1 00:00:06,440 --> 00:00:09,640 Speaker 1: I was appointed as the pastor of the Ardmore Church 2 00:00:09,679 --> 00:00:13,519 of God in nineteen eighty five. I had been doing 3 00:00:13,560 --> 00:00:17,480 my ministerial internship at the church when I won the appointment, 4 00:00:17,920 --> 00:00:21,480 so I was familiar with the church and it's, shall 5 00:00:21,519 --> 00:00:27,199 we say, peculiar stories that surrounded it. The pastor's residence 6 00:00:27,359 --> 00:00:30,079 was a twenty eight foot by twenty eight foot apartment 7 00:00:30,239 --> 00:00:33,000 attached to the north end of the church building, and 8 00:00:33,039 --> 00:00:36,359 that became home to me, my wife, and our three children. 9 00:00:37,719 --> 00:00:40,880 The residence was separated from the church sanctuary by a 10 00:00:40,960 --> 00:00:44,920 large combination dining hall and kitchen that was used for 11 00:00:45,119 --> 00:00:50,280 church functions. A classroom lay between the kitchen and the sanctuary, 12 00:00:50,679 --> 00:00:56,280 and between the dining area and the sanctuary was my office. 13 00:00:56,399 --> 00:00:59,359 The departing pastor and his wife reported that the big 14 00:00:59,439 --> 00:01:02,880 room had a creepy feel to it. They avoided the 15 00:01:02,960 --> 00:01:07,519 room whenever possible, and especially in the dark. They were 16 00:01:07,640 --> 00:01:11,280 very strong Christians, So why did they not investigate the 17 00:01:11,319 --> 00:01:14,920 source of their feelings or why were they afraid? It 18 00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:19,359 remains a mystery to me. Perhaps that's not saying much 19 00:01:19,439 --> 00:01:22,120 for the Christian faith, but we don't all live up 20 00:01:22,120 --> 00:01:27,319 to the perfect ideal, especially when we are scared, but 21 00:01:27,400 --> 00:01:30,680 what can I say? My own wife and children refused 22 00:01:30,680 --> 00:01:33,200 to enter the room after dark, and it took a 23 00:01:33,239 --> 00:01:35,560 great deal of coaxing to get the kids to go 24 00:01:35,640 --> 00:01:39,519 in there at all. There were times they exited the 25 00:01:39,599 --> 00:01:42,439 residence and walked around the outside of the church to 26 00:01:42,519 --> 00:01:46,560 go into the sanctuary. They said the room was haunted 27 00:01:46,760 --> 00:01:50,079 and it felt like they were being watched by unfriendly eyes. 28 00:01:51,519 --> 00:01:54,599 I admit there was something I didn't know exactly what 29 00:01:54,760 --> 00:01:57,959 was going on. The church was well known for its 30 00:01:58,079 --> 00:02:02,760 history of dissension and rather troublesome members who embraced odd doctrines. 31 00:02:03,840 --> 00:02:06,599 I figured they'd given the troubled history that was just 32 00:02:06,640 --> 00:02:10,159 a negative spirit and what people now call a vibe 33 00:02:10,199 --> 00:02:13,919 about the place. I had to walk through the room 34 00:02:13,960 --> 00:02:16,520 to get to my office, which I often did about 35 00:02:16,520 --> 00:02:20,360 three in the morning. Quiet time to study and prayer 36 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:24,439 comes at a premium when you have children. There was 37 00:02:24,479 --> 00:02:27,719 a certain increasing creepiness to crossing the room that I 38 00:02:27,719 --> 00:02:32,840 couldn't quite shake. The former pastor kept the coffee pot 39 00:02:32,879 --> 00:02:36,000 in the office rather than the kitchen. I had never 40 00:02:36,080 --> 00:02:38,800 given that much thought until I started arriving at the 41 00:02:38,840 --> 00:02:42,719 office at that early hour. I wasn't afraid to enter 42 00:02:42,719 --> 00:02:45,680 the kitchen area, but I had no desire to do either. 43 00:02:46,599 --> 00:02:49,240 I was the new pastor, but this wasn't my first 44 00:02:49,360 --> 00:02:54,159 rodeo either. I had some experience with people oppressed and 45 00:02:54,280 --> 00:02:58,319 possessed by demons. I wasn't running from the school bully, 46 00:02:58,520 --> 00:03:03,080 but I wasn't exactly for a fight. All I can 47 00:03:03,120 --> 00:03:05,960 say in my defense is that to everything, there is 48 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:09,759 a season and a time to every purpose, and the 49 00:03:09,840 --> 00:03:14,159 time was not yet. It seemed to me the best 50 00:03:14,280 --> 00:03:16,639 course was to work hard at what I did and 51 00:03:16,680 --> 00:03:20,439 bring in a new, more positive group of people. And 52 00:03:20,479 --> 00:03:23,599 to that end, I found myself relying on preaching for 53 00:03:23,719 --> 00:03:27,280 more notes than was my custom. I thought this was 54 00:03:27,319 --> 00:03:30,159 a sign of lack of preparation on my part until 55 00:03:30,199 --> 00:03:34,840 some seasoned preachers came in to preach. I watched them 56 00:03:34,919 --> 00:03:38,039 lose their train of thought, almost in mid sentence, and 57 00:03:38,080 --> 00:03:42,080 they stumbled over their words they planned to preach. That 58 00:03:42,199 --> 00:03:45,560 I wasn't the only one struggling was a bittersweet consolation. 59 00:03:47,319 --> 00:03:53,120 And then something strange happened. People longest strange from the church, 60 00:03:53,639 --> 00:03:56,840 career criminals, and people who had never darkened a church 61 00:03:56,919 --> 00:04:00,000 door began to show up on Sunday mornings and were 62 00:04:00,199 --> 00:04:04,800 very receptive to the gospel. At first glance, that doesn't 63 00:04:04,800 --> 00:04:09,599 seem so strange, or it shouldn't anyway, wasn't that what 64 00:04:09,639 --> 00:04:14,319 I was working and praying for? But rather than encouraging 65 00:04:14,319 --> 00:04:18,920 the small congregation already attending, it seemed to breed resentment, 66 00:04:19,680 --> 00:04:22,120 and people began to complain to me about all the 67 00:04:22,279 --> 00:04:26,639 sinners who were coming to church. A couple of older 68 00:04:26,680 --> 00:04:30,000 ladies came to church one Sunday with smiles on their faces, 69 00:04:30,319 --> 00:04:33,199 and they rushed to see me after church was dismissed. 70 00:04:34,160 --> 00:04:36,480 They said that they enjoyed my preaching and had begun 71 00:04:36,519 --> 00:04:39,720 to pray at home, and then they went on to 72 00:04:39,759 --> 00:04:43,360 tell how they prayed before going to the casino on Saturday. 73 00:04:44,079 --> 00:04:46,040 They couldn't wait to get to church and make an 74 00:04:46,120 --> 00:04:50,160 offering from their winnings. Well, I found that kind of endearing, 75 00:04:50,279 --> 00:04:53,079 but many of my original faithful found it not to 76 00:04:53,120 --> 00:04:57,240 their liking. Not long after that, I was in the 77 00:04:57,319 --> 00:05:00,399 church sanctuary in the middle of the day, and I 78 00:05:00,480 --> 00:05:03,120 was walking around the front of the church praying rather 79 00:05:03,240 --> 00:05:07,600 loudly when I heard someone come in, or perhaps felt 80 00:05:07,680 --> 00:05:11,639 someone come in as more precise I knew the church 81 00:05:11,720 --> 00:05:14,279 doors were locked, but I turned around to see who 82 00:05:14,319 --> 00:05:18,439 it might be, and there was no one there. That's 83 00:05:18,480 --> 00:05:21,000 when I realized the door I heard turned on its 84 00:05:21,079 --> 00:05:24,120 hinges came from the direction of the classroom that gave 85 00:05:24,240 --> 00:05:28,360 unto the kitchen. A black mist the size of a 86 00:05:28,439 --> 00:05:32,120 human body floated onto the raised platform near the pulpit 87 00:05:32,600 --> 00:05:36,439 and hovered there for several moments before a face began 88 00:05:36,560 --> 00:05:41,800 to form beneath the mist. The decision between fight or 89 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:45,279 flight passed so quickly that I have no memory of it. 90 00:05:46,240 --> 00:05:49,000 I commanded the thing to get out and never return. 91 00:05:50,399 --> 00:05:53,639 It became a blur that disappeared as it passed on 92 00:05:53,800 --> 00:05:57,600 my right, and the church doors rattled on their hinges 93 00:05:57,959 --> 00:06:00,519 like a three hundred pound offense in the line had 94 00:06:00,600 --> 00:06:05,639 hit them. Stunned, I dropped down on the front pew 95 00:06:05,920 --> 00:06:09,639 and just sat there until the sheiks and adrenaline surge abated. 96 00:06:10,639 --> 00:06:12,720 I was never scared, but I don't think I was 97 00:06:12,759 --> 00:06:17,360 ever really in charge. As certainly as there was a 98 00:06:17,360 --> 00:06:22,120 demonic force present, there was a second, stronger presence too. 99 00:06:22,279 --> 00:06:27,360 I didn't tell anyone about what happened. The situation was 100 00:06:27,439 --> 00:06:30,879 repeated a few days later, and that evening my wife 101 00:06:30,959 --> 00:06:34,000 returned from a trip to the church kitchen to marvel 102 00:06:34,160 --> 00:06:39,319 that whatever was there before was completely gone. I resigned 103 00:06:39,319 --> 00:06:42,680 the church a few months later. Within a year, the 104 00:06:42,759 --> 00:06:47,839 church closed that location and moved across town. The building 105 00:06:48,000 --> 00:06:51,199 the last time I saw it was a medical supply company. 106 00:06:52,199 --> 00:06:55,079 I didn't go inside to ask how business was or 107 00:06:55,120 --> 00:07:02,000 if they noticed anything peculiar with their new building. You 108 00:07:02,000 --> 00:07:04,040 don't know me, but your name was related to me 109 00:07:04,319 --> 00:07:07,800 as someone who could solve a problem i'm having. My 110 00:07:07,920 --> 00:07:10,600 name is Jack Bright, and for the last seven years, 111 00:07:10,639 --> 00:07:13,519 I've been trying to secure a deed in mineral rights 112 00:07:13,879 --> 00:07:17,399 to build a secure containment facility to protect the valuables 113 00:07:17,560 --> 00:07:22,120 contained therein on a piece of land located in Tocopola, Mississippi. 114 00:07:23,040 --> 00:07:26,399 As fate would have it, mister Lilly, I was finally 115 00:07:26,439 --> 00:07:31,240 granted both after a lengthy legal process. As a little 116 00:07:31,240 --> 00:07:35,680 background information may prove valuable in assessing my dilemma, I'd 117 00:07:35,720 --> 00:07:38,560 like to share this with you. The land was cheap. 118 00:07:38,959 --> 00:07:41,240 It was almost like the county was trying to give 119 00:07:41,279 --> 00:07:44,720 it away. The problem was that no one could find 120 00:07:44,759 --> 00:07:48,240 a living owner for the land. The last owner, listed 121 00:07:48,279 --> 00:07:53,439 as Jeremiah Trice, died fifteen years ago. After doing a 122 00:07:53,480 --> 00:07:56,920 little research on the man and his family, I discovered 123 00:07:56,959 --> 00:08:01,040 that he had two twin daughters, Priscilla and Quilla Trice, 124 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:04,439 but I couldn't find any records showing what happened to them. 125 00:08:05,399 --> 00:08:07,639 That's why it took so long to purchase the land, 126 00:08:07,759 --> 00:08:11,160 since the court had to legally pronounce it abandon before 127 00:08:11,160 --> 00:08:14,519 it could be sold to me. Before the ink was 128 00:08:14,600 --> 00:08:17,680 dry on the bill of sail, the crazy started in 129 00:08:17,759 --> 00:08:21,079 full force, and I hired a construction company to come 130 00:08:21,120 --> 00:08:23,800 out to clear and level the land before pouring the 131 00:08:23,800 --> 00:08:28,680 foundation for the new underground storage. Almost immediately I started 132 00:08:28,680 --> 00:08:32,799 getting reports of vandals and thieves coming one site when 133 00:08:32,840 --> 00:08:36,080 work was finished for the day. But the vandalism wasn't 134 00:08:36,120 --> 00:08:40,320 sure garden variety type. I would classify the damage being 135 00:08:40,360 --> 00:08:44,440 done as impossible. Not just one, but two steam rollers 136 00:08:44,559 --> 00:08:48,679 were cracked beyond the possibility of repair, and multiple animal 137 00:08:48,720 --> 00:08:52,759 carcasses were discovered in various stages of decomposition along the 138 00:08:52,799 --> 00:08:57,279 four corners of where the foundation would be poured. The 139 00:08:57,360 --> 00:09:00,879 immediate line of fought offered by the sheriff deputies was 140 00:09:00,960 --> 00:09:04,399 some kind of devil worshiping cult sneaking onto the property 141 00:09:04,399 --> 00:09:07,919 at night to perform some silly ritual that they believe 142 00:09:07,960 --> 00:09:11,960 would grant them money or power or that kind of nonsense. 143 00:09:12,080 --> 00:09:15,279 But no one was able to explain how the steamrollers 144 00:09:15,320 --> 00:09:19,399 were cracked without any indication of an industrial tool being used. 145 00:09:20,440 --> 00:09:24,000 The most unsettling part of this circus was the giant, 146 00:09:24,080 --> 00:09:28,879 barefoot footprints located all over the site. The deputy said 147 00:09:28,919 --> 00:09:31,720 the cult people were probably wearing some of those big 148 00:09:31,799 --> 00:09:37,879 gag bigfoot shoes that you get off Amazon in an 149 00:09:37,919 --> 00:09:40,919 attempt to scare people off. I'm sorry, guys, I can 150 00:09:41,080 --> 00:09:44,399 just see these cult people walking around with these big 151 00:09:45,159 --> 00:09:48,399 feet strapped on their feet. I don't know, It's just 152 00:09:48,440 --> 00:09:51,440 a funny image to me. Back to the letter, I 153 00:09:51,480 --> 00:09:53,840 don't know if all this damage is being caused by 154 00:09:53,960 --> 00:09:57,080 people or a bunch of sasquatch, but I was told 155 00:09:57,120 --> 00:09:59,919 that two night watchmen have gone missing that were keep 156 00:10:00,200 --> 00:10:02,840 an eye on my property at night in an attempt 157 00:10:02,879 --> 00:10:05,639 to catch the vandals, which means we just went from 158 00:10:05,720 --> 00:10:11,000 vandalism to kidnapping and maybe even murder. Needless to say, 159 00:10:11,360 --> 00:10:15,919 everyone is on edge. I've had several workers resigned this 160 00:10:15,960 --> 00:10:18,440 past week from their positions due to the fear of 161 00:10:18,480 --> 00:10:22,240 being caught after hours by whatever is stalking this location 162 00:10:22,399 --> 00:10:25,799 every night, and I couldn't blame them one bit. But 163 00:10:25,879 --> 00:10:28,960 the final mind blower was this letter from my employees 164 00:10:29,000 --> 00:10:32,720 found on the ground yesterday morning. It was found by 165 00:10:32,759 --> 00:10:35,159 the work form and at the beginning of the morning shift, 166 00:10:35,279 --> 00:10:39,639 taped to a portajohn located on the south boundary. The 167 00:10:39,720 --> 00:10:42,600 envelope only had my name on it. There was nothing 168 00:10:42,600 --> 00:10:45,639 out of the ordinary about the envelope. It's appearing to 169 00:10:45,679 --> 00:10:49,240 be standard in every way, but the note located inside 170 00:10:49,240 --> 00:10:52,360 of it has been the cause for many restless nights following. 171 00:10:53,519 --> 00:10:56,919 The letter claimed to be from the Trice twins that 172 00:10:57,000 --> 00:10:59,840 had disappeared from the face of the earth shortly after 173 00:11:00,120 --> 00:11:03,720 the death of their father, Jeremiah Trice fifteen years ago. 174 00:11:04,240 --> 00:11:09,159 The letter reads as follows. This land is and always 175 00:11:09,360 --> 00:11:13,639 will be ours by blood and by sacrifice. The bargain 176 00:11:13,759 --> 00:11:17,320 will always be respected. You are not of our blood, 177 00:11:17,399 --> 00:11:21,080 mister Bright. You have no claim and your money is 178 00:11:21,159 --> 00:11:25,080 meaningless to us. Your machines offended us, and they were 179 00:11:25,159 --> 00:11:27,960 broken as a warning to you. But now your continued 180 00:11:28,000 --> 00:11:32,639 efforts have caused us to see you dead. Leave our home, 181 00:11:32,759 --> 00:11:38,159 mister Bright, and live or stay and die. Your warning 182 00:11:38,480 --> 00:11:42,120 is waiting for you on the floor of our kingdom. 183 00:11:43,200 --> 00:11:46,480 The crew and I found the remains of three employees 184 00:11:46,600 --> 00:11:49,720 scattered around the work site the next morning, mister Lily. 185 00:11:50,519 --> 00:11:53,559 The entire crew resigned after that, and the land has 186 00:11:53,600 --> 00:11:57,759 been completely abandoned. I need your help, sir. I'm willing 187 00:11:57,799 --> 00:11:59,799 to pay you well for this if you're willing to 188 00:11:59,840 --> 00:12:02,639 take the job. But I'd also like to know if 189 00:12:02,639 --> 00:12:06,120 the letter was really from the twins, where have they 190 00:12:06,159 --> 00:12:09,159 been all this time? What did they mean about not 191 00:12:09,240 --> 00:12:12,679 being related to them through blood? And where the hell 192 00:12:12,840 --> 00:12:19,679 did those huge footprints come from. Back in nineteen sixty five, 193 00:12:19,759 --> 00:12:23,559 my grandfather retired from the legal profession and purchased a 194 00:12:23,559 --> 00:12:28,039 little over twenty acres up in Willow Creek, California. There 195 00:12:28,120 --> 00:12:31,759 he had what we called today a kit farm. He 196 00:12:31,799 --> 00:12:34,720 had some beef and dairy cattle and sheep and chickens, 197 00:12:35,039 --> 00:12:38,279 and plus he grew some fruit trees and nice vegetables. 198 00:12:39,039 --> 00:12:41,600 He'd lived there a few years when he began to notice, 199 00:12:41,639 --> 00:12:45,960 after returning from fishing trips or visiting friends in San Francisco, 200 00:12:46,480 --> 00:12:50,480 that there would be eggs, fruit, and vegetables missing. And 201 00:12:50,519 --> 00:12:53,799 then one day in mid November of nineteen seventy, he 202 00:12:53,919 --> 00:12:57,240 was out milking cows and he heard footsteps approaching the 203 00:12:57,279 --> 00:13:00,759 front side of the barn. Thinking it was my uncle 204 00:13:00,840 --> 00:13:03,559 stopping by for a visit, he called out his name, 205 00:13:03,600 --> 00:13:07,440 but no one answered. He called out to him several times, 206 00:13:07,480 --> 00:13:11,879 but he still got no response. My grandfather stopped what 207 00:13:11,919 --> 00:13:14,240 he was doing and went out to see who was there, 208 00:13:14,639 --> 00:13:16,639 and as he rounded the corner of the barn, to 209 00:13:16,720 --> 00:13:20,799 his utter shock and disbelief, he found himself staring at 210 00:13:20,840 --> 00:13:24,080 a seven and a half foot tall harry being with 211 00:13:24,200 --> 00:13:27,840 an arrow sticking out of his right thigh. He pulled 212 00:13:27,919 --> 00:13:31,960 up short and shout it out in surprise. My grandmother 213 00:13:32,039 --> 00:13:34,080 and uncle heard him from the house and they came 214 00:13:34,120 --> 00:13:37,759 out to help. My uncle brought his thirty six rifle 215 00:13:37,840 --> 00:13:40,720 in a forty five caliber pistol, and by the time 216 00:13:40,799 --> 00:13:43,759 they got there, the bigfoot had slumped to the ground 217 00:13:43,840 --> 00:13:48,399 and half leaning against the barn. It was clear the 218 00:13:48,399 --> 00:13:51,960 bigfoot was in agony, so my grandfather and my uncle 219 00:13:52,000 --> 00:13:56,240 decided to help him. They helped the bigfoot to the barn, 220 00:13:56,320 --> 00:13:58,679 where my uncle, who was a corman in the navy, 221 00:13:58,720 --> 00:14:03,559 administered first day. Afterwards, he asked my grandfather to give 222 00:14:03,600 --> 00:14:06,440 the creature some antibiotics that he kept on the farm 223 00:14:06,480 --> 00:14:09,879 for animals. Then they gave him a few blankets and 224 00:14:09,919 --> 00:14:12,320 pillows for a bed and left him in the barn. 225 00:14:13,759 --> 00:14:16,360 It was a month before the bigfoot healed well enough 226 00:14:16,399 --> 00:14:20,000 to get back into the woods. Over the years, the bigfoot, 227 00:14:20,120 --> 00:14:24,360 whom my grandparents named Clarence after the angel in It's 228 00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:28,960 a Wonderful Life, would come back for visits. During the 229 00:14:29,000 --> 00:14:33,000 summer of nineteen seventy seven, when I was fifteen years old, 230 00:14:33,399 --> 00:14:36,600 I visited my grandparents on their farm for a few weeks. 231 00:14:37,600 --> 00:14:40,279 One day, my granddad took me fishing to a stream 232 00:14:40,360 --> 00:14:44,039 not far from the house. We took our lunch plus 233 00:14:44,080 --> 00:14:46,960 an extra one in a peach pie, and after a 234 00:14:46,960 --> 00:14:50,879 few hours of fishing, granddad brought up the movie Star Wars. 235 00:14:51,879 --> 00:14:54,080 I told him I had seen it a few weeks earlier, 236 00:14:54,440 --> 00:14:56,240 and he asked me if I wanted to see a 237 00:14:56,320 --> 00:15:00,639 real life wookie. I gave him a whatever look and said, 238 00:15:00,679 --> 00:15:04,039 wookies or mate. Believe Grandpa, they're only in the movies. 239 00:15:04,799 --> 00:15:07,799 Watch and learn, he answered, and he put down his pole. 240 00:15:09,279 --> 00:15:11,519 He picked up the extra lunch in the peach pie, 241 00:15:11,559 --> 00:15:13,919 and he carried them across the fallen tree that lay 242 00:15:13,960 --> 00:15:17,519 across the stream and set them down on an old stump. 243 00:15:18,559 --> 00:15:20,840 He crossed back over to my side of the stream 244 00:15:20,879 --> 00:15:24,399 and he picked up his pole again. Clarence, he called, 245 00:15:24,559 --> 00:15:28,320 it's lunchtime. We sat there in silence for a few 246 00:15:28,360 --> 00:15:31,080 minutes while I tried to figure out what granddad was 247 00:15:31,200 --> 00:15:34,759 up to. And then I heard heavy footsteps coming from 248 00:15:34,759 --> 00:15:38,279 somewhere on the other side of the creek, and suddenly 249 00:15:38,360 --> 00:15:43,120 the underbrush parted an outstep the biggest, harriest person I 250 00:15:43,159 --> 00:15:46,919 had ever seen. I thought my granddad and one of 251 00:15:46,919 --> 00:15:49,120 his friends were playing a joke on me. When my 252 00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:53,440 uncle showed up and greeted Clarence, I was sure of it. 253 00:15:53,480 --> 00:15:57,080 Is this a joke, I asked, No, they answered, and 254 00:15:57,120 --> 00:16:01,200 then my grandfather added, they really do exist. I turned 255 00:16:01,240 --> 00:16:03,720 and ran back to the house as fast as I could. 256 00:16:04,159 --> 00:16:06,600 My grandmother was asking me what was wrong. When my 257 00:16:06,679 --> 00:16:10,600 grandfather and uncle came through the door, she turned her 258 00:16:10,679 --> 00:16:14,480 questions on them. They explained that I had just met 259 00:16:14,519 --> 00:16:18,120 Clarence for the first time. In the years since my 260 00:16:18,240 --> 00:16:22,200 grandparents passed away, I've made several visits to Willow Creek, 261 00:16:23,080 --> 00:16:25,399 I check up on things, and I leave Clarence and 262 00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:29,799 his family apples and other goodies. All I ask is 263 00:16:29,840 --> 00:16:33,279 that anyone who visits Willow Creek are anywhere there have 264 00:16:33,440 --> 00:16:37,519 been bigfoot sightings to please leave them in peace and goodwill. 265 00:16:38,200 --> 00:16:40,360 It would be nice if you left them some goodies 266 00:16:40,360 --> 00:16:43,000 as well. You might even get a whoop or a 267 00:16:43,039 --> 00:16:50,200 peak from one. My bigfoot encounter happened on Saturday night, 268 00:16:50,320 --> 00:16:54,559 July twenty fourth, twenty sixteen, on the edge of Yosemite 269 00:16:54,639 --> 00:16:59,600 National Park Wilderness camping Area. Be careful when camping in 270 00:16:59,639 --> 00:17:04,599 californ bigfoots are there, even though California rangers say no, 271 00:17:04,759 --> 00:17:07,440 it must have been a bear. Trust me, it was 272 00:17:07,519 --> 00:17:11,079 no bear, and that's fact. My name is Steve and 273 00:17:11,160 --> 00:17:13,799 I'm fifty nine years old now. I've lived in the 274 00:17:13,839 --> 00:17:17,680 Golden State of California my whole life. I have always 275 00:17:17,759 --> 00:17:19,920 hunted since I was young, and I lived in the 276 00:17:19,960 --> 00:17:23,640 city at the same time. My family had connections to 277 00:17:23,680 --> 00:17:27,200 the Central Valley of California, and Dad like hunting ducks 278 00:17:27,240 --> 00:17:30,599 and pheasants mostly, so that's how a city boy in 279 00:17:30,640 --> 00:17:33,599 California it turned out to be an outdoor guy who 280 00:17:33,680 --> 00:17:37,519 ends up owning an outfitting business in Afton, Wyoming while 281 00:17:37,559 --> 00:17:40,759 living in Silicon Valley in the early days, and I'm 282 00:17:40,880 --> 00:17:46,240 still here. Unfortunately, six years ago, while working on my home, 283 00:17:46,279 --> 00:17:49,119 I had a bad head trauma accident and I ended 284 00:17:49,200 --> 00:17:53,039 up in the ICU for six weeks. Before the accident, 285 00:17:53,240 --> 00:17:55,839 I had an active life with little time to do 286 00:17:56,000 --> 00:17:59,680 much but what was at hand. So now I find myself, 287 00:17:59,759 --> 00:18:02,960 how ridden for two years with nothing to do but 288 00:18:03,079 --> 00:18:07,240 lay on my bed for hours having nightmares about scary thoughts. 289 00:18:08,559 --> 00:18:12,440 Due to the accident, I have bad PTSD. I get 290 00:18:12,519 --> 00:18:15,720 up every night between one thirty and three thirty, needing 291 00:18:15,799 --> 00:18:18,720 something to keep my mind busy from negative thoughts or 292 00:18:18,759 --> 00:18:23,279 other things that I can't remember or pronounce. Each night, 293 00:18:23,319 --> 00:18:26,039 I get on my iPad searching for Bigfoot, and my 294 00:18:26,200 --> 00:18:30,680 mind would be safe for hours. During the long hours 295 00:18:30,680 --> 00:18:33,440 of reading and watching every video I could find, I 296 00:18:33,480 --> 00:18:36,359 started to learn and realize these folks had no idea 297 00:18:36,400 --> 00:18:39,960 what they were doing chasing these creatures. So I took 298 00:18:40,000 --> 00:18:42,720 my knowledge of hunting in years of outfitting, and I 299 00:18:42,799 --> 00:18:47,160 started studying how to get one. The recovery from my 300 00:18:47,240 --> 00:18:50,200 operations was taking longer than I thought, so I was 301 00:18:50,240 --> 00:18:53,240 getting frustrated and I decided to get out of the 302 00:18:53,279 --> 00:18:56,559 house and go hunting for bigfoot. I knew that these 303 00:18:56,640 --> 00:19:00,960 creatures were living supposedly in my state. It's just there's 304 00:19:01,000 --> 00:19:03,319 a lot of woods in California, so I needed some 305 00:19:03,440 --> 00:19:08,119 locations to start. During my early morning studies, I read 306 00:19:08,160 --> 00:19:12,200 about a nationally known bigfoot organization and that is where 307 00:19:12,240 --> 00:19:15,799 I started. I contacted them and got set up to 308 00:19:15,799 --> 00:19:19,680 go on a trip in northern California. The lead on 309 00:19:19,759 --> 00:19:22,400 the trip contacted us and wanted to talk about what 310 00:19:22,440 --> 00:19:26,200 would take place. There was no guarantee of seeing anything 311 00:19:26,440 --> 00:19:30,759 due to the creatures being very secretive and elusive. I 312 00:19:30,799 --> 00:19:33,039 told him I did not leave my home much due 313 00:19:33,039 --> 00:19:35,079 to the above issues, so I wasn't going to be 314 00:19:35,119 --> 00:19:37,640 able to go alone, and I was looking to go 315 00:19:37,720 --> 00:19:42,039 with another person. My wife is my caregiver and was 316 00:19:42,079 --> 00:19:45,720 not interested in chasing these so called bigfoot animals around 317 00:19:45,720 --> 00:19:49,319 at night with strangers. Well, I had time on my side, 318 00:19:49,359 --> 00:19:52,960 so I started asking all my family members. None were 319 00:19:53,000 --> 00:19:57,200 interested in my crazy adventure idea. They thought my mind 320 00:19:57,279 --> 00:20:01,039 might be slipping further, but it wasn't. No one believed 321 00:20:01,039 --> 00:20:02,960 in these animals and they were not going to waste 322 00:20:03,039 --> 00:20:06,680 valuable time searching it out with me, and then I 323 00:20:06,720 --> 00:20:09,519 went outside the family and finally convinced a young man 324 00:20:09,599 --> 00:20:12,680 named Conrad, who my wife and I had mentored for 325 00:20:12,880 --> 00:20:17,640 years and we love and trust him. Conrad hadn't camped 326 00:20:17,720 --> 00:20:20,920 ever before in his life and was looking forward to camping, 327 00:20:21,279 --> 00:20:24,680 but did not really think much of Bigfoot. So I 328 00:20:24,759 --> 00:20:27,319 was excited that I had a trip for these elusive 329 00:20:27,359 --> 00:20:29,880 animals and now I would get them figured out in 330 00:20:30,000 --> 00:20:33,240 no time. Yeah, right, I would get them figured out. 331 00:20:34,839 --> 00:20:37,759 Conrad and I received the email where all of us 332 00:20:37,759 --> 00:20:40,519 folks were to meet up for our Bigfoot research trip. 333 00:20:41,160 --> 00:20:43,599 We all got to the state park camping area that 334 00:20:43,640 --> 00:20:46,440 we were going to call home for the next four days. 335 00:20:46,920 --> 00:20:49,519 While setting up our gear, we started talking with others 336 00:20:49,559 --> 00:20:53,079 from the group. Conrad and I couldn't believe how many 337 00:20:53,119 --> 00:20:56,319 of these strangers were just normal folks, seeming to be 338 00:20:56,480 --> 00:20:59,720 helpful to everyone. I figured that we might be in 339 00:20:59,759 --> 00:21:03,200 for some real crackpots chasing these creatures, and I was 340 00:21:03,240 --> 00:21:07,160 prepared for anything. So everything was good to this point, 341 00:21:07,240 --> 00:21:10,640 and we were starting to relax and mingle, and during 342 00:21:10,680 --> 00:21:13,799 the first night sitting around the campfire, we discovered that 343 00:21:13,920 --> 00:21:18,240 we liked the same TV shows, same books, magazines, and 344 00:21:18,440 --> 00:21:22,799 so the days went by fast. On the last night, 345 00:21:23,079 --> 00:21:25,799 we had driven up to a dry, dusty fire road 346 00:21:25,880 --> 00:21:28,079 to park trucks and then climbed to the top of 347 00:21:28,119 --> 00:21:31,799 a mountain. This saw took place in the pitch dark. 348 00:21:33,160 --> 00:21:35,480 When we were at the top, we were just sit 349 00:21:35,559 --> 00:21:39,200 and listen. We made calls and we made tree knocks 350 00:21:39,200 --> 00:21:42,279 to try to drum up something to respond, but everything 351 00:21:42,359 --> 00:21:45,599 was quiet. We spent most of the time looking at 352 00:21:45,640 --> 00:21:48,720 the stars and sitting on warmed rocks from the day's 353 00:21:48,799 --> 00:21:52,759 sun and relaxing. We spent all that time listening for 354 00:21:52,880 --> 00:21:56,960 any responses to our calls or knocks. Well. After a 355 00:21:57,000 --> 00:21:59,559 few hours, the lead person informed the group that we 356 00:21:59,559 --> 00:22:01,920 should have back to the trucks because we were going 357 00:22:01,960 --> 00:22:04,759 to meet up with another group, and we talked with 358 00:22:04,839 --> 00:22:08,240 them about what we should do next. It was two 359 00:22:08,279 --> 00:22:11,359 thirty am, and most were tired from the past four 360 00:22:11,480 --> 00:22:15,680 nights of hiking and with limited sleep. We all came 361 00:22:15,759 --> 00:22:17,920 up with a plan and we started to go our 362 00:22:17,960 --> 00:22:21,640 different ways back to camp. I decided to go back 363 00:22:21,640 --> 00:22:24,160 the same way that I came up. I knew I 364 00:22:24,200 --> 00:22:26,440 had some good looks at some meadows when the light 365 00:22:26,480 --> 00:22:28,839 of the truck would brighten them up, and I could 366 00:22:28,880 --> 00:22:32,960 see everything in those fields. The lead person asked us 367 00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:35,440 to drive slowly to keep dust down for a better 368 00:22:35,559 --> 00:22:39,160 viewing from the truck. I ask if any of the 369 00:22:39,160 --> 00:22:41,400 folks wanted to come with us, since I had room 370 00:22:41,480 --> 00:22:45,640 for three and we're going straight back to camp. Conrad 371 00:22:45,680 --> 00:22:48,880 and I were leaving when three ladies decided to join 372 00:22:48,960 --> 00:22:53,200 us for the trip back. We started down the steep, 373 00:22:53,319 --> 00:22:57,519 rocky slope. There was thick brush and grass on either side, 374 00:22:57,599 --> 00:23:00,000 and it scratched the sides of the truck as I rolled. 375 00:23:01,400 --> 00:23:04,240 We were all talking about how much we had enjoyed 376 00:23:04,279 --> 00:23:06,599 the trip and were exchanging phone numbers so that we 377 00:23:06,640 --> 00:23:10,240 could keep in touch. And halfway down the bumpy road, 378 00:23:10,640 --> 00:23:16,480 Conrad started screaming, there's a big foot. He was pointing 379 00:23:16,759 --> 00:23:20,559 at a big, red eyed creature standing forty feet in 380 00:23:20,599 --> 00:23:23,680 front of our truck, behind some shrubs off to the 381 00:23:23,759 --> 00:23:26,920 right side. Well, I looked at this creature and it 382 00:23:27,000 --> 00:23:30,720 was standing there just staring at us. I wasn't running 383 00:23:30,880 --> 00:23:34,240 or even walking. It just stared at us with big 384 00:23:34,279 --> 00:23:38,119 red eyes the size of limes set inside sockets of 385 00:23:38,200 --> 00:23:42,160 a huge head. It moved to the right. I could 386 00:23:42,160 --> 00:23:44,960 see shoulders in the side of its head, and I 387 00:23:45,039 --> 00:23:47,319 stopped the truck and at that moment, all three of 388 00:23:47,319 --> 00:23:49,960 the ladies who were sitting in the back started screaming 389 00:23:50,359 --> 00:23:53,279 because they saw this thing and they were ready to leave. 390 00:23:55,160 --> 00:23:57,880 I was seeing something I really was not sure existed, 391 00:23:57,960 --> 00:24:01,039 and I wasn't ready to leave yet, so I slammed 392 00:24:01,079 --> 00:24:04,079 my hand down on the dash and I said, we're 393 00:24:04,079 --> 00:24:06,160 here to see this thing. And there it is, and 394 00:24:06,200 --> 00:24:11,079 I'm not leaving. It wasn't doing anything but standing there, 395 00:24:11,359 --> 00:24:13,519 and then it moved a little to the right and 396 00:24:13,559 --> 00:24:16,759 my eyes were locked on it. I wanted to open 397 00:24:16,759 --> 00:24:18,599 the door and get a better look, but I was 398 00:24:18,680 --> 00:24:21,880 trapped in the tiny road with bushes on either side 399 00:24:21,920 --> 00:24:25,160 and no space to get out. I wanted to get 400 00:24:25,160 --> 00:24:27,279 a better view. When it started to move out of 401 00:24:27,319 --> 00:24:31,400 the headlights, the head was enormous and it was all 402 00:24:31,400 --> 00:24:35,079 covered in dark hair or fur of some sort. It 403 00:24:35,119 --> 00:24:38,759 moved further right into the bushes and small trees, but 404 00:24:38,839 --> 00:24:40,920 it was too dark for a picture or a video, 405 00:24:41,079 --> 00:24:42,960 so I just wanted to see it if I could 406 00:24:43,000 --> 00:24:45,559 get my fleer on it and then follow it into 407 00:24:45,640 --> 00:24:50,039 the forest. Unfortunately, the Fleer was in the back of 408 00:24:50,079 --> 00:24:52,200 the truck and I was in a tight spot on 409 00:24:52,279 --> 00:24:55,599 the road, and at that moment, I was not thinking 410 00:24:55,680 --> 00:24:58,400 of how or what to do. I just kept my 411 00:24:58,480 --> 00:25:01,960 eyes on it as long as I can could. All 412 00:25:01,960 --> 00:25:05,519 this time, I was completely scared beyond my limits, and 413 00:25:05,599 --> 00:25:08,759 I was wondering if at any second I might start 414 00:25:08,799 --> 00:25:11,799 to have a medical situation which would make my body 415 00:25:11,880 --> 00:25:16,400 shake uncontrollably, and my mind began to scramble. Maybe the 416 00:25:16,440 --> 00:25:19,640 situation was too much for me to continue functioning due 417 00:25:19,640 --> 00:25:23,640 to my injuries. Well, that's why I brought Conrad so 418 00:25:23,720 --> 00:25:25,480 that he could get me back to camp in the 419 00:25:25,519 --> 00:25:29,680 event that this happened. I had no idea how he 420 00:25:29,720 --> 00:25:33,240 would react if this situation were to take place. I 421 00:25:33,279 --> 00:25:36,119 figured out quickly as I asked Conrad to lower his 422 00:25:36,240 --> 00:25:38,720 window to help me figure out where this thing was, 423 00:25:39,160 --> 00:25:42,720 when he quickly responded by yelling, hell, no, I'm not 424 00:25:42,839 --> 00:25:46,559 rolling my window down. Well, I remain calm so the 425 00:25:46,640 --> 00:25:49,319 others would not be more scared than they already were. 426 00:25:50,119 --> 00:25:52,359 I wanted to get out of the truck, but then 427 00:25:52,400 --> 00:25:54,839 I wondered if they would drive away in a panic 428 00:25:54,880 --> 00:25:58,240 and leave me there. But I started to get out anyway. 429 00:26:00,000 --> 00:26:01,799 I was halfway out of my truck, and I was 430 00:26:01,920 --> 00:26:04,799 jammed between the door and the bushes, and I couldn't 431 00:26:04,880 --> 00:26:07,119 keep my eyes on it. At the same time, while 432 00:26:07,160 --> 00:26:09,160 moving to the back of the truck through the bushes 433 00:26:09,200 --> 00:26:13,200 where the fleer was located, I slowly pushed through the 434 00:26:13,200 --> 00:26:15,920 bushes back to the truck tailgate and I reached in 435 00:26:16,000 --> 00:26:19,640 with one hand while watching and listening for movement. And 436 00:26:19,720 --> 00:26:22,119 I could hear this thing moving around, but didn't know 437 00:26:22,200 --> 00:26:25,599 exactly where it was. It seemed to be moving a 438 00:26:25,640 --> 00:26:28,759 little further away because the branch breaking seemed to get 439 00:26:28,839 --> 00:26:32,559 more faint. The thought that maybe there were two or 440 00:26:32,599 --> 00:26:36,599 more creatures concerned me, though maybe this one was distracting 441 00:26:36,720 --> 00:26:40,440 us while another moved in. And in addition, I never 442 00:26:40,480 --> 00:26:44,720 caught wind of a foul smell. Your mind messes with 443 00:26:44,799 --> 00:26:48,720 you at times like this, and this situation was going 444 00:26:48,799 --> 00:26:51,559 by much too fast and scary for my body to 445 00:26:51,640 --> 00:26:55,200 keep up. That's when I noticed that this fear was 446 00:26:55,240 --> 00:26:58,119 different from any other fear I'd ever felt in my life. 447 00:26:58,920 --> 00:27:01,559 It seemed to envelop my whole body, like if you 448 00:27:01,640 --> 00:27:04,039 were to ski the whole day and get cold and 449 00:27:04,079 --> 00:27:06,519 then walk in a warm house where the heat hits 450 00:27:06,559 --> 00:27:10,359 you in a rush. It was a very weird sense 451 00:27:10,400 --> 00:27:14,039 of fear, almost like I was in a bubble. I 452 00:27:14,079 --> 00:27:16,319 finally got the flare out of the truck and started 453 00:27:16,319 --> 00:27:19,039 looking down the small hill where the creature was before 454 00:27:19,039 --> 00:27:21,880 I lost sight of it and I couldn't see it anymore, 455 00:27:22,160 --> 00:27:26,200 and I wasn't hearing any movement. Meanwhile, the others in 456 00:27:26,240 --> 00:27:29,599 the truck were radioing the group on what was happening, 457 00:27:29,920 --> 00:27:33,319 and asked for them to come help us. Once the 458 00:27:33,359 --> 00:27:36,240 others started to arrive, my fear went away as we 459 00:27:36,359 --> 00:27:39,839 talked about what had just taken place. I couldn't really 460 00:27:39,880 --> 00:27:43,079 say what had happened. Maybe I was in mild shock, 461 00:27:43,920 --> 00:27:46,400 but I'm glad I saw it with five other people 462 00:27:46,599 --> 00:27:49,880 instead of seeing it by myself. Now that makes us 463 00:27:49,920 --> 00:27:54,039 all crazy, not just me. We got back to the 464 00:27:54,079 --> 00:27:57,240 main camp and talked more on what had taken place, 465 00:27:57,759 --> 00:27:59,960 cracking up on how no one else would even roun 466 00:28:00,119 --> 00:28:02,920 the window down to assist me. We were on a 467 00:28:02,960 --> 00:28:06,839 bigfoot research trip and we actually saw one, and we 468 00:28:06,960 --> 00:28:09,799 lost all thoughts of what we should have done, And 469 00:28:09,880 --> 00:28:13,599 it still makes me laugh. Conrad and I were so 470 00:28:13,759 --> 00:28:16,279 amped up that we couldn't sleep, so we stayed up 471 00:28:16,359 --> 00:28:19,759 until the morning, sitting near the fire. Both of us 472 00:28:19,799 --> 00:28:22,839 were still trying to understand what we had seen. It 473 00:28:22,920 --> 00:28:26,200 took me two weeks to settle on the realization that 474 00:28:26,279 --> 00:28:30,720 we had actually seen a sosquatch. Well. The next morning 475 00:28:30,759 --> 00:28:33,240 we packed up camp and we left her home, where 476 00:28:33,279 --> 00:28:36,400 I hoped I could get some sleep. We both talked 477 00:28:36,400 --> 00:28:38,920 the whole way home about why our government has not 478 00:28:39,000 --> 00:28:43,799 been honest on this subject. At no point did I 479 00:28:43,880 --> 00:28:47,640 ever think of shooting it. I had carried an ACP 480 00:28:47,839 --> 00:28:50,720 pistol ready to use on my hip, but I never 481 00:28:50,799 --> 00:28:54,200 reached for it. I suppose I would have had the 482 00:28:54,240 --> 00:28:58,519 fear not been so overwhelming. In addition, it makes sense 483 00:28:58,559 --> 00:29:01,160 to me why there have been so many sightings and 484 00:29:01,279 --> 00:29:05,240 virtually no good images taken. I believe it's the fear 485 00:29:05,400 --> 00:29:09,200 and shock of actually seeing something like this. I mean, 486 00:29:09,240 --> 00:29:11,519 we were on a bigfoot trip and had everything we 487 00:29:11,640 --> 00:29:14,400 needed in the truck, and everyone was too scared to 488 00:29:14,440 --> 00:29:18,000 even think about taking a picture. If we did take 489 00:29:18,039 --> 00:29:20,359 a picture, it would have been a big, black, blurry 490 00:29:20,440 --> 00:29:24,319 blob like many others. You're caught so off guard when 491 00:29:24,359 --> 00:29:26,960 you get lucky enough to see one and the last 492 00:29:26,960 --> 00:29:31,359 thing you're thinking about is grabbing a camera. My only 493 00:29:31,440 --> 00:29:34,400 thought throughout the whole ordeal, even though it may have 494 00:29:34,559 --> 00:29:37,039 seemed to brave that I got out of the truck, 495 00:29:37,400 --> 00:29:41,039 was is there enough distance between me and this monster 496 00:29:41,200 --> 00:29:44,839 that I can get away if I need to. I 497 00:29:44,880 --> 00:29:48,000 have been out many times since this encounter, and I've 498 00:29:48,000 --> 00:29:50,599 been out of California, and I've had many different types 499 00:29:50,640 --> 00:29:54,599 of interactions with these creatures, but I've never had another visual. 500 00:29:55,640 --> 00:30:00,480 I've hunted Alaska, Canada and all over North America, harvested 501 00:30:00,519 --> 00:30:05,599 many large game animals and many long distances. These bigfoot 502 00:30:05,720 --> 00:30:10,039 can be taken with a properly placed shot. However, standing 503 00:30:10,160 --> 00:30:13,000 forty feet from this creature, I'm not the one who 504 00:30:13,000 --> 00:30:15,119 could have ever gotten the shot off that would have 505 00:30:15,200 --> 00:30:18,519 needed to take it down. The fear would not have 506 00:30:18,559 --> 00:30:21,319 allowed me to have been steady enough to hit the target. 507 00:30:22,279 --> 00:30:25,720 I shoot fifty yards offhand with pistols all the time 508 00:30:25,759 --> 00:30:28,759 at metal targets the size of a soda can, and 509 00:30:28,799 --> 00:30:31,440 I'm a good shot. I would not have had a 510 00:30:31,519 --> 00:30:33,680 chance at forty feet with a head bigger than a 511 00:30:33,720 --> 00:30:38,200 home depot five gallon bucket. If someone can control the 512 00:30:38,240 --> 00:30:41,480 fear and properly place a good shot to the head. 513 00:30:41,960 --> 00:30:44,880 It will go down quickly in my opinion, but if 514 00:30:44,920 --> 00:30:47,880 you miss, you could be in for a bad day. 515 00:30:49,240 --> 00:30:52,200 There's more to these creatures than we all know, yet 516 00:30:52,640 --> 00:30:55,920 they kind of incapacitate someone with fear from doing and 517 00:30:56,000 --> 00:31:00,920 thinking straight. Some say it's infra sound. I think maybe 518 00:31:00,960 --> 00:31:04,000 we should just stay tuned until the creature allows us 519 00:31:04,039 --> 00:31:15,000 more insight on what is going on with them.