14.159 our office and showed me the image. The night vision 256 00:15:14.200 --> 00:15:17.279 made everything look greenish, but you could clearly see it 257 00:15:17.320 --> 00:15:22.120 wasn't any normal animal. The proportions were all wrong, too tall, 258 00:15:22.399 --> 00:15:26.440 too broad, arms that hung down too far. What got 259 00:15:26.440 --> 00:15:28.320 to me was thinking about how long it might have 260 00:15:28.360 --> 00:15:31.360 been watching them before they noticed the way it was 261 00:15:31.399 --> 00:15:35.600 positioned in the trees, perfectly still just observing their camp 262 00:15:36.440 --> 00:15:39.960 like a predator studying prey, but without any apparent intention 263 00:15:40.039 --> 00:15:44.600 to attack. The family stopped backcountry camping after that experience. 264 00:15:45.240 --> 00:15:48.440 They still visit the National forests, but only in developed 265 00:15:48.440 --> 00:15:51.879 campgrounds where there are other people around. Can't say I 266 00:15:51.879 --> 00:15:55.399 blame them. I kept a copy of that photo. I 267 00:15:55.440 --> 00:15:57.639 look at it sometimes, trying to make sense of what 268 00:15:57.679 --> 00:16:02.039 I'm seeing. The quality isn't grey, but there's definitely something there, 269 00:16:02.600 --> 00:16:06.639 something that shouldn't exist. By twenty ten, I was working 270 00:16:06.679 --> 00:16:09.960 special assignments, and that summer I got sent to investigate 271 00:16:10.000 --> 00:16:15.240 complaints about aggressive wildlife in the North Cascades. A research 272 00:16:15.279 --> 00:16:18.159 station had been having problems with equipment being destroyed and 273 00:16:18.240 --> 00:16:22.399 researchers being intimidated by what they described as unusually large 274 00:16:22.440 --> 00:16:26.720 and bold bears. The station was only accessible by helicopter, 275 00:16:27.080 --> 00:16:30.759 about fifteen miles from the nearest trail. When I arrived, 276 00:16:30.759 --> 00:16:34.159 I could see why the researchers were concerned. Equipment had 277 00:16:34.159 --> 00:16:38.120 been damaged all around the facility, not randomly destroyed, but 278 00:16:38.159 --> 00:16:42.360 systematically dismantled. Solar panels had been ripped off their mounts, 279 00:16:42.600 --> 00:16:45.799 weather instruments had been pulled apart, and supply containers had 280 00:16:45.799 --> 00:16:50.080 been opened and their contents scattered. But this wasn't bear damage. 281 00:16:50.480 --> 00:16:53.440 Bears tear things apart looking for food, and they leave 282 00:16:53.519 --> 00:16:56.799 claw marks and bite marks. This looked more like something 283 00:16:56.840 --> 00:17:00.519 had been taking equipment apart, piece by piece, exam how 284 00:17:00.519 --> 00:17:03.600 it was constructed. I spent two weeks at the station 285 00:17:04.000 --> 00:17:08.079 documenting the damage and trying to establish patterns. The destruction 286 00:17:08.200 --> 00:17:11.000 always happened at night, and it was getting more aggressive. 287 00:17:11.799 --> 00:17:15.240 Whatever was doing this seemed to be escalating its behavior. 288 00:17:16.000 --> 00:17:20.279 On my third night, I found out why. Around two am, 289 00:17:20.440 --> 00:17:24.400 I heard something moving around outside the station. Heavy footsteps 290 00:17:24.720 --> 00:17:27.680 but too deliberate for a bear. I watched from the 291 00:17:27.680 --> 00:17:31.640 window as a massive figure approached the facility. It was enormous, 292 00:17:32.240 --> 00:17:34.640 easily eight feet tall, with a frame that looked like 293 00:17:34.640 --> 00:17:38.440 it could weigh five hundred pounds, covered in thick, dark hair, 294 00:17:38.519 --> 00:17:42.319 and moving with surprising agility for something so large, and 295 00:17:42.359 --> 00:17:46.119 it was clearly agitated about something. The creature went straight 296 00:17:46.160 --> 00:17:49.119 to the equipment I'd set up earlier that day, motion 297 00:17:49.279 --> 00:17:53.240 sensors and recording devices. It didn't just destroy them randomly. 298 00:17:53.720 --> 00:17:58.720 It systematically dismantled each piece, examining it briefly, then throwing 299 00:17:58.759 --> 00:18:02.599 the parts away with obvie frustration. I watched for over 300 00:18:02.680 --> 00:18:05.480 an hour as it methodically destroyed everything I'd brought to 301 00:18:05.519 --> 00:18:08.839 the station. But what scared me was the intelligence behind 302 00:18:08.880 --> 00:18:13.599 its actions. This wasn't random vandalism. It was targeted destruction 303 00:18:13.720 --> 00:18:17.200 of specific equipment, like it understood what each device was 304 00:18:17.240 --> 00:18:20.480 for and didn't want to be monitored. When it finished 305 00:18:20.519 --> 00:18:23.519 with my equipment, it turned its attention to the station itself. 306 00:18:24.279 --> 00:18:28.160 It began testing the structural supports, pushing against the walls, 307 00:18:28.559 --> 00:18:32.319 examining the roof attachments, like it was deciding whether to 308 00:18:32.359 --> 00:18:36.359 demolish the entire facility. That's when I realized what was happening. 309 00:18:37.160 --> 00:18:40.119 The research station had been built in this creature's territory, 310 00:18:40.480 --> 00:18:43.119 and it was trying to drive away the human intruders. 311 00:18:43.960 --> 00:18:48.440 The systematic equipment destruction wasn't random, it was a message. 312 00:18:48.480 --> 00:18:51.119 I packed up and left the next morning, recommending that 313 00:18:51.200 --> 00:18:55.359 the station be relocated. In my report, I cited unstable 314 00:18:55.400 --> 00:18:59.720 geological conditions as the reason for the recommendation. The real 315 00:18:59.720 --> 00:19:01.480 reas and would have gotten me laughed out of the 316 00:19:01.480 --> 00:19:06.039 Forest Service. The station was eventually abandoned after researchers continued 317 00:19:06.039 --> 00:19:10.119 to report equipment problems in what they described as intimidation 318 00:19:10.279 --> 00:19:14.720 behavior from local wildlife. Last I heard, the area had 319 00:19:14.759 --> 00:19:17.920 been designated as sensitive habitat and was off limits to 320 00:19:18.000 --> 00:19:22.640 research activities. Sometimes territorial animals will defend their space against 321 00:19:22.680 --> 00:19:27.599 human intrusion. Usually that means bears or mountain lions. But 322 00:19:27.680 --> 00:19:30.200 what I observed that night was something much larger and 323 00:19:30.319 --> 00:19:34.000 more intelligent, defending its territory the only way it knew how, 324 00:19:34.519 --> 00:19:39.000 by making human presence impossible to maintain. I was working 325 00:19:39.000 --> 00:19:42.799 a temporary assignment in Kentucky in twenty fifteen, helping with 326 00:19:42.880 --> 00:19:46.839 fire management planning in the Daniel Boone National Forest. That's 327 00:19:46.839 --> 00:19:49.640 where I met Tom, a state police officer who'd been 328 00:19:49.680 --> 00:19:53.319 patrolling the rural areas around the forest for over fifteen years. 329 00:19:54.200 --> 00:19:56.440 Tom came to our office one morning, looking like he 330 00:19:56.480 --> 00:19:59.200 hadn't slept. Said he needed to talk to someone about 331 00:19:59.240 --> 00:20:02.000 an incident from the night before, but he wasn't sure 332 00:20:02.039 --> 00:20:05.599 how to classify it. When I asked what kind of incident, 333 00:20:05.799 --> 00:20:07.920 he said I needed to hear the whole story before 334 00:20:07.960 --> 00:20:11.599 I'd believe it. He'd been patrolling State Route eighty, one 335 00:20:11.599 --> 00:20:14.119 of those winding mountain roads that cuts through some of 336 00:20:14.160 --> 00:20:17.880 the most remote areas of eastern Kentucky. It was around 337 00:20:17.920 --> 00:20:20.720 three a m. When his headlights caught something standing in 338 00:20:20.759 --> 00:20:24.119 the middle of the road about fifty yards ahead. At first, 339 00:20:24.160 --> 00:20:26.759 he thought it was a person, maybe someone whose car 340 00:20:26.839 --> 00:20:30.440 had broken down, but as he got closer he realized 341 00:20:30.480 --> 00:20:33.119 whatever it was was much too large to be human. 342 00:20:33.920 --> 00:20:36.720 It was standing upright on two legs, but it had 343 00:20:36.759 --> 00:20:38.880 to be at least eight feet tall, with shoulders that 344 00:20:38.960 --> 00:20:43.079 looked impossibly broad. Tom stopped his patrol car and turned 345 00:20:43.079 --> 00:20:45.799 on his spotlight. What he saw made him reach for 346 00:20:45.839 --> 00:20:48.160 his radio, but they were in a dead zone where 347 00:20:48.200 --> 00:20:51.079 the mountains blocked the signal. He was on his own. 348 00:20:51.799 --> 00:20:53.920 The thing in the road was covered in thick, dark 349 00:20:54.000 --> 00:20:57.279 hair and built like nothing he'd ever seen. The arms 350 00:20:57.359 --> 00:21:00.440 hung down almost to its knees, and the head was assive, 351 00:21:01.039 --> 00:21:03.920 much larger than a human head. But it was looking 352 00:21:03.960 --> 00:21:06.680 directly at his patrol car, studying it like it was 353 00:21:06.720 --> 00:21:09.799 trying to decide what to do. Tom said, the most 354 00:21:09.880 --> 00:21:13.559 unsettling thing was how intelligent it looked. This wasn't some 355 00:21:13.759 --> 00:21:19.279 mindless animal. It was clearly thinking, evaluating the situation, and 356 00:21:19.319 --> 00:21:22.160 it didn't seem afraid of the patrol car or the spotlight. 357 00:21:22.799 --> 00:21:25.279 For maybe five minutes, they just looked at each other, 358 00:21:25.920 --> 00:21:29.400 Tom sitting in his car, this massive creature standing in 359 00:21:29.440 --> 00:21:32.599 the road. Then it did something that convinced Tom he 360 00:21:32.680 --> 00:21:36.160 was dealing with something beyond his experience. It stepped to 361 00:21:36.160 --> 00:21:38.400 the side of the road and gestured for him to pass, 362 00:21:39.240 --> 00:21:42.039 not like a person would gesture, but a clear indication 363 00:21:42.160 --> 00:21:45.079 that it was moving out of the way. Tom drove 364 00:21:45.119 --> 00:21:48.319 passed slowly, and the creature watched him the entire time. 365 00:21:49.079 --> 00:21:51.000 In his rear view mirror, he could see it step 366 00:21:51.079 --> 00:21:54.279 back into the road after he'd passed. Tom drove to 367 00:21:54.319 --> 00:21:57.160 the nearest area with radio coverage and called for backup, 368 00:21:57.599 --> 00:22:00.160 but by the time another unit arrived, there was There's 369 00:22:00.200 --> 00:22:04.000 nothing there, no footprints on the asphalt, no evidence that 370 00:22:04.079 --> 00:22:07.920 anything had happened. But Tom knew what he'd seen. He'd 371 00:22:07.920 --> 00:22:11.440 been a police officer for fifteen years, trained to observe 372 00:22:11.519 --> 00:22:15.720 and evaluate threats. What he'd encountered wasn't a bear standing 373 00:22:15.720 --> 00:22:18.039 on its hind legs or a person in a costume. 374 00:22:18.720 --> 00:22:21.720 It was something that belonged in those mountains, something that 375 00:22:21.839 --> 00:22:25.559 understood human behavior well enough to recognize a police car 376 00:22:25.880 --> 00:22:29.759 and respond appropriately. The thing that bothered Tom most was 377 00:22:29.799 --> 00:22:34.039 how the creature had handled the encounter. No aggression, no fear, 378 00:22:34.640 --> 00:22:38.720 just calm evaluation and accommodation like it was used to 379 00:22:38.759 --> 00:22:42.400 dealing with humans and knew how to avoid conflict. Tom 380 00:22:42.480 --> 00:22:46.119 never patrolled that stretch of road alone again. He requested 381 00:22:46.160 --> 00:22:50.039 reassignment to areas closer to town, saying he preferred community 382 00:22:50.039 --> 00:22:53.319 policing to rural patrol work. But he told me the 383 00:22:53.319 --> 00:22:56.480 real reason he didn't want another encounter with something that 384 00:22:56.559 --> 00:22:59.519 was clearly more intelligent than any animal had a right 385 00:22:59.559 --> 00:23:02.000 to be. I kept in touch with Tom for a 386 00:23:02.000 --> 00:23:05.319 few years after that assignment. He eventually transferred to a 387 00:23:05.319 --> 00:23:08.960 different department, taking a job in urban law enforcement, where 388 00:23:08.960 --> 00:23:12.960 the biggest wildlife concern was stray dogs. Said he'd had 389 00:23:13.039 --> 00:23:16.039 enough of the mountains and whatever lived in them. During 390 00:23:16.039 --> 00:23:19.359 a training program in Michigan in twenty seventeen, I met 391 00:23:19.359 --> 00:23:22.240 a fishing guide named Mike who'd been working the remote 392 00:23:22.319 --> 00:23:25.920 lakes and rivers of the Upper Peninsula for over twenty years. 393 00:23:26.400 --> 00:23:28.599 Mike was the kind of guy who knew every creek 394 00:23:28.640 --> 00:23:31.920 in Beaver Pond within one hundred miles, someone who'd spent 395 00:23:32.000 --> 00:23:35.599 more nights alone in the wilderness than most people spend indoors. 396 00:23:36.000 --> 00:23:38.079 But Mike came to our office that summer with a 397 00:23:38.119 --> 00:23:41.759 story that had clearly shaken him. He'd been guiding clients 398 00:23:41.759 --> 00:23:43.960 on a multi day fishing trip in one of the 399 00:23:43.960 --> 00:23:47.400 most remote areas of the Ottawa National Forest when they'd 400 00:23:47.480 --> 00:23:50.240 encountered something that made him question everything he thought he 401 00:23:50.319 --> 00:23:53.880