WEBVTT 1 00:00:06.160 --> 00:00:09.560 I have never shared my story except with my father, 2 00:00:10.199 --> 00:00:12.880 but I like to listen to and believe the stories 3 00:00:12.919 --> 00:00:16.320 from other hunters. They lived them, and who am I 4 00:00:16.399 --> 00:00:19.719 to tell them what they saw. It doesn't take much 5 00:00:19.719 --> 00:00:22.640 imagination for me to feel like I'm right there with 6 00:00:22.719 --> 00:00:26.920 the person in your stories at the time of their encounters. 7 00:00:27.600 --> 00:00:30.679 My name is Bob and I'm seventy nine years old. 8 00:00:31.079 --> 00:00:34.359 I stopped hunting when I was fifty nine. I hated 9 00:00:34.399 --> 00:00:37.079 giving up hunting, but I had sport knees and it 10 00:00:37.159 --> 00:00:39.679 was getting too hard to walk in the forest and 11 00:00:39.719 --> 00:00:43.880 the mountains. I sure miss the elk meat and the venison. 12 00:00:45.359 --> 00:00:49.159 I know that Bigfoot has been here forever. I started 13 00:00:49.200 --> 00:00:52.640 to read about them when I was twelve. There wasn't 14 00:00:52.719 --> 00:00:55.039 much to read about them in those days, but every 15 00:00:55.039 --> 00:00:57.600 once in a while you would hear a strange story 16 00:00:57.640 --> 00:01:00.679 that a hunter or a camper had seen one or 17 00:01:00.880 --> 00:01:05.439 something they couldn't explain, or experience being harassed by something 18 00:01:05.480 --> 00:01:08.640 they never saw. They just heard it or smelled it, 19 00:01:09.760 --> 00:01:12.480 but no one talked about it for fear of being crazy, 20 00:01:12.519 --> 00:01:17.120 because no one believed that Bigfoot existed. I also never 21 00:01:17.200 --> 00:01:20.280 spoke to any of my friends about seeing one. I 22 00:01:20.319 --> 00:01:24.560 don't believe they would have believed me anyway. I saw 23 00:01:24.680 --> 00:01:27.959 the only one I've ever seen when I was fifteen 24 00:01:28.079 --> 00:01:32.079 years old. It was October nineteen fifty six and I 25 00:01:32.200 --> 00:01:37.760 was elking deer hunting on Canfield Mountain just outside of Cordelane, Idaho. 26 00:01:38.959 --> 00:01:42.359 I lived just ten miles from Canfill Mountain, so after 27 00:01:42.400 --> 00:01:44.560 school I used to drive my old car up to 28 00:01:44.599 --> 00:01:47.719 Canfield and find an old logging road and walk it 29 00:01:48.159 --> 00:01:51.799 three steps at a time until it got dark. The 30 00:01:51.879 --> 00:01:54.719 huge thing, at least eight foot tall and I would 31 00:01:54.760 --> 00:01:58.040 guess five to six hundred pounds, stepped out of the 32 00:01:58.079 --> 00:02:01.439 trees onto the old logging road about twenty five yards 33 00:02:01.480 --> 00:02:04.599 in front of me. It was getting dark and I 34 00:02:04.680 --> 00:02:07.480 was on my way back to the car. I only 35 00:02:07.519 --> 00:02:10.680 saw it for maybe twenty seconds before it disappeared back 36 00:02:10.680 --> 00:02:14.280 into the brush in the trees. I don't remember hearing 37 00:02:14.360 --> 00:02:18.280 any bushes breaking or other noise as it disappeared. I 38 00:02:18.400 --> 00:02:22.039 was probably too shocked to notice. I did see that 39 00:02:22.120 --> 00:02:25.719 it was a brownish and black color. I don't recall 40 00:02:25.840 --> 00:02:30.599 any odor. Its face was lighter and hairless. I don't 41 00:02:30.599 --> 00:02:34.879 recall the facial features either. It scared the crap out 42 00:02:34.919 --> 00:02:38.840 of me. I knew immediately I wasn't looking at a bear. 43 00:02:39.840 --> 00:02:42.599 I had my three hundred h and h MAG with me, 44 00:02:42.719 --> 00:02:45.280 but I never thought to shoot it. Hell, I couldn't 45 00:02:45.280 --> 00:02:50.159 even move. My father was an avid hunter. He started 46 00:02:50.159 --> 00:02:53.280 me hunting with him when I was ten. He taught 47 00:02:53.319 --> 00:02:56.639 me that you only shoot or hunt what you're gonna eat. 48 00:02:56.960 --> 00:02:59.680 He said he saw one in the nineteen fifties, seventy 49 00:02:59.759 --> 00:03:04.120 yards away while hunting on Brown Creek's saddle. He said 50 00:03:04.120 --> 00:03:06.000 it was a good thing I didn't shoot it, because 51 00:03:06.039 --> 00:03:08.000 I probably would have just pissed it off and it 52 00:03:08.039 --> 00:03:13.080 would have killed me. I never stopped hunting on Canfield Mountain, 53 00:03:13.080 --> 00:03:15.680 and I was back just a week later hunting there. 54 00:03:16.360 --> 00:03:19.520 I figured I would probably never see another bigfoot again, 55 00:03:20.000 --> 00:03:22.479 but I watched out for one every time I went 56 00:03:22.520 --> 00:03:26.439 into the woods. I can recall the feeling I was 57 00:03:26.479 --> 00:03:30.080 being watched in other parts of northern Idaho when I 58 00:03:30.199 --> 00:03:34.199 was hunting. I listened to your show all the time. 59 00:03:34.479 --> 00:03:37.400 Thank you, Bob. I appreciate that it's a great show, 60 00:03:37.560 --> 00:03:41.439 very interesting and good entertainment. I just wanted to tell 61 00:03:41.479 --> 00:03:44.919 my story, and you were right. The bigfoot story and 62 00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:48.520 what they are is known by many, but for some reason, 63 00:03:48.560 --> 00:03:51.120 no one is talking about it, but the honest people 64 00:03:51.159 --> 00:03:54.639 who have seen one. There's so many people who are 65 00:03:54.719 --> 00:03:58.520 phonies who want to join their sights and send money, 66 00:03:59.280 --> 00:04:03.560 so many that know absolutely nothing about hunting or animals. 67 00:04:04.199 --> 00:04:06.840 They lie and they tear down good, honest people who 68 00:04:06.840 --> 00:04:11.759 have had encounters with bigfoot. The old platitude, no evidence, 69 00:04:11.879 --> 00:04:16.480 no body, no DNA, phony pictures and so forth, and 70 00:04:16.519 --> 00:04:19.360 so many shows trying to make money off of bigfoot 71 00:04:19.480 --> 00:04:23.120 with their phony shows about hunting bigfoot. I wish they 72 00:04:23.120 --> 00:04:25.959 would see one and it would chase them. 73 00:04:26.639 --> 00:04:29.439 I hope they have a lot of toilet paper with 74 00:04:29.639 --> 00:04:32.680 them so they can clean up. Why don't these brave 75 00:04:32.759 --> 00:04:36.240 hunters hunt in places that are active for bigfoot? Are 76 00:04:36.240 --> 00:04:42.439 they afraid they might find one or be found by one? 77 00:04:43.920 --> 00:04:48.040 In Durant, Oklahoma, around nineteen eighty six or eighty seven, 78 00:04:48.199 --> 00:04:51.399 I was six or seven years old. My mother and 79 00:04:51.439 --> 00:04:54.680 I lived in an old farmhouse on the outskirts of town. 80 00:04:55.800 --> 00:04:58.199 To the left of the house was a large field, 81 00:04:58.360 --> 00:05:00.519 and at the back of the field there was a creek, 82 00:05:00.920 --> 00:05:03.199 and the name of the creek was mineral by you. 83 00:05:05.040 --> 00:05:08.120 It was summertime and my best friend and I decided 84 00:05:08.160 --> 00:05:10.759 to take a single shot twenty two out to the 85 00:05:10.800 --> 00:05:14.360 field to see if we could shoot some armadillos. It 86 00:05:14.439 --> 00:05:18.639 was just about thirty minutes past dark. The only form 87 00:05:18.680 --> 00:05:21.240 of light we had was one of those old big 88 00:05:21.319 --> 00:05:25.160 square flashlights with the batteries, and they were almost dead, 89 00:05:25.240 --> 00:05:29.399 so it was very poor light. We crossed the barber 90 00:05:29.439 --> 00:05:32.600 our fence that separated our house from the field and 91 00:05:32.680 --> 00:05:36.079 started walking towards the creek, which was about five to 92 00:05:36.160 --> 00:05:40.000 seven hundred yards away from the house. When we had 93 00:05:40.079 --> 00:05:43.120 traveled two hundred yards from the house, we noticed a 94 00:05:43.160 --> 00:05:47.639 figure walking into the field from our left, maybe fifty 95 00:05:47.720 --> 00:05:51.360 yards away, assuming it was a cow, but we weren't 96 00:05:51.399 --> 00:05:55.279 for sure. We continued forward until we were much closer, 97 00:05:55.560 --> 00:05:59.560 maybe within ten or fifteen feet ten or fifteen feet 98 00:05:59.600 --> 00:06:04.560 of the animal. Really, it was standing upright with its 99 00:06:04.639 --> 00:06:08.959 right arm facing us. As we got closer, it turned 100 00:06:09.000 --> 00:06:11.600 and looked at us, and that's when we could tell 101 00:06:11.839 --> 00:06:15.000 that we were not for sure exactly what this thing was. 102 00:06:16.279 --> 00:06:20.879 It had gray hair and modeling clay grayish skin on 103 00:06:21.040 --> 00:06:25.120 its face, and the hair was not extremely thick. You 104 00:06:25.160 --> 00:06:29.600 could see the skin in several different spots. It was 105 00:06:29.639 --> 00:06:34.160 between six and seven feet tall, and was definitely not 106 00:06:34.360 --> 00:06:38.399 a man. By this time, we were close enough to 107 00:06:38.560 --> 00:06:42.560 almost touch it. This is blowing me away. We got 108 00:06:42.639 --> 00:06:45.720 a very good look at its face. It looked like 109 00:06:45.959 --> 00:06:50.360 its lips had vertical creases towards the edges. Its lips 110 00:06:50.360 --> 00:06:53.639 were fairly thin and just slightly darker than the skin 111 00:06:53.720 --> 00:06:57.920 on its face. It had large, square shaped teeth with 112 00:06:58.079 --> 00:07:01.040 several missing from what I could see, and it had 113 00:07:01.160 --> 00:07:05.600 large brown eyes. It had the strangest expression on its 114 00:07:05.639 --> 00:07:09.160 face that was very hard to explain. It was almost 115 00:07:09.199 --> 00:07:14.079 amused and surprised at the same time. It looked at 116 00:07:14.160 --> 00:07:17.160 us and then turned and walked maybe six feet away, 117 00:07:17.519 --> 00:07:20.279 and then it stopped again. When it turned, you could 118 00:07:20.319 --> 00:07:23.279 see that it had red clays stuck throughout its hair, 119 00:07:23.759 --> 00:07:25.959 like it had been in the creek for some reason. 120 00:07:26.959 --> 00:07:29.199 We were not afraid of it at this time, so 121 00:07:29.319 --> 00:07:32.920 we followed. The creature would let us get within six 122 00:07:33.000 --> 00:07:35.920 or seven feet, and it would walk further towards the 123 00:07:36.000 --> 00:07:40.240 creek and then stopped again. It did this several times, 124 00:07:40.240 --> 00:07:43.040 with it stopping and waiting for us to get closer, 125 00:07:43.360 --> 00:07:46.920 and then moving on and then stopping again, until we 126 00:07:46.920 --> 00:07:49.680 were maybe one hundred and fifty yards from the creek 127 00:07:49.720 --> 00:07:53.920 and the tree line. Whenever the creature entered the tree line, 128 00:07:54.120 --> 00:07:57.480 we had an ominous feeling and decided not to follow 129 00:07:57.519 --> 00:08:01.920 it into the tree line, so we went home. My 130 00:08:02.040 --> 00:08:04.480 mother was asleep when we got home, so we just 131 00:08:04.519 --> 00:08:08.759 didn't tell anyone about it. Not long after this incident, 132 00:08:08.879 --> 00:08:11.600 we had a dog go missing and my mother said 133 00:08:11.720 --> 00:08:15.639 someone was peeking in the bathroom window while she was 134 00:08:15.680 --> 00:08:18.879 in the tub. We called the police, but they couldn't 135 00:08:18.920 --> 00:08:23.319 find anyone. A couple of years later, my cousin and 136 00:08:23.399 --> 00:08:25.680 I were at the same creek, which was about a 137 00:08:25.720 --> 00:08:29.680 half a mile from my home. We found several large, 138 00:08:29.879 --> 00:08:34.200 bare footprints and a handprint in the bank of the creek, 139 00:08:34.480 --> 00:08:37.000 and you could see where this thing had climbed about 140 00:08:37.080 --> 00:08:42.759 eight foot off the bank and out of the creek. Charles, 141 00:08:42.919 --> 00:08:46.159 I am just blown away that you boys walked right 142 00:08:46.279 --> 00:08:49.519 up to this thing and it didn't do anything. It 143 00:08:49.679 --> 00:08:52.639 just kept walking, just keeping its distance six or seven 144 00:08:52.679 --> 00:08:57.480 feet away. That is a phenomenal. It's a great encounter story. 145 00:08:57.960 --> 00:09:02.600 I'm sure you will never forget it. I'm just at 146 00:09:02.639 --> 00:09:05.639 a loss for words because I've read so many of 147 00:09:05.679 --> 00:09:07.639 these and this is one of the few that I've 148 00:09:07.879 --> 00:09:12.080 seen where boys actually followed this thing into the woods 149 00:09:12.120 --> 00:09:15.320 that close. It's just crazy, all right, Charles, it's a 150 00:09:15.360 --> 00:09:17.720 great story. Thank you so much for sending it in. 151 00:09:22.480 --> 00:09:26.200 This is an email I got from a gentleman in Alaska. 152 00:09:26.480 --> 00:09:30.360 This is great. Oh my gosh, this is fantastic. Here's 153 00:09:30.360 --> 00:09:33.799 what he writes. I'm thirty one and was born and 154 00:09:33.879 --> 00:09:37.000 raised in Alaska. I've spent much of my life in 155 00:09:37.039 --> 00:09:41.159 the wilderness. I grew up north of Fairbanks as an adult, 156 00:09:41.399 --> 00:09:43.720 and I also spent a lot of time hunting and 157 00:09:43.759 --> 00:09:48.159 trapping near my mom's home village on the cusca Quinn River. 158 00:09:49.200 --> 00:09:52.399 Before writing this email, I was asked by a family 159 00:09:52.440 --> 00:09:55.720 member to keep the name of the village anonymous. But 160 00:09:55.840 --> 00:09:59.080 it is a large Upik village on the main cusca 161 00:09:59.159 --> 00:10:04.000 Quinn River between Tululuksak and McGrath. I'll just leave it 162 00:10:04.039 --> 00:10:07.559 at that. There are several areas in Alaska that are 163 00:10:07.600 --> 00:10:11.240 known to be Bigfoot hotspots. Some of these areas have 164 00:10:11.440 --> 00:10:16.039 a bit of a disturbing history, places like Port Chatham, 165 00:10:16.200 --> 00:10:19.120 which you probably already know about, but for those listening 166 00:10:19.159 --> 00:10:22.799 who don't know, it was a small fishing community abandoned 167 00:10:22.879 --> 00:10:26.200 over sixty years ago when the local people suddenly fled 168 00:10:26.240 --> 00:10:31.440 the town. The town had numerous strange and unsolved disappearances. 169 00:10:32.519 --> 00:10:36.360 There are old stories about people finding human bodies ripped 170 00:10:36.360 --> 00:10:39.679 apart limb by limb in the woods, along with various 171 00:10:39.840 --> 00:10:44.879 Bigfoot sightings. There's another area along the Wrangele Mountains where 172 00:10:44.919 --> 00:10:48.600 locals say there are large, hairy, human like beasts that 173 00:10:48.679 --> 00:10:53.080 are aggressive and don't like people. There are long rows 174 00:10:53.080 --> 00:10:56.039 of hills behind my mom's home village that seem to 175 00:10:56.080 --> 00:10:58.919 be one of those hotspots for Bigfoot activity. 176 00:11:00.080 --> 00:11:00.279 There. 177 00:11:00.399 --> 00:11:04.440 The Yupik natives referred to the Bigfoot as hairy Man. 178 00:11:05.759 --> 00:11:09.759 One Native elder and a longtime family friend told me 179 00:11:09.919 --> 00:11:12.639 back when he was young, he and his dad were 180 00:11:12.679 --> 00:11:17.600 traveling by dog team while out getting firewood. Daylight doesn't 181 00:11:17.679 --> 00:11:20.639 last very long in Alaska during the winter, and it 182 00:11:20.679 --> 00:11:23.639 was well past dark by the time they were heading home. 183 00:11:24.679 --> 00:11:27.080 He was riding in the sled and his dad was 184 00:11:27.120 --> 00:11:30.720 standing behind him on the runners controlling the dog team. 185 00:11:31.519 --> 00:11:34.080 The dog suddenly stopped in the middle of the trail 186 00:11:34.159 --> 00:11:38.120 and became spoofed. They were whimpering and trying to turn around. 187 00:11:39.159 --> 00:11:42.840 The fear eventually subsided and they were able to continue 188 00:11:42.879 --> 00:11:46.600 on home. The elder telling me this story said that 189 00:11:46.679 --> 00:11:50.039 back when they used to regularly travel by dog sled, 190 00:11:50.159 --> 00:11:53.000 it was known to be a telltale sign that a 191 00:11:53.039 --> 00:11:57.080 bigfoot was nearby when the dogs would stop and become spooked. 192 00:11:57.840 --> 00:12:01.200 When sensing wild animals, the dog would become alert and 193 00:12:01.240 --> 00:12:05.200 even aggressive, ready to fight, but there was a specific 194 00:12:05.279 --> 00:12:08.240 type of freaked out that would overtake them when picking 195 00:12:08.320 --> 00:12:12.399 up the smell of a bigfoot. Here are a couple 196 00:12:12.440 --> 00:12:15.879 of stories that happened to my grandfather on my mother's 197 00:12:15.919 --> 00:12:19.320 side and my two uncles. Both of these stories were 198 00:12:19.360 --> 00:12:23.320 told to me firsthand by my uncles, and then lastly, 199 00:12:23.360 --> 00:12:25.240 I have a story of my own I would like 200 00:12:25.279 --> 00:12:29.559 to share at the end. Back in the nineteen sixties, 201 00:12:29.600 --> 00:12:32.000 my grandpa had a fish camp at the base of 202 00:12:32.039 --> 00:12:35.480 the hills, a few miles up the river from the village. 203 00:12:35.519 --> 00:12:39.279 Both my grandpa and my uncle Daniel saw strange large 204 00:12:39.440 --> 00:12:43.320 tracks near their fish camp. My uncle Daniel was just 205 00:12:43.360 --> 00:12:46.879 a kid, but he remembers it vividly. There was one 206 00:12:46.960 --> 00:12:50.759 day they also found long golden colored hair stuck in 207 00:12:50.799 --> 00:12:54.759 the wooden slats of the smokehouse wall. And several salmon 208 00:12:54.879 --> 00:12:58.440 strips had been carefully picked off the horizontal poles in 209 00:12:58.480 --> 00:13:02.639 the middle of the smokehouse. It's not uncommon for bears 210 00:13:02.679 --> 00:13:05.279 to get into people's smoke houses, but when it's a 211 00:13:05.320 --> 00:13:08.720 bear or any other wild animal, you'll know because of 212 00:13:08.759 --> 00:13:13.519 the mess and destruction they leave behind. This thing, whatever 213 00:13:13.559 --> 00:13:16.360 it was, was able to pry its arm in between 214 00:13:16.399 --> 00:13:19.039 the slatted wall and reach all the way to the 215 00:13:19.080 --> 00:13:22.200 middle of the smokehouse. It had to have a long 216 00:13:22.320 --> 00:13:26.120 reach and a human like hand. It also only picked 217 00:13:26.159 --> 00:13:29.039 the choice salmon strips and left the rest of them 218 00:13:29.080 --> 00:13:33.120 hanging on the pole untouched. It was smart enough to 219 00:13:33.240 --> 00:13:36.960 not only stealthily steal some fish, but also smart enough 220 00:13:36.960 --> 00:13:41.600 to know which fish strips were the best. The next 221 00:13:41.679 --> 00:13:45.519 story is the best testimony I know of someone who 222 00:13:45.519 --> 00:13:51.080 has seen bigfoot tracks and examined them up close. Years ago, 223 00:13:51.240 --> 00:13:54.080 my uncle Mark was hiking behind that same line of 224 00:13:54.159 --> 00:13:57.879 hills near the village. He came across an old fire 225 00:13:57.919 --> 00:14:01.919 line that local firefighters had bllen dozed in years ago 226 00:14:02.000 --> 00:14:06.720 to prevent wildfires from reaching the village. It was springtime 227 00:14:06.759 --> 00:14:09.679 and with the snow melting and the torn up tundra 228 00:14:09.879 --> 00:14:13.600 along the fire line, it was all muddy. My uncle 229 00:14:13.639 --> 00:14:16.720 Mark saw two very clear big footprints in the mud 230 00:14:16.799 --> 00:14:21.039 crossing the fire line. Each footprint was about eighteen inches 231 00:14:21.120 --> 00:14:24.080 long and five inches wide, and there was a six 232 00:14:24.120 --> 00:14:27.919 foot stride between the two prints. He said he could 233 00:14:28.000 --> 00:14:31.639 clearly see five toes, the shape of the foot, and 234 00:14:31.679 --> 00:14:34.559 the hill marked in the mud, just like a human foot, 235 00:14:34.679 --> 00:14:38.559 only much bigger. My uncle Mark has been tracking and 236 00:14:38.639 --> 00:14:41.600 trapping animals most of his life, and he knows what 237 00:14:41.679 --> 00:14:45.320 he's talking about when he says these were clearly giant 238 00:14:45.440 --> 00:14:51.039 human like footprints. Something walking barefooted with eighteen inch feet 239 00:14:51.080 --> 00:14:55.200 and six foot stride had recently crossed there. My uncle 240 00:14:55.200 --> 00:14:58.279 said he started having a very eerie feeling and he 241 00:14:58.320 --> 00:15:02.120 got out of there without looking from more tracks. And 242 00:15:02.159 --> 00:15:04.480 I have a story of my own i'd like to share. 243 00:15:05.279 --> 00:15:08.360 First off, I hate to disappoint the listeners, but I 244 00:15:08.440 --> 00:15:12.039 personally have never seen or heard a bigfoot, despite all 245 00:15:12.120 --> 00:15:15.679 the time I have spent in the Alaskan bush. However, 246 00:15:15.840 --> 00:15:19.320 I did have a strange experience camping alone one winter 247 00:15:20.720 --> 00:15:24.360 in December of twenty fifteen, I decided to hike to 248 00:15:24.440 --> 00:15:26.639 the end of a valley about two and a half 249 00:15:26.759 --> 00:15:30.559 miles inland from the Coscoquin River. I would like to 250 00:15:30.559 --> 00:15:33.919 give more information on exactly where this took place, but 251 00:15:34.000 --> 00:15:37.960 again I was asked to keep the location somewhat anonymous. 252 00:15:38.960 --> 00:15:41.639 I will say, however, that this valley that I was 253 00:15:41.720 --> 00:15:45.159 camping in was located between where my uncle Mark had 254 00:15:45.159 --> 00:15:48.080 seen the bigfoot tracks in the mud years ago and 255 00:15:48.120 --> 00:15:51.600 where my grandpa had his old fish camp. So I 256 00:15:51.600 --> 00:15:53.919 guess you could say it should be a good place 257 00:15:53.960 --> 00:15:58.480 to encounter a bigfoot. I had explored and camped around 258 00:15:58.480 --> 00:16:01.200 this valley before, but I had never gone all the 259 00:16:01.240 --> 00:16:05.120 way in. So early one December morning, I packed up 260 00:16:05.120 --> 00:16:08.720 some gear and I headed out. It was slow hiking 261 00:16:08.759 --> 00:16:11.799 because of the deep snow, and I didn't have snowshoes. 262 00:16:12.360 --> 00:16:15.159 It took me three hours of non stop hiking to 263 00:16:15.240 --> 00:16:17.879 reach the middle of this valley and find a place 264 00:16:17.919 --> 00:16:21.120 to set up camp. The weather was pretty clear, but 265 00:16:21.200 --> 00:16:24.039 I could see off in the distance a big low 266 00:16:24.159 --> 00:16:27.399 coming in, and I knew it was probably going to snow. 267 00:16:28.559 --> 00:16:32.240 This place was covered in rabbit tracks. My plan was 268 00:16:32.279 --> 00:16:34.639 to set a bunch of rabbit snares, spend the night, 269 00:16:34.720 --> 00:16:37.840 and then check the snares the next day before heading home. 270 00:16:38.960 --> 00:16:41.360 When I saw the big winter low moving in, I 271 00:16:41.440 --> 00:16:44.519 decided not to set any snares because they would probably 272 00:16:44.639 --> 00:16:47.720 just get buried in the snow. I was a little 273 00:16:47.799 --> 00:16:50.360 upset about that, but I decided it would still be 274 00:16:50.440 --> 00:16:54.919 a nice time camping out. At mid afternoon, I cut 275 00:16:54.960 --> 00:16:58.840 a big supply of firewood from some small standing dry 276 00:16:58.960 --> 00:17:02.600 wood nearby and got a huge fire going. I ate 277 00:17:02.639 --> 00:17:04.759 a snack and made some tea with a pot of 278 00:17:04.799 --> 00:17:09.279 melted snow over my big campfire. I hiked all over 279 00:17:09.319 --> 00:17:11.759 that area and I saw country that I had never 280 00:17:11.799 --> 00:17:15.880 seen before. By late afternoon, it was getting dark and 281 00:17:15.920 --> 00:17:19.240 I returned to my camp. For the next couple of hours. 282 00:17:19.240 --> 00:17:22.119 As it was getting completely dark, I pretty much just 283 00:17:22.279 --> 00:17:25.400 sat on a log, drinking tea and waiting for my 284 00:17:25.519 --> 00:17:29.200 fire to burn down into a bed of coals. There's 285 00:17:29.240 --> 00:17:32.279 an old trick when camping in the winter. Make a 286 00:17:32.279 --> 00:17:35.640 big fire, let it burn into a bunch of smoldering coals, 287 00:17:35.839 --> 00:17:38.640 and when it's melted through the ice and snow and 288 00:17:38.720 --> 00:17:41.759 into dry ground, mix it with the dirt and sleep 289 00:17:41.799 --> 00:17:45.279 over it. The coals under the dirt will summer all 290 00:17:45.359 --> 00:17:49.599 night and they'll keep you warm. As darkness fell and 291 00:17:49.680 --> 00:17:53.039 my fire was burning down I started getting this feeling 292 00:17:53.119 --> 00:17:56.759 that something was watching me. I know that sounds corny, 293 00:17:56.880 --> 00:17:59.680 and I brushed it off. It's just my imagination, but 294 00:17:59.720 --> 00:18:04.359 the got stronger. By ten o'clock, my campfire was nothing 295 00:18:04.400 --> 00:18:09.079 but a bed of smoldering coals. It had been dark 296 00:18:09.240 --> 00:18:12.079 for a long time now, and the only light was 297 00:18:12.119 --> 00:18:15.599 the faint illumination from the coals dancing on the trees 298 00:18:15.640 --> 00:18:19.720 around me. I got a sudden tingling sensation down the 299 00:18:19.759 --> 00:18:23.279 back of my neck and along my spine. I felt 300 00:18:23.279 --> 00:18:27.440 really uneasy, but I ignored it again. I told myself, 301 00:18:27.680 --> 00:18:30.920 I'm a tough, alasking boy born in Bread. In the wilderness, 302 00:18:31.079 --> 00:18:34.680 nothing scares me. But down in my gut I knew 303 00:18:34.720 --> 00:18:38.400 something was different. I've spent many nights alone in the 304 00:18:38.480 --> 00:18:41.720 wilderness and hadn't felt what I was feeling this time, 305 00:18:42.079 --> 00:18:45.279 so I couldn't help. But since that something was off, 306 00:18:46.839 --> 00:18:48.920 I mixed the coals in the dirt down in the 307 00:18:48.960 --> 00:18:51.519 hole where the fire had burned through the layers of 308 00:18:51.599 --> 00:18:55.359 snow and ice. Now, with the coals buried in the dirt, 309 00:18:55.519 --> 00:18:58.519 it was totally dark, and I clicked on my head lamp. 310 00:18:59.440 --> 00:19:02.559 I laid some spruce bows over the smoldering heap and 311 00:19:02.599 --> 00:19:05.279 put my sleeping bag on top of the spruce bows. 312 00:19:06.079 --> 00:19:08.599 I crawled in my sleeping bag, and I then pulled 313 00:19:08.640 --> 00:19:11.359 a small tarp over me to hold in the heat. 314 00:19:12.160 --> 00:19:15.400 It was nice and cozy, and I fell asleep really quick. 315 00:19:16.759 --> 00:19:19.079 I'm not sure how long I was asleep, but it 316 00:19:19.119 --> 00:19:22.279 was probably only about twenty minutes or so when I 317 00:19:22.359 --> 00:19:27.279 suddenly woke up and felt almost paralyzed with fear, similar 318 00:19:27.319 --> 00:19:29.519 to what my elder friend had told me happened to 319 00:19:29.599 --> 00:19:32.640 him and his dad on the dog sled trail. I 320 00:19:32.720 --> 00:19:36.200 forced myself to shake off the paralysis. I was about 321 00:19:36.240 --> 00:19:38.960 to go back to sleep, but immediately got this urgent 322 00:19:39.039 --> 00:19:41.880 feeling that I needed to get the heck out of 323 00:19:41.920 --> 00:19:45.839 there and quick. My whole body started tingling, and I 324 00:19:45.839 --> 00:19:49.039 felt like something didn't want me there. I could hear 325 00:19:49.079 --> 00:19:52.640 snowflakes gently hitting the tarp covering me, and I pulled 326 00:19:52.640 --> 00:19:55.799 the tarp off, clicked on my headlamp, and saw it 327 00:19:55.839 --> 00:19:58.920 was snowing hard and the wind was picking up. I 328 00:19:58.960 --> 00:20:01.599 didn't want to leave because my camp was nestled in 329 00:20:01.640 --> 00:20:04.319 the woods, and I knew walking back home now in 330 00:20:04.400 --> 00:20:08.119 the dark mint crossing areas of open tundra where it 331 00:20:08.119 --> 00:20:13.920 would be blowing snow, so I stayed put. Suddenly I 332 00:20:13.960 --> 00:20:17.799 felt again this unsettling feeling that I needed to leave 333 00:20:18.039 --> 00:20:21.680 right away. My heart started racing and my instincts were 334 00:20:21.720 --> 00:20:24.720 telling me to get out of there. I had packed 335 00:20:24.799 --> 00:20:27.319 light on this camping trip because I knew I was 336 00:20:27.359 --> 00:20:30.039 going to be hiking in a lot of snow, so 337 00:20:30.160 --> 00:20:32.400 the only gun I brought with me was a Ruger 338 00:20:32.480 --> 00:20:36.000 ten twenty two. Being armed with only a twenty two 339 00:20:36.119 --> 00:20:38.559 long rifle didn't give me a lot of confidence out 340 00:20:38.599 --> 00:20:41.480 there alone in the dark, feeling like something wanted to 341 00:20:41.559 --> 00:20:45.920 hurt me, even with a twenty five round magazine. I 342 00:20:45.960 --> 00:20:49.160 clicked my headlight back on and quickly packed everything up. 343 00:20:49.680 --> 00:20:52.480 I stuffed my sleeping bag in tarp in my pack, 344 00:20:52.519 --> 00:20:55.079 along with a few other things, without taking the time 345 00:20:55.119 --> 00:20:58.559 to brush the snow off. Within a couple of minutes, 346 00:20:58.599 --> 00:21:01.519 I was all packed up and I left immediately, heading 347 00:21:01.599 --> 00:21:05.319 for home. The wind had picked up even more, and 348 00:21:05.359 --> 00:21:07.400 when I got out of the tree line into the 349 00:21:07.440 --> 00:21:11.079 open tundra, it was basically a blizzard, just as I 350 00:21:11.160 --> 00:21:14.799 had expected. I tried to find my trail from earlier 351 00:21:14.920 --> 00:21:17.440 that day, but it was already covered up with snow. 352 00:21:18.240 --> 00:21:20.880 I felt stuck between a rock and a hard place. 353 00:21:21.319 --> 00:21:23.920 It was the middle of the night and blowing heavy snow, 354 00:21:23.960 --> 00:21:26.000 which made me worried that I was going to get 355 00:21:26.039 --> 00:21:28.960 lost trying to hike home, but I didn't want to 356 00:21:29.000 --> 00:21:32.960 return to camp either. I thought about heading back to 357 00:21:33.000 --> 00:21:36.359 my campsite, and even turned around to do so, but 358 00:21:36.440 --> 00:21:39.759 that horrible uneasy feeling hit me again as soon as 359 00:21:39.759 --> 00:21:43.599 I turned to walk back towards camp. For a moment, 360 00:21:43.759 --> 00:21:46.920 I wasn't sure what to do, but the uneasy feeling 361 00:21:47.000 --> 00:21:49.880 I had motivated me to push on through the snowy 362 00:21:49.960 --> 00:21:54.799 conditions and get home. I had an easier time seeing 363 00:21:54.880 --> 00:21:58.440 with my headlamp off, because with it on, the light 364 00:21:58.519 --> 00:22:02.119 reflected so much blowing snow all I could see was white. 365 00:22:02.880 --> 00:22:05.480 With it off, I could just barely make out where 366 00:22:05.519 --> 00:22:09.200 I was and where I needed to walk. Slowly and 367 00:22:09.240 --> 00:22:12.279 with lots of praying to Jesus, I made it across 368 00:22:12.319 --> 00:22:15.240 the long trek of open tundra and into the next 369 00:22:15.279 --> 00:22:18.559 tree line across from the valley. I knew from there 370 00:22:18.759 --> 00:22:21.519 I was close to the old woodcutting trail that led 371 00:22:21.599 --> 00:22:24.960 back to the village. Once I got back into the 372 00:22:25.000 --> 00:22:28.000 deep woods and sheltered from the weather, it was much 373 00:22:28.039 --> 00:22:33.000 easier to navigate. I eventually found the old woodcutting trail 374 00:22:33.039 --> 00:22:36.160 and followed it on the long height back to the village. 375 00:22:37.319 --> 00:22:39.559 When I finally saw the lights of the village off 376 00:22:39.559 --> 00:22:42.960 in the distance through the trees, I felt relieved. I 377 00:22:43.039 --> 00:22:45.680 was covered in snow and tuck her out when I 378 00:22:45.720 --> 00:22:48.079 made it back to my uncle's house. But I felt 379 00:22:48.119 --> 00:22:51.680 so grateful, and since I was back in cell range, 380 00:22:51.839 --> 00:22:55.480 I texted my mom that I loved her, even though 381 00:22:55.519 --> 00:22:58.359 it was really late. She texted me back. I was 382 00:22:58.440 --> 00:23:01.359 just glad I made it out of the situation, and 383 00:23:01.400 --> 00:23:05.400 I will never forget that unshakable, creepy chill I felt 384 00:23:05.440 --> 00:23:10.400 camping back in those woods in that valley. Since this experience, 385 00:23:10.440 --> 00:23:13.640 I've camped out alone several times in other places and 386 00:23:13.720 --> 00:23:17.759 haven't experienced any freaky feeling or felt disturbed at all, 387 00:23:18.200 --> 00:23:21.359 which helps confirm to me that there was something in 388 00:23:21.400 --> 00:23:25.559 that valley that one night giving me chills. I've never 389 00:23:25.640 --> 00:23:28.240 camped in that spot since then, and I have no 390 00:23:28.400 --> 00:23:31.559 desire to thank you for taking the time to read 391 00:23:31.599 --> 00:23:34.559 this email and for letting me share these stories with you. 392 00:23:34.640 --> 00:23:40.359 Signed Alex Alex's that's an awesome story. Man. You I'm 393 00:23:40.400 --> 00:23:43.640 assuming you're a native person up in Alaska. Obviously your 394 00:23:43.720 --> 00:23:45.839 family is there and they live in the villages up 395 00:23:45.880 --> 00:23:48.880 in the Great White North. And you know, I never 396 00:23:48.960 --> 00:23:52.160 get many stories out of Alaska at all. I think 397 00:23:52.160 --> 00:23:55.319 we've had maybe two or three in the last two years. 398 00:23:55.680 --> 00:23:59.519 And this is fascinating stuff because I don't know, I 399 00:23:59.559 --> 00:24:01.759 would think think that there would be a huge amount 400 00:24:01.759 --> 00:24:07.240 of bigfoot activity in Alaska. We get stories from Mississippi, Alabama, 401 00:24:07.319 --> 00:24:09.680