WEBVTT 1 00:00:06.080 --> 00:00:10.039 One summer morning a few years back, two friends Dan 2 00:00:10.240 --> 00:00:14.080 and Josiah went hiking deep into a canyon just outside 3 00:00:14.080 --> 00:00:18.000 of town. Their plan was to build a large teepee 4 00:00:18.199 --> 00:00:22.160 like structure using fallen timber. It would be a gift 5 00:00:22.199 --> 00:00:27.039 to the area's Sasquatch people. They arrived at their destination 6 00:00:27.199 --> 00:00:30.399 about three miles out of town and pulls to look around. 7 00:00:31.199 --> 00:00:33.960 By the looks of things, they'd probably need to venture 8 00:00:33.960 --> 00:00:36.679 a bit farther up the mountain and deeper into the 9 00:00:36.719 --> 00:00:41.119 woods for enough material for the structure. They blazed a 10 00:00:41.200 --> 00:00:44.159 trail as they made their way, adding another quarter to 11 00:00:44.240 --> 00:00:46.880 half a mile to the track before they came upon 12 00:00:46.960 --> 00:00:50.520 a fairly level clearing with a tree stump near the 13 00:00:50.560 --> 00:00:54.479 middle of it. It was the perfect location for their gift. 14 00:00:55.240 --> 00:00:58.799 They split up and started collecting skinny ten to fifteen 15 00:00:58.840 --> 00:01:02.240 foot tall timber two erect into the structure around the 16 00:01:02.280 --> 00:01:05.879 tree stump. The stump would act as a table within 17 00:01:05.959 --> 00:01:09.680 the teepee. The door or the opening was about five 18 00:01:09.799 --> 00:01:13.840 or six feet tall. Once the structure was in place 19 00:01:13.879 --> 00:01:17.079 and standing on its own, they filled the gaps with 20 00:01:17.159 --> 00:01:20.200 smaller sticks and branches and leaves to help keep the 21 00:01:20.280 --> 00:01:23.599 rain out. When they were done, they left a granola 22 00:01:23.680 --> 00:01:26.719 bar on the stump and headed back down the mountain. 23 00:01:28.040 --> 00:01:30.480 After they arrived at their car, they packed up and 24 00:01:30.519 --> 00:01:34.359 began their slow drive back out of the canyon. Just 25 00:01:34.400 --> 00:01:36.719 when they were about to make the bend in the road, 26 00:01:36.959 --> 00:01:40.159 something moving up on the ridge caught their attention, and 27 00:01:40.200 --> 00:01:44.120 it was the ridge that they were just on. There 28 00:01:44.359 --> 00:01:48.079 running on the ridge was a reddish, brown haired sisquatch, 29 00:01:48.280 --> 00:01:52.239 quickly making its way down the mountain towards them. When 30 00:01:52.280 --> 00:01:54.599 the creature reached the edge of the hill and saw 31 00:01:54.640 --> 00:01:58.480 the car, it stopped and just looked at them. As 32 00:01:58.519 --> 00:02:01.120 they looked back at it, and as if it realized 33 00:02:01.159 --> 00:02:05.480 they'd seen it, it morphed into a tree, blending into 34 00:02:05.519 --> 00:02:09.560 the rest of the hillside. One second, it was standing there. 35 00:02:09.599 --> 00:02:12.560 In the next instant, it was a small pine tree. 36 00:02:13.599 --> 00:02:17.240 Was it a sort of defense mechanism or camouflage technique. 37 00:02:17.879 --> 00:02:21.199 Was it something they used to remain unseen from prey 38 00:02:21.439 --> 00:02:25.159 in humans. It really didn't matter at that point, as 39 00:02:25.199 --> 00:02:28.759 they'd already seen it. It would be a while before 40 00:02:28.840 --> 00:02:33.120 Dan went camping in that canyon. Everything seemed normal until 41 00:02:33.120 --> 00:02:36.520 one morning he awoke to find a small blue marble 42 00:02:36.639 --> 00:02:40.039 lying next to his sleeping bag. The marble had a 43 00:02:40.080 --> 00:02:45.039 piece of reddish brown hair embedded inside. What did this mean? 44 00:02:45.360 --> 00:02:49.000 Was it a gift from a sosquatch? Months later, Dan 45 00:02:49.080 --> 00:02:52.240 decided to venture out alone for an evening hike up 46 00:02:52.240 --> 00:02:55.840 another forest service road and then head off the trail 47 00:02:55.919 --> 00:02:59.919 to find a remote camping spot. As the crow flies, 48 00:03:00.199 --> 00:03:03.199 the location of this trip's camp site would be no 49 00:03:03.479 --> 00:03:06.840 more than four miles from the clearing him and Josiah 50 00:03:06.879 --> 00:03:10.240 had built that teepee. He didn't have to venture off 51 00:03:10.280 --> 00:03:13.120 the trail for too long before coming upon a nice 52 00:03:13.360 --> 00:03:17.919 level spot perfect for his two person tent. He was 53 00:03:17.960 --> 00:03:21.400 surrounded by tall trees, which served to block out any 54 00:03:21.479 --> 00:03:24.599 noise from town, which was less than a mile below. 55 00:03:25.639 --> 00:03:28.520 It wasn't long before camp was made and his dinner 56 00:03:28.680 --> 00:03:32.439 was gone. For good measure, he backtracked through the woods 57 00:03:32.479 --> 00:03:34.879 to find a tree branch to hang a small bag 58 00:03:34.919 --> 00:03:39.319 of garbage that would hopefully keep any nosy bears distracted 59 00:03:39.360 --> 00:03:43.639 and away from his tent. As he slept. Before turning 60 00:03:43.680 --> 00:03:46.039 in for the night, he pulled a canister of bear 61 00:03:46.120 --> 00:03:48.919 spray out of his pack and grabbed a book for 62 00:03:49.000 --> 00:03:53.280 some light reading. Nearly an hour later, he rolled over 63 00:03:53.479 --> 00:03:57.199 and turned out the light and went to bed. Sometime 64 00:03:57.319 --> 00:04:00.560 during the early morning hours, he was jolted away by 65 00:04:00.560 --> 00:04:04.280 a deep rumbling feeling coming from the ground and the 66 00:04:04.319 --> 00:04:08.960 sound of a bulldozer crashing through the trees. It sounded 67 00:04:09.000 --> 00:04:11.800 like it was about fifty yards away and coming towards 68 00:04:11.800 --> 00:04:15.840 his campsite. The rumbling wasn't like an earthquake, but more 69 00:04:15.919 --> 00:04:19.439 like a stampede of horses or cattle running right at him. 70 00:04:19.959 --> 00:04:23.079 But how could that be? He was nestled deep in 71 00:04:23.160 --> 00:04:25.720 the woods and far away from the road, and he 72 00:04:25.800 --> 00:04:28.920 wondered were their free range cattle in the area and 73 00:04:28.959 --> 00:04:32.519 where they possibly spooked or attacked, causing them to run 74 00:04:32.560 --> 00:04:37.240 away from a predator and unknowingly towards him. As the 75 00:04:37.279 --> 00:04:41.480 approaching violence got closer and closer, his sleepy brain was 76 00:04:41.519 --> 00:04:45.519 simply overcome by the trembling ground and loud crashing sound 77 00:04:45.560 --> 00:04:48.920 of the large trees right outside his tent. As he 78 00:04:49.000 --> 00:04:51.600 clenched his bear spray, he closed his eyes and he 79 00:04:51.720 --> 00:04:57.040 braced for an impact, and then everything stopped. Everything suddenly 80 00:04:57.199 --> 00:05:01.480 went quiet and peaceful. He opened his eyes and focused 81 00:05:01.480 --> 00:05:04.319 his hearing as he could sense something at the edge 82 00:05:04.319 --> 00:05:07.399 of the campsite. To the left of his tent. There 83 00:05:07.480 --> 00:05:10.240 was no way he was going to look outside, so 84 00:05:10.279 --> 00:05:13.199 he continued to listen for any clue to what was 85 00:05:13.240 --> 00:05:16.480 out there. It took less than a minute for whatever 86 00:05:16.639 --> 00:05:19.800 was outside to turn around and slowly walk away in 87 00:05:19.879 --> 00:05:22.879 the direction in which it had come. Dan lay in 88 00:05:22.920 --> 00:05:26.040 his sleeping bag, holding his breath. He could feel the 89 00:05:26.079 --> 00:05:29.759 heavy thuds from its feet as whatever it was walked 90 00:05:29.759 --> 00:05:34.040 away on two legs. Needless to stay, Dan didn't go 91 00:05:34.160 --> 00:05:37.360 back to bed. He couldn't sleep. He laid helpless in 92 00:05:37.399 --> 00:05:40.720 his mind, replaying every second of the event over and 93 00:05:40.920 --> 00:05:44.160 over again, trying to make sense of what had just happened. 94 00:05:45.319 --> 00:05:48.920 Come morning, he cautiously unzipped his tent and slowly and 95 00:05:49.040 --> 00:05:53.279 quietly climbed out. With every inch, he paused all body 96 00:05:53.399 --> 00:05:56.560 movement and held his breath to scan the left into 97 00:05:56.600 --> 00:06:00.199 the right before climbing out. He was pretty shook up up. 98 00:06:01.160 --> 00:06:04.759 Whatever it was it was gone. There was no visible 99 00:06:04.800 --> 00:06:09.040 destruction within the campsite, and even more alarming, the trail 100 00:06:09.160 --> 00:06:11.519 back to the road was clear of any sign of 101 00:06:11.639 --> 00:06:15.639 violence he'd both heard and felt. Even the garbage bag 102 00:06:15.720 --> 00:06:19.800 was still tied above from the branch. Dan gave a 103 00:06:19.800 --> 00:06:22.439 lot of thought to what happened before telling me about 104 00:06:22.439 --> 00:06:26.319 that wild night. Whatever it was. Once it found me 105 00:06:26.399 --> 00:06:30.040 asleep with the campfire put out properly, it turned around 106 00:06:30.120 --> 00:06:33.199 and it let me be. He said, I hadn't been 107 00:06:33.240 --> 00:06:35.920 making a lot of noise and my fire had been small, 108 00:06:36.000 --> 00:06:38.480 so I'm not sure how it knew where I was. 109 00:06:39.560 --> 00:06:42.959 Dan wasn't the only one to have follow up experiences 110 00:06:44.360 --> 00:06:48.279 During a solo hike. Josiah found himself about a mile 111 00:06:48.399 --> 00:06:51.199 or more outside of town, on the opposite side of 112 00:06:51.279 --> 00:06:54.800 town from where him and Dan had built that teepee. 113 00:06:54.879 --> 00:06:58.120 It was early evening when he set out. As he 114 00:06:58.240 --> 00:07:01.560 hiked parallel to a river, he eventually came upon a 115 00:07:01.600 --> 00:07:06.199 batch of similar tpee tree structures. They had been created 116 00:07:06.240 --> 00:07:09.959 by boy Scouts and varied in sizes and distance from 117 00:07:10.000 --> 00:07:15.560 the trail. Hikers and campers used them as shelters. After 118 00:07:15.600 --> 00:07:18.839 he passed the first structure, he suddenly felt like something 119 00:07:18.959 --> 00:07:22.639 was circling him. It was such a strong feeling it 120 00:07:22.680 --> 00:07:24.920 made him pause to look around to see if he 121 00:07:24.959 --> 00:07:29.279 could see anyone or anything nearby. That's when he felt 122 00:07:29.319 --> 00:07:33.240 the need to look down. There in front of his 123 00:07:33.360 --> 00:07:37.279 feet was an arrowhead, but it wasn't a normal arrowhead. 124 00:07:38.040 --> 00:07:41.560 Josiah is part Native American and has seen a lot 125 00:07:41.560 --> 00:07:44.839 of arrowheads and knows how to make them. This one 126 00:07:44.920 --> 00:07:49.279 was different. Whereas they're usually created using a chipping or 127 00:07:49.319 --> 00:07:53.519 flaking method known as flint napping, this one seemed more 128 00:07:53.600 --> 00:07:57.360 like it was rubbed into shape. By this time, it 129 00:07:57.399 --> 00:07:59.600 was getting dark, so he hiked up to one of 130 00:07:59.639 --> 00:08:03.560 the tea and climbed inside to rest and examine the arrowhead. 131 00:08:04.680 --> 00:08:09.360 While inside, he heard small stones being tossed at the teepee. 132 00:08:09.399 --> 00:08:11.959 He leaned over and stuck his head outside, but he 133 00:08:11.959 --> 00:08:16.879 didn't see anyone. The sound of stones hitting the structure continued, 134 00:08:17.199 --> 00:08:19.879 so he decided to take the hint and move along. 135 00:08:20.639 --> 00:08:25.439 Obviously someone didn't want him there. That's when things got 136 00:08:25.439 --> 00:08:28.800 a bit more strange. As he retreated back down the 137 00:08:28.839 --> 00:08:33.000 slope towards the trail, the stones continued to land all 138 00:08:33.039 --> 00:08:36.879 around him at the trail, and after stopping to look 139 00:08:36.919 --> 00:08:40.399 for the culprit once more, a large piece of tree 140 00:08:40.440 --> 00:08:43.919 bark suddenly manifested from thin air right in front of him. 141 00:08:44.919 --> 00:08:48.240 He said it wasn't there, and then it was. He 142 00:08:48.320 --> 00:08:51.120 watched as it hovered in front of his face briefly 143 00:08:51.279 --> 00:08:54.200 and then fell to the ground. It was as if 144 00:08:54.240 --> 00:08:56.720 someone dangled it in front of him for a moment 145 00:08:57.120 --> 00:09:00.600 and then simply let it fall to the ground. This 146 00:09:00.759 --> 00:09:04.000 freak come out, so rather than continue up the trail, 147 00:09:04.519 --> 00:09:10.519 he decided to quickly backtrack towards town Aways down the trail, 148 00:09:10.600 --> 00:09:14.960 he realized he dropped the cap to his camera. Reluctantly, 149 00:09:15.039 --> 00:09:18.200 he turned back up the trail and used his flashlight 150 00:09:18.279 --> 00:09:21.679 to scan the ground ahead of him. Just as he 151 00:09:21.759 --> 00:09:25.000 spotted it and bent over to pick it up, someone 152 00:09:25.039 --> 00:09:29.039 threw something very large and heavy in his direction. When 153 00:09:29.039 --> 00:09:32.320 it made an impact with the ground, he literally jumped 154 00:09:32.320 --> 00:09:36.919 and yelled, I'm just coming back for this. Josiah then 155 00:09:37.000 --> 00:09:40.279 hastily made his way back into town into his cabin. 156 00:09:41.120 --> 00:09:48.080 That was the last time he's hiked that area alone. 157 00:09:48.240 --> 00:09:51.960 I've been mountain biking my entire life. I love the outdoors. 158 00:09:52.480 --> 00:09:56.039 I had a customed mountain bike made by Seven Cycles 159 00:09:56.039 --> 00:10:00.879 in Massachusetts. It had a titanium frame, a belt drive, 160 00:10:00.919 --> 00:10:04.480 and a fourteen speed roll off gearing. It was very 161 00:10:04.559 --> 00:10:07.600 light and it was incredibly strong. I could ride this 162 00:10:07.679 --> 00:10:12.519 bike anywhere. I decided to do an overnight hammock camping trip. 163 00:10:12.919 --> 00:10:16.159 I thought I would use the mountain bike right out 164 00:10:16.200 --> 00:10:19.000 of my house, and five miles down the road is 165 00:10:19.039 --> 00:10:23.360 a two hundred acre wildlife refuge laid in the fall. 166 00:10:23.440 --> 00:10:27.000 The woods in Connecticut are very beautiful, so this would 167 00:10:27.000 --> 00:10:30.200 be a gorgeous trip. People drive from all over the 168 00:10:30.240 --> 00:10:33.559 country to see the golden display of the fall leaves. 169 00:10:34.559 --> 00:10:37.679 I loaded my bike with twenty pounds of gear, food, water, 170 00:10:37.840 --> 00:10:41.919 and my camera and a carbon tripod. I had thought 171 00:10:41.919 --> 00:10:44.360 that I would try some low light photography and see 172 00:10:44.399 --> 00:10:48.559 how it came out. It was getting dark in another 173 00:10:48.679 --> 00:10:52.840 ninety minutes, so I brought my helmet and handlebar led lights. 174 00:10:53.480 --> 00:10:57.000 The handlebar light is seventeen hundred lumens, and I can 175 00:10:57.080 --> 00:10:59.679 ride at night just as fast as I can during 176 00:10:59.679 --> 00:11:03.720 the day. The helmet is nice because it always points 177 00:11:03.759 --> 00:11:07.440 where you're looking. I rode into the woods, and I 178 00:11:07.600 --> 00:11:10.000 took about an hour and fifteen minutes to get far 179 00:11:10.120 --> 00:11:12.039 enough in so that I wouldn't have to worry about 180 00:11:12.039 --> 00:11:15.440 anyone seeing me. After, I dragged my bike and my 181 00:11:15.600 --> 00:11:17.639 gear up a big hill to get more than a 182 00:11:17.679 --> 00:11:21.000 three hundred feet off the trail to find a good spot. 183 00:11:21.600 --> 00:11:25.200 By that time it was dark. There were two trees 184 00:11:25.320 --> 00:11:29.279 twenty feet apart with no widow maker dead limbs on them, 185 00:11:29.320 --> 00:11:32.559 and I strung my hammock between them. I put a 186 00:11:32.600 --> 00:11:35.600 tarp above the hammock. It was a nice night, so 187 00:11:35.679 --> 00:11:37.759 I tied the sides of the tarp up so I 188 00:11:37.799 --> 00:11:42.000 could see three hundred and sixty degrees. I heeded some 189 00:11:42.120 --> 00:11:45.440 water to make coffee. After twenty years in the Navy, 190 00:11:45.559 --> 00:11:48.639 I just can't live without my coffee. And then I 191 00:11:48.720 --> 00:11:53.120 had a snack and it was pitch dark. There was 192 00:11:53.159 --> 00:11:55.679 no moon and no stars to be seen that night. 193 00:11:56.360 --> 00:11:58.879 If I turned off my head lamp, I couldn't see 194 00:11:58.919 --> 00:12:01.559 my hand in front of my face. It's not a 195 00:12:01.600 --> 00:12:05.840 good night for photography regardless. I set up the camera 196 00:12:05.879 --> 00:12:09.039 and took some long exposure shots and got just what 197 00:12:09.080 --> 00:12:15.919 I expected. A picture of black by camping is zero impact. 198 00:12:16.279 --> 00:12:18.879 There is no fire, and I leave the site exactly 199 00:12:19.000 --> 00:12:22.440 as if I had never been there. On past trips, 200 00:12:22.480 --> 00:12:25.159 I learned that the animals know you were there. It 201 00:12:25.240 --> 00:12:27.799 seems to disturb them that a human is hanging out 202 00:12:27.840 --> 00:12:31.120 in their home in the middle of the night, usually 203 00:12:31.360 --> 00:12:34.159 just after dark. The woods come to life and everything 204 00:12:34.240 --> 00:12:38.039 is moving. Some animals are curious and will come close 205 00:12:38.080 --> 00:12:41.919 to see what is hanging between the trees. It tends 206 00:12:41.960 --> 00:12:44.399 to keep you up, but I found it very interesting 207 00:12:44.480 --> 00:12:48.000 because it is amazing how well animals communicate with each other. 208 00:12:48.919 --> 00:12:51.200 The ones that came close would always give out some 209 00:12:51.360 --> 00:12:54.120 kind of sound that was responded to by more than 210 00:12:54.360 --> 00:12:58.720 one distant animal. Small rodents would scurry through the leaves 211 00:12:58.759 --> 00:13:01.879 right underneath you. The dry leaves made it so that 212 00:13:01.919 --> 00:13:05.759 you could hear anything moving well. I climbed into my 213 00:13:05.840 --> 00:13:08.639 hammock and I covered up, and I was comfortable and warm. 214 00:13:09.320 --> 00:13:11.799 My head was on an inflatable pillow so I could 215 00:13:11.799 --> 00:13:16.200 see out. I hung my seventeen hundred loomin handlebar light 216 00:13:16.399 --> 00:13:19.039 just above my head on a ridge line in case 217 00:13:19.080 --> 00:13:23.360 something big came in close. This night was different. There 218 00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:25.799 wasn't a sound. I was in the middle of a 219 00:13:25.879 --> 00:13:29.679 wildlife refuge and I couldn't hear a thing. My ears 220 00:13:29.679 --> 00:13:32.559 are very good. I was a sonar technician and my 221 00:13:32.639 --> 00:13:36.559 ears were tested quarterly by the Navy. My hearing tests 222 00:13:36.639 --> 00:13:39.639 indicate that when I retired, my ears were just as 223 00:13:39.679 --> 00:13:42.440 sensitive as they were when I was seventeen years old. 224 00:13:43.720 --> 00:13:48.279 The unusual quiet was disturbing. Well, I got bored and 225 00:13:48.279 --> 00:13:51.600 I closed my eyes and I dozed off. I was 226 00:13:51.639 --> 00:13:56.120 awakened a few hours later by movement. There was something close, 227 00:13:56.200 --> 00:13:59.879 rustling in the leaves. I heard a distant chattering to 228 00:14:00.120 --> 00:14:03.159 the south, which was answered by the same to the north, 229 00:14:03.799 --> 00:14:06.879 and then the third chatter that was close to the west. 230 00:14:08.039 --> 00:14:12.000 After many minutes of quiet, a fear suddenly came over me. 231 00:14:12.600 --> 00:14:14.600 It was a fear that I never in my life 232 00:14:14.679 --> 00:14:20.039 have experienced. I've served on submarines. I survived an onboard 233 00:14:20.159 --> 00:14:24.039 fire and a couple of loss of depth controls close 234 00:14:24.080 --> 00:14:27.039 to test depth, and I can tell you that the 235 00:14:27.039 --> 00:14:29.759 fear that I felt that night brought back those memories 236 00:14:29.799 --> 00:14:34.039 because it was so strong. The difference was that this 237 00:14:34.240 --> 00:14:36.879 time was the fear in my head and it was 238 00:14:36.960 --> 00:14:39.879 not in my gut. It gave me goose bumps all 239 00:14:39.919 --> 00:14:43.720 over my body. I retrieved my hanging light from the 240 00:14:43.799 --> 00:14:45.799 ridge line and made sure my thumb was on the 241 00:14:45.840 --> 00:14:49.159 switch whatever was out there. If it got too close, 242 00:14:49.279 --> 00:14:52.679 it was going to get blinded by that light. I 243 00:14:52.799 --> 00:14:55.960 was unarmed, so the light and my leathermen were all 244 00:14:56.000 --> 00:15:01.000 I had. The next thing I knew I heard steps approaching. 245 00:15:01.799 --> 00:15:04.480 There were two steps at a time, approaching from the 246 00:15:04.519 --> 00:15:07.799 east and then there was a long pause the paws 247 00:15:07.879 --> 00:15:11.600 between the steps, and adrenaline through my veins. This time 248 00:15:11.639 --> 00:15:14.480 they were walking right toward me, and I knew it 249 00:15:14.519 --> 00:15:18.600 was there. This went along for what seemed like forever, 250 00:15:19.039 --> 00:15:21.759 and then I heard two steps followed by what sounded 251 00:15:21.799 --> 00:15:24.879 like a massive log hitting the ground hard enough to 252 00:15:24.960 --> 00:15:30.360 reverberate the earth underneath, making it sound hollow. I managed 253 00:15:30.399 --> 00:15:32.960 to stay in my hammock after I was startled by 254 00:15:33.000 --> 00:15:35.799 that thump, and then I was wondering if I had 255 00:15:35.840 --> 00:15:39.159 the courage to let this thing get any closer. I'm 256 00:15:39.200 --> 00:15:44.159 guessing the first thump was fifty yards away. Each additional 257 00:15:44.399 --> 00:15:48.480 step were followed by the same loud thump. This thing 258 00:15:48.600 --> 00:15:51.840 was trying to get a start out of me. The 259 00:15:51.879 --> 00:15:54.799 camera was on the bag on my bike, and I 260 00:15:54.919 --> 00:15:57.600 was too clumsy to use my phone at the same 261 00:15:57.679 --> 00:16:01.360 time as the light. I would be dropping my light 262 00:16:01.840 --> 00:16:05.639 and I decided against getting the shot. When I got 263 00:16:05.720 --> 00:16:08.080 to the point that I felt it was six steps 264 00:16:08.159 --> 00:16:11.200 from me looking into my hammock, I turned that light on. 265 00:16:11.960 --> 00:16:14.000 It was so bright that I could see the dust 266 00:16:14.000 --> 00:16:18.080 floating in the air. I saw two eyes. They were 267 00:16:18.159 --> 00:16:21.399 red and they were really high off the ground. The 268 00:16:21.480 --> 00:16:25.200 eyes drop low and then swung back and forth. All 269 00:16:25.240 --> 00:16:28.600 I could see was the eyes, no antlers, no tann fir, 270 00:16:28.879 --> 00:16:32.519 just eyes. The eye swung back and forth, seeming to 271 00:16:32.559 --> 00:16:35.960 try to get out of the intense light. It seemed 272 00:16:36.000 --> 00:16:39.240 like forever, but after a few seconds, I decided to 273 00:16:39.240 --> 00:16:42.320 give the animal one out and I shut the light off. 274 00:16:43.639 --> 00:16:46.639 Whatever this was, it took off like a rocket. I 275 00:16:46.679 --> 00:16:51.000 could hear every massive, powerful footstep and branches snapping as 276 00:16:51.039 --> 00:16:55.840 it blindly trudged to the north. In seconds, this thing 277 00:16:55.960 --> 00:16:57.639 was at least a half a mile away before I 278 00:16:57.679 --> 00:17:01.360 could no longer hear it. Well, it got quiet and 279 00:17:01.440 --> 00:17:04.799 I calmed down, and I thought wow, and then I 280 00:17:04.880 --> 00:17:09.720 dozed back off. I woke up just after sunrise. I 281 00:17:09.799 --> 00:17:13.559 never sleep long. I was surprised it was being light already. 282 00:17:14.359 --> 00:17:17.319 I checked the area out where the creature had approached. 283 00:17:17.839 --> 00:17:20.359 There was a huge bush in that direction with no 284 00:17:20.559 --> 00:17:24.200 leaves left on it. Whatever this thing was, there was 285 00:17:24.240 --> 00:17:27.759 no place for it to hide. Therefore, I am perplexed. 286 00:17:27.799 --> 00:17:31.880 While I only saw the eyes. Looking at my camp 287 00:17:31.920 --> 00:17:34.839 area for the first time in daylight, I realized that 288 00:17:34.920 --> 00:17:37.319 I had hung my hammock right in the middle of 289 00:17:37.359 --> 00:17:42.359 a very heavily traveled animal path. Honestly, I can't say 290 00:17:42.440 --> 00:17:46.400 what those eyeballs belonged to. I still go hammock camping, 291 00:17:46.559 --> 00:17:52.759 and I've never had any experience like this again. When 292 00:17:52.799 --> 00:17:55.880 I was nine, my sister and I, along with two 293 00:17:56.000 --> 00:18:00.000 of our aunts who were our age, decided to explore 294 00:18:00.079 --> 00:18:03.759 or a concrete ditch that ran alongside my great grandmother's 295 00:18:03.759 --> 00:18:08.119 house near Memphis. We used a rope to propel down 296 00:18:08.400 --> 00:18:11.000 and then walked along until we came to a covert. 297 00:18:12.279 --> 00:18:15.640 We looked inside, but couldn't see daylight from the other end, 298 00:18:16.279 --> 00:18:20.599 just a black, empty space. I wanted to explore this 299 00:18:20.759 --> 00:18:23.559 cave like structure and maybe get a good scare on 300 00:18:23.640 --> 00:18:27.279 the girls at the same time, as kids will do, 301 00:18:27.400 --> 00:18:29.640 I dared them to go in to see who would 302 00:18:29.680 --> 00:18:33.799 go the farthest or stay the longest. They dared me back, 303 00:18:33.920 --> 00:18:36.440 and with pride on the line and no one wanting 304 00:18:36.519 --> 00:18:41.359 to be the one who chickened out, we all stepped inside. 305 00:18:41.680 --> 00:18:45.960 The eerie feeling we all had was overpowering. I was 306 00:18:46.039 --> 00:18:49.160 certain the girls wouldn't last long in this environment, and 307 00:18:49.200 --> 00:18:53.200 I would surely win. After fifty yards, one of my 308 00:18:53.279 --> 00:18:56.880 aunts said Jim, what's that. I looked deeper into the 309 00:18:57.000 --> 00:18:59.480 darkness and I saw a set of glowing red eyes 310 00:18:59.599 --> 00:19:02.799 walking in our direction. A reasoned that it must be 311 00:19:02.799 --> 00:19:05.079 a cat or a dog, and that the eyes were 312 00:19:05.160 --> 00:19:08.400 catching the light from the opening behind us. But I 313 00:19:08.440 --> 00:19:10.519 also knew that if I made it out to be 314 00:19:10.559 --> 00:19:13.960 bigger than it was, the girls would run and i'd win. 315 00:19:15.000 --> 00:19:18.319 I was done exploring this place anyway. I just needed 316 00:19:18.319 --> 00:19:20.559 to turn the fear up a little bit and I 317 00:19:20.599 --> 00:19:24.640 would be the victor. It was working. The closer the 318 00:19:24.680 --> 00:19:27.799 eyes got, the more frightening they became. And then I 319 00:19:27.920 --> 00:19:30.839 noticed that whatever was connected to those eyes was getting 320 00:19:30.960 --> 00:19:35.000 bigger and bigger. I think it was on all fours 321 00:19:35.039 --> 00:19:38.680 at first, and then it began to stand up. Okay, 322 00:19:38.720 --> 00:19:42.039 I thought dogs and cats don't walk on two legs. 323 00:19:42.559 --> 00:19:45.200 That was when my sister and ants gave up the ghost. 324 00:19:46.039 --> 00:19:48.839 They spun around and they ran screaming from the cave, 325 00:19:49.119 --> 00:19:52.519 yelling back to me to run. I just stood there. 326 00:19:53.440 --> 00:19:55.880 I guess I was waiting for them to get further away. 327 00:19:56.640 --> 00:19:59.119 I knew I could outrun them, and I didn't want 328 00:19:59.119 --> 00:20:02.720 one of them to get I just kept standing there, 329 00:20:02.799 --> 00:20:07.000 hoping to stall it. Or something. I waited longer than 330 00:20:07.039 --> 00:20:10.400 I should have, and it came at me, quickly, overtaking me. 331 00:20:10.480 --> 00:20:14.599 As I ran backwards towards the entrance, I could hear 332 00:20:14.640 --> 00:20:18.200 the girl screaming somewhere behind me, and I screamed back 333 00:20:18.279 --> 00:20:22.960 for them to get help. This thing, so tall it 334 00:20:23.000 --> 00:20:25.640 had to stand hunched over to keep from hitting its 335 00:20:25.680 --> 00:20:29.240 head on the ceiling of the colvert, towered over me, 336 00:20:29.559 --> 00:20:32.440 shrouding me in the heavy mist of its breath and 337 00:20:32.680 --> 00:20:36.000 stench of its fur, and it glared down at me. 338 00:20:37.000 --> 00:20:40.759 I'm dead, I thought. I stood still, and my eyes 339 00:20:40.799 --> 00:20:44.599 were closed, my arms and legs were shaking, and I 340 00:20:44.720 --> 00:20:48.319 was waiting to become this thing's next meal. And then 341 00:20:48.359 --> 00:20:51.480 it made a rattling noise, almost like a coup or 342 00:20:51.519 --> 00:20:56.759 a purr. The fear started to subside. I found it 343 00:20:56.799 --> 00:21:00.400 in me to start backing away slowly that furs, and 344 00:21:00.440 --> 00:21:03.799 then a little faster. When I backed far enough, I 345 00:21:03.880 --> 00:21:06.680 turned and bolted as fast as I could, and I 346 00:21:06.759 --> 00:21:09.480 hit daylight like a runner breaking through a ribbon. At 347 00:21:09.519 --> 00:21:13.240 the end of the race, the girls were up ahead, 348 00:21:13.559 --> 00:21:16.640 scurrying up a rope that we'd use to climb down. 349 00:21:17.839 --> 00:21:20.839 I grabbed it and pulled myself to safety. I was 350 00:21:20.920 --> 00:21:24.160 frantic to get away from this thing. I wasn't sure 351 00:21:24.160 --> 00:21:27.319 if I was going to make it. We ran to 352 00:21:27.400 --> 00:21:31.880 our parents hysterically telling them about the culvert, the red eyes, 353 00:21:31.920 --> 00:21:34.960 and the four legged animal that stood up on two feet. 354 00:21:35.720 --> 00:21:38.039 You stay out of that ditch, was all they said. 355 00:21:38.359 --> 00:21:42.920 They didn't believe us. Years later, I must have been 356 00:21:42.960 --> 00:21:47.960 thirteen or fourteen, it was carnival time in Memphis. The 357 00:21:48.000 --> 00:21:50.480 Mid South Fair was a big deal and I went 358 00:21:50.599 --> 00:21:54.720 every year. A couple of weeks before it started, I 359 00:21:54.799 --> 00:21:56.920 checked out a book at the library that was all 360 00:21:56.960 --> 00:22:02.000 about the lock Ness Monster and other cryptid After my experience, 361 00:22:02.079 --> 00:22:05.799 I was fascinated with this subject. In the back of 362 00:22:05.799 --> 00:22:08.279 the book was a story and a picture of the 363 00:22:08.319 --> 00:22:13.920 Patterson Gimlin Bigfoot. My jaw dropped at the sight, even 364 00:22:13.960 --> 00:22:16.599 though I'd been too afraid to look up that day 365 00:22:16.680 --> 00:22:19.039 in the culvert, it seemed like this is what I 366 00:22:19.079 --> 00:22:22.480 had seen. It made me wonder how many people have 367 00:22:22.599 --> 00:22:26.160 ever seen these things, and without any form of reference, 368 00:22:26.480 --> 00:22:30.720 they just never knew what they were looking at. That year, 369 00:22:30.759 --> 00:22:33.720 at the fair, the freak show was boasting one particular 370 00:22:34.000 --> 00:22:38.599 exhibit claiming to be a dead Bigfoot on ice. Most 371 00:22:38.640 --> 00:22:42.519 people don't remember or maybe even know that until recently, 372 00:22:42.559 --> 00:22:46.319 as the nineteen eighties, freak shows were a common element 373 00:22:46.400 --> 00:22:51.519 of carnivals, fairs, and circuses around the world. These attractions 374 00:22:51.559 --> 00:22:56.519 were always fakes, a mix of plaster, makeup, costume, and 375 00:22:56.599 --> 00:23:00.559 lighting designed to extract money from the fairgoers, post and 376 00:23:00.680 --> 00:23:04.640 nothing else. I had no doubt that the Bigfoot behind 377 00:23:04.640 --> 00:23:08.440 this curtain was as fake as the mermaid behind the next. 378 00:23:09.319 --> 00:23:12.119 Curiosity got the best of me, though, and I paid 379 00:23:12.119 --> 00:23:14.599 for my ticket and I went in to have a look. 380 00:23:15.759 --> 00:23:19.599 The first thing I noticed was the smell. It was bad. 381 00:23:20.200 --> 00:23:23.279 I looked around and I saw others holding their noses. 382 00:23:23.440 --> 00:23:26.920 I recognized it. Looking at this thing, I began to 383 00:23:26.960 --> 00:23:31.559 reason with myself. It had to be fake. If a 384 00:23:31.599 --> 00:23:35.400 man had shot it, he'd be in jail. This thing 385 00:23:35.559 --> 00:23:39.920 is just a big, hairy humanoid. I focused on the 386 00:23:39.960 --> 00:23:45.720 bullet wound visible in its chest. It all looked too real. Well, 387 00:23:45.720 --> 00:23:47.559 my time was up and I had to move on, 388 00:23:48.079 --> 00:23:52.039 but what I had seen was disturbing. I couldn't forget it. 389 00:23:53.720 --> 00:23:56.119 The next year, the fair was back, and I was 390 00:23:56.160 --> 00:24:00.400 still obsessed. This year, I brought a magnifying glass with 391 00:24:00.440 --> 00:24:04.000 the hope that the Bigfoot exhibit would be there. I 392 00:24:04.119 --> 00:24:08.839 was not disappointed. First, I examined the bullet wound. I 393 00:24:08.839 --> 00:24:12.079 could clearly see through the ice and the jagged tear 394 00:24:12.319 --> 00:24:16.079 where it had entered the creature's chest. It all looked 395 00:24:16.240 --> 00:24:20.559 very real. Its skin appeared to have poorers, the hair 396 00:24:20.680 --> 00:24:24.720 seemed to sprout from individual follicles. There was dirt under 397 00:24:24.759 --> 00:24:29.319 the fingernails and toenails. It was even quite obviously a male. 398 00:24:30.599 --> 00:24:33.319 I would pay to see this thing three more times 399 00:24:33.400 --> 00:24:37.920 that year. The next year it was back, and so 400 00:24:38.240 --> 00:24:41.519 was I. This time, I'd used a set of medical 401 00:24:41.680 --> 00:24:46.799