1 00:00:08,240 --> 00:00:10,279 Speaker 1: It was late in the year and I was a 2 00:00:10,359 --> 00:00:13,599 sixteen year old son of a coal miner and an 3 00:00:13,640 --> 00:00:17,280 avid deer hunter. My father showed me an old wagon 4 00:00:17,320 --> 00:00:20,039 trail that cuts around the top of the mountain, leading 5 00:00:20,120 --> 00:00:22,839 up a couple of miles to an old farmhouse where 6 00:00:22,839 --> 00:00:26,239 the deer hunting was likely to be good. To get 7 00:00:26,359 --> 00:00:29,039 up there, even on my four wheeler, i'd had to 8 00:00:29,039 --> 00:00:32,719 clear the road of small trees. There wasn't much left 9 00:00:32,719 --> 00:00:36,359 of the old farmhouse beyond its stone chimney and foundation, 10 00:00:37,039 --> 00:00:39,479 but I worked hard to clear a path out behind 11 00:00:39,520 --> 00:00:42,399 where three or four apple trees stood in a field, 12 00:00:42,719 --> 00:00:47,320 along with a few other small trees. Back behind that field, 13 00:00:47,399 --> 00:00:49,960 I'd found a really nice deer trail, so I hung 14 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:53,640 my tree stand there and I left. Deer season was 15 00:00:53,679 --> 00:00:57,679 still a week away. A week later, I was excited 16 00:00:57,679 --> 00:00:59,719 to make the two hour trip up to the old 17 00:00:59,719 --> 00:01:02,719 farmhouse on my four wheeler because of all the good 18 00:01:02,759 --> 00:01:06,040 sign I'd seen when I was up there before. It 19 00:01:06,159 --> 00:01:09,040 was a foggy morning, the kind of heavy fog that 20 00:01:09,239 --> 00:01:12,840 soaks in your clothes. It was so dense I had 21 00:01:12,879 --> 00:01:16,799 to turn my headlights off to see. Once I got 22 00:01:16,879 --> 00:01:19,519 up there, I left my four wheeler at the farmhouse, 23 00:01:19,799 --> 00:01:22,359 and I began my track out to the deer stand 24 00:01:22,400 --> 00:01:26,439 to begin the day. I was halfway to the stand 25 00:01:26,519 --> 00:01:29,439 when I heard something walking in the woodline that ran 26 00:01:29,519 --> 00:01:32,760 down the edge of the field. That fog was really 27 00:01:32,799 --> 00:01:36,400 setting the kind of slasher movie atmosphere that would put 28 00:01:36,439 --> 00:01:41,680 anybody on edge. My vision was extremely limited, so I 29 00:01:41,719 --> 00:01:45,760 took a few more steps and then I stopped. Whatever 30 00:01:45,799 --> 00:01:49,959 it was took about three or four more steps. I 31 00:01:50,040 --> 00:01:52,280 really didn't know what to think about that, so I 32 00:01:52,400 --> 00:01:57,439 just moved on. Forty yards from my stand. I stopped again. 33 00:01:58,359 --> 00:02:02,519 I heard four or five more footsteps before it stopped. Two. 34 00:02:03,799 --> 00:02:07,000 Between the dense fog and my dim flashlight, I couldn't 35 00:02:07,079 --> 00:02:10,240 see much, but I could definitely hear it. I knew 36 00:02:10,240 --> 00:02:12,759 something was out there, so I quickly climbed up into 37 00:02:12,840 --> 00:02:17,159 my deerstand, and not a minute too soon, I could 38 00:02:17,159 --> 00:02:20,360 hear footsteps coming directly at me. As I climbed up 39 00:02:20,439 --> 00:02:24,039 the tree, I was thirty feet off the ground when 40 00:02:24,039 --> 00:02:27,879 I heard it directly below. I felt the thud against 41 00:02:27,919 --> 00:02:31,000 the tree, followed by another that made me think it 42 00:02:31,039 --> 00:02:34,199 was going to climb up after me. I was trying 43 00:02:34,199 --> 00:02:36,599 to get my flashlight out of my pocket and I 44 00:02:36,680 --> 00:02:39,000 was fumbling with it when I dropped it, leaving me 45 00:02:39,120 --> 00:02:44,159 blind and vulnerable to the foggy darkness. Now I could 46 00:02:44,159 --> 00:02:47,840 hear this thing walking around and around my tree, and 47 00:02:47,919 --> 00:02:50,360 I was sure at any moment it was going to 48 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:52,439 climb up the tree to where I was. So I 49 00:02:52,479 --> 00:02:55,680 got my boat positioned and I was ready to do battle. 50 00:02:56,719 --> 00:03:00,560 My heart was pounding. I had no idea what was 51 00:03:00,639 --> 00:03:02,960 down there or when it was going to come up 52 00:03:03,000 --> 00:03:06,560 to see me. I was poised for action and holding 53 00:03:06,599 --> 00:03:09,919 my breath when the sun broke the horizon, tracing the 54 00:03:09,960 --> 00:03:13,560 line between land and sky and a familiar pink color. 55 00:03:14,759 --> 00:03:17,199 Whatever was at the foot of my tree turned then 56 00:03:17,319 --> 00:03:20,319 and walked down in a hollow somewhere off to my left. 57 00:03:21,840 --> 00:03:24,560 I managed to stay in the tree and hunt all day, 58 00:03:24,680 --> 00:03:27,000 but my mind kept going back to the thing that 59 00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:30,919 I had encountered in the pre dawn. I didn't see 60 00:03:30,960 --> 00:03:34,520 any deer that day, and I stayed until dark, you know, 61 00:03:34,680 --> 00:03:38,840 about the time deer start coming out. I finally had 62 00:03:38,840 --> 00:03:40,960 to accept that there would be no deer that day, 63 00:03:40,960 --> 00:03:43,520 and I got my gear ready for the climb down. 64 00:03:44,800 --> 00:03:47,520 Climbing down, I was eight feet above the ground, and 65 00:03:47,599 --> 00:03:52,039 I heard twigs snapping. Something was coming from the hollow 66 00:03:52,120 --> 00:03:56,080 behind me. Now, while I was still trying to identify 67 00:03:56,120 --> 00:03:59,840 that sound, I saw a large black silhouette run pass 68 00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:03,479 from my right. For a second, I thought it was 69 00:04:03,520 --> 00:04:07,360 coming directly at me, but it wasn't. It was running 70 00:04:07,400 --> 00:04:10,919 straight at the twig snapping thing from the hollow behind me. 71 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:16,639 They collided like a couple of Titanic football linebackers, slamming 72 00:04:16,680 --> 00:04:21,199 their bodies against each other and exhaling furious roars as 73 00:04:21,240 --> 00:04:24,800 they did so. I couldn't see anything in the dark, 74 00:04:24,920 --> 00:04:29,160 but I could hear as an awful fight ensued. They 75 00:04:29,160 --> 00:04:32,040 were screaming and growling as they threw each other over 76 00:04:32,079 --> 00:04:37,160 the ground, thumping and shaking the earth. Electric tension filled 77 00:04:37,199 --> 00:04:39,800 the air as they regained their footing and charged at 78 00:04:39,879 --> 00:04:43,600 each other again and again, knocking the wind from each other, 79 00:04:44,040 --> 00:04:47,639 slapping at and hitting each other, and then wrestling each 80 00:04:47,680 --> 00:04:51,639 other to the ground again. My harness kept me from 81 00:04:51,680 --> 00:04:54,560 turning around and seeing anything, so all I could do 82 00:04:54,720 --> 00:04:59,240 was listen as the two combatants carried their fight down 83 00:04:59,279 --> 00:05:02,879 into the hollow. I seized the opportunity and grabbed my 84 00:05:03,000 --> 00:05:06,360 tree stand threw it on my back and walked as 85 00:05:06,399 --> 00:05:10,639 fast as I could back to my four wheeler. On 86 00:05:10,680 --> 00:05:13,920 my way back, I began to hear the twig snapping again, 87 00:05:14,360 --> 00:05:18,519 like someone was stomping, but I didn't look back. I 88 00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:21,120 didn't know if the fight was over and the victor 89 00:05:21,319 --> 00:05:24,720 was coming to claim his prize, or if this was 90 00:05:24,759 --> 00:05:28,920 another one altogether. I just knew I needed to get 91 00:05:28,920 --> 00:05:32,680 to my four wheeler and get out of there. It 92 00:05:32,720 --> 00:05:35,079 only took a second to get it fired up, and 93 00:05:35,120 --> 00:05:38,639 I flew down the trail wide open, never looking back. 94 00:05:39,959 --> 00:05:44,360 This is my story. I'm an outdoorsman. I've camped on 95 00:05:44,439 --> 00:05:48,439 that mountain all my life. I'm forty six years old now, 96 00:05:48,480 --> 00:05:51,680 and I know there's something on that mountain. I hope 97 00:05:51,720 --> 00:05:59,199 your listeners will find this story interesting. This is an 98 00:05:59,240 --> 00:06:03,560 email from Crag and here's what he writes. I've included 99 00:06:03,720 --> 00:06:06,839 an encounter that both my son and I had back 100 00:06:06,920 --> 00:06:11,560 sometime on Vancouver Island. I've always been a lover of 101 00:06:11,600 --> 00:06:15,439 the back country, spending every possible moment in the forest. 102 00:06:16,360 --> 00:06:21,240 This passion is the same in my son. Vancouver Island 103 00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:24,959 was so different back then from our home in Langford, 104 00:06:25,160 --> 00:06:29,079 just outside of Victoria. We could escape into the forest 105 00:06:29,160 --> 00:06:33,800 in minutes. Within fifteen or twenty minutes, all indications of 106 00:06:33,920 --> 00:06:40,399 humanity became distant for us. That was paradise. Virtually any 107 00:06:40,439 --> 00:06:45,000 free time we had we were off exploring the amazing wilderness. 108 00:06:46,160 --> 00:06:49,639 A beautiful weekend was forecast during the spring of two 109 00:06:49,720 --> 00:06:53,839 thousand and five. On Friday, I closed down the job 110 00:06:53,920 --> 00:06:57,079 site early, much to the thrill of my guys, and 111 00:06:57,199 --> 00:07:02,120 headed home. Just afternoon. My son Alex had our pathfinder 112 00:07:02,199 --> 00:07:06,759 packed for another weekend in the backcountry. Some extra excitement 113 00:07:06,800 --> 00:07:10,120 for him was that there were no sisters coming this weekend. 114 00:07:11,160 --> 00:07:15,120 They had recently discovered boys and parties. This was great 115 00:07:15,199 --> 00:07:18,839 for them, but the start of my gray hair. No 116 00:07:19,040 --> 00:07:23,759 sisters meant what he called real camping. No showers were required, 117 00:07:24,279 --> 00:07:27,399 sleeping bags on the ground, and staring at the stars. 118 00:07:27,639 --> 00:07:31,519 It was perfect. We took a slow trip up the island, 119 00:07:31,639 --> 00:07:34,560 stopping for ice cream on the way. We made it 120 00:07:34,639 --> 00:07:38,000 past Campbell River somewhere before we decided it was time 121 00:07:38,040 --> 00:07:42,759 to head into the backcountry. A no entry gate appeared 122 00:07:42,800 --> 00:07:46,279 and we squeezed the pathfinder around it and headed down 123 00:07:46,319 --> 00:07:50,079 an old logging road. These were the best roads to travel. 124 00:07:50,959 --> 00:07:53,839 We headed west for a couple of hours bumping and 125 00:07:53,879 --> 00:07:57,560 crawling along the old road that had almost been completely 126 00:07:57,680 --> 00:08:02,199 taken over by mother nature. Two hours before dark, we 127 00:08:02,279 --> 00:08:05,759 came upon a little clearing beside a small creek and 128 00:08:05,839 --> 00:08:09,600 it was perfect. That was home for the night. It 129 00:08:09,639 --> 00:08:13,279 was hot dogs and burghers that night. We told tall 130 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:16,759 tales well into the night while roasting marshmallows by our 131 00:08:16,839 --> 00:08:20,639 little fire, and later we crawled into our sleeping bags. 132 00:08:20,680 --> 00:08:24,519 Around eleven, I drifted off to sleep, looking at the 133 00:08:24,560 --> 00:08:27,839 sky full of stars and listening to my boy breathing. 134 00:08:28,680 --> 00:08:31,879 Life couldn't have been better. We slept well that night 135 00:08:31,959 --> 00:08:35,600 to a symphony of a forest combined with the background 136 00:08:35,759 --> 00:08:40,279 of a babbling creek. We woke early on Saturday morning. 137 00:08:40,519 --> 00:08:43,759 I'm not sure when, and I didn't care. It didn't matter. 138 00:08:44,240 --> 00:08:47,159 It was cool and crisp. The morning dew was on 139 00:08:47,200 --> 00:08:50,080 our face. There was a slight fog in the air. 140 00:08:50,639 --> 00:08:53,279 The sun still had not crept above the trees in 141 00:08:53,320 --> 00:08:58,360 the east. My son's excitement for the day ahead quickly 142 00:08:58,399 --> 00:09:02,840 brought my Saturday morning burnout body back to life. Kids, 143 00:09:02,879 --> 00:09:07,600 happiness and excitement can be contagious. It wasn't long before 144 00:09:07,639 --> 00:09:10,159 the bacon and eggs were in the pan over the fire. 145 00:09:10,559 --> 00:09:13,840 We even added potatoes and onions to round out the meal. 146 00:09:15,000 --> 00:09:17,559 After we cleaned up and packed our gear away, we 147 00:09:17,679 --> 00:09:21,559 decided some walking was a must. We explored the area 148 00:09:21,679 --> 00:09:24,840 for a couple of hours, coming across an old, long 149 00:09:24,919 --> 00:09:30,600 forgotten railway trestle. It was overgrown with trees brushing grass. 150 00:09:31,639 --> 00:09:34,399 It was tiring, almost fifty feet in the air, and 151 00:09:34,480 --> 00:09:37,960 it came to an abrupt end. It appeared that the 152 00:09:37,960 --> 00:09:43,480 bridge construction had stopped midway. There was no falling section below, 153 00:09:43,639 --> 00:09:47,000 it just stopped. It was a bit haunting, I think, 154 00:09:47,200 --> 00:09:49,519 and my son said, I guess they ran out of money. 155 00:09:49,919 --> 00:09:53,879 I think you're right, son. After getting back to our campsite, 156 00:09:53,919 --> 00:09:56,120 we did another walk around to make sure that we 157 00:09:56,200 --> 00:09:59,600 hadn't forgot something or left any indication that we had 158 00:09:59,600 --> 00:10:03,799 been there, nothing other than footprints, and we were delighted 159 00:10:03,919 --> 00:10:07,399 to see we had a medium sized bear visit while 160 00:10:07,440 --> 00:10:10,600 we were away. It was too bad that we missed it. 161 00:10:11,799 --> 00:10:15,519 We continued on down the island. We hadn't explored that 162 00:10:15,679 --> 00:10:19,639 area before, and we just maintained a western compass heading 163 00:10:20,679 --> 00:10:23,639 that was good enough for us. Lots of cool places 164 00:10:23,679 --> 00:10:27,799 to see. There were huge trees and quiet meadows. We 165 00:10:27,840 --> 00:10:31,840 saw elk and black bear and deer. We ran up 166 00:10:31,879 --> 00:10:34,879 on the remains of what must have been an old homestead. 167 00:10:35,519 --> 00:10:39,799 There was a fieldstone foundation and a fireplace. There were 168 00:10:39,879 --> 00:10:44,360 remnants of rotted old logs and rough song lumber. It 169 00:10:44,440 --> 00:10:48,200 was almost completely lost to mother nature. It was a 170 00:10:48,240 --> 00:10:54,120 typical Vancouver Island adventure. The sun started to sink in 171 00:10:54,200 --> 00:10:57,519 the western sky and we found ourselves creeping along a 172 00:10:57,600 --> 00:11:01,919 trail not quite big enough for our little pathfinder, more 173 00:11:01,960 --> 00:11:05,879 of a large game trail actually. The saplings and brush 174 00:11:06,000 --> 00:11:09,200 being bent over by our bumper and sprang back to 175 00:11:09,320 --> 00:11:13,600 life after our passing. The trail seemed to go on forever. 176 00:11:14,000 --> 00:11:18,639 It must go somewhere, we decided, so we battled on. Besides, 177 00:11:18,679 --> 00:11:22,240 there was nowhere to turn around many areas with steep 178 00:11:22,320 --> 00:11:26,559 drop offs. We broke from the dense brush into a 179 00:11:26,600 --> 00:11:30,159 small clearing and straight ahead. The clearing ended at the 180 00:11:30,200 --> 00:11:34,000 shores of a large lake. By the landmarks that we 181 00:11:34,039 --> 00:11:38,279 could see, I think we were at Lake Kawakan. The 182 00:11:38,320 --> 00:11:41,200 water was calm and flat, and the late day sun 183 00:11:41,360 --> 00:11:45,080 glinted off the water. Here and there the clearing was 184 00:11:45,120 --> 00:11:49,759 surrounded by brush. On three sides. A few feet up 185 00:11:49,799 --> 00:11:53,519 the bank there was old growth fir trees that towered 186 00:11:53,559 --> 00:11:58,639 into the air. They are nature's skyscrapers. The tranquil atmosphere 187 00:11:58,679 --> 00:12:04,080 could mollify the hard soul. We turned the pathfinder around 188 00:12:04,159 --> 00:12:07,480 so it was pointing back up the path. That's anal 189 00:12:07,679 --> 00:12:10,919 I know, but it has saved us on numerous occasions. 190 00:12:11,759 --> 00:12:14,639 We quickly set up camp and we prepped for the evening. 191 00:12:15,320 --> 00:12:19,000 My boy, he found some shotgun nine millimeter and forty 192 00:12:19,039 --> 00:12:23,159 five shells laying around that, along with an overgrown fire ring, 193 00:12:23,519 --> 00:12:25,879 told us that we weren't the first ones to enjoy 194 00:12:25,960 --> 00:12:28,559 this view, but maybe we were the first to get 195 00:12:28,600 --> 00:12:32,639 there that year. It was another great dinner over the fire, 196 00:12:32,919 --> 00:12:36,039 A couple of steaks and some potatoes and onions cooked 197 00:12:36,039 --> 00:12:39,519 in foil with lots of butter, topped off with a 198 00:12:39,559 --> 00:12:42,399 couple of cans of coke for Alex and a seven 199 00:12:42,519 --> 00:12:46,360 up for me. We were overstuffed and a walk was 200 00:12:46,399 --> 00:12:50,840 in order. Alex had seen another path about a mile 201 00:12:50,960 --> 00:12:54,639 back up the trail that headed into the trees. We 202 00:12:54,720 --> 00:12:58,919 had our destinations set. I did have my spidy senses 203 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:02,320 acting up since we got there. A close bear or 204 00:13:02,360 --> 00:13:05,960 a cougar. I thought that was no problem, nothing we 205 00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:08,919 hadn't dealt with before. So I took my knife in 206 00:13:09,000 --> 00:13:12,159 a can of bear spray. I hung them off my belt, 207 00:13:12,240 --> 00:13:16,360 and we headed out. Alex had a superpower, as do 208 00:13:16,519 --> 00:13:20,480 most kids his age. He could talk for hours NonStop 209 00:13:20,639 --> 00:13:25,600 without taking a breath. That evening was no exception. We 210 00:13:25,639 --> 00:13:28,080 made our way back up the path. We were laughing 211 00:13:28,120 --> 00:13:31,559 and joking and teasing each other as always. It was 212 00:13:31,639 --> 00:13:35,240 great fun. He was right. It was close to a 213 00:13:35,320 --> 00:13:37,919 kilometer and we came to a break in the brush 214 00:13:38,039 --> 00:13:41,759 off to our left, seeming to be more of a tunnel, 215 00:13:42,039 --> 00:13:45,480 and it was about six feet wide and seven feet tall. 216 00:13:45,799 --> 00:13:48,879 And I followed the boy in Hey, slow down, wait 217 00:13:48,919 --> 00:13:52,679 for me, I said. We traveled about fifty feet into 218 00:13:52,720 --> 00:13:55,279 this thick tunnel, and it was dark and it had 219 00:13:55,320 --> 00:13:58,720 an ominous feel to it. Alex, wait the hell up, 220 00:13:58,799 --> 00:14:02,120 I said. I ran forward to catching and I just 221 00:14:02,159 --> 00:14:04,600 about fell over him at the end of the tunnel. 222 00:14:05,240 --> 00:14:10,039 He had stopped dead in his tracks. Looking up from him, 223 00:14:10,080 --> 00:14:13,120 I was treated with old growth firs right up to 224 00:14:13,159 --> 00:14:16,679 the shoreline. Tree trunks that were easily two to three 225 00:14:16,720 --> 00:14:20,240 feet around. The first branches were twenty feet up, and 226 00:14:20,320 --> 00:14:24,720 they twisted and entangled into the full canopy. Moss hung 227 00:14:24,759 --> 00:14:28,000 from the lower branches, swaying in the breeze. There were 228 00:14:28,120 --> 00:14:32,039 large ferns, some up to six feet tall, that spotted 229 00:14:32,039 --> 00:14:36,360 the ground amidst the occasional boulder or fallen tree. The 230 00:14:36,440 --> 00:14:40,039 same sparkling lake off in the background, and the round 231 00:14:40,240 --> 00:14:45,519 sun settling behind the trees. It was really peaceful. What 232 00:14:45,559 --> 00:14:48,639 the hell is that, he whispered, Watch your language, boy, 233 00:14:48,759 --> 00:14:52,639 I reprimanded him, putting my hand on his shoulder. Though 234 00:14:52,799 --> 00:14:57,440 I felt tension, his muscles seemed tight. He was shaking slightly. 235 00:14:58,080 --> 00:15:01,440 I followed his gaze down to towards the water, and 236 00:15:01,519 --> 00:15:04,799 no more than one hundred feet away, about halfway between 237 00:15:04,879 --> 00:15:07,960 us and the lake shore, was a dark figure standing 238 00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:12,039 out among the greens and browns of the forest. I 239 00:15:12,080 --> 00:15:15,320 thought it was an animal, but I wasn't sure. It 240 00:15:15,399 --> 00:15:17,799 wasn't moving, and it should have been. If it was 241 00:15:17,840 --> 00:15:20,799 an animal, it was watching the lake, and it was 242 00:15:20,879 --> 00:15:24,200 not concerned with us. It had to have heard us. 243 00:15:24,480 --> 00:15:28,159 This kid makes a lot of noise. It was about 244 00:15:28,200 --> 00:15:31,480 five feet tall and four feet wide. It didn't look 245 00:15:31,600 --> 00:15:34,159 like an animal, but if it was an animal, it 246 00:15:34,240 --> 00:15:38,000 appeared to be looking at the ground. I stared for 247 00:15:38,080 --> 00:15:40,879 a few seconds, trying to process what I was seeing, 248 00:15:41,200 --> 00:15:43,960 and I bent over and I whispered in Alex's ears, 249 00:15:44,399 --> 00:15:47,399 it's just a stump, son, Let's go on back. Now. 250 00:15:48,000 --> 00:15:50,919 That is not a stump, Dad, He said, that's a 251 00:15:51,039 --> 00:15:57,519 sasquatch on que. The stump began to rise, and rise 252 00:15:57,799 --> 00:16:01,840 and rise some more. Now it was nine or ten 253 00:16:01,919 --> 00:16:06,080 feet tall. This thing was huge. It had a massive 254 00:16:06,320 --> 00:16:10,960 barrel chest, long, thick arms, and legs bigger around than 255 00:16:11,000 --> 00:16:15,519 my waist. It was completely hair covered. I had spent 256 00:16:15,639 --> 00:16:18,039 most of my free time in the forest and had 257 00:16:18,120 --> 00:16:22,039 never come across anything like that before. To say I 258 00:16:22,200 --> 00:16:27,000 was terrified was an understatement. A chill ran right through 259 00:16:27,039 --> 00:16:29,759 my body and I began to tremble, and I was 260 00:16:29,879 --> 00:16:33,159 almost sure that I was about to lose my bowels. 261 00:16:33,600 --> 00:16:40,240 Coherent thought was completely gone. We both stood frozen in speechless. 262 00:16:40,519 --> 00:16:43,399 It began to swing its body around. It was in 263 00:16:43,480 --> 00:16:46,759 no rush. As it turned to look at us from 264 00:16:46,799 --> 00:16:49,919 this angle, I saw that I was wrong. It wasn't 265 00:16:49,960 --> 00:16:55,000 looking down. Its delts made its neck look nonexistent. It 266 00:16:55,120 --> 00:16:57,879 stared at us for what felt like an eternity, but 267 00:16:58,039 --> 00:17:02,200 was probably only a few seconds. My mind started bouncing 268 00:17:02,279 --> 00:17:04,440 back and forth, trying to figure out how to save 269 00:17:04,559 --> 00:17:08,039 my son and not get us both eaten. Even in 270 00:17:08,160 --> 00:17:11,279 the good physical condition I was in at the time, 271 00:17:11,799 --> 00:17:14,039 I knew that it would end me with a single 272 00:17:14,079 --> 00:17:18,559 swat of its giant arm. It finally made a noise 273 00:17:18,640 --> 00:17:21,559 that I can only describe as being the same as 274 00:17:21,640 --> 00:17:25,839 the raspberries that I would blow on my kid's stomachs. 275 00:17:26,599 --> 00:17:29,519 It turned back and paused, as if it was taking 276 00:17:29,559 --> 00:17:33,440 the lake in one final time. It turned to its 277 00:17:33,519 --> 00:17:38,480 right and slowly walked away, eventually disappearing into the denser forest. 278 00:17:39,880 --> 00:17:42,680 Alex was bouncing off the walls all the way back 279 00:17:42,720 --> 00:17:46,799 to camp Me. I couldn't say a word. I had 280 00:17:46,839 --> 00:17:49,759 seen the Patterson Gimmelin film, and I had watched the 281 00:17:49,880 --> 00:17:53,279 Legend of Boggy Creek at the theater when it came out. 282 00:17:54,160 --> 00:17:56,960 Never ever did I think these things were more than 283 00:17:57,000 --> 00:18:02,440 a Hollywood creation designed to sell movie. When we got back, 284 00:18:02,519 --> 00:18:05,759 I ducked around the truck and I vomited. It took 285 00:18:05,799 --> 00:18:10,160 me a few minutes to collect my composure. Coming back around, 286 00:18:10,200 --> 00:18:13,599 I discovered Alex had already stoked up the fire. It 287 00:18:13,680 --> 00:18:17,119 was a blaze. What are you doing? I said, We're 288 00:18:17,160 --> 00:18:22,200 getting out of here. A lengthy argument ensued. That fire, 289 00:18:22,880 --> 00:18:26,839 the now pitch blackness of the night, the dangerous terrain 290 00:18:26,960 --> 00:18:29,759 we encountered on our way in, and the fact that 291 00:18:29,839 --> 00:18:34,440 the thing did nothing aggressive towards us won over my decision. 292 00:18:35,200 --> 00:18:38,319 We slept in the truck, though, with the seats reclined, 293 00:18:38,640 --> 00:18:41,480 keys in the ignition, or maybe I should say the 294 00:18:41,519 --> 00:18:44,839 boy slept like a rock. I stared into the darkness, 295 00:18:44,920 --> 00:18:48,440 jumping at every noise the whole night. My knuckles were 296 00:18:48,519 --> 00:18:53,119 white from gripping my knife. Dawn finally came. I was 297 00:18:53,200 --> 00:18:56,079 tired and grumpy. I worked with Alex to clean the 298 00:18:56,119 --> 00:19:00,319 campsite and we loaded the back of the Pathfinder, picked 299 00:19:00,359 --> 00:19:03,720 our way along the path around the rocks and stumps, 300 00:19:03,759 --> 00:19:06,680 avoiding the drop offs, finding our way back to the 301 00:19:06,680 --> 00:19:10,279 main logging road, and in a few hours we were home, 302 00:19:10,519 --> 00:19:15,559 just north of Victoria. We quickly discovered that mentioning our 303 00:19:15,759 --> 00:19:20,200 encounter brought laughter and ridicule from others. Things were not 304 00:19:20,359 --> 00:19:23,279 the same back then as they are now. If you 305 00:19:23,400 --> 00:19:26,119 admitted to seeing one of these creatures, you were either 306 00:19:26,240 --> 00:19:31,799 on drugs, drunk, or crazy. Our lives changed that day, though, 307 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:36,240 we went from non believers to knowers. I started on 308 00:19:36,279 --> 00:19:40,440 a major research program. I absorbed any info that I 309 00:19:40,480 --> 00:19:44,400 could get. I now see some previous strange happenings in 310 00:19:44,480 --> 00:19:49,400 the forest as possible encounters, cryptids and aliens. To me, 311 00:19:49,680 --> 00:19:52,559 none of these subjects were out of the question anymore. 312 00:19:53,119 --> 00:19:56,279 And rather than life and ridicule people, I listened with 313 00:19:56,400 --> 00:19:59,880 great interest to anything anyone had to say, no matter 314 00:20:00,119 --> 00:20:04,359 how far fetched the story was. And yes, some stories 315 00:20:04,400 --> 00:20:08,759 were the result of vivid imaginations. They were good stories, though, 316 00:20:08,920 --> 00:20:12,160 but often bits of one person's stories matched to another, 317 00:20:12,359 --> 00:20:15,640 and then another. It took me a few weeks to 318 00:20:15,680 --> 00:20:19,759 get back into the backcountry again. The passion for exploring 319 00:20:19,839 --> 00:20:23,599 has never eased. Though we now live in the backcountry 320 00:20:23,640 --> 00:20:27,160 of northern British Columbia. My son and I own a 321 00:20:27,160 --> 00:20:30,960 small piece of land far from town. Neighbors are few 322 00:20:31,000 --> 00:20:34,720 and far between, just the way we like it, and yes, 323 00:20:34,920 --> 00:20:38,599 we sometimes hear the now familiar howls and screams of 324 00:20:38,640 --> 00:20:41,799 the beast among the many other forest creatures. At night. 325 00:20:42,599 --> 00:20:45,720 My son came across a bone pile not far from here. 326 00:20:45,799 --> 00:20:49,480 Last year. Some of the local youth get all excited 327 00:20:49,519 --> 00:20:53,000 about a forest game they played called a Sasquatch tag. 328 00:20:53,440 --> 00:20:57,039 I'm looking forward to learning about that. The natives are 329 00:20:57,079 --> 00:21:00,960 always complaining about them peeking in the windows on the reservation. 330 00:21:01,960 --> 00:21:05,480 The general consensus up here is similar to most deep 331 00:21:05,480 --> 00:21:10,480 woods towns. They are here. Leave them alone, and they 332 00:21:10,519 --> 00:21:14,519 will leave you alone. And he signs off. Craig, Man, 333 00:21:15,079 --> 00:21:17,319 who what a great story. I mean, he got the 334 00:21:17,440 --> 00:21:21,279 experience Bigfoot with his son. And what's cool is I 335 00:21:21,279 --> 00:21:23,880 think he said his son was nine years old, was 336 00:21:23,920 --> 00:21:28,880 excited when he saw this thing. I don't know. I 337 00:21:28,880 --> 00:21:30,720 think I would sit there and just watch it. I mean, 338 00:21:30,759 --> 00:21:33,079 if it wasn't coming at me or something, I would 339 00:21:33,119 --> 00:21:36,039 probably feel like his son. I mean would be I 340 00:21:36,039 --> 00:21:38,519 would feel like a little kid. I gotta see this thing. 341 00:21:38,559 --> 00:21:41,480 I gotta see it as long as it's visible. But 342 00:21:41,559 --> 00:21:44,400 I understand Craig was shook up because he had a 343 00:21:44,440 --> 00:21:47,039 son there with him and he didn't know exactly how 344 00:21:47,079 --> 00:21:50,440 this thing was going to go. But what a cool story, man, 345 00:21:50,519 --> 00:21:52,559 What a cool story. And Craig, you said that you 346 00:21:52,640 --> 00:21:55,559 may have some other incidents from where you live now 347 00:21:55,599 --> 00:21:57,880 that you might write at a later date. I would 348 00:21:57,880 --> 00:22:01,279 look forward to getting that because that sounds interesting. Either way. 349 00:22:01,400 --> 00:22:03,799 Is a great story and I really appreciate it, and 350 00:22:03,799 --> 00:22:05,799 thanks for doing such a good job right in it. 351 00:22:09,640 --> 00:22:12,880 I'm from the UK, I'm thirty eight years old, or 352 00:22:12,920 --> 00:22:15,920 I was at the time, and I'm just an average guy. 353 00:22:16,680 --> 00:22:19,519 I got into snowboarding back in the late nineties and 354 00:22:19,599 --> 00:22:22,559 I loved the mountains in the winter. I'd been to 355 00:22:22,599 --> 00:22:26,000 the European Alps many times and also a few times 356 00:22:26,119 --> 00:22:30,720 in Ferny, British Columbia. I wasn't an experienced outdoor man 357 00:22:30,839 --> 00:22:33,359 or anything, but I've always had a good sense of 358 00:22:33,400 --> 00:22:37,960 what is normal and I'm pretty observant. A best friend 359 00:22:37,960 --> 00:22:41,119 of mine and his girlfriend had recently moved to Aspen 360 00:22:41,279 --> 00:22:44,640 for work. I'll not use their real names here, and 361 00:22:44,720 --> 00:22:48,559 at the time they were working illegally. They invited me 362 00:22:48,720 --> 00:22:51,880 over to stay for a few weeks for a snowy break. 363 00:22:52,920 --> 00:22:55,799 It was a week before Thanksgiving in two thousand and seven. 364 00:22:56,559 --> 00:22:58,799 I landed and I hooked up with the couple let's 365 00:22:58,880 --> 00:23:01,920 just call them Ned and Margo, and I stayed at 366 00:23:01,920 --> 00:23:05,400 their house for a few weeks. I started to look 367 00:23:05,440 --> 00:23:09,200 at Aspen Mountain opening times and I realized the mountain 368 00:23:09,319 --> 00:23:12,720 was still closed. I had come out to snowboard, but 369 00:23:12,759 --> 00:23:15,680 I'd be waiting until it was nearly ready to go home. 370 00:23:16,240 --> 00:23:19,319 Don't worry, mate, Ned said, I have a contingency plan. 371 00:23:20,279 --> 00:23:23,480 He had recently bought a snowmobile and also a pickup 372 00:23:23,519 --> 00:23:26,640 truck for his work, so all was going to be okay. 373 00:23:27,680 --> 00:23:30,440 The first day out, we took the snowmobile up onto 374 00:23:30,440 --> 00:23:34,359 the Aspen Ski Area. We parked the truck at the 375 00:23:34,359 --> 00:23:37,279 bottom of the Midnight Mine Road and we used the 376 00:23:37,319 --> 00:23:41,400 snowmobile from there onwards. I think that's the route we took, 377 00:23:41,480 --> 00:23:45,759 looking at Google Earth while I'm writing this. Myself and 378 00:23:45,839 --> 00:23:48,119 Ned were the first to the top, and then we 379 00:23:48,160 --> 00:23:51,880 went back for Margo. The snow was deep and the 380 00:23:51,920 --> 00:23:55,039 mountain was empty. All three of us would use the 381 00:23:55,079 --> 00:23:58,720 snowmobile to hitch back up to the top after each run. 382 00:23:59,279 --> 00:24:03,480 What a stunt placed with no one around. The snow 383 00:24:03,599 --> 00:24:05,920 was above the tops of the shelters, so a good 384 00:24:06,000 --> 00:24:09,599 two meters deep to the top. After a great day 385 00:24:09,640 --> 00:24:12,880 of illegal writing, I know that now, but at the 386 00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:15,839 time I didn't realize it was such a serious offense. 387 00:24:17,039 --> 00:24:19,279 It was starting to get dark, so we set off 388 00:24:19,319 --> 00:24:23,359 back home. Ned would take me halfway down the backside 389 00:24:23,400 --> 00:24:26,519 of the mountain, and then turned around to go collect Margo, 390 00:24:26,640 --> 00:24:30,039 who was waiting at the top. I was dropped off 391 00:24:30,079 --> 00:24:33,160 with the light fading fast on a good straight stretch 392 00:24:33,200 --> 00:24:36,119 of track. It was a half a mile or so long, 393 00:24:36,559 --> 00:24:39,920 and I would ski the rest of the way. This 394 00:24:40,119 --> 00:24:42,960 was a steep run, and there were patches of trees 395 00:24:43,000 --> 00:24:46,079 down the valley on each side. The track came to 396 00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:49,160 a ninety degree right hand turn and down towards a 397 00:24:49,200 --> 00:24:53,079 patch of trees. I came to a turn and went 398 00:24:53,119 --> 00:24:55,640 on my heel edge to stop and observe where I 399 00:24:55,799 --> 00:24:58,720 was going, when in the distance I saw something on 400 00:24:58,839 --> 00:25:01,079 the track in front of me. At a distance of 401 00:25:01,119 --> 00:25:04,680 about a third of a mile, the light was almost 402 00:25:04,799 --> 00:25:07,440 gone now, but I could see something against the white 403 00:25:07,519 --> 00:25:12,039 of the snow covered path. At first I frozed, thinking 404 00:25:12,079 --> 00:25:15,200 it was a bear that was standing straight up, but 405 00:25:15,319 --> 00:25:19,160 quickly I realized that it wasn't moving like some awkward animal. 406 00:25:20,279 --> 00:25:22,279 Then I thought it was a big fellow with a 407 00:25:22,359 --> 00:25:25,799 Crombie jacket with the collars turned up. I don't know 408 00:25:25,839 --> 00:25:28,000 if you know what a Crombie is in the States, 409 00:25:28,000 --> 00:25:30,680 but it's a black wooly jacket that comes to below 410 00:25:30,759 --> 00:25:34,119 your knees. It was made fashionab by the Skinheads and 411 00:25:34,200 --> 00:25:38,240 the criminals of the eighties. I think that due to 412 00:25:38,279 --> 00:25:41,480 the light and the distance, I started to doubt myself. 413 00:25:42,000 --> 00:25:44,400 It was hard to tell the height at this range, 414 00:25:44,440 --> 00:25:47,079 but it was moving pretty quickly, straight up the path 415 00:25:47,440 --> 00:25:52,000 and right at me. Suddenly I was afraid I was 416 00:25:52,039 --> 00:25:56,279 somewhere I had never been before. It was dark, I 417 00:25:56,319 --> 00:26:01,079 had no weapon or no communications. Taken me and ned 418 00:26:01,160 --> 00:26:03,839 about twenty minutes to get to the drop off spot, 419 00:26:04,079 --> 00:26:07,240 and he had turned around to collect Margo, so it 420 00:26:07,319 --> 00:26:09,480 was going to be a while before he got back. 421 00:26:10,440 --> 00:26:12,799 I started to freak out, but I also tried to 422 00:26:12,880 --> 00:26:17,480 keep calm, is not to draw attention to myself. Surely 423 00:26:17,640 --> 00:26:20,440 in this silence something would have heard me scraping my 424 00:26:20,559 --> 00:26:24,640 board and cussing down the track. To this point, I 425 00:26:24,680 --> 00:26:27,960 strained to see what the figure was, and I noticed 426 00:26:28,000 --> 00:26:31,839 the coat wasn't solid. As it started to get closer, 427 00:26:31,880 --> 00:26:35,359 I could see the background through it, or so I thought. 428 00:26:35,799 --> 00:26:39,240 The moonlight was shining on the figure's back, so it 429 00:26:39,319 --> 00:26:41,920 cast a shadow on its front part that I was 430 00:26:41,960 --> 00:26:46,039 looking at. I saw no eye shine, and I detected 431 00:26:46,079 --> 00:26:49,559 no odor. All I could think was I was going 432 00:26:49,599 --> 00:26:53,480 to die. This thing just kept walking straight at me 433 00:26:53,599 --> 00:26:55,920 as it bobbed up and down as it walked, and 434 00:26:55,960 --> 00:26:59,759 swung its arms all the way up the track. It 435 00:26:59,799 --> 00:27:02,200 was moving up to a set of trees to the 436 00:27:02,279 --> 00:27:05,279 right of its position, and then it made a forty 437 00:27:05,279 --> 00:27:08,480 five degree change of course and it walked off the 438 00:27:08,559 --> 00:27:12,519 path into the set of thinly planted trees, and it disappeared. 439 00:27:13,200 --> 00:27:17,079 No sound was made in this action. I stood there 440 00:27:17,079 --> 00:27:20,240 for what seemed like fifteen minutes but was probably more 441 00:27:20,359 --> 00:27:23,680 like thirty seconds before I dropped the snowboard onto the 442 00:27:23,720 --> 00:27:27,039 track and straight lined it passed where I saw the creature. 443 00:27:28,079 --> 00:27:31,039 I did not stop to look for footprints. I was 444 00:27:31,079 --> 00:27:35,440 only interested in getting out of there. Down the valley, 445 00:27:35,559 --> 00:27:37,960 I could now hear dogs barking. When I was a 446 00:27:38,000 --> 00:27:40,960 mile or so further down where the track was leveling off, 447 00:27:41,279 --> 00:27:44,279 and I stopped, I was still in a fight or 448 00:27:44,319 --> 00:27:47,960 flight mode. I removed my board and walked at a 449 00:27:48,039 --> 00:27:51,480 quick pace in the direction of the truck. A minute 450 00:27:51,599 --> 00:27:54,000 or so later, I heard the sound of the ring 451 00:27:54,160 --> 00:27:58,559 ding two stroke motor of the snowmobile. I've never been 452 00:27:58,599 --> 00:28:00,759 as happy to hear the sound of an engine like 453 00:28:00,799 --> 00:28:05,119 this before relief doesn't start to explain the feeling of 454 00:28:05,240 --> 00:28:08,839 safety that came over me. Are you okay? They said 455 00:28:09,079 --> 00:28:12,279 you look a bit piale mate. I didn't say anything 456 00:28:12,359 --> 00:28:15,400 because Ned is a practical guy and he takes no crap, 457 00:28:15,599 --> 00:28:17,599 but he will sure dish it out for a long 458 00:28:17,680 --> 00:28:21,799 wind up. I'll never go back country again without backup 459 00:28:21,839 --> 00:28:24,319 of other people, and I have no desire to go 460 00:28:24,440 --> 00:28:29,640 back to North America to snowboard again. This has played 461 00:28:29,680 --> 00:28:31,920 on my mind for all these years, and I'm kind 462 00:28:31,920 --> 00:28:35,279 of obsessed with the reports. I know there is some 463 00:28:35,400 --> 00:28:38,160 lack of detail in this story, but that's what happened 464 00:28:38,240 --> 00:28:41,799 and nothing more. A quick local holiday is more than 465 00:28:41,920 --> 00:28:45,440 enough for me these days. All the best, Paul, Paul, 466 00:28:45,559 --> 00:28:47,720 you got to come back to North America. Man, you 467 00:28:47,799 --> 00:28:50,200 got to get back on the slopes. The last time 468 00:28:50,240 --> 00:28:52,960 I went skin was out to Tahoe. I won't tell 469 00:28:53,000 --> 00:28:55,119 you about the trip, but it was a disaster. But 470 00:28:56,200 --> 00:28:59,359 every ski trip I've ever taken before that has just 471 00:28:59,440 --> 00:29:02,119 been a blind It's one of my favorite things in 472 00:29:02,160 --> 00:29:04,720 the world to do is to ski, and I love 473 00:29:04,960 --> 00:29:08,680 Breaking Ridge and Copper Mountain. I love Winter Park and 474 00:29:08,720 --> 00:29:11,680 all those parks out in Colorado, and I did try 475 00:29:11,799 --> 00:29:14,880 Tahoe once. Brother, you need to come back and get 476 00:29:14,920 --> 00:29:18,039 on those slopes and snowboard and just do it during 477 00:29:18,039 --> 00:29:20,720 the day, and do it legally during the ski season, 478 00:29:20,960 --> 00:29:23,359 and you'll have a great time because there's hundreds of 479 00:29:23,400 --> 00:29:25,440 people's on the slope and you won't have to worry 480 00:29:25,480 --> 00:29:27,960 about a bigfoot grab and you unless you sail off 481 00:29:27,960 --> 00:29:30,400 into the woods and get off in that real ten 482 00:29:30,480 --> 00:29:32,720 or twelve foot deep powder and you can't get out, 483 00:29:33,200 --> 00:29:35,559 maybe bigfoot will help you out. But I'm just rambling. 484 00:29:36,000 --> 00:29:39,519 I just I appreciate the story, Paul. It's great. And 485 00:29:39,640 --> 00:29:43,799 whenever I hear somebody, you know, stop doing something they 486 00:29:43,839 --> 00:29:47,240 love because of a bigfoot, I'm like, oh no, no, 487 00:29:47,359 --> 00:29:49,799 don't let them ruin your life. Come on back, So 488 00:29:49,920 --> 00:29:52,680 that that's on my mind, Paul. So I hope you 489 00:29:52,680 --> 00:29:54,000 I hope to see you here, and I hope to 490 00:29:54,000 --> 00:29:58,279 hear from you again. Brother. Thanks for a great story.