1 00:00:08,240 --> 00:00:13,000 Speaker 1: Okay. Sometimes we get little short, one paragraph stories, and 2 00:00:13,119 --> 00:00:15,199 I try to include all the stories I get in 3 00:00:15,279 --> 00:00:18,000 this podcast. So this is really short, but it has 4 00:00:18,079 --> 00:00:22,160 a lot of impact. Here's the story. I'm a hiker 5 00:00:22,199 --> 00:00:25,280 and a birdwatcher, and I'm a friend to animals. In fact, 6 00:00:25,440 --> 00:00:29,199 I usually like them more than people. I was hiking 7 00:00:29,280 --> 00:00:32,880 once in Washington State, near Darrington when I stopped to 8 00:00:32,920 --> 00:00:37,079 retime my boot drink some water. Off to my right, 9 00:00:37,159 --> 00:00:40,840 I heard something stomping through the brush. I turned to 10 00:00:40,880 --> 00:00:43,920 look at it, and I saw plainly that it was 11 00:00:43,960 --> 00:00:48,799 a bigfoot. It was unmistakable, over seven feet tall, with 12 00:00:48,960 --> 00:00:52,840 light brown, shaggy hair, and it smelled like a wet dog. 13 00:00:54,159 --> 00:00:56,000 I didn't know what else to do but put my 14 00:00:56,119 --> 00:00:59,399 hand up and wave at it, and to my surprise, 15 00:00:59,799 --> 00:01:02,920 it waved right back and then just kept on going 16 00:01:02,960 --> 00:01:05,959 where it had to be. I didn't feel scared for 17 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:09,040 a second. It was a brief encounter, but it was 18 00:01:09,079 --> 00:01:17,280 a friendly one. The writer titles this story the P. D. Booger. 19 00:01:18,079 --> 00:01:20,319 This is a true story that took place in a 20 00:01:20,359 --> 00:01:24,879 remote area of south central North Carolina along the Great 21 00:01:24,959 --> 00:01:29,159 Pade River Valley country. My father lived in a little 22 00:01:29,200 --> 00:01:32,439 house along one of the few lonely backroads that went 23 00:01:32,519 --> 00:01:36,519 into this rural section of our county. Although I didn't 24 00:01:36,560 --> 00:01:38,519 live with him, I spent a lot of time with 25 00:01:38,599 --> 00:01:42,079 him when he didn't have to work. I lived in town, 26 00:01:42,359 --> 00:01:45,719 fifteen miles away to the south with my grandparents at 27 00:01:45,719 --> 00:01:48,840 the time. I was a young boy around the age 28 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:51,799 of twelve when I first started visiting with Dad. In 29 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:56,480 the country. Between Dad's house in about three or four others. 30 00:01:56,560 --> 00:02:01,680 Clustered around him were an expanse of four forest hills, creeks, 31 00:02:01,719 --> 00:02:05,799 and valleys that ran along with the river. It's a 32 00:02:05,840 --> 00:02:10,280 beautiful area with its thickly covered rolling hills with plenty 33 00:02:10,319 --> 00:02:15,000 of wildlife. I made friends with two other boys about 34 00:02:15,039 --> 00:02:19,080 my age, and the three of us became inseparable. They 35 00:02:19,120 --> 00:02:22,319 were brothers, one named Steve and the other was Heath. 36 00:02:23,240 --> 00:02:25,800 Although they fought like cats and dogs with each other, 37 00:02:25,879 --> 00:02:29,759 they were always good friends to me. Now bear in 38 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:33,080 mind that this was around nineteen eighty and in those 39 00:02:33,159 --> 00:02:36,360 days we didn't even have cell phones and even video 40 00:02:36,479 --> 00:02:40,520 games at home. Arcades had just started showing up, and 41 00:02:40,599 --> 00:02:44,159 the nearest one was miles away. So we did what 42 00:02:44,240 --> 00:02:48,240 young country boys do. We kept ourselves entertained by chomping 43 00:02:48,280 --> 00:02:51,439 the hills and the forests. We did a lot of 44 00:02:51,439 --> 00:02:54,240 fishing in the creeks and ponds. We'd catch a lot 45 00:02:54,280 --> 00:02:56,840 of crappie and bass and take them home for Dad 46 00:02:56,840 --> 00:03:00,960 to cook up for a big fish fry. Tree stands 47 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:04,800 and forts back in the woods, we'd camp out too. 48 00:03:05,000 --> 00:03:07,960 We never lacked for something to do, and now, as 49 00:03:08,000 --> 00:03:12,879 a much older man, I treasure those memories. To the 50 00:03:12,919 --> 00:03:16,280 northwest of Dad's house, the woods were thicker and took 51 00:03:16,319 --> 00:03:20,280 on an almost spooky feel at times. The area was 52 00:03:20,360 --> 00:03:22,639 known to have been the home of the Creek Indians 53 00:03:22,680 --> 00:03:25,520 many years ago, and there were the remnants of some 54 00:03:25,560 --> 00:03:29,240 of their burial mounds and settlements said to be scattered 55 00:03:29,319 --> 00:03:32,840 along the river valley. There was one patch of woods 56 00:03:32,879 --> 00:03:36,439 that we never camped in, and an elderly older man 57 00:03:36,560 --> 00:03:39,879 always warned us to be careful if we ventured in there. 58 00:03:40,960 --> 00:03:43,680 He claimed that the woods were haunted and that folks 59 00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:47,000 had been seeing a wild man over the years in there. 60 00:03:47,960 --> 00:03:52,159 He called it the pd Booger. To us boys, that 61 00:03:52,319 --> 00:03:55,800 was like an imitation. Because we were always looking for 62 00:03:55,840 --> 00:03:59,599 something to do and weren't afraid of much. We had 63 00:03:59,639 --> 00:04:02,479 walked in trails and deer paths before in the area 64 00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:06,039 and heard some strange sounds like hoots and grunts and 65 00:04:06,360 --> 00:04:09,360 what they now call tree knocks, but we never really 66 00:04:09,400 --> 00:04:13,319 thought much of it. And then one evening, my friend 67 00:04:13,400 --> 00:04:16,240 from school rode with me and we stayed the night. 68 00:04:16,959 --> 00:04:19,120 We decided to walk up a path that we had 69 00:04:19,120 --> 00:04:23,160 never been before. A mile in we began to have 70 00:04:23,199 --> 00:04:26,639 a feeling that we were being watched. You always got 71 00:04:26,639 --> 00:04:30,199 that feeling up there. We rounded a bend in the 72 00:04:30,240 --> 00:04:33,680 path and caught sight of something big running upright down 73 00:04:33,680 --> 00:04:36,600 the hill ahead of us. We took off running as 74 00:04:36,639 --> 00:04:39,639 fast as possible, and we could hear this thing running 75 00:04:39,680 --> 00:04:43,680 down the hill in our direction. We made it back 76 00:04:43,680 --> 00:04:46,160 to within sight of the road and we stopped to listen. 77 00:04:46,839 --> 00:04:50,279 This thing also stopped, and we could hear it running away. 78 00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:54,519 We told Steve and Heath about it, and the next 79 00:04:54,639 --> 00:04:57,680 day me and my friend had to return home, but 80 00:04:57,720 --> 00:04:59,920 Steve went up to the area to check it out. 81 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:04,279 He found a series of footprints in an exposed clay 82 00:05:04,480 --> 00:05:09,360 patch that he later showed me. A few weeks later, 83 00:05:09,680 --> 00:05:12,839 my dad took Steve and myself fishing at that spot 84 00:05:12,959 --> 00:05:16,879 not too far away, but closer to the river. Dad 85 00:05:16,920 --> 00:05:19,199 told us not to venture too far from the boat 86 00:05:19,279 --> 00:05:22,920 landing where he had parked the truck. Steve knew of 87 00:05:22,959 --> 00:05:25,639 a specific spot up along the creek that he was 88 00:05:25,720 --> 00:05:28,759 told was good to fish, so we walked about an 89 00:05:28,759 --> 00:05:32,680 eighth of a mile up a footpath. We came up 90 00:05:32,759 --> 00:05:36,240 on the spot and noticed a foul smell in the air. 91 00:05:37,079 --> 00:05:41,399 Steve noticed footprints similar to what we had seen days earlier, 92 00:05:41,600 --> 00:05:45,399 only these were eighteen inches long and had three toes 93 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:49,279 on each foot. It looked like whatever left the Prince 94 00:05:49,399 --> 00:05:51,800 came down the hill and went into the water, and 95 00:05:51,839 --> 00:05:54,959 then climbed back out and walked north along the same 96 00:05:55,079 --> 00:05:58,000 path that we were on. I went down to the 97 00:05:58,079 --> 00:06:00,800 creek's edge to get a closer look, and I fell in. 98 00:06:01,600 --> 00:06:04,319 Steve said, dang boy, your daddy's going to be mad 99 00:06:04,319 --> 00:06:07,639 at you. After he got through laughing, he grabbed a 100 00:06:07,680 --> 00:06:10,079 stick and he helped me pull myself up the bank. 101 00:06:11,079 --> 00:06:14,000 The clay was like walking on butter, and you could 102 00:06:14,040 --> 00:06:18,160 barely stand up on it. I brushed myself off, and 103 00:06:18,199 --> 00:06:21,279 I talked Steve into following those tracks to see if 104 00:06:21,319 --> 00:06:24,439 we could find it. So off we headed north along 105 00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:28,480 the creek, Wherever the creature stepped in the clay, it 106 00:06:28,600 --> 00:06:31,920 left a distinct track, and there were limbs and brush 107 00:06:32,040 --> 00:06:35,680 pulled back well above our heads, which indicated to us 108 00:06:35,720 --> 00:06:39,680 that this thing was greater than six feet tall. We 109 00:06:39,759 --> 00:06:44,279 walked another four hundred yards until Steve stopped and said, listen, 110 00:06:44,639 --> 00:06:49,199 do you hear anything? I said no, He said, that's 111 00:06:49,279 --> 00:06:53,519 my point. It's dead quiet. It's kind of eerie. The 112 00:06:53,560 --> 00:06:57,519 four sounds around us all went silent. As we stood there, 113 00:06:57,639 --> 00:07:00,920 we began to hear heavy breathing and crunch sounds of 114 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:06,920 leaves that foul odor was back. Also, something let out 115 00:07:06,959 --> 00:07:10,399 a growl that rattled our bones. That it was so close, 116 00:07:11,199 --> 00:07:14,160 we did what anyone would do. We ran like hell. 117 00:07:15,319 --> 00:07:17,720 Steve was so scared that he dropped his new tackle 118 00:07:17,759 --> 00:07:20,319 box with a fifty dollars worth of tackle in it. 119 00:07:20,879 --> 00:07:23,120 He was scared to stop, and we just left it. 120 00:07:24,319 --> 00:07:26,160 By the time we made it back to the road, 121 00:07:26,480 --> 00:07:29,120 it was almost dark and we heard Dad calling our 122 00:07:29,240 --> 00:07:32,160 names from the other side of the bridge. He was 123 00:07:32,319 --> 00:07:35,199 upset and worried, but he was relieved to see us. 124 00:07:36,360 --> 00:07:38,839 After a good lecture from Dad, we told him what 125 00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:42,519 had happened. He didn't believe us we could tell that, 126 00:07:42,879 --> 00:07:46,959 but he asked Steve where his tackle box was. Steve 127 00:07:47,040 --> 00:07:50,319 told him that it was back up the trail. Dad, 128 00:07:50,560 --> 00:07:53,240 not really being scared of much and believing that there 129 00:07:53,279 --> 00:07:56,920 was a rational explanation for all of this, grabbed his 130 00:07:57,079 --> 00:08:00,240 flashlight from the glovebox and said, well, come, come on, 131 00:08:00,360 --> 00:08:04,279 let's go get it. Dad had given Steve some of 132 00:08:04,319 --> 00:08:07,480 the tackle and knew that Steve's folks would be upset 133 00:08:07,519 --> 00:08:10,079 if he lost it, so after a little bit of 134 00:08:10,120 --> 00:08:13,319 convincing us to go with him, we reluctantly followed Dad 135 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:17,600 back up the trail. As we approached the fishing spot, 136 00:08:17,639 --> 00:08:21,399 we showed Dad the footprints. He agreed that they were odd, 137 00:08:21,519 --> 00:08:25,759 but that didn't amuse him, so we pushed on once again. 138 00:08:25,800 --> 00:08:29,519 The forest sounds ceased, and I could tell that Dad 139 00:08:29,560 --> 00:08:34,279 was getting an uneasy feeling. Then we all smelled that odor. 140 00:08:35,279 --> 00:08:38,879 We soon came upon the tackle box and hitting the ground, 141 00:08:39,200 --> 00:08:43,120 it had popped open, spilling much of the contents. Steve 142 00:08:43,200 --> 00:08:45,480 and I squatted down to pick up the stuff and 143 00:08:45,519 --> 00:08:47,639 put it back in the box while Dad held the 144 00:08:47,679 --> 00:08:52,000 flashlight on it. Then again, a low growl came from 145 00:08:52,039 --> 00:08:55,279 the trees off to our right, it was real close 146 00:08:55,360 --> 00:08:58,240 this time. For the first time in my life, I 147 00:08:58,279 --> 00:09:02,639 saw fear in my dad's He said, hurry up, boys, 148 00:09:02,720 --> 00:09:04,600 grab what you can and let's get out of here. 149 00:09:05,279 --> 00:09:07,759 So we scrambled to get all the lures and lead 150 00:09:07,840 --> 00:09:11,320 sinkers and corks and hooks, etc. Along with the leaves 151 00:09:11,320 --> 00:09:14,080 and dirt Scooped up as much as possible, and threw 152 00:09:14,120 --> 00:09:16,840 it in the box and grabbed it and walked very 153 00:09:16,840 --> 00:09:20,720 fast away. Dad told us not to run, because he 154 00:09:20,759 --> 00:09:23,399 couldn't keep up with us if we did, and he 155 00:09:23,440 --> 00:09:26,240 didn't want that thing to give chase, so he walked 156 00:09:26,240 --> 00:09:30,080 behind us, keeping ourn eye out for the creature. By 157 00:09:30,120 --> 00:09:32,879 the time we reached the truck, we heard the creature 158 00:09:33,080 --> 00:09:37,159 screaming at us from the other side of the creek. Well, 159 00:09:37,200 --> 00:09:39,679 my father's almost eighty now, and he told me that 160 00:09:39,799 --> 00:09:42,519 he went back there without us one day many years 161 00:09:42,519 --> 00:09:46,200 ago and had his own experience with this same creature. 162 00:09:47,080 --> 00:09:49,919 Although he didn't see it, it watched him from the 163 00:09:50,000 --> 00:09:54,759 hill above and tossed rocks into the water near him. Now, 164 00:09:54,759 --> 00:09:57,759 a grown man in my fifties, I went back there 165 00:09:57,879 --> 00:10:00,399 myself one night, and I parked the car and I 166 00:10:00,440 --> 00:10:03,039 sat out on the boat ramp and I just listened. 167 00:10:04,240 --> 00:10:06,879 I was the only one out there that cool fall night. 168 00:10:07,639 --> 00:10:09,759 I thought I heard a faint howl way up in 169 00:10:09,799 --> 00:10:12,799 the creek, so I got up, found a large stick, 170 00:10:12,840 --> 00:10:16,200 and started hitting the side of a fence post. It 171 00:10:16,320 --> 00:10:20,240 wasn't long before I got three distinct knocks from reply 172 00:10:20,480 --> 00:10:24,080 way off in the distance. Sat there for another hour 173 00:10:24,360 --> 00:10:27,519 and I heard nothing. And in the following years I've 174 00:10:27,559 --> 00:10:31,399 heard tales from hunters and fishermen talking about hearing this 175 00:10:31,480 --> 00:10:36,039 creature and its lonely cry in the night. One fellow 176 00:10:36,120 --> 00:10:38,679 that I heard even said he saw it on the 177 00:10:38,759 --> 00:10:41,840 river bank a few miles away while he drifted on 178 00:10:41,879 --> 00:10:47,120 the water at night fishing. Stephen Heath moved on. I 179 00:10:47,159 --> 00:10:51,559 don't know where they are today. Dad's old home places gone. 180 00:10:51,840 --> 00:10:55,360 It burned down years ago after he moved back into town. 181 00:10:56,279 --> 00:10:58,759 Just a patch of holly bushes where the old house 182 00:10:58,879 --> 00:11:03,480 used to sit. Or Do I miss those days? We 183 00:11:03,600 --> 00:11:06,600 heard and saw a lot of strange things in those hills. 184 00:11:06,600 --> 00:11:09,480 And I could go on and on about my experiences. 185 00:11:10,120 --> 00:11:12,679 If you ever find yourself along the back roads of 186 00:11:12,759 --> 00:11:16,759 pe d River Hill country, along about dark, keeping eye 187 00:11:16,759 --> 00:11:20,720 out for deer and bobcats and turkey and other wild animals, 188 00:11:21,440 --> 00:11:24,639 and who knows, you might just catch sight of the 189 00:11:24,720 --> 00:11:30,720 PD booger. I've been hunting on my own since I 190 00:11:30,759 --> 00:11:34,960 was twelve years old. Today I'm forty three, and after 191 00:11:35,120 --> 00:11:39,200 years of working as a large animal vettec there are 192 00:11:39,320 --> 00:11:42,799 mornings when I feel like a hard and abused ninety 193 00:11:42,879 --> 00:11:46,799 year old. For the last five years, I've hunted the 194 00:11:46,840 --> 00:11:51,159 same spot on our land in Breckinridge, Texas. It's a 195 00:11:51,159 --> 00:11:55,080 good place to escape the world and work. Their two 196 00:11:55,120 --> 00:11:59,080 main trails, and at their intersection stands a large oak tree, 197 00:11:59,279 --> 00:12:03,159 and that's where I I've had game that I passed 198 00:12:03,200 --> 00:12:06,200 on stand within feet of me and never know I 199 00:12:06,320 --> 00:12:10,360 was there, And boy was that fun watching a young 200 00:12:10,399 --> 00:12:13,240 doe and her fawn jumping and spinning like a bucking 201 00:12:13,320 --> 00:12:17,600 bull on the frosty ground. Or the ridiculously fat squirrel 202 00:12:17,639 --> 00:12:20,639 who came by and got within inches and stared at 203 00:12:20,679 --> 00:12:24,080 me for several minutes before barking once and waddling off. 204 00:12:25,279 --> 00:12:28,080 I like to get to my spot well before legal light. 205 00:12:28,919 --> 00:12:31,799 My walk to the tree is only about three hundred yards, 206 00:12:31,840 --> 00:12:34,039 but it takes me quite a while to get there 207 00:12:34,080 --> 00:12:36,440 because I go slow because I don't want to make 208 00:12:36,480 --> 00:12:39,159 any noise and spook any game that might be bedded 209 00:12:39,240 --> 00:12:43,759 down close by. Now, this first story happened not long 210 00:12:43,840 --> 00:12:47,200 after I got to my spot, climbed into the tree, 211 00:12:47,480 --> 00:12:50,639 and I settled in. I took off my night vision 212 00:12:50,679 --> 00:12:54,399 goggles and I hung them from a branch. Dawn was 213 00:12:54,440 --> 00:12:56,679 still an hour and a half off, so I laid 214 00:12:56,720 --> 00:13:00,000 back and I got comfortable. The insects and the night 215 00:13:00,320 --> 00:13:03,919 birds weren't all that chatty yet. I stayed still and 216 00:13:03,960 --> 00:13:07,799 I listened to the quiet, and then came a tapping sound. 217 00:13:08,559 --> 00:13:11,080 Something was hitting the rough bark of an oak tree 218 00:13:11,120 --> 00:13:14,799 close by. I moved my eyes left and right, keeping 219 00:13:14,840 --> 00:13:18,039 my head still. I didn't see anything, so I let 220 00:13:18,080 --> 00:13:22,480 it go. Then it happened again, this time on another tree, 221 00:13:22,519 --> 00:13:26,799 and still it was too close. I was getting ready 222 00:13:26,840 --> 00:13:29,799 to grab my nods to see what the hell was 223 00:13:29,840 --> 00:13:33,320 causing that damn tapping sound. When I saw it. It 224 00:13:33,440 --> 00:13:37,559 landed on a broken branch, perfectly silhouetted against the starry sky. 225 00:13:38,519 --> 00:13:42,279 It was a small owl, about eight inches tall. I 226 00:13:42,360 --> 00:13:46,440 nearly laughed out loud. He had been going on from 227 00:13:46,480 --> 00:13:48,559 spot to spot trying to get a look at me. 228 00:13:49,240 --> 00:13:51,720 He was only four feet away. He was bobbing his 229 00:13:51,799 --> 00:13:55,039 head up and down. I knew owls made little to 230 00:13:55,120 --> 00:13:57,679 no noise when they flew, but this little guy was 231 00:13:57,759 --> 00:14:01,559 flying and landing around within fi of me for twenty minutes. 232 00:14:02,279 --> 00:14:05,679 It was too cool. A few weeks later, I was 233 00:14:05,799 --> 00:14:09,240 enjoying a beautiful afternoon sitting in a tree. There was 234 00:14:09,360 --> 00:14:11,600 little wind, and there was lots of sun, and the 235 00:14:11,639 --> 00:14:15,240 temperature was in the forties. Out of the corner of 236 00:14:15,240 --> 00:14:18,399 my eye caught movement. It was coming toward me from 237 00:14:18,440 --> 00:14:21,440 the east. I turned my head slowly and looked at 238 00:14:21,440 --> 00:14:24,080 what I thought was the biggest coyote I'd ever seen 239 00:14:24,159 --> 00:14:28,840 in my life. Sweet buttery, Jesus, I realized that is 240 00:14:28,960 --> 00:14:33,120 not a coyote. It was twenty five yards away when 241 00:14:33,120 --> 00:14:36,120 it froze and sniffed the air, and it turned away 242 00:14:36,440 --> 00:14:39,639 northward at a trot, all the while looking for whatever 243 00:14:39,759 --> 00:14:43,919 spook did. It was a wolf. Now that's a big deal, 244 00:14:44,000 --> 00:14:47,919 because wolves have been extinct in Texas for fifty years. 245 00:14:48,519 --> 00:14:50,919 I'm sure what I saw that day was a Mexican 246 00:14:51,159 --> 00:14:56,240 red wolf, a fairly contented species, with some scientists arguing 247 00:14:56,399 --> 00:15:00,960 it's a separate species entirely goes on to say thanks 248 00:15:01,039 --> 00:15:04,200 for your channel, please keep up your off topic rants 249 00:15:04,720 --> 00:15:10,159 and bad pronunciation. We're Southern rednecks and we said the 250 00:15:10,200 --> 00:15:12,399 way we want to say it. You damn right about 251 00:15:12,399 --> 00:15:17,559 that if most people won't that We're not scared to 252 00:15:17,600 --> 00:15:21,519 mispronounce a word. So I'm not unique among people in 253 00:15:21,559 --> 00:15:24,120 my area. But this is a cool story, and it 254 00:15:24,200 --> 00:15:26,840 sounds like a story that I read a couple of 255 00:15:26,879 --> 00:15:29,720 years ago about a guy who and this could be 256 00:15:29,799 --> 00:15:33,200 the same story, and that maybe maybe I didn't file 257 00:15:33,279 --> 00:15:36,639 it right, but any at any rate, it was still 258 00:15:37,039 --> 00:15:41,919 worth reading again because I do a lot of reading 259 00:15:42,000 --> 00:15:46,240 on coyotes. For some reason, I'm fascinated with that animal. 260 00:15:46,240 --> 00:15:48,240 And I'm not going to bore you with all the 261 00:15:48,240 --> 00:15:51,080 things that I've learned about coyotes, but I have read 262 00:15:52,080 --> 00:15:57,519 us by some really reputable biologists that the coyotes are 263 00:15:57,559 --> 00:16:02,279 breeding with you know, kydies will breed with domestic dogs. 264 00:16:02,440 --> 00:16:06,799 And I can't remember exactly how the article went, but 265 00:16:06,919 --> 00:16:11,080 you know, the red wolf was prominent even where I live, 266 00:16:11,279 --> 00:16:15,879 all the way south in Louisiana and Texas and South Alabama, 267 00:16:15,960 --> 00:16:18,879 South Mississippi and even northern Florida, and I think on 268 00:16:19,000 --> 00:16:22,960 down the Peninsula of Florida, and it's pretty much considered 269 00:16:23,039 --> 00:16:27,960 extinct now, but there's a gene somewhere in the coyote 270 00:16:28,360 --> 00:16:32,000 line that keeps coming back. It seems like that was 271 00:16:32,039 --> 00:16:36,360 the gist of the article. If anybody knows anything about that, 272 00:16:36,720 --> 00:16:40,080 make a comment about it. But they're saying that the 273 00:16:40,120 --> 00:16:43,600 red wolf could come back in a different form, and 274 00:16:43,600 --> 00:16:46,639 wouldn't that be cool? But I do not doubt for 275 00:16:46,720 --> 00:16:50,480 a minute this man saw a red wolf in Texas. 276 00:16:50,960 --> 00:16:53,480 And when I read that article, it made me think 277 00:16:53,519 --> 00:16:56,559 of the story. That's how I know. I read it 278 00:16:56,799 --> 00:16:59,039 a couple of years ago on this channel. Anyway, I'm 279 00:16:59,120 --> 00:17:02,440 just running off the somebody commented on my last video. 280 00:17:02,600 --> 00:17:05,200 I think he was from He's either from the UK 281 00:17:05,400 --> 00:17:08,759 or Australia because he called me Mike. But he's like, dude, 282 00:17:08,839 --> 00:17:12,680 quit running your mouth between stories. Just get to the story. 283 00:17:12,880 --> 00:17:16,079 And I tend to agree with that. I don't like 284 00:17:16,119 --> 00:17:20,119 to watch videos where people just blaber blaber blabber yack 285 00:17:20,240 --> 00:17:24,920 yack yack, But sometimes something just hits me and I 286 00:17:25,000 --> 00:17:28,599 just ramble on about it. So if you'll excuse that 287 00:17:28,720 --> 00:17:30,799 every once in a while and just give me some 288 00:17:30,880 --> 00:17:35,799 grace on that because sometimes these stories make me remember 289 00:17:35,920 --> 00:17:38,079 things and I just kind of, I don't know, I 290 00:17:38,079 --> 00:17:41,799 feel like telling you about it. So there's that. I 291 00:17:41,799 --> 00:17:43,759 appreciate you listening to the story, and thank you to 292 00:17:43,799 --> 00:17:46,039 the writer for sending it to me. It was really good. 293 00:17:46,519 --> 00:17:52,359 I love the story. Appreciate it. I had an encounter 294 00:17:52,519 --> 00:17:56,720 with La Rona when I was eight. It was just 295 00:17:56,799 --> 00:17:59,759 after my mother passed away. My cousins and I were 296 00:17:59,759 --> 00:18:02,880 playing behind my uncle's home, where a creek ran through 297 00:18:02,880 --> 00:18:06,960 the village. The creek was surrounded by willowy trees, though 298 00:18:06,960 --> 00:18:11,039 they were all dead despite the water. We were jumping 299 00:18:11,079 --> 00:18:14,200 around the creek and playing tag when a far away, 300 00:18:14,400 --> 00:18:19,720 ghoulish wailing cry carried down the water. Up until then 301 00:18:19,880 --> 00:18:22,400 we could hear all the fauna in the forest, But 302 00:18:22,839 --> 00:18:26,319 when the howl rose in pitch, not another sound could 303 00:18:26,359 --> 00:18:30,680 be heard. The atmosphere went dead, silent, and a chill 304 00:18:30,759 --> 00:18:34,240 crept into the warmth of the day, and we were frozen. 305 00:18:35,640 --> 00:18:39,119 My cousin's head slowly looked down the creek. Whatever it 306 00:18:39,279 --> 00:18:43,039 was they had seen it before. I felt my skin 307 00:18:43,200 --> 00:18:49,039 go cold, and I followed their gaze. Sweeping slowly toward us. 308 00:18:49,200 --> 00:18:53,559 Over the water was a black cowl covered figure, growing 309 00:18:53,640 --> 00:18:59,279 in size as it approached. My cousins started shouting run 310 00:18:59,359 --> 00:19:02,519 before she gave but you run, They pleaded, but I 311 00:19:02,599 --> 00:19:06,039 didn't move. I thought they were tricking me until it 312 00:19:06,119 --> 00:19:11,000 got closer. It was floating above the water, a skeleton 313 00:19:11,319 --> 00:19:16,240 covered in a wraith like black cowl, whipping in the breeze. 314 00:19:16,319 --> 00:19:20,240 It had moved seventy five yards toward us in mere seconds. 315 00:19:20,680 --> 00:19:22,599 I didn't know a lot, but I knew enough that 316 00:19:22,720 --> 00:19:26,279 no human could travel that distance that fast. And then 317 00:19:26,319 --> 00:19:30,200 it got closer. I wanted to run, but I couldn't. 318 00:19:30,440 --> 00:19:33,720 It was like I'd been placed in ice. My body 319 00:19:33,799 --> 00:19:37,400 was frozen still, except for the eyes fixed on this 320 00:19:37,559 --> 00:19:42,039 horrible creature inching closer. It was a skeleton of a woman, 321 00:19:42,400 --> 00:19:46,880 her bony hand raised toward me, and then her crying intensified. 322 00:19:47,559 --> 00:19:50,960 She was screeching and wailing. The unearthly sound of it 323 00:19:51,079 --> 00:19:54,960 pierced my skull. I could hear my cousins. They were 324 00:19:55,000 --> 00:19:59,079 shrieking just before the woman touched me. My cousin's cries 325 00:19:59,160 --> 00:20:02,359 for help broke me out of the hypnotic state, and 326 00:20:02,400 --> 00:20:05,440 then I could move, and we ran for our lives, 327 00:20:05,480 --> 00:20:08,400 away from the creek toward the hut, screaming and crying 328 00:20:08,440 --> 00:20:12,720 and asking anyone for help. The adults demanded to know 329 00:20:12,839 --> 00:20:16,039 what we were running from. Creek wasn't that far from 330 00:20:16,039 --> 00:20:19,599 the house, but they hadn't heard a thing. My cousins 331 00:20:19,599 --> 00:20:23,079 did all the talking because I couldn't sleep. As soon 332 00:20:23,119 --> 00:20:26,240 as they spat out the words La Lorona, the adults 333 00:20:26,319 --> 00:20:29,880 understood what had happened. We weren't allowed to go to 334 00:20:29,960 --> 00:20:34,160 the water after that. That was the first time and 335 00:20:34,240 --> 00:20:37,680 the last time I saw that unholy demon, and I 336 00:20:37,720 --> 00:20:41,559 have never forgotten it. My cousins later explained to me 337 00:20:41,720 --> 00:20:44,519 all the other creatures their parents had warned them against. 338 00:20:45,039 --> 00:20:49,200 Some of the stories made my skin crawl. What stayed 339 00:20:49,240 --> 00:20:52,480 with me was the idea of all the unknown entities 340 00:20:52,640 --> 00:20:56,440 roaming the earth. I never lie or downplace stories of 341 00:20:56,559 --> 00:21:00,079 ghosts or creatures that go bump in the night. I 342 00:21:00,119 --> 00:21:08,880 studied the Bible for explanations, those that no man can give. Okay, 343 00:21:08,880 --> 00:21:13,799 here's a story from this is kind of funny because Rebecca, 344 00:21:14,000 --> 00:21:16,759 she gives me notes at the beginning of these emails, 345 00:21:16,759 --> 00:21:19,920 because she's read them, and she's organized them and got 346 00:21:19,960 --> 00:21:23,279 them ready for me to read. And she says that 347 00:21:23,400 --> 00:21:27,519 this man actually asks if I would please mention his name. 348 00:21:28,880 --> 00:21:32,680 So this is an email from John in Pittsburgh. Anyway, 349 00:21:32,720 --> 00:21:36,759 onto the story. I was working as a security guard 350 00:21:36,799 --> 00:21:40,480 at a small children's hospital here in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, back 351 00:21:40,519 --> 00:21:45,079 in twenty twelve. I hadn't had any family for some time, 352 00:21:45,240 --> 00:21:48,880 so whenever a holiday came around, I volunteered to work 353 00:21:49,039 --> 00:21:52,720 so others could spend time with their loved ones. That's 354 00:21:52,759 --> 00:21:56,119 why I ended up doing a double shift from three 355 00:21:56,279 --> 00:21:59,720 in the afternoon to seven am the next morning. That 356 00:21:59,799 --> 00:22:04,480 was from Christmas Eve to Christmas Day. The hospital was 357 00:22:04,519 --> 00:22:08,319 only three stories high. On the first floor were a 358 00:22:08,400 --> 00:22:12,880 special needs daycare center, the security desk where all visitors 359 00:22:12,920 --> 00:22:16,480 had to sign in, and the elevator to the upper floors. 360 00:22:17,920 --> 00:22:21,680 The second floor had eight bedrooms, a communal kitchen and 361 00:22:21,720 --> 00:22:24,319 a living room for the parents of the six children 362 00:22:24,400 --> 00:22:27,640 to live in while their kids were being treated, and 363 00:22:27,720 --> 00:22:31,240 a small room halfway down the hallway between the elevator 364 00:22:31,319 --> 00:22:36,160 and the bedrooms called the boutique. This room contained all 365 00:22:36,319 --> 00:22:40,680 sorts of donated personal items for families and other children 366 00:22:40,799 --> 00:22:45,599 of the patients. On the third floor were the actual 367 00:22:45,720 --> 00:22:51,400 hospital facilities, mostly for premature infants and small children, and 368 00:22:51,440 --> 00:22:53,920 when I started my shift, I went around and I 369 00:22:54,000 --> 00:22:56,920 checked the whole building, from the attic where the heating 370 00:22:57,039 --> 00:22:59,960 unit was, to the basement where the plumbing and other 371 00:23:00,200 --> 00:23:04,240 machinery were. After doing this, I would take up a 372 00:23:04,279 --> 00:23:08,839 station by the second floor elevator. Another guard was stationed 373 00:23:08,920 --> 00:23:12,119 at the security desk in the lobby, and once an 374 00:23:12,160 --> 00:23:14,680 hour I would get up and do a walk through 375 00:23:14,839 --> 00:23:17,759 of the three floors so I had a good sense 376 00:23:17,799 --> 00:23:19,920 of who was in the building and where they were. 377 00:23:21,440 --> 00:23:24,279 This was a very busy day with families coming in 378 00:23:24,359 --> 00:23:28,680 and out to visit the children. Whenever visitors arrived, the 379 00:23:28,759 --> 00:23:31,559 other guard would radio me to escort them to where 380 00:23:31,599 --> 00:23:35,880 they wanted to go. After more than seven hours, most 381 00:23:35,880 --> 00:23:38,319 of the visitors had left the building and most of 382 00:23:38,319 --> 00:23:42,279 the families who lived there had returned. I had escorted 383 00:23:42,319 --> 00:23:45,240 them to the living area and bedrooms and as I 384 00:23:45,319 --> 00:23:49,759 had to unlock the doors for them. At eleven PM, 385 00:23:49,839 --> 00:23:54,240 a different guard, Dorothy, started working, and she preferred sitting 386 00:23:54,240 --> 00:23:57,759 in the lobby overdoing rounds, and I went back to 387 00:23:57,839 --> 00:24:02,319 the second floor hallway. At around ten minutes before midnight, 388 00:24:02,400 --> 00:24:05,359 Dorothy radioed me that the last couple staying in the 389 00:24:05,359 --> 00:24:08,720 hospital had returned and needed me to escort them to 390 00:24:08,839 --> 00:24:12,200 their room and unlock the door. Well. I greeted them 391 00:24:12,240 --> 00:24:15,440 at the second floor elevator and we started walking down 392 00:24:15,480 --> 00:24:19,359 the hallway it was maybe sixty feet long, and passed 393 00:24:19,359 --> 00:24:23,440 the boutique to their room. As we passed the boutique, 394 00:24:23,480 --> 00:24:27,640 I could see through the narrow window that someone was inside. 395 00:24:27,799 --> 00:24:30,799 I hurried down the hallway and quickly unlocked the door 396 00:24:30,839 --> 00:24:33,319 for the couple, and then turned and headed up the 397 00:24:33,319 --> 00:24:36,559 hall to see who was in there. I was mad 398 00:24:36,599 --> 00:24:39,640 as hell. It was Christmas Eve and here were people 399 00:24:39,799 --> 00:24:44,759 stealing from a charity, or at least that's what I thought. Now. 400 00:24:44,799 --> 00:24:47,480 I'm a big goon of a guy. I'm over six 401 00:24:47,519 --> 00:24:49,920 feet tall, and I have plenty of muscle, and I 402 00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:53,319 have quite a temper too. The only thing I could 403 00:24:53,319 --> 00:24:55,960 think of was that when I was off doing rounds, 404 00:24:55,960 --> 00:24:59,279 some people must have sneaked down the backstairs and we're 405 00:24:59,319 --> 00:25:03,359 now helping them to the room full of toys. I 406 00:25:03,440 --> 00:25:07,359 clearly saw a little girl, maybe five years old, and 407 00:25:07,440 --> 00:25:10,720 she was kneeling down behind the window, and there had 408 00:25:10,799 --> 00:25:14,200 to be other people with her, I thought. I reached 409 00:25:14,240 --> 00:25:16,839 out and grabbed the door handle, expecting it to fly 410 00:25:16,960 --> 00:25:19,559 open so I could catch the low life thieves in 411 00:25:19,599 --> 00:25:23,279 the act, and I damn near broke my wrist. The 412 00:25:23,319 --> 00:25:26,720 door was locked. That it's no problem. I used key 413 00:25:26,759 --> 00:25:29,839 and I went in. But there was nothing to see. 414 00:25:29,960 --> 00:25:33,279 There was no one to catch. This was a small room, 415 00:25:33,319 --> 00:25:36,240 maybe twelve by twenty, with only one entrance and a 416 00:25:36,279 --> 00:25:40,559 few racks and shelves for clothes and toys. This couldn't 417 00:25:40,599 --> 00:25:45,279 be possible. I was puzzled. Saw a radio down to Dorothy, 418 00:25:45,319 --> 00:25:47,839 and I asked her if anyone had just come past her. 419 00:25:48,519 --> 00:25:51,720 She said no, no one had come through. I knew 420 00:25:51,720 --> 00:25:54,279 I had just seen a little white girl, maybe five 421 00:25:54,359 --> 00:25:57,799 years old. She was wearing a red and white checkered 422 00:25:57,880 --> 00:26:01,160 cap with ear flaps tied down with the bow, and 423 00:26:01,240 --> 00:26:05,119 a matching jacket. She was kneeling, but I could see 424 00:26:05,160 --> 00:26:08,440 that she was wearing a red skirt with white leggings 425 00:26:08,480 --> 00:26:12,480 and black leather Mary Janees. I was less than two 426 00:26:12,480 --> 00:26:14,799 feet away from her when I passed the window, and 427 00:26:14,880 --> 00:26:18,359 I know what I saw, So back inside I went. 428 00:26:19,119 --> 00:26:22,559 There was no one inside at all. I looked into 429 00:26:22,599 --> 00:26:25,039 the hall to see if somehow a reflection from the 430 00:26:25,079 --> 00:26:27,920 windows there could have played a trick on me. That 431 00:26:28,079 --> 00:26:32,319 wasn't the case. There had to be an explanation, So 432 00:26:32,400 --> 00:26:35,240 I went back in and stood in the exact spot 433 00:26:35,279 --> 00:26:39,079 where the little girl was. Well, that's when things got 434 00:26:39,119 --> 00:26:42,839 really weird. As I stood there, a feeling of absolute 435 00:26:42,960 --> 00:26:46,319 sadness and despair came over me. But it wasn't my 436 00:26:46,400 --> 00:26:50,160 emotions I was experiencing. It was as if I were 437 00:26:50,240 --> 00:26:55,200 feeling the little girl's emotions. Tears began running down my 438 00:26:55,400 --> 00:26:59,440 face uncontrollably, and then when I stepped back from where 439 00:26:59,440 --> 00:27:03,799 she was kneel, feeling the emotions vanished. I was feeling 440 00:27:03,839 --> 00:27:08,839 completely wrecked by now, mentally and physically, drained of all energy. 441 00:27:10,200 --> 00:27:13,279 And then it hit me. I looked at my watch 442 00:27:13,279 --> 00:27:16,319 and I saw that it was after midnight on Christmas Day, 443 00:27:17,079 --> 00:27:19,799 and right where the little girl was kneeling, hanging up 444 00:27:19,799 --> 00:27:23,119 on the wall where some beautiful, smiling Barbie dolls, the 445 00:27:23,200 --> 00:27:26,359 kind that any little girl would love in treasure, and 446 00:27:26,440 --> 00:27:30,079 the little girl saw I was looking at them. Back 447 00:27:30,160 --> 00:27:35,000 down came the tears. This time the emotions were all mine. 448 00:27:35,119 --> 00:27:37,440 All I could think of was how sad it was 449 00:27:37,480 --> 00:27:40,519 that this child wanted to hold and play with those dolls. 450 00:27:40,559 --> 00:27:44,319 But goodn't here. She is all alone on Christmas, and 451 00:27:44,440 --> 00:27:47,079 like any other little girl, she just wanted a doll 452 00:27:47,160 --> 00:27:52,880 to love on. I never believed in ghosts or supernatural entities, 453 00:27:52,920 --> 00:27:56,720 but right then everything I believed had gone out the window. 454 00:27:57,720 --> 00:28:00,400 This hit me hard, kind of like the Twilight Zone 455 00:28:00,480 --> 00:28:04,000 meet Santa Claus. I left the room and went down 456 00:28:04,039 --> 00:28:08,160 to the first floor, and fortunately nobody was around except Dorothy. 457 00:28:09,119 --> 00:28:11,640 I guess she could see that something was wrong with me, 458 00:28:11,799 --> 00:28:14,480 and since I liked her a lot, I told her 459 00:28:14,480 --> 00:28:17,880 what happened. Also told her that there was no way 460 00:28:17,960 --> 00:28:21,640 I was going back up there until after dawn. I 461 00:28:21,680 --> 00:28:24,079 took a few days off after that, and when I 462 00:28:24,160 --> 00:28:26,720 returned to work, I spoke to another guard about what 463 00:28:26,799 --> 00:28:30,440 I had experienced. His name was Wilburn. He was in 464 00:28:30,480 --> 00:28:33,640 his eighties, and he was a mean and miserable old 465 00:28:33,720 --> 00:28:37,200 man that no other guards wanted to work with. But 466 00:28:37,319 --> 00:28:40,960 Hen and I got along just fine. Wilbur liked to 467 00:28:41,000 --> 00:28:44,279 do what I had been doing for Christmas evenight, sat 468 00:28:44,279 --> 00:28:48,599 by the second floor elevator and guard the hallway. I 469 00:28:48,599 --> 00:28:52,400 approached him hesitantly and I told him my story. I 470 00:28:52,440 --> 00:28:54,640 didn't want him to think that I was a nut. 471 00:28:55,680 --> 00:28:58,680 I asked him if he had ever seen anything unusual 472 00:28:58,839 --> 00:29:04,119 on the second floor, and his answer floored me. He said, well, 473 00:29:04,160 --> 00:29:07,400 nothing except those two little dead girls that hang around 474 00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:11,759 by the boutique. I could barely catch my breath. I 475 00:29:11,799 --> 00:29:13,880 told him I'd only seen one of them, and he 476 00:29:13,920 --> 00:29:16,759 told me that I should have looked around inside some more, 477 00:29:16,839 --> 00:29:20,920 because they're always together. He said this like he was 478 00:29:20,960 --> 00:29:24,680 telling me about what he had for lunch, not discussing 479 00:29:25,000 --> 00:29:29,279 dead the spirits of children. When my story got around 480 00:29:29,279 --> 00:29:32,400 the hospital, different nurses and staff came up to me 481 00:29:32,519 --> 00:29:35,799 when no one else wanted to and told me stories 482 00:29:35,839 --> 00:29:38,960 of things that had happened to them too. And let 483 00:29:39,000 --> 00:29:42,440 me tell you that place is one big haunted house. 484 00:29:43,200 --> 00:29:46,759 And then he signs off yours truly, John from Pittsburgh. John, 485 00:29:46,839 --> 00:29:51,039 thank you for that story. It was great. These stories 486 00:29:51,119 --> 00:29:55,359 from people who have worked in these institutions, hospitals of 487 00:29:55,720 --> 00:30:00,559 elderly retirement homes, or people who tell stories from those 488 00:30:00,599 --> 00:30:05,640 places always have strange, unusual, interesting stories, so I really 489 00:30:05,680 --> 00:30:12,960 appreciated this. Okay, here's a Bigfoot story. I got my 490 00:30:13,039 --> 00:30:16,839 first jeep in twenty sixteen, and I slowly learned the 491 00:30:16,960 --> 00:30:20,920 ropes of camping and overlanding. I joined a few off 492 00:30:21,000 --> 00:30:24,559 road clubs and started planning regular camping trips with my 493 00:30:24,640 --> 00:30:28,200 girlfriend at the time. I quickly went from camping in 494 00:30:28,240 --> 00:30:30,880 a sleeping bag on the ground to an expert level 495 00:30:31,039 --> 00:30:33,759 setup that made camping in the woods feel like a 496 00:30:33,799 --> 00:30:38,559 home away from home. In twenty and sixteen, my girlfriend 497 00:30:38,559 --> 00:30:41,680 and I took a trip from Los Angeles to Portland, Oregon, 498 00:30:42,039 --> 00:30:45,200 to visit some of her friends and get some time outdoors. 499 00:30:45,880 --> 00:30:48,640 Along the way, we detoured now and then to go 500 00:30:48,720 --> 00:30:52,279 off roading. On one of these excursions, we spent the 501 00:30:52,319 --> 00:30:55,319 better part of two hours taking my new jeep up 502 00:30:55,359 --> 00:30:59,279 mining and logging roads to some ideal mountain and valley 503 00:30:59,359 --> 00:31:02,920 views with to no one else in sight. At one point, 504 00:31:02,960 --> 00:31:05,079 we stopped to take in the view when we heard 505 00:31:05,079 --> 00:31:08,720 a blood curdling scream off in the distance. It sounded 506 00:31:08,759 --> 00:31:13,400 like a woman being murdered. Screaming repeated a few times, 507 00:31:13,480 --> 00:31:16,759 and I remember asking my girlfriend who the hell would 508 00:31:16,799 --> 00:31:20,480 be out here screaming like that. She shrugged and said, 509 00:31:20,680 --> 00:31:24,680 I don't know. That was the end of that. Later, 510 00:31:24,920 --> 00:31:28,079 at a nearby tourist attraction, we found a big book 511 00:31:28,160 --> 00:31:32,400 where locals wrote about their Bigfoot experiences. That's the first 512 00:31:32,440 --> 00:31:35,359 time the idea of Bigfoot was planted in my head. 513 00:31:37,279 --> 00:31:40,000 Four years later and I had a brand new jeep, 514 00:31:40,039 --> 00:31:45,039 Wrangler Rubicon, a giant but sweet mastive, and a new girlfriend. 515 00:31:45,880 --> 00:31:48,799 My love of the outdoors was still going strong, and 516 00:31:49,000 --> 00:31:52,680 at every opportunity I was heading into the wild. By 517 00:31:52,720 --> 00:31:55,680 this time, I was a full blown believer in Bigfoot 518 00:31:55,799 --> 00:32:01,799 and an avid listener of the Dixie Cryptied podcast. One day, 519 00:32:01,880 --> 00:32:05,160 I packed up my jeep, called my Faithful Dog, and 520 00:32:05,200 --> 00:32:08,759 picked up my girlfriend. We arrived at the trailhead close 521 00:32:08,799 --> 00:32:11,680 to ten am and hopped out for what we believed 522 00:32:11,680 --> 00:32:15,000 would be an extraordinary four to five hour hike into 523 00:32:15,039 --> 00:32:19,839 the mountains near central La County. A little way into 524 00:32:19,880 --> 00:32:22,440 our hike, we reached the top of the winding path 525 00:32:22,480 --> 00:32:25,279 that would take us into the bowl shaped valley where 526 00:32:25,279 --> 00:32:29,119 the trail ended. The soft dirt was still slightly wet 527 00:32:29,160 --> 00:32:31,920 from rain and had fallen earlier that day, and the 528 00:32:32,000 --> 00:32:35,160 air was fresh and clean, giving us a good view 529 00:32:35,200 --> 00:32:39,559 for miles around. We continued down the trail and came 530 00:32:39,640 --> 00:32:43,359 to a bush blocking the narrow path. When we got 531 00:32:43,400 --> 00:32:45,920 to it, I saw it had been pulled out of 532 00:32:45,960 --> 00:32:49,839 the ground and intentionally placed there. It was an odd 533 00:32:49,880 --> 00:32:52,920 place for someone to put it, but we navigated around 534 00:32:52,960 --> 00:32:56,720 it and continued on. Well. One hundred yards later we 535 00:32:56,839 --> 00:33:00,599 encountered another shrub on the trail. It was big, green 536 00:33:00,680 --> 00:33:04,160 and ripped out of the ground and placed in our way. Again, 537 00:33:04,400 --> 00:33:07,079 that was pretty odd, but we walked around it and 538 00:33:07,359 --> 00:33:11,720 continued on. One hundred yards later sat a larger pile 539 00:33:11,799 --> 00:33:15,400 of healthy shrubs, all of them uprooted and set on 540 00:33:15,440 --> 00:33:18,440 the trail, and then another. One hundred yards later, we 541 00:33:18,519 --> 00:33:22,240 walked to another pile bigger than the last, and then another, 542 00:33:22,400 --> 00:33:26,759 and then another. We were seeing a clear pattern here, 543 00:33:27,160 --> 00:33:30,400 and it didn't sit right with me. Anyone who knows 544 00:33:30,440 --> 00:33:34,920 anything about shrubs growing in southern California mountains knows just 545 00:33:35,000 --> 00:33:38,200 how tough it is to remove those. There isn't a 546 00:33:38,279 --> 00:33:40,599 human alive who could pull these plants out of the 547 00:33:40,640 --> 00:33:44,000 ground with their bare hands. They'd have a hell of 548 00:33:44,000 --> 00:33:46,799 a time using a shovel. And there were no signs 549 00:33:46,799 --> 00:33:49,880 of any people at all. As far as we could tell, 550 00:33:49,920 --> 00:33:53,200 we were the only ones on the trail. Over the 551 00:33:53,240 --> 00:33:56,559 next mile we encountered at least four more piles of 552 00:33:56,599 --> 00:34:00,480 bushes blocking the trail, and with each growing pile, our 553 00:34:00,519 --> 00:34:05,759 suspicion grew. The dirt covering the bush's roots was slightly damp, 554 00:34:06,000 --> 00:34:10,360 indicating they had just been uprooted. We started to suspect 555 00:34:10,480 --> 00:34:13,199 something was out there trying to prevent us from going 556 00:34:13,199 --> 00:34:17,679 any further, but we pressed on. We got to a 557 00:34:17,679 --> 00:34:21,039 little stream surrounded by small trees and stopped to let 558 00:34:21,079 --> 00:34:25,079 my dog drink from the fresh water. I was looking around, 559 00:34:25,440 --> 00:34:28,840 taking the area in when I noticed the branches above 560 00:34:28,880 --> 00:34:32,159 our heads were twisted, not just one or two, but 561 00:34:32,320 --> 00:34:35,960 all of them. Everywhere I looked, hiw off the ground, 562 00:34:36,000 --> 00:34:40,360 branches twisted and braided together, some of them snapped cleanly off, 563 00:34:40,679 --> 00:34:45,039 resting at peculiar angles. I'd never seen anything like this. 564 00:34:46,039 --> 00:34:50,039 There's a bigfoot down here, I said. My girlfriend wasn't 565 00:34:50,079 --> 00:34:52,880 so quick to agree, but when I pointed to the 566 00:34:52,920 --> 00:34:56,599 strange twists in the branches, she began to get the picture. 567 00:34:56,960 --> 00:35:01,280 And we moved on to our final destination, and my 568 00:35:01,360 --> 00:35:04,440 head was on a swivel, looking for anything that seemed 569 00:35:04,480 --> 00:35:08,519 out of place, any sign of bigfoot. A few minutes later, 570 00:35:08,679 --> 00:35:13,480 we ran into a literal wall of evidence blocking the trail. 571 00:35:13,559 --> 00:35:17,880 Ahead was a massive wall of freshly pulled up trees, bushes, 572 00:35:17,960 --> 00:35:21,559 and dead wood. It was no less than nine feet 573 00:35:21,639 --> 00:35:25,320 wide and six feet tall, and there was no way 574 00:35:25,360 --> 00:35:29,559 around it. We were not alone down there, and something 575 00:35:29,719 --> 00:35:34,239 didn't want us going any further. I was beaming excited 576 00:35:34,519 --> 00:35:37,760 by what I was seeing, but my girlfriend wasn't. She 577 00:35:38,000 --> 00:35:41,480 suggested it might be time that we turned around, but 578 00:35:41,559 --> 00:35:45,000 the explorer in me boldly proclaimed that we would be 579 00:35:45,079 --> 00:35:49,599 continuing onward. My girlfriend didn't like that, but she relented 580 00:35:49,639 --> 00:35:52,639 and we maneuvered our way through the wall of shrub. 581 00:35:53,800 --> 00:35:55,920 The end of the trail was in a bowl shaped 582 00:35:56,000 --> 00:35:59,559 valley covered in smooth river rocks. We made our way 583 00:35:59,599 --> 00:36:03,320 to appear Hidden Creek and we started taking photos when 584 00:36:03,320 --> 00:36:06,960 my girlfriend said that she could feel someone watching us. 585 00:36:07,760 --> 00:36:10,480 It was a hiking trail, after all, so I shrugged 586 00:36:10,480 --> 00:36:13,679 it off. A few minutes later she said it again, 587 00:36:14,159 --> 00:36:18,480 someone's watching us. Someone is here with us. Right then 588 00:36:18,599 --> 00:36:22,320 we heard footsteps approaching. At first, we thought it was 589 00:36:22,360 --> 00:36:25,480 another pair of hikers and that we'd run into them 590 00:36:25,639 --> 00:36:28,280 when we got back to the trail, but when we 591 00:36:28,400 --> 00:36:30,960 left the Hidden Creek and walked back into the valley, 592 00:36:31,360 --> 00:36:34,440 there was no one. We decided it was time to go. 593 00:36:35,960 --> 00:36:38,400 We were on the trail again, heading toward a wall 594 00:36:38,440 --> 00:36:41,519 of bushes, when behind us we heard a loud, sprinting 595 00:36:41,679 --> 00:36:44,840 footfall through the valley, as if something were trying to 596 00:36:44,880 --> 00:36:47,960 get out of sight before we saw it. We turned 597 00:36:47,960 --> 00:36:51,360 to each other, eyes wide, mouths of gaping, and we 598 00:36:51,480 --> 00:36:53,719 ran as fast as we could to see it before 599 00:36:53,760 --> 00:36:56,480 it ran off. We made it to the edge of 600 00:36:56,480 --> 00:36:59,320 the valley again in time to see something climb halfway 601 00:36:59,400 --> 00:37:02,920 up the steep cliff face and hide behind some small bushes. 602 00:37:03,440 --> 00:37:05,679 We could see the rocks falling down the path where 603 00:37:05,719 --> 00:37:09,039 it had gone up. By then I had seen enough 604 00:37:09,159 --> 00:37:13,960 evidence to satisfy my appetite for adventure. My girlfriend was 605 00:37:14,000 --> 00:37:16,960 growing uneasy, and instead of waiting to see if this 606 00:37:17,039 --> 00:37:20,199 thing would climb the rest of the cliff, we left, 607 00:37:20,519 --> 00:37:23,960 making our way out as calmly and quickly as we could. 608 00:37:25,039 --> 00:37:27,960 Two years later, my jeep and I went to Yosemite 609 00:37:27,960 --> 00:37:30,960 to hike and go off roading. A friend of mine 610 00:37:31,000 --> 00:37:33,440 tagged along in his own jeep, and we camped in 611 00:37:33,480 --> 00:37:36,599 our cars and a sequoia tree grove in the Sierra 612 00:37:36,840 --> 00:37:41,599 National Forest. While we were walking around the beautiful forest, 613 00:37:41,679 --> 00:37:43,960 I told my friend it would be a great place 614 00:37:44,039 --> 00:37:47,039 for a bigfoot to live. As luck would have it, 615 00:37:47,519 --> 00:37:50,920 one morning, while we were walking around exploring, we kept 616 00:37:51,000 --> 00:37:56,159 hearing a repetitive knocking sound. It wasn't rapid like a woodpecker, 617 00:37:56,239 --> 00:37:59,119 but it was slow and measured, like rock being hit 618 00:37:59,159 --> 00:38:02,639 against a tree. Well, listen to it for ten minutes. 619 00:38:03,039 --> 00:38:05,599 I had isolated the sound to the tree line on 620 00:38:05,639 --> 00:38:08,119 the far side of the small clearing next to our 621 00:38:08,199 --> 00:38:12,440 park vehicles. My friend walked toward it, and as soon 622 00:38:12,480 --> 00:38:14,679 as he got within twenty five feet of the tree, 623 00:38:15,119 --> 00:38:18,679 the knocking stopped. As soon as he walked away, it 624 00:38:18,760 --> 00:38:22,800 started again. So we experimented with this for ten minutes. 625 00:38:23,679 --> 00:38:26,000 Each time one of us got closer to the sound, 626 00:38:26,000 --> 00:38:28,960 it would stop, and when we walked away it started 627 00:38:29,039 --> 00:38:32,719 up again. We never felt threatened or afraid. It was 628 00:38:32,760 --> 00:38:35,639 more like something was out there playing a game with us. 629 00:38:36,719 --> 00:38:42,360 My life has changed significantly since those days. My loyal 630 00:38:42,519 --> 00:38:45,599 heaven sent big dog died in twenty twenty, and I 631 00:38:45,719 --> 00:38:49,400 moved away from southern California and I sold my jeep, 632 00:38:49,800 --> 00:38:53,079 something I never thought I would do. I don't height 633 00:38:53,280 --> 00:38:56,000 nearly as much, but Lord knows, I'll find my way 634 00:38:56,039 --> 00:38:59,440 back to the great outdoors soon. I've been listening to 635 00:38:59,519 --> 00:39:02,800 your channel for years. Thank you for creating this modern 636 00:39:02,920 --> 00:39:05,199 community for modern day believers.