WEBVTT

1
00:00:01.919 --> 00:00:04.480
<v Speaker 1>The road was the kind of lonely that felt personal.

2
00:00:05.639 --> 00:00:08.640
<v Speaker 1>Arkansas Route one seventy eight cut through a stretch of

3
00:00:08.759 --> 00:00:12.240
<v Speaker 1>forest at the base of the Ozarks. A snake shaped

4
00:00:12.320 --> 00:00:17.199
<v Speaker 1>ribbon of cracked pavement winding into dense dark fog from

5
00:00:17.239 --> 00:00:21.280
<v Speaker 1>the river settled on both shoulders, a slow moving carpet

6
00:00:21.280 --> 00:00:25.079
<v Speaker 1>that made headlights smear like candle flames on wet glass.

7
00:00:26.399 --> 00:00:30.399
<v Speaker 1>The nearest town, Marsden, was twenty miles behind, and the

8
00:00:30.440 --> 00:00:34.039
<v Speaker 1>only sign of civilization was a rusty State highway marker

9
00:00:34.640 --> 00:00:40.119
<v Speaker 1>bullets scarred and leaning. Most locals avoided this road after sundown.

10
00:00:41.280 --> 00:00:46.039
<v Speaker 1>Too many tails, too many vanishings, too many things, glimmering

11
00:00:46.079 --> 00:00:49.920
<v Speaker 1>in headlights, and never spoken of again. But to night,

12
00:00:50.399 --> 00:00:54.039
<v Speaker 1>something tall and powerful stood at the edge of the asphalt,

13
00:00:54.840 --> 00:00:58.960
<v Speaker 1>hidden in the black seam where the pine shadows swallowed starlight.

14
00:01:00.439 --> 00:01:05.439
<v Speaker 1>The creature's breath puffed like steam from a locomotive. It

15
00:01:05.560 --> 00:01:09.000
<v Speaker 1>stood nearly nine feet tall, shoulders as broad as a

16
00:01:09.040 --> 00:01:13.959
<v Speaker 1>refrigerator door, covered head to foot in auburn hair, thick

17
00:01:14.159 --> 00:01:19.040
<v Speaker 1>as a horse's mane. Beneath the fur lay muscle corded

18
00:01:19.120 --> 00:01:25.040
<v Speaker 1>and dense as bridge cables, a male sasquatch not a myth,

19
00:01:25.959 --> 00:01:33.760
<v Speaker 1>not a camp counselor's scary story. Reel alive, watching his

20
00:01:33.920 --> 00:01:37.959
<v Speaker 1>nostrils flared. He could smell the cold river, the musk

21
00:01:38.000 --> 00:01:42.640
<v Speaker 1>of deer bedding and fern, the electricity of a coming storm.

22
00:01:43.239 --> 00:01:50.840
<v Speaker 1>But there was something else, burning hot, sour, metallic, human fear,

23
00:01:51.799 --> 00:01:57.599
<v Speaker 1>and gasoline and blood. He tilted his massive head, listening

24
00:01:58.680 --> 00:02:03.959
<v Speaker 1>a vibration rolling to the far off, still miles away,

25
00:02:04.319 --> 00:02:08.960
<v Speaker 1>a car engine screamed. The Bigfoot narrowed his eyes. He

26
00:02:09.039 --> 00:02:13.800
<v Speaker 1>had seen these machines before, seen their destruction, their noise.

27
00:02:14.479 --> 00:02:17.680
<v Speaker 1>They're careless, slicing through the homes of creatures who could

28
00:02:17.759 --> 00:02:22.319
<v Speaker 1>not speak for themselves. He stepped out of the tree line,

29
00:02:22.639 --> 00:02:29.639
<v Speaker 1>not hurried, not fearful, just deliberate. Pine branches brushed his shoulders,

30
00:02:30.360 --> 00:02:33.759
<v Speaker 1>Gravel scraped under the enormous bare feet as he approached

31
00:02:33.759 --> 00:02:38.639
<v Speaker 1>the yellow center lines. His strides were slow and heavy.

32
00:02:39.240 --> 00:02:43.719
<v Speaker 1>Each step rooted deep into the earth. Mist curled around

33
00:02:43.759 --> 00:02:48.199
<v Speaker 1>his legs like ghostly river smoke. He crossed the road

34
00:02:48.560 --> 00:02:52.680
<v Speaker 1>and right before disappearing into the opposite tree line, his

35
00:02:52.800 --> 00:02:57.479
<v Speaker 1>head snapped back because the screaming engine was now much closer.

36
00:02:59.560 --> 00:03:04.000
<v Speaker 1>Dustin the arrow had stolen the wrong car. Adrenaline poured

37
00:03:04.039 --> 00:03:06.840
<v Speaker 1>through him like jet fuel as he wiped sweat off

38
00:03:06.879 --> 00:03:10.680
<v Speaker 1>his forehead and gripped the steering wheel with white knuckles.

39
00:03:11.280 --> 00:03:14.840
<v Speaker 1>His heart hammered so violently he could feel his pulse

40
00:03:14.879 --> 00:03:18.800
<v Speaker 1>in his teeth. Behind him, two miles of road were

41
00:03:18.879 --> 00:03:24.479
<v Speaker 1>lit by flashing blue strobes. A cop gaining come on,

42
00:03:24.599 --> 00:03:29.080
<v Speaker 1>come on, baby, faster, baby, dust and shouted, slamming the accelerator.

43
00:03:30.080 --> 00:03:34.120
<v Speaker 1>The stolen dodge charger fish tailed on loose gravel tires,

44
00:03:34.159 --> 00:03:39.840
<v Speaker 1>flinging pebbles behind it. The speedometer needle climbed ninety ninety

45
00:03:39.879 --> 00:03:45.400
<v Speaker 1>five one hundred. Beside him on the passenger floorboard lay

46
00:03:45.439 --> 00:03:49.599
<v Speaker 1>the pistol, a matte black three fifty seven revolver, and

47
00:03:49.639 --> 00:03:54.800
<v Speaker 1>a woman's purse, silver sequins, a mini mouse keychain, a

48
00:03:54.840 --> 00:03:59.800
<v Speaker 1>pink inhaler. There were reminders, reminders of the family he

49
00:03:59.800 --> 00:04:04.000
<v Speaker 1>held a gunpoint, reminders of how he pointed that revolver

50
00:04:04.159 --> 00:04:07.319
<v Speaker 1>at a ten year old girl because her father refused

51
00:04:07.319 --> 00:04:10.919
<v Speaker 1>to hand over the car. Keys should have been faster.

52
00:04:11.120 --> 00:04:18.000
<v Speaker 1>Dustin muttered, that's life, No remorse, not in him, just survival.

53
00:04:18.959 --> 00:04:22.120
<v Speaker 1>He wasn't doing this because he enjoyed it. He was

54
00:04:22.199 --> 00:04:27.079
<v Speaker 1>doing it because he owed people dangerous people, people who

55
00:04:27.120 --> 00:04:31.480
<v Speaker 1>didn't believe in forgiveness. If he didn't pay up, Jenna,

56
00:04:32.120 --> 00:04:36.319
<v Speaker 1>his girlfriend, would pay instead. She was waiting at the

57
00:04:36.319 --> 00:04:39.560
<v Speaker 1>base of the mountain, waiting with a getaway plan and

58
00:04:39.759 --> 00:04:45.079
<v Speaker 1>enough cash to disappear. He pictured her freckles, her nervous smile,

59
00:04:45.639 --> 00:04:50.240
<v Speaker 1>the way she twisted her hair when scared. Dustin wasn't praying.

60
00:04:50.879 --> 00:04:54.519
<v Speaker 1>He wasn't that kind of man, but he was bargaining.

61
00:04:55.720 --> 00:04:58.839
<v Speaker 1>Just let me get there, just let me live. He

62
00:04:58.879 --> 00:05:02.120
<v Speaker 1>glanced in the rear view mirror. The flashing blue light

63
00:05:02.199 --> 00:05:07.959
<v Speaker 1>grew larger. He pressed the gas harder. The sasquatch reached

64
00:05:07.959 --> 00:05:10.920
<v Speaker 1>the far shoulder and slipped into brush tall enough to

65
00:05:11.000 --> 00:05:15.680
<v Speaker 1>swallow a mini van. His senses sharpened. He could feel

66
00:05:15.720 --> 00:05:18.360
<v Speaker 1>the tremor of the vehicle through the soles of his feet.

67
00:05:18.439 --> 00:05:23.319
<v Speaker 1>Before it rounded the corner, the creature exhaled, low, rumbling

68
00:05:23.560 --> 00:05:29.079
<v Speaker 1>like distant thunder. He didn't understand the machine. He understood danger,

69
00:05:30.279 --> 00:05:33.279
<v Speaker 1>with a fluid motion that didn't belong to something so massive.

70
00:05:33.879 --> 00:05:39.519
<v Speaker 1>He ducked behind a fallen spruce, muscles coiled, tendons tightened.

71
00:05:40.319 --> 00:05:45.360
<v Speaker 1>He waited. Headlights exploded into view, and the charger tore

72
00:05:45.560 --> 00:05:48.279
<v Speaker 1>around the blind curve at nearly one hundred and ten

73
00:05:48.360 --> 00:05:53.680
<v Speaker 1>miles per hour. Dustin's eyes widened, pupils dilating at the

74
00:05:53.720 --> 00:05:58.319
<v Speaker 1>impossible sight a colossal silhouette standing in the middle of

75
00:05:58.360 --> 00:06:03.879
<v Speaker 1>the road. A moose, not a bear, not a man,

76
00:06:04.920 --> 00:06:10.600
<v Speaker 1>something else. The creatures fur rippled in the wind, illuminated

77
00:06:10.639 --> 00:06:15.360
<v Speaker 1>in stark gold under the headlights. Its face was broad,

78
00:06:15.800 --> 00:06:21.600
<v Speaker 1>heavy browed, ancient amber eyes locked with Dustin's through the windshield.

79
00:06:22.439 --> 00:06:27.720
<v Speaker 1>Then the sasquatch stepped forward. Dustin screamed and jerked the wheel.

80
00:06:28.639 --> 00:06:32.120
<v Speaker 1>The charger left the pavement and launched over the embankment.

81
00:06:33.759 --> 00:06:40.600
<v Speaker 1>Time didn't slow, it just became louder. Glass shattered, metal screamed.

82
00:06:41.639 --> 00:06:46.120
<v Speaker 1>Dustin's body snapped forward into the seat belt. The charger

83
00:06:46.199 --> 00:06:52.639
<v Speaker 1>tumbled twice, roof, hood roof, before slamming into a stand

84
00:06:52.639 --> 00:06:56.800
<v Speaker 1>of sycamores at the river's edge. Steam hissed from the

85
00:06:56.800 --> 00:07:02.879
<v Speaker 1>warped radiator. The left headlight flickered once twice, then died

86
00:07:04.399 --> 00:07:09.319
<v Speaker 1>inside the crumpled metal cage. Dustin coughed blood onto the dashboard.

87
00:07:10.199 --> 00:07:14.639
<v Speaker 1>His ribs felt cracked, his vision pulsed at the edges.

88
00:07:15.360 --> 00:07:20.639
<v Speaker 1>He reached down, hand shaking, searching for the revolver, Come on,

89
00:07:21.120 --> 00:07:25.759
<v Speaker 1>come on. His fingers found the grip. He tried opening

90
00:07:25.800 --> 00:07:31.519
<v Speaker 1>the door, jammed. Tried kicking the windshield, his legs wouldn't respond.

91
00:07:32.680 --> 00:07:36.399
<v Speaker 1>He was upside down, pinned by the crushed steering column,

92
00:07:37.040 --> 00:07:42.160
<v Speaker 1>his breath coming in ragged shards. Sirens still echoed in

93
00:07:42.160 --> 00:07:48.360
<v Speaker 1>the distance, but faint, now farther away, or maybe he

94
00:07:48.560 --> 00:07:54.120
<v Speaker 1>was fading. He closed his eyes and swallowed a groan. Jenna,

95
00:07:54.680 --> 00:07:59.959
<v Speaker 1>I have to get to Jenna. Then crunch. Something out

96
00:08:00.040 --> 00:08:08.000
<v Speaker 1>outside was walking toward the wreck, not footsteps, thuds, tremors,

97
00:08:08.720 --> 00:08:13.879
<v Speaker 1>ground shaking dust, and held his breath. Fear turned his

98
00:08:14.000 --> 00:08:22.560
<v Speaker 1>blood ice cold. No, no, no. The sasquatch stood beside

99
00:08:22.600 --> 00:08:28.079
<v Speaker 1>the overturned vehicle, breathing slow and steady. He placed one

100
00:08:28.160 --> 00:08:32.840
<v Speaker 1>hand on the crushing passenger door. The metal crumpled under

101
00:08:32.879 --> 00:08:38.279
<v Speaker 1>his grip like foil. Moonlight washed over his frame, outlining

102
00:08:38.399 --> 00:08:42.879
<v Speaker 1>every ridge of muscle beneath his fur. He could smell

103
00:08:43.000 --> 00:08:47.320
<v Speaker 1>the man's blood, could hear the frantic beating of his heart,

104
00:08:48.200 --> 00:08:54.679
<v Speaker 1>could feel the fear radiating like heat and something else gunpowder.

105
00:08:55.799 --> 00:09:00.000
<v Speaker 1>He curled his lips into a soft snarl with one hand,

106
00:09:00.080 --> 00:09:03.879
<v Speaker 1>and he grabbed the chassis. With a grunt. He lifted

107
00:09:03.879 --> 00:09:08.639
<v Speaker 1>the vehicle and rolled it upright. The charger crashed onto

108
00:09:08.639 --> 00:09:15.240
<v Speaker 1>all four wheels, suspension snapping. Dustin gasped at that sudden jolt.

109
00:09:16.399 --> 00:09:21.279
<v Speaker 1>He lifted the gun. The sasquatch leaned down, his massive

110
00:09:21.360 --> 00:09:26.039
<v Speaker 1>face filling the driver's side window. His eyes were ancient,

111
00:09:26.519 --> 00:09:29.960
<v Speaker 1>burning with a wild intelligence that lived before the first

112
00:09:30.000 --> 00:09:34.919
<v Speaker 1>wheel ever touched dirt. Dustin raised the revolver with both hands,

113
00:09:35.840 --> 00:09:40.840
<v Speaker 1>back off. His voice cracked, then he fired. The bullet

114
00:09:40.960 --> 00:09:46.080
<v Speaker 1>ripped past the Sasquatch's head, tearing fur. The creature roared,

115
00:09:47.200 --> 00:09:51.600
<v Speaker 1>not like a bear, not like anything on earth, a

116
00:09:51.639 --> 00:09:58.000
<v Speaker 1>bone vibrating, primal roar that shook pine needles loose. The

117
00:09:58.039 --> 00:10:02.799
<v Speaker 1>sasquatch moved with speed no creature that size should have possessed.

118
00:10:03.919 --> 00:10:07.960
<v Speaker 1>One arm shot through the broken window, grabbed Dustin by

119
00:10:08.000 --> 00:10:12.519
<v Speaker 1>the collar, and yanked him through the driver's side glass,

120
00:10:12.559 --> 00:10:19.159
<v Speaker 1>exploding around them. Dustin screamed, the gun fell. He thrashed

121
00:10:19.240 --> 00:10:22.879
<v Speaker 1>desperately until he was nose to chest with a giant.

122
00:10:23.399 --> 00:10:28.879
<v Speaker 1>His legs dangled uselessly. The creature's one hand clamped Dustin's

123
00:10:28.879 --> 00:10:34.000
<v Speaker 1>wrist with a force that made bones creak. Please please,

124
00:10:34.120 --> 00:10:38.960
<v Speaker 1>Dustin gasped, I I didn't mean, but the sasquatch had

125
00:10:39.039 --> 00:10:42.759
<v Speaker 1>seen what Dustin had done. He smelled the fear on

126
00:10:42.879 --> 00:10:48.000
<v Speaker 1>that little girl. He remembered screams. He remembered the gun.

127
00:10:49.240 --> 00:10:54.159
<v Speaker 1>The creature leaned close, his breath warm and heavy, smelling

128
00:10:54.200 --> 00:10:58.639
<v Speaker 1>of wet moss and earth. Dustin pointed a shaky finger

129
00:10:58.799 --> 00:11:03.279
<v Speaker 1>toward the woods. My girl, friends, she's waiting. I just

130
00:11:03.320 --> 00:11:08.240
<v Speaker 1>gotta get to her. The sasquatch tilted his head. This

131
00:11:08.399 --> 00:11:14.399
<v Speaker 1>man hurt others. The forest didn't tolerate that. With a

132
00:11:14.440 --> 00:11:21.399
<v Speaker 1>sudden snap of motion, clean, swift, instinctual, the clawed hand

133
00:11:21.559 --> 00:11:25.840
<v Speaker 1>raked across Dustan's throat. Blood sprayed in a bright arc

134
00:11:25.919 --> 00:11:31.840
<v Speaker 1>across the pine needles. Dustin's eyes went wide. He collapsed

135
00:11:31.879 --> 00:11:38.120
<v Speaker 1>into the ferns, choking. The sasquatch stepped back, not victorious,

136
00:11:38.960 --> 00:11:46.120
<v Speaker 1>not enraged, just finished. Judgment delivered. The sirens grew closer.

137
00:11:47.000 --> 00:11:52.720
<v Speaker 1>The creature faded into the trees. Deputy Rhodes arrived first.

138
00:11:53.519 --> 00:11:58.600
<v Speaker 1>His cruiser breaked hard gravel, spitting under tires. He scanned

139
00:11:58.600 --> 00:12:04.399
<v Speaker 1>the wreck heart, futting. His spotlight cut across the crushed charger.

140
00:12:05.200 --> 00:12:10.039
<v Speaker 1>Steam and radiator fluid hissed from the engine block. Dispatch,

141
00:12:10.679 --> 00:12:14.440
<v Speaker 1>Rhodes shouted into the radio, I've located the vehicle. Send

142
00:12:14.519 --> 00:12:21.519
<v Speaker 1>EMTs driver is. He stopped mid sentence. Dust and marrow

143
00:12:21.720 --> 00:12:27.840
<v Speaker 1>lay several yards from the car, throat torn open. Impossible

144
00:12:29.000 --> 00:12:33.720
<v Speaker 1>that wound wasn't from the crash. Rhodes swept his flashlight

145
00:12:33.799 --> 00:12:38.360
<v Speaker 1>across the tree line. Something red and wet glistened on

146
00:12:38.399 --> 00:12:44.639
<v Speaker 1>a branch eight feet high, hair thick, rust colored. He

147
00:12:44.720 --> 00:12:49.200
<v Speaker 1>plucked it with a gloved hand, examined it and swallowed hard.

148
00:12:50.159 --> 00:12:54.480
<v Speaker 1>Not deer, not bare. He looked toward the dark woods

149
00:12:54.639 --> 00:13:00.080
<v Speaker 1>and felt it that watched sensation. Every hunter knew. If

150
00:13:00.240 --> 00:13:05.000
<v Speaker 1>you are, he whispered, you just saved a family. Two

151
00:13:05.000 --> 00:13:09.240
<v Speaker 1>weeks later, another deputy was responding to a call along

152
00:13:09.480 --> 00:13:14.080
<v Speaker 1>Route one seventy eight. A trucker had reported something large

153
00:13:14.159 --> 00:13:19.600
<v Speaker 1>crossing the road. Rhodes didn't need to check, he already knew.

154
00:13:20.480 --> 00:13:25.639
<v Speaker 1>Somewhere deep in the Ozarks, a giant figure paused on

155
00:13:25.720 --> 00:13:30.960
<v Speaker 1>a ridge, scanning the world below. Wind ruffled, hiss fur,

156
00:13:31.840 --> 00:13:36.600
<v Speaker 1>his chest rose and fell slowly. His voice, a deep,

157
00:13:36.720 --> 00:13:41.759
<v Speaker 1>rumbling bellow, rolled across the valley. He wasn't a monster,

158
00:13:42.360 --> 00:13:45.480
<v Speaker 1>he wasn't a myth. He was a guardian of the

159
00:13:45.559 --> 00:13:58.480
<v Speaker 1>wild and sometimes of justice. Thanks so much for listening.

160
00:13:58.519 --> 00:14:02.080
<v Speaker 1>I truly appreciate you being here. Before you head out,

161
00:14:02.120 --> 00:14:05.799
<v Speaker 1>don't forget to check out where Bigfoot roams. Great stories,

162
00:14:05.960 --> 00:14:09.399
<v Speaker 1>great atmosphere. You'll find them on YouTube and all the

163
00:14:09.480 --> 00:14:14.399
<v Speaker 1>usual platforms. And a quick update. My book project is

164
00:14:14.480 --> 00:14:19.000
<v Speaker 1>moving along. It's not entirely Bigfoot related, but it is

165
00:14:19.279 --> 00:14:23.919
<v Speaker 1>full of nostalgia, growing up stories and moments that I

166
00:14:23.960 --> 00:14:27.519
<v Speaker 1>think are timeless. I can't wait to share more with you,

167
00:14:27.559 --> 00:14:30.639
<v Speaker 1>so keep your eyes and ears peeled for an update

168
00:14:31.440 --> 00:14:35.639
<v Speaker 1>until next time, Stay curious, stay wild, and I'll see

169
00:14:35.679 --> 00:17:28.400
<v Speaker 1>you in the woods.