WEBVTT 1 00:00:08.039 --> 00:00:12.080 My father owned a green Ford Aerostar van. It was 2 00:00:12.119 --> 00:00:16.359 a piece of jump. The power steering wined when he 3 00:00:16.440 --> 00:00:20.719 made turns, the engine ticked and it was slow, but 4 00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:22.920 he was able to keep it running. And this was 5 00:00:23.000 --> 00:00:27.719 our main mode of transportation in Manitoba, and in Manitoba 6 00:00:27.879 --> 00:00:32.439 it takes hours to get anywhere. I was a kid then, 7 00:00:32.520 --> 00:00:35.119 and I remember that we did a lot of traveling 8 00:00:35.200 --> 00:00:38.600 in that van. I don't know where we went or 9 00:00:38.640 --> 00:00:41.439 while we traveled that much. I guess it was my 10 00:00:41.560 --> 00:00:46.119 father's business. I just remember driving down long highways for 11 00:00:46.320 --> 00:00:50.840 hours during the day and late at night. It had 12 00:00:50.880 --> 00:00:53.159 to have been two or three in the morning on 13 00:00:53.159 --> 00:00:55.840 one of these trips, while we went as fast as 14 00:00:55.880 --> 00:00:58.880 the van would take us down a dark highway lined 15 00:00:58.920 --> 00:01:03.640 with dead pines on both sides. The area is referred 16 00:01:03.679 --> 00:01:07.799 to as the Sticks here in Manitoba. It's a spooky 17 00:01:07.879 --> 00:01:11.200 place to be in the daylight, much less in the dark. 18 00:01:12.159 --> 00:01:15.120 My head rested on the passenger door as we listened 19 00:01:15.120 --> 00:01:19.159 to loud music. My father always had the volume loud. 20 00:01:19.400 --> 00:01:22.400 He loved good music. I was used to it. So 21 00:01:22.439 --> 00:01:25.319 I sat there in a numb state, watching the dead 22 00:01:25.400 --> 00:01:29.359 pines fly by in the glow of the headlights. My 23 00:01:29.439 --> 00:01:31.799 ear was close to the window, and I could faintly 24 00:01:31.879 --> 00:01:35.959 hear footsteps crunching in the gravel. I figured it was 25 00:01:36.040 --> 00:01:39.719 part of the music, but the noise continued between the songs. 26 00:01:40.560 --> 00:01:43.799 Whatever this noise was, it was running and keeping pace 27 00:01:43.920 --> 00:01:47.200 with the car. We were about to enter and drive 28 00:01:47.280 --> 00:01:51.480 through Riding Mountain State Park, where the speed limit was reduced. 29 00:01:51.519 --> 00:01:54.480 So my father, who obviously had not heard the noise 30 00:01:54.560 --> 00:01:58.439 I was hearing, slowed to the speed limit. I reached 31 00:01:58.480 --> 00:02:01.319 to the radio and I switched it off. Do you 32 00:02:01.400 --> 00:02:04.480 hear that, Dad, I asked, I do what is that? 33 00:02:04.599 --> 00:02:09.599 He said, looking over his right shoulder through the back windshield. Abruptly, 34 00:02:09.639 --> 00:02:12.400 he pulled the car over on the gravel median, and 35 00:02:12.439 --> 00:02:16.199 he opened the door. With one leg still in the car, 36 00:02:16.319 --> 00:02:19.840 he stood up and he looked over the roof. He 37 00:02:19.879 --> 00:02:23.039 immediately dropped back into the driver's seat, through the car 38 00:02:23.080 --> 00:02:28.520 in gear and floored it. Gravel sprayed behind us. I 39 00:02:28.560 --> 00:02:31.280 got real worried, but I don't know what he saw. 40 00:02:32.879 --> 00:02:36.319 The dead pines blew past us, now faster than before, 41 00:02:36.479 --> 00:02:39.120 and with his high beams on. Now the road was 42 00:02:39.240 --> 00:02:42.840 lit well enough for me to see far ahead. We 43 00:02:42.960 --> 00:02:46.000 traveled a short distance and the footfalls were back on 44 00:02:46.080 --> 00:02:49.240 my side of the car again. My father pushed the 45 00:02:49.280 --> 00:02:52.479 gas pedal harder and that clunky old van picked up 46 00:02:52.560 --> 00:02:56.639 not much speed, but whatever was running beside the car 47 00:02:56.840 --> 00:03:01.039 was having no trouble keeping up. Turned in my seat 48 00:03:01.080 --> 00:03:03.879 to look, and what I saw is hard to describe 49 00:03:03.919 --> 00:03:06.680 because it was so big that I could only see 50 00:03:06.680 --> 00:03:10.000 the legs in my field of view. I leaned over 51 00:03:10.080 --> 00:03:12.759 in this seat to tilt my head up, and although 52 00:03:12.759 --> 00:03:16.319 I could not make out any details, I did see 53 00:03:16.360 --> 00:03:21.280 how big this very fast thing was. At my age 54 00:03:21.319 --> 00:03:24.680 then I would have said it was two stories tall. 55 00:03:25.560 --> 00:03:29.319 I think that's about seven meters or twenty feet. I 56 00:03:29.360 --> 00:03:32.400 don't know, but it was enormous and it was powerful. 57 00:03:33.560 --> 00:03:36.879 Watching the black, hairy, muscular legs run beside the car 58 00:03:36.960 --> 00:03:41.120 scared me to death. My father was freaking out as well, 59 00:03:41.159 --> 00:03:44.639 but he held it together and he kept driving. There 60 00:03:44.680 --> 00:03:49.000 was no place to go but straight ahead, and then 61 00:03:49.080 --> 00:03:53.240 the footstomps began to fade in the distance. I began 62 00:03:53.319 --> 00:03:57.080 to breathe again, and Dad slowed down some. We never 63 00:03:57.120 --> 00:03:59.639 said a word. I wanted to get back to the 64 00:03:59.639 --> 00:04:03.439 city lights, and I think he did too. We were 65 00:04:03.439 --> 00:04:07.080 coming off riding Mountain Pass and a large green sign 66 00:04:07.360 --> 00:04:11.360 was in the distance ahead. Our headlights made that sign 67 00:04:11.479 --> 00:04:14.280 reflect like a ship coming to save us on a 68 00:04:14.400 --> 00:04:18.639 stormy sea. I watched the sign get closer and I 69 00:04:18.680 --> 00:04:22.759 saw a huge, shadowy figure cross in front of it. 70 00:04:22.759 --> 00:04:25.480 It had run fast enough to get ahead of us, 71 00:04:26.319 --> 00:04:29.040 maybe through the pines, maybe on the other side of 72 00:04:29.040 --> 00:04:32.439 the road, and we had just missed it. Dad pointed 73 00:04:32.480 --> 00:04:35.839 ahead and he said something that I never heard. He 74 00:04:35.920 --> 00:04:39.120 pressed me back into the seat. This night was not 75 00:04:39.319 --> 00:04:43.199 over yet. The sign was coming up fast, and I 76 00:04:43.240 --> 00:04:47.800 guess my father decided turning around was an exercise in futility. 77 00:04:48.279 --> 00:04:51.439 So while we were going downhill, he gave that tin 78 00:04:51.600 --> 00:04:55.120 can as much gas as it would take. I felt 79 00:04:55.120 --> 00:04:57.680 like we were driving one hundred miles per hour, and 80 00:04:57.759 --> 00:05:01.439 my eyes were fixed on that sign. I saw the 81 00:05:01.480 --> 00:05:04.920 creature move behind the sign and lower itself as if 82 00:05:04.920 --> 00:05:09.199 it were hiding. Huge dark hands were visible where he 83 00:05:09.199 --> 00:05:11.560 held on to the top of the sign, blocking the 84 00:05:11.639 --> 00:05:15.240 reflective glow. If this is it, then this is it, 85 00:05:15.319 --> 00:05:17.959 I heard my dad say under his breath, and I 86 00:05:18.040 --> 00:05:22.920 knew something bad was about to happen. We were almost 87 00:05:22.959 --> 00:05:26.680 even with that sign. I pushed my feet against the 88 00:05:26.759 --> 00:05:30.279 floorboard and I gripped the arm rest. But at that moment, 89 00:05:30.519 --> 00:05:34.319 a calm peace came over me. I was just a kid, 90 00:05:34.360 --> 00:05:37.759 but somehow I was able to prepare myself for whatever 91 00:05:37.959 --> 00:05:42.120 was about to happen. In some strange way, I was ready. 92 00:05:43.480 --> 00:05:46.600 We blew past that sign, and this creature did something 93 00:05:46.800 --> 00:05:51.000 I never expected. Just as we were even with the beast, 94 00:05:51.319 --> 00:05:54.759 it poked its head out from behind the sign. In 95 00:05:54.800 --> 00:05:59.079 the headlights, I could see its face, orange eyes reflected 96 00:05:59.120 --> 00:06:03.360 back at us. At the last minute, it extended its head, 97 00:06:03.680 --> 00:06:08.279 almost touching the passenger side window. For a split second, 98 00:06:08.360 --> 00:06:11.199 we were face to face, with a thin sheet of 99 00:06:11.240 --> 00:06:15.560 glass between us. At that moment, I saw eyes as 100 00:06:15.639 --> 00:06:19.199 big as golf balls, two slits in its face for 101 00:06:19.240 --> 00:06:23.000 a nose, and two rows of white teeth. As it 102 00:06:23.199 --> 00:06:27.160 smiled at me. It was more of a sinister grin, 103 00:06:27.519 --> 00:06:32.040 but it was a smile all the same. Suddenly I 104 00:06:32.079 --> 00:06:35.839 got the feeling that it was messing with us. After 105 00:06:35.879 --> 00:06:39.720 seeing its speed and obvious strength, I think it could 106 00:06:39.720 --> 00:06:42.600 have swiped our car right off into those spooky dead 107 00:06:42.680 --> 00:06:46.480 pines at any minute if it had wanted to. We 108 00:06:46.480 --> 00:06:48.879 were now a good distance down the pass, and the 109 00:06:48.920 --> 00:06:52.959 car filled with an odor that I cannot describe. We 110 00:06:53.079 --> 00:06:55.519 didn't want to roll the windows down for fear of 111 00:06:55.560 --> 00:06:59.079 this thing still being close. But the further we drove, 112 00:06:59.199 --> 00:07:03.240 the less offensive of the oder became. I am an 113 00:07:03.319 --> 00:07:06.879 adult now. All the years since I assumed that this 114 00:07:07.079 --> 00:07:09.720 was a sisquatch, but now I don't think it was. 115 00:07:10.759 --> 00:07:13.120 I don't know what it was. Maybe it was a 116 00:07:13.160 --> 00:07:16.600 demon or a troll, but I'm pretty sure it was 117 00:07:16.720 --> 00:07:21.439 not a sisquatch. It was something worse. I still deal 118 00:07:21.519 --> 00:07:24.959 with bad dreams over that night. Now they are less 119 00:07:25.000 --> 00:07:28.439 frequent as the years go by. I doubt I will 120 00:07:28.480 --> 00:07:32.160 ever forget that night. And my father has never said 121 00:07:32.160 --> 00:07:37.800 a word about it since. My niece came home and 122 00:07:37.839 --> 00:07:40.000 told my sister that she thought she had seen a 123 00:07:40.040 --> 00:07:44.000 bigfoot in the sam Houston National Forest. They live in 124 00:07:44.040 --> 00:07:47.240 a small town called cut and Shoot on Highway one 125 00:07:47.279 --> 00:07:51.399 oh five between Cleveland and Conroe, which borders the sam 126 00:07:51.480 --> 00:07:55.519 Houston National Forest and the Big Thicket. The Big Thicket 127 00:07:55.519 --> 00:07:58.199 has called that because it's a merger of the southern 128 00:07:58.240 --> 00:08:03.000 pine forests to go coastal plains and the Louisiana Swamps. 129 00:08:03.600 --> 00:08:07.879 They come together to create a jungle type environment. It 130 00:08:08.000 --> 00:08:10.399 was said in my youth that you couldn't go into 131 00:08:10.399 --> 00:08:13.000 the thicket for more than one hundred yards before you 132 00:08:13.000 --> 00:08:16.720 would step on a water moccasin. With the expansion of 133 00:08:16.759 --> 00:08:21.439 civilization and the encroachment of urban style neighborhoods, I would 134 00:08:21.519 --> 00:08:23.959 dare say that now you can venture as far as 135 00:08:24.000 --> 00:08:28.519 two hundred yards before stepping on a water moccasin. Oh, 136 00:08:28.600 --> 00:08:31.879 that's a great improvement. Running wolf at any rate. My 137 00:08:32.000 --> 00:08:35.039 sister told my niece that she probably saw a deer. 138 00:08:35.759 --> 00:08:38.159 My niece replied that it was big and brown, and 139 00:08:38.240 --> 00:08:42.440 it was walking on two legs. My sister has always 140 00:08:42.559 --> 00:08:45.639 had a crush on Bobo Fay from the TV show 141 00:08:45.759 --> 00:08:50.399 Finding Bigfoot, so she immediately started thinking that if they 142 00:08:50.399 --> 00:08:53.320 found some tracks, they might be on the Bigfoot Show 143 00:08:53.320 --> 00:08:57.559 with Bobo Fay. My sister grabbed her small gun, a 144 00:08:57.600 --> 00:09:01.879 double barrel twelve gage shotgun loaded with double lot buckshot, 145 00:09:01.879 --> 00:09:05.159 and said let's go. My niece said, Mama, don't you 146 00:09:05.200 --> 00:09:07.600 think it's going to be dangerous for the two of us? 147 00:09:08.120 --> 00:09:11.399 And my sister replied, yes, but maybe the sasquatch will 148 00:09:11.440 --> 00:09:15.759 survive anyway. They returned to the area where my niece 149 00:09:15.799 --> 00:09:19.320 saw the bigfoot. No tracks were found because the thick 150 00:09:19.399 --> 00:09:23.120 layer of pine straw covering the ground, but they did 151 00:09:23.240 --> 00:09:26.720 find fresh limbs broken off about eight feet high, and 152 00:09:26.759 --> 00:09:30.320 they were all pointing in the same direction. My sister 153 00:09:30.399 --> 00:09:33.600 made this observation and said, you know, I think that 154 00:09:33.639 --> 00:09:36.559 this creature is pointing out a direction for others of 155 00:09:36.639 --> 00:09:40.440 his kind to follow him. It was late in November 156 00:09:40.480 --> 00:09:44.080 of twenty twenty. And here's the interesting part of the story. 157 00:09:44.960 --> 00:09:47.960 The following day, on the very front page of the 158 00:09:48.000 --> 00:09:52.840 Cold Springs Gazette was the story titled Bigfoot spotted on 159 00:09:53.080 --> 00:09:57.960 San Juacento and Liberty County Lines. My sister told my 160 00:09:58.039 --> 00:10:00.840 niece he must have traveled fast, because when we were 161 00:10:00.879 --> 00:10:03.720 looking for him in the Sam Houston Forest, he was 162 00:10:03.759 --> 00:10:07.360 already east of us. All hopes of being on the 163 00:10:07.399 --> 00:10:10.879 Bobo fet show were diminishing rapidly, but my sister was 164 00:10:10.960 --> 00:10:15.080 convinced that my niece saw a bigfoot. And this is 165 00:10:15.159 --> 00:10:19.240 my story submitted by Running Wolf. Well. I would say 166 00:10:19.320 --> 00:10:23.720 Running Wolf, your knees had great aspirations. She was really 167 00:10:24.240 --> 00:10:27.279 really ready to get on that show and talk about 168 00:10:27.279 --> 00:10:29.440 the bigfoot that she saw. And I'm sad that that 169 00:10:29.519 --> 00:10:32.279 didn't work out, but I'm sure they had fun anyway. 170 00:10:32.320 --> 00:10:34.279 It sounds like both of the women have a great 171 00:10:34.320 --> 00:10:37.480 sense of humor. In her high spirited and really aren't 172 00:10:37.519 --> 00:10:40.600 afraid of anything. But I thought it was an interesting 173 00:10:40.679 --> 00:10:42.559 story and I wanted to share it with you, guys. 174 00:10:42.840 --> 00:10:46.440 Running Wolf. Thanks for writing it, man, it was really nice. Thanks. 175 00:10:49.960 --> 00:10:52.840 I had no idea it was a bigfoot at the time. 176 00:10:53.279 --> 00:10:56.120 I believe it was one. Now I live in the 177 00:10:56.120 --> 00:10:59.200 most populated state of the United States, and you would 178 00:10:59.240 --> 00:11:02.120 think that there's no place for a bigfoot to roam 179 00:11:02.159 --> 00:11:06.720 freely in New Jersey, but evidently they do. We lived 180 00:11:06.720 --> 00:11:10.559 in South Jersey, not far from the pine barrens the 181 00:11:10.600 --> 00:11:14.240 summer of the bi centennial. I was seventeen years old. 182 00:11:14.919 --> 00:11:18.200 The two hundred year celebration of our wonderful nation was 183 00:11:18.320 --> 00:11:22.240 just around the corner. Many towns were planning big parades 184 00:11:22.240 --> 00:11:26.240 and even bigger fireworks. I was looking forward to partaking 185 00:11:26.279 --> 00:11:30.440 in these celebrations. I had a reputation as a goody 186 00:11:30.519 --> 00:11:33.679 two shoes and actually had been called this name by 187 00:11:33.720 --> 00:11:36.879 many of my friends. I had a problem, though, that 188 00:11:36.960 --> 00:11:40.120 could change all of that. I was smitten with a 189 00:11:40.159 --> 00:11:43.759 guy who was known as a bad boy. Although we 190 00:11:43.759 --> 00:11:46.440 were the same age. He had street smarts and I 191 00:11:46.519 --> 00:11:49.720 had none. He rode dirt bikes and was a rough 192 00:11:49.720 --> 00:11:54.159 and tumble type of fellow. He already sported a few tattoos, 193 00:11:54.200 --> 00:11:57.799 and in those days, tattoos were not as popular as 194 00:11:57.840 --> 00:12:01.440 they are today. One of us tattoos was a skull 195 00:12:01.519 --> 00:12:05.399 with a knife through it, with blood dripping from the knife. 196 00:12:05.440 --> 00:12:08.279 This tattoo kind of frightened me, but he was nice 197 00:12:08.320 --> 00:12:12.240 to me and that intrigued me. He would ride his 198 00:12:12.279 --> 00:12:15.080 dirt bike to my house on occasion to visit and 199 00:12:15.120 --> 00:12:18.159 to hang out. My mom would say, don't you ever 200 00:12:18.200 --> 00:12:21.080 get on that motorbike with him. You'll be in big 201 00:12:21.120 --> 00:12:24.519 trouble if I catch you doing that. I knew this 202 00:12:24.639 --> 00:12:27.759 tattoo would not go over well with my parents, so 203 00:12:27.799 --> 00:12:29.960 he did what I asked, and he would wear long 204 00:12:30.080 --> 00:12:33.679 sleeves when he came to visit me. I was the 205 00:12:33.799 --> 00:12:37.279 fifth of seven children, raised with the rules that were 206 00:12:37.279 --> 00:12:41.080 set forth by the bad behavior of my older siblings. 207 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:45.159 I had to behave or else. Plus I really didn't 208 00:12:45.240 --> 00:12:48.200 want to upset my dad, as I had already witnessed 209 00:12:48.240 --> 00:12:52.120 the punishment my older brothers had received from him. I 210 00:12:52.159 --> 00:12:56.759 wanted to remain the good girl. The Pine Bearings is 211 00:12:56.799 --> 00:13:00.919 a very large forested area over one million acres that 212 00:13:01.039 --> 00:13:05.279 stretches across more than seven counties in New Jersey. The 213 00:13:05.399 --> 00:13:10.000 name Pine Barrens refers to the area's sandy, acidic nutrient 214 00:13:10.120 --> 00:13:14.919 poor soul. This area was also known as the Pinelands. 215 00:13:15.919 --> 00:13:20.519 This vast area supports rare plant life, including orchids and 216 00:13:20.639 --> 00:13:24.440 carnivorous plants, as well as the pygmy pitch pines that 217 00:13:24.600 --> 00:13:28.360 depend on the frequent fires of the Pine Barrens to reproduce. 218 00:13:29.600 --> 00:13:34.600 This area was largely undisturbed despite its proximity to Philadelphia 219 00:13:34.639 --> 00:13:39.120 and New York City. My bad boy guy friend wanted 220 00:13:39.159 --> 00:13:41.440 to take me on the Fourth of July to one 221 00:13:41.519 --> 00:13:45.240 of the fire towers located in the pine Lands. We 222 00:13:45.279 --> 00:13:48.039 would climb up to the top and watch the small 223 00:13:48.120 --> 00:13:52.519 town's fireworks from eighty feet above the ground, and it 224 00:13:52.600 --> 00:13:56.120 is off limits to the public. I knew my parents 225 00:13:56.120 --> 00:13:59.200 would never give me permission to go, and this meant 226 00:13:59.240 --> 00:14:02.279 that I would have to lie. I told my mother 227 00:14:02.480 --> 00:14:06.120 that we would be attending a friend's barbecue. Lying to 228 00:14:06.200 --> 00:14:10.799 them made me uncomfortable. These were the days before cell 229 00:14:10.840 --> 00:14:14.039 phones and tracking, so I said yes to this crazy, 230 00:14:14.200 --> 00:14:18.600 exciting idea. We actually did go to the barbecue, but 231 00:14:18.639 --> 00:14:21.080 we left around eight pm to head out to the 232 00:14:21.159 --> 00:14:24.879 location of the fire tower. We both jumped in his 233 00:14:24.919 --> 00:14:27.799 truck with dirt bike in the back. The events that 234 00:14:27.879 --> 00:14:31.759 were about to happen are seared into my memory forever. 235 00:14:33.080 --> 00:14:36.159 We drove for twenty five minutes while the sun set 236 00:14:36.279 --> 00:14:39.720 slowly and the sound of firecrackers and pops could be 237 00:14:39.759 --> 00:14:43.159 heard in the distance. Once we left the paved road, 238 00:14:43.200 --> 00:14:47.240 the woods grew thicker and darker. This dirt road was 239 00:14:47.279 --> 00:14:50.480 a firebreak that the Forest Service made to slow the 240 00:14:50.559 --> 00:14:54.759 spread of wildfires. We drove on this road for a 241 00:14:54.759 --> 00:14:57.480 few miles and then bad Boy pulled off the road 242 00:14:57.840 --> 00:15:00.799 and grabbed a small flashlight from the glo love compartment 243 00:15:00.840 --> 00:15:03.919 of the truck and said, let's go. It's getting dark fast. 244 00:15:04.919 --> 00:15:08.879 I was gitterally and nervous for disobeying my mother. I 245 00:15:08.879 --> 00:15:11.639 could hear her saying, you'll be in big trouble if 246 00:15:11.679 --> 00:15:15.480 I catch you riding that motorbike. As I walked to 247 00:15:15.559 --> 00:15:17.720 the rear of the truck to help get the dirt 248 00:15:17.759 --> 00:15:22.240 bike out, I was rethinking my attire. I had on 249 00:15:22.440 --> 00:15:26.480 my new four inch high cork heeled sandals and my 250 00:15:26.639 --> 00:15:30.600 fraid cut off jeans. I think I was more concerned 251 00:15:30.639 --> 00:15:34.759 about looking cute than practical. And then bad boy ask, 252 00:15:34.879 --> 00:15:37.759 are those the only shoes you have with you? Yes? 253 00:15:37.879 --> 00:15:41.039 I said. He told me he would go slow and 254 00:15:41.159 --> 00:15:43.519 showed me where to place my feet on the bike. 255 00:15:44.399 --> 00:15:47.000 We would have to ride about fifteen minutes through the 256 00:15:47.080 --> 00:15:50.480 forest before getting to the fire tower. I held on 257 00:15:50.679 --> 00:15:53.799 with my arms around his waist. He kick started his 258 00:15:53.879 --> 00:15:57.720 bike and we were off. He was evidently familiar with 259 00:15:57.799 --> 00:16:02.039 these trails. As we went deeper into the woods, I 260 00:16:02.159 --> 00:16:04.720 was thinking, if this is slow, I don't want to 261 00:16:04.759 --> 00:16:07.679 know what it feels like to go fast. But I 262 00:16:07.759 --> 00:16:11.000 was actually starting to enjoy the ride. When we arrived 263 00:16:11.039 --> 00:16:14.679 at our destination, he shut off the dirt bike and 264 00:16:14.720 --> 00:16:18.200 we both climbed off. He shined the flashlight on the 265 00:16:18.279 --> 00:16:22.600 menacing fire tower. It was taller than I imagined. He 266 00:16:22.720 --> 00:16:25.480 said he thought it was eighty feet tall and couldn't 267 00:16:25.480 --> 00:16:28.399 wait for me to see the view. The fireworks were 268 00:16:28.440 --> 00:16:31.039 going to start soon and we needed to get up there. 269 00:16:32.279 --> 00:16:36.720 I cautiously proceeded in my four inch high courk hill sandals. 270 00:16:37.200 --> 00:16:40.240 The open stairs were in a zigzag format and they 271 00:16:40.240 --> 00:16:43.440 were steep. He put the flashlight on me so I 272 00:16:43.480 --> 00:16:46.799 could see where I was going. As we climbed. I 273 00:16:46.919 --> 00:16:49.399 asked if we were all allowed to be here. He 274 00:16:49.519 --> 00:16:52.200 said no, but not to worry, because he and his 275 00:16:52.279 --> 00:16:55.000 dirt bike friends had been there many times and no 276 00:16:55.039 --> 00:16:58.360 one had ever said a word. A little more than 277 00:16:58.399 --> 00:17:01.679 halfway up, we heard it, this terrible scream come from 278 00:17:01.679 --> 00:17:05.440 the forest below. My first thought was that someone was 279 00:17:05.480 --> 00:17:09.119 being murdered down there. We stopped at the sounds, and 280 00:17:09.240 --> 00:17:13.799 bad Boy seemed concerned. He shined his flashlight below us. 281 00:17:14.279 --> 00:17:17.319 It was a small flashlight and we couldn't see the ground. 282 00:17:17.680 --> 00:17:21.400 We were really high up. We kept climbing, thinking that 283 00:17:21.519 --> 00:17:23.839 we might be able to see better from the top. 284 00:17:24.799 --> 00:17:27.839 A sound that came thundering through the woods below us. 285 00:17:28.200 --> 00:17:31.519 I can't describe it any better than to say that 286 00:17:31.599 --> 00:17:36.039 it sounded like something maybe a bulldozer, was crashing through 287 00:17:36.200 --> 00:17:40.000 and running over trees, but there was no engine noise. 288 00:17:41.279 --> 00:17:44.200 At first it was far off, but it was getting 289 00:17:44.240 --> 00:17:49.039 closer to the tower. We froze in place. Bad Boy 290 00:17:49.160 --> 00:17:52.359 yelled up to me, turn around and let's start climbing down. 291 00:17:52.720 --> 00:17:55.720 We need to leave now. He was trying to hold 292 00:17:55.720 --> 00:17:58.960 the flashlight on my feet so I could see, but 293 00:17:59.079 --> 00:18:02.799 this process was causing us to go slower. I yelled 294 00:18:02.799 --> 00:18:06.200 down at him, just go. The sound of the trees 295 00:18:06.200 --> 00:18:09.920 cracking was like gunfire, and at one point I believed 296 00:18:10.000 --> 00:18:14.000 it could have been gunfire. I was so horrified and shaking, 297 00:18:14.079 --> 00:18:16.960 trying to clench my toes tight to keep my shoes 298 00:18:17.000 --> 00:18:20.240 from falling off my feet that I almost fell twice. 299 00:18:21.160 --> 00:18:24.160 Losing one shoe by accident and then kicking the other 300 00:18:24.319 --> 00:18:28.559 off on purpose helped me to go faster. We were 301 00:18:28.559 --> 00:18:32.440 close to the bottom and the noise stopped, complete silence. 302 00:18:33.359 --> 00:18:36.400 This scared me as much as the noise. What was 303 00:18:36.440 --> 00:18:39.759 making the noise and where was it now? Not knowing 304 00:18:39.880 --> 00:18:42.960 where it was was worse to me than the noise itself. 305 00:18:43.640 --> 00:18:46.279 It was so close, and then all of a sudden 306 00:18:46.359 --> 00:18:49.680 it had stopped. I was so scared that I had 307 00:18:49.720 --> 00:18:53.640 trouble standing up. We made it to the dirt bike. 308 00:18:54.000 --> 00:18:57.279 I climbed on behind him while he was kickstarting the bike. 309 00:18:58.079 --> 00:19:00.640 That scream came out of the woods again, in close 310 00:19:00.720 --> 00:19:04.240 to us. It was louder, and whatever made the screen 311 00:19:04.559 --> 00:19:07.559 was right on us. I don't know if that was 312 00:19:07.640 --> 00:19:10.039 because we were at ground level or that it was 313 00:19:10.079 --> 00:19:13.359 really closer to us, but it vibrated through my body. 314 00:19:14.000 --> 00:19:17.000 I was about to pass out, and then the bike started. 315 00:19:18.279 --> 00:19:20.960 I found out what fast was really like on a 316 00:19:21.000 --> 00:19:24.279 dirt bike, and I didn't care. I was happy to 317 00:19:24.359 --> 00:19:28.079 be going fast. I closed my eyes tight and held 318 00:19:28.119 --> 00:19:32.000 on for dear life. We came to an abrupt stop. 319 00:19:32.559 --> 00:19:36.000 I opened my eyes. Bad boy jumped off and hollered 320 00:19:36.000 --> 00:19:38.640 to me to hold up the bike, so I grabbed 321 00:19:38.640 --> 00:19:41.720 the handlebars and hurried to hold the bike up. He 322 00:19:41.839 --> 00:19:44.119 ran up ahead of us and began to drag a 323 00:19:44.279 --> 00:19:47.240 large branch out of the middle of the dirt trail. 324 00:19:48.039 --> 00:19:50.480 He cleared it just enough for us to skirt by 325 00:19:51.400 --> 00:19:53.880 racing all the way back to his truck. We both 326 00:19:53.960 --> 00:19:56.599 jumped off the bike. He threw me the keys and 327 00:19:56.599 --> 00:20:00.559 said start the truck. I jumped in and, without ha hesitation, 328 00:20:00.839 --> 00:20:03.799 started the truck as he quickly got the dirt bike 329 00:20:03.880 --> 00:20:07.000 in the truck bed. Within a few seconds, he was 330 00:20:07.079 --> 00:20:11.319 driving us back to the paved road. I was trembling. 331 00:20:11.519 --> 00:20:15.000 My legs would not stop shaking, my bare feet were 332 00:20:15.039 --> 00:20:19.319 scratched and hurting. I kept looking back, half expecting something 333 00:20:19.440 --> 00:20:23.039 or someone to be following us. But we got closer 334 00:20:23.079 --> 00:20:26.359 to the paved road and bad Boys said, that has 335 00:20:26.480 --> 00:20:30.240 never happened here before. What was going on back there? 336 00:20:31.039 --> 00:20:34.160 Of course I had no answer. I asked him if 337 00:20:34.200 --> 00:20:36.839 we had taken another route back to the truck from 338 00:20:36.880 --> 00:20:40.000 the fire tower, because I didn't remember a tree branch 339 00:20:40.039 --> 00:20:43.240 across the trail. He said that he had taken the 340 00:20:43.359 --> 00:20:46.240 exact trail back to the truck and the limb had 341 00:20:46.240 --> 00:20:49.160 not been there, and that it was not a dead limb. 342 00:20:49.319 --> 00:20:52.000 It was green and had been placed in our way. 343 00:20:53.240 --> 00:20:56.079 We both kept silent for the thirty minute ride home, 344 00:20:56.279 --> 00:20:59.599 listening to the distant cracking pops of the various towns 345 00:20:59.640 --> 00:21:04.319 fire works with glimpses of sparkles in the night sky. 346 00:21:04.359 --> 00:21:07.440 This was the fourth of July that I would never forget. 347 00:21:08.680 --> 00:21:11.079 And as an epilogue, here's what she writes, and I 348 00:21:11.160 --> 00:21:14.559 love this. My bad boy turned out to be a 349 00:21:14.599 --> 00:21:18.680 good guy. I guess my goody two shoes ways rubbed 350 00:21:18.680 --> 00:21:23.079 off on him. Forty years married and two daughters later, 351 00:21:23.359 --> 00:21:27.720 we are very happy that skull and knife tattoo is 352 00:21:27.799 --> 00:21:31.559 now covered with a heart tattoo and our daughter's names 353 00:21:31.640 --> 00:21:34.759 are in the heart. We have talked about this event 354 00:21:34.880 --> 00:21:38.079 in our lives, but my good guy is not sure 355 00:21:38.240 --> 00:21:41.640 it was a bigfoot. He really doesn't have an explanation 356 00:21:41.799 --> 00:21:48.319 for what happened, but I think I do. My name 357 00:21:48.440 --> 00:21:50.759 is Elle, and I live out in the country, about 358 00:21:50.759 --> 00:21:55.960 ten miles from Atlanta, Texas, Northeast Texas. I live in 359 00:21:55.960 --> 00:21:58.920 a wooded area, but my little house is just off 360 00:21:58.960 --> 00:22:02.400 of a farm to mark road. Not much traffic, not 361 00:22:02.519 --> 00:22:07.200 many people, not much of anything but trees. My husband's 362 00:22:07.200 --> 00:22:10.319 family has had the land here since before the Civil War. 363 00:22:11.200 --> 00:22:13.599 When the time came, he and I moved here from 364 00:22:13.640 --> 00:22:17.799 the Texas Coast, planning to live here until well the end. 365 00:22:18.960 --> 00:22:21.440 When we first moved up here, my husband was still 366 00:22:21.519 --> 00:22:25.680 chasing turnarounds in the refineries. I'd often be alone for 367 00:22:25.799 --> 00:22:28.839 weeks at a time. It was during one of those 368 00:22:28.920 --> 00:22:31.319 times that I began to feel as though I was 369 00:22:31.400 --> 00:22:35.400 being watched. At first, it scared me, so I'd get 370 00:22:35.519 --> 00:22:39.039 my three fifty seven and march outside as bravely as 371 00:22:39.039 --> 00:22:41.960 I could and pop off a few rounds in the air. 372 00:22:42.759 --> 00:22:45.680 I'd go back in the house relieved, but never quite 373 00:22:45.759 --> 00:22:50.680 sure I'd scared whatever it was away. The strange feeling 374 00:22:50.720 --> 00:22:54.160 of being watched changed after a while. I began to 375 00:22:54.200 --> 00:22:57.319 feel more like I was being observed. I could feel 376 00:22:57.359 --> 00:23:00.559 that something was out there in the dark. Dogs knew 377 00:23:00.559 --> 00:23:03.920 it too. One night, I was sitting on the couch 378 00:23:04.000 --> 00:23:08.200 watching TV. My hubby was up north on another turnaround, 379 00:23:08.519 --> 00:23:11.880 and it was just me and the dogs. Suddenly there 380 00:23:11.960 --> 00:23:14.359 was a sound coming from the woods to the right 381 00:23:14.400 --> 00:23:18.079 of the house. This time the dog started barking. I 382 00:23:18.160 --> 00:23:21.279 muted the TV, grabbed my gun, and ran to the door. 383 00:23:22.039 --> 00:23:25.839 I cracked it just a bit. The sound was incredibly loud, 384 00:23:25.880 --> 00:23:28.559 and it sounded like a scream on top of a roar, 385 00:23:28.920 --> 00:23:32.119 if that makes sense. It went on for at least 386 00:23:32.119 --> 00:23:35.920 a minute, and then silence. I slammed the door and 387 00:23:35.960 --> 00:23:39.720 got the dogs settled down. That night, I stayed up 388 00:23:39.799 --> 00:23:42.920 sitting on the couch watching the door, my gun in hand. 389 00:23:44.640 --> 00:23:46.720 I told my husband about it on the phone the 390 00:23:46.759 --> 00:23:49.759 next day. He laughed it off, just like he did 391 00:23:49.799 --> 00:23:52.079 when I tell him I thought something in the woods 392 00:23:52.160 --> 00:23:56.000 was watching me. My husband died not long after that. 393 00:23:56.599 --> 00:24:00.160 I was alone here full time. I frequently felt that 394 00:24:00.200 --> 00:24:04.200 I was being observed. It wasn't a constant feeling, but 395 00:24:04.279 --> 00:24:06.559 when it came on, it felt like there was a 396 00:24:06.640 --> 00:24:09.880 heaviness in the air. I learned to live with it, 397 00:24:10.039 --> 00:24:13.920 and that was that. A few months after my husband passed, 398 00:24:14.119 --> 00:24:18.039 my youngest son, Jay and his fiance moved up. His 399 00:24:18.079 --> 00:24:20.279 father had asked him to take care of me, and 400 00:24:20.319 --> 00:24:23.759 that's what he did. One day, not long after he 401 00:24:23.799 --> 00:24:26.440