0 reactions
lCame The Dark
Prologue
I had never considered that being alone in the woods at night would be a scary experience. Sure there are animals that may pose a threat such as wolves and bears, but wolves and bears have rarely ever been documented to actively hunt humans. Of course what appears to be an animal may seem completely different when hidden behind the shadows of the trees in the dark recesses of the forest. What lurks around you at night may seem to be playing with your sanity as you struggle to comprehend the nocturnal escapades of the wilderness around you. Surely most who dare camp alone aren't driven to madness by a soft rustling of a bush nearby. And I, “one of the brave”, who don't mind being all alone out amongst a sea of trees, had decided to bear through a cold winter on an extended vacation out in my grandfather's cabin. However, my pleasant experience soon soured when the last light of day sunk down over the horizon, casting my surroundings in the black void of night. And the particular animal that moved in the shadows outside had cemented my decision to never enter the woods again.
Part 1
It was a chilly winter morning in late November of 1995. I was out on a solo winter getaway at my grandfather's cabin to relax and enjoy the stunning views of the mountain and hills around the area. It had been ten long years since I had last stayed in this cabin. I was 15 on my previous visit and had already seen most of the beautiful natural scenery that surrounds this place.
This time I decided to arrive in mid November and see the forest in a new light. Clear white blankets of snow covered the ground, ice gracefully frosting over the pine needles on the trees. And the lake, completely frozen over with a thick layer of transparent glass that tightly grasped the roots of the trees that stand along its shore, and what is perhaps the most captivating sight, Mount Rainier.
standing majestically against the skies in the distance with a fresh white powdery cap of snow and the sunset casting an orange and yellow hue of colors against the west face of the mountain. It truly is a sight to behold, and a sight I will never grow tired of.
My plan for this trip was to stay through December and leave in January. That should be long enough to enjoy some alone time, something I rarely get back home. It's nothing but work five days a week, and my weekends are spent working on more work that wasn't finished the previous work day. Catching up on bills and other mundane tasks. And I guess my wife needs attention too, right?... Ha… I don't have a wife, but I'm sure if I did she'd just be one more drain on my limited free time.
I couldn't stop thinking that this trip was going to be good for me. My grandfather left me that cabin in his will. We both loved that place so much. He knew I'd be the best choice for taking care of the property after his passing.
Just a few hours drive and a slight turn onto a gravel driveway off of United States Forest Service Road 59, winding its way through the maze of trees, I had finally arrived at the cabin. It was a bit smaller than I remember, but again the last time I've seen it was through the eyes of a child. Now 25 years old, it seems like everything in my distant memory has been tainted by time, distorting the image I had of my younger self.
It had already snowed before I arrived, not much, but a little bit of snow wasn't going to stop me from enjoying myself. The first thing I did after entering the cabin was set my luggage down and walk right back out. The day was still early and I had plenty of time to walk to the lake and do some ice fishing.
A while later after being at the lake for most of the day, I started to head back to the cabin. I had caught two Trout earlier and decided to have them for dinner that night. The cabin was already stocked with enough food to last for months but I wanted my first meal there to be special, something fresh and prepared by hand.
I spotted some animal tracks out by the lake earlier. They appeared to be bear tracks, I couldn't really tell. Usually bears around here start hibernating this late into November. At the time I thought nothing of it and continued back home. After dinner I threw away my scraps in the outside trash can and started planning my next day. Another hour later as the sun was setting it started to snow again, the fall was thicker that time and soon the ground had disappeared under a sheet of white flakes. winter had officially arrived.
The cabin was too far from civilization to draw power from a plant. Instead the lights here were powered by a small portable diesel generator that had just enough power to illuminate three light bulbs, a heater, a refrigerator and a record player that had been here since the cabin was built back in 1957. I had fallen asleep that night listening to my grandfather's big band jazz collection, specifically Glenn Miller’s Moonlight Sonata which was a fitting end to a perfect day.
Early the next morning I had gotten up around 4:00 A.M, eaving myself plenty of time to make my way towards the lake and up the hill to watch the sunrise. Before leaving I had noticed that something had been rummaging through my trash can. The tracks in the snow were definitely bear tracks. These prints were absolutely massive, appearing to be about twenty inches long. I didn't think that bears around here grew that big.
After cleaning up the trash mess, I went back inside to grab my bear spray just to be safe. If a bear that big feels comfortable enough to walk around an occupied cabin, who knows what it could do if I ran into him in his territory. Making my way up the hill, the sunlight had just started to wash over the mountain in the distance. Satisfied with the view, I started to head back down in a new direction. Shortly into the hike I came across an old rotted out tree, slightly leaning toward the right and standing on the edge of a small five foot cliff.
The roots of this tree were overgrown and the ones that hung off the cliff face had been broken off revealing a large hole underneath the old dead tree. It looked to be the entrance of a cave. Being a little curious, I peered my head down into the hole, daylight casting its way a few feet in lighting up a small portion of the entrance. And there, just a little ways in, tucked behind a rock was the skull of a male deer, still with its antlers. The only thought I had at the time was, “That sure would look great hanging on my cabin door”.
I stepped past the rock and pulled out the flashlight in my pack to get a closer look. The light in my hand illuminated the ground I stood on and showed this wasn't just the deer skull, it was the whole skeleton. Pure white, picked clean, something had been chewing on these bones. Then it hit me. I had just realized where I was. I was standing in the den of a hibernating bear.
Part 2
Not wanting to leave what I came in for, I quickly grabbed the skull and turned towards the exit. One of the bones had rattled loose and struck against the rock I stood over, sending a soft sound slowly increasing in volume as it echoed further down into the darker parts of the cave. Nothing but silence returned, at least for a moment. I again turned towards the exit and as I stepped out back into daylight, a low deep guttural growl bellowed out of the darkness behind me. I started sprinting down the hill and past the lake, clutching the deer skull tightly, eventually making my way back to the cabin. That was probably the fastest I had ever run in my life. There's nothing like the fear of death to really get you off your ass.
Later that day I had hung the skull on the outside of my cabin door, and I was right, it did look good. I figured that bear would be afraid to come around the cabin again if it knew someone was here. As the sun set I flicked on the porch light, lighting up the driveway all the way to the edge of the tree line. Surely any animal, including a bear would be intimidated by an unfamiliar sight such as that.
A few hours after I fell asleep I was woken by the sound of a creaking floor board on the front porch. I hopped out of bed and parted the blinds a bit to look out the window. With a full view of the porch I saw nothing but falling snow as it was lit by the golden yellow radiance of the bulb above. Sensing no immediate threat, I opened the door and stepped onto the porch to better analyze the noise I heard earlier. Looking to the ground below I finally spotted a clear trace. A set of tracks coming and going from the front door and trailing off into the forest straight ahead. Damn, this bear was bolder than I first thought, and its tracks seemed to suggest that it was walking on just its hind legs. I turned around to head back inside and stopped as my hand hit the door. The skull… it was gone.
I whipped back around and gazed into the darkness where the tracks had vanished into the trees, and there, standing low to the ground were a pair of eyes staring back at me. The bear stood too far to be visible under the light of the porch yet stood close enough for the yellow light to make it appear as if its eyes were glowing with anger.
I quickly pushed the door open and jumped back inside, turning both locks after it slammed shut. I spent the rest of the night sitting under the window, periodically peeking out at the bear, its eyes locked onto me for hours.
I had dozed off after growing tired of looking out the window and was suddenly awoken again by the sound of crushing metal coming from the side of the cabin. Too afraid to confront a bear of such massive size, I just sat there, waiting for the sun to rise.
After the sun had been up for a few hours. I felt safe enough to step outside. I was sure the bear was gone by now. It had probably gone back to sleep. Looking around the outside of the cabin, I saw what it had done last night. My trash can, stomped into the ground, completely flattened.
At this point I was more annoyed than anything. A bear wandering around was nothing to complain about, but this bear was destroying my property and showing clear signs of aggression, it had to be dealt with soon.
I hopped into my truck and made my way down the snow covered road back into town to alert the forest rangers of my nightly visitor. Clearly they did not believe my attempt to describe the sheer size of this furry giant. They gave me the usual spiel about bear spray and securing my waste receptacle, too late for that. If the rangers weren't going to help I had to defend my cabin by myself. I stopped at the hardware store on my way back to get a new thicker plastic trash can. I bought a few bear traps and took a few cases of 12 gauge slug shells for my grandpa's old shotgun as well.
It had started snowing again on my way back to the cabin. There was plenty of time to set the bear traps before the sun went down again. It snowed through the whole day and by 6:00 it had piled up about two feet, covering over the traps I had set earlier. Good, I thought. Maybe if the bear comes around again tonight he'd be more likely to step on a trap if he can't see it.
The night had been quiet for a while. I thought I was in the clear after seeing no more signs of the bear. Just as I had started to settle into bed, the sound of a soft thud came from the rooftop as if something had landed on it. Then another thud, and another. It sounded as if something was pelting my roof with small stones.
It couldn't be the bear, I thought. Bears can't throw rocks, can they?. Irritated by the intruding noise, I stepped out of bed and looked through the front window out toward the trees. “No… why”… its back. That damn bear came back again. Sitting where it did the night before, just staring me down.
After locking eyes with him again it was clear to me that this bear had some sort of personal grudge against me. It was probably just mad that I had woken him from his nap the other day. Whatever, it's not like he could do anything as long as I stayed inside. After a few more moments of looking him in the eye he shifted slightly. Then, out of the darkness, the deer skull came flying across the driveway, forcefully casted from the bear's direction into the glow of the porch light and landing right where I had placed the first trap. The trap snapped closed around the skull, breaking off both antlers and cracking it in half as bits of bone scattered across the snow.
With a single action the bear had shown exactly why he was there. He wasn't mad that I woke him up. He was mad that I, an ignorant human, had trespassed on his land and stolen what was rightfully his. It was at this point that things had been made clear, this bear wasn't letting this go without settling the score. I wasn't interested in sticking around any more and decided to end my vacation and head home early, but the only road out of here was snowed in and my clunky two wheel drive Ford wasn't getting through that any time soon.
fearful that my thin pine wood door would be no match for that massive bear outside, I loaded my shotgun and aimed it out the slightly open window, firing a single warning shot in hopes to scare him off. Nothing… not even a flinch. My body started to tense from the stress. I raised the gun again and fired another shot right at him.
A deep wailing moan of pain echoed through the air as the bear stumbled back. A moment of silence passed before I saw his eyes appear again, this time shaking with pure blind rage. I stood petrified with terror, my brain melting in fear as I stared ahead and saw those glowing yellow eyes as they slowly raised up and were now standing over 12 feet off the ground, shooting a look of murderous intent down at me through the darkness. Impossible… I stopped believing that what I was looking at was an animal. Whatever it was, it sure as hell wasn't a bear.
Part 3
That monster outside appeared to intentionally avoid stepping into the light. It did its best to remain mostly unseen but its silhouette was easy to make out. By its side I saw as it slowly raised its left arm and placed it on the back of the tree next to him and started pushing. Sounds of cracking wood vibrated through the air as the tree began to lean, then CRACK! The tree had snapped at the base and fell on top of the cab of my truck, shards of glass exploding outward as the roof had crumpled like a tin can under the weight of that heavy pine.
I stood and watched in fear as that monster looked back up and bared its teeth, yellow, chipped and gapped as it appeared to be grinning with satisfaction over what it had just done. I figured this thing would leave again before the sun came up. I just needed to keep him out till then.
That second shot I fired seemed to have had an effect, perhaps hitting him a few more times would make him back off. I stepped back from the window to reload, briefly losing sight of the monster. Looking back, it was completely out of view. Suddenly a loud crashing sound came from out back as all the lights had shut off. I quickly dove towards the kerosene lantern that was sitting on the table, struggling to light it as the monster made its way to the front door and started testing the lock. Finally after lighting, I reset the globe on the lantern and held it up to the door right as it was smashed in. Chunks of wood were blown back into the cabin and that creature rushed back behind the trees, avoiding the light again.
I looked out the back window and saw what had caused the power to fail. A large moss-covered boulder had been smashed down onto the generator, leaving it in pieces.
I wasn't sure what worried me more, the fact that the animal outside was strong enough to lift a rock that size, or the thought that this thing was smart enough to know that the generator powered the lights.
Some time had passed, cold air blasting through the open doorway. I huddled in the corner, staring at the front porch, expecting this thing to come charging inside any minute and stomp my head in. a few hours had passed, dawn would be breaking soon. I sat by the lantern that dimly illuminated the room, wondering if its low light was enough.
Suddenly, a massive log was hurled through the window, smashing into the lantern on the floor soaking the carpet with fuel and setting it ablaze. The fire, my last source of light to keep the monster out. I was in no hurry to put it out. I stood in the open doorway with the warm glow of flames growing larger inside as the cabin floor had disappeared in a blaze of orange and red. The sunlight had finally broken over the trees and the creature was nowhere in sight. I leaped off the porch as the cabin was engulfed in flames, the roof caved in as the walls had crumbled into ash.
I was left defenseless, without shelter, without transportation, I wasn't safe there. I had to leave before nightfall. That thing wasn't done with me yet and without light, there was nothing I could do to stop it. I started to trudge down the driveway through the thick snow knowing I had to walk the 7 miles to the nearest town before the sun sets again.
After a few tall steps into the snow, I was starting to realize that this was going to be more difficult than I first thought. One more step ahead and a sharp searing pain shot up my right leg as something had tightly clamped onto my ankle, with jagged spikes digging into my flesh and bone. I had just stepped onto the other bear trap.
I fell to my back onto the snow, grasping my leg, crying in pain as I tried to pry the jaws open. It shifted a bit then clamped tighter, completely severing my foot from my body. I rolled back, vibrating from shock, wallowing in a pool of blood and ice.
I had passed out for a moment. After the pain had subsided a bit I sat back up. Looking down at my leg, the bleeding had slowed as the skin around the wound had turned blue from frostbite. Feeling lightheaded, a surge of adrenaline pumping through me. Not ready to give up, I pulled off my belt and tied it around the stump on my leg. Crawling on my hands and knees to the side of the road to grab a stick to use for balance as I continue to shuffle my way down the road, trying to get as far as possible.
I didn't make it very far before the sun had started setting again. A few more miles to go and I wasn't going to make it. I fell to my knees looking up toward the heavens, pleading for assistance, anything to get me out of here. The sky had started to darken. I looked back up the road from where I came, the puddle of blood and ice still visible in the distance and as the sun set behind me the shadow of my body began to stretch slowly, covering up my bloody tracks in the snow as my world was once again cast into darkness.
I knew it was there, watching, waiting. It wasn't long before its burning yellow eyes met my gaze as it stepped out onto the road a few feet in front of me. This was it, it had a clear shot straight to me. I looked on with a feeling of defeat waiting for it to end my suffering, but it just stood there. With its eyes locked on me and its chest puffing in and out as it was taking short breaths, with a wide stance and its long arms pulsing and ticking as he remained fixated on me.
Locked in a stare down with a deadly vengeful creature and yet it did not advance. He was waiting… waiting for me to make a move. Looking off the road, I saw a potential chance for safety. Building up my nerve, I went for it. The monster started charging at me as soon as I moved. I dived off the side of the road into the ditch and slid myself into the tight stone culvert Next to me, feeling a swift gust of air on my legs as the creature took a swipe at me. I wiggled my way in deeper as a giant hairy hand reached in, its long cryptic fingernails scraping the bottom of my shoe.
I could feel the ground shaking as it stomped around the outside of the pipe, trying to dig out around it, chipping and smashing away the cement with rocks. I knew it was just a matter of time before it would dig far enough to reach me. My hope had started to dwindle for the last time, my head getting dizzy from blood loss. I layed back waiting for death to take me. Then it stopped. The monster was gone. I lifted my head, looking past my foot and out the pipe. The ground was flooded with a beautiful ray of golden light.
I quickly slid out the other end of the pipe, crawled out of the ditch and back onto the road. I was blinded as I basked in the bright gleaming light of my salvation, a snow plow, approaching from down the road, followed closely by the lights and sirens of a fire truck. In a fit of hysterical laughter I slumped forward, passing out from exhaustion on the cold ground.
Epilogue
I woke up three days later in a hospital bed. My leg had died from the frostbite and had been amputated. The emergency response team that found me had me airlifted to a hospital in Tacoma. After resting for a while, a duo of police officers entered my room looking to get a statement. They inspected the damage to my cabin and concluded that the fire was caused by a fallen tree. I wondered if they meant the tree that had destroyed my truck. They claimed that the charred trunk of a pine tree was found laid across the foundation of the cabin. That was all that remained among the ashes of what used to be my grandfather's beloved mountain home. That damn thing had managed to cover its tracks, and covered them well. As for my statement, I couldn't have told them about a 12 foot tall monster that lurks in the dark, who would ever believe that. I took a short pause to think and recounted my frequent visitor, “the bear”. That sort of explained my little bear trap incident. The officers finished their report and left me to rest.
For those who hear my story, I implore you, the next time you enter the backcountry of our western wilderness it's best not to overstay your welcome. Wearing down the land with excessive foot traffic, invading the homes of wild animals and disturbing the natural order of nature around you. And if you're still keen on camping, at least don't go alone. There is indeed safety in numbers, for what watches from beyond the shadows may not want you there and may just show its disdain for your presence.
When the sun sets upon the forest, when the woods around you fill with a deathly chill air at night. There, in the absent warmth of light… comes the dark.
#entertainment
source
Prologue
I had never considered that being alone in the woods at night would be a scary experience. Sure there are animals that may pose a threat such as wolves and bears, but wolves and bears have rarely ever been documented to actively hunt humans. Of course what appears to be an animal may seem completely different when hidden behind the shadows of the trees in the dark recesses of the forest. What lurks around you at night may seem to be playing with your sanity as you struggle to comprehend the nocturnal escapades of the wilderness around you. Surely most who dare camp alone aren't driven to madness by a soft rustling of a bush nearby. And I, “one of the brave”, who don't mind being all alone out amongst a sea of trees, had decided to bear through a cold winter on an extended vacation out in my grandfather's cabin. However, my pleasant experience soon soured when the last light of day sunk down over the horizon, casting my surroundings in the black void of night. And the particular animal that moved in the shadows outside had cemented my decision to never enter the woods again.
Part 1
It was a chilly winter morning in late November of 1995. I was out on a solo winter getaway at my grandfather's cabin to relax and enjoy the stunning views of the mountain and hills around the area. It had been ten long years since I had last stayed in this cabin. I was 15 on my previous visit and had already seen most of the beautiful natural scenery that surrounds this place.
This time I decided to arrive in mid November and see the forest in a new light. Clear white blankets of snow covered the ground, ice gracefully frosting over the pine needles on the trees. And the lake, completely frozen over with a thick layer of transparent glass that tightly grasped the roots of the trees that stand along its shore, and what is perhaps the most captivating sight, Mount Rainier.
standing majestically against the skies in the distance with a fresh white powdery cap of snow and the sunset casting an orange and yellow hue of colors against the west face of the mountain. It truly is a sight to behold, and a sight I will never grow tired of.
My plan for this trip was to stay through December and leave in January. That should be long enough to enjoy some alone time, something I rarely get back home. It's nothing but work five days a week, and my weekends are spent working on more work that wasn't finished the previous work day. Catching up on bills and other mundane tasks. And I guess my wife needs attention too, right?... Ha… I don't have a wife, but I'm sure if I did she'd just be one more drain on my limited free time.
I couldn't stop thinking that this trip was going to be good for me. My grandfather left me that cabin in his will. We both loved that place so much. He knew I'd be the best choice for taking care of the property after his passing.
Just a few hours drive and a slight turn onto a gravel driveway off of United States Forest Service Road 59, winding its way through the maze of trees, I had finally arrived at the cabin. It was a bit smaller than I remember, but again the last time I've seen it was through the eyes of a child. Now 25 years old, it seems like everything in my distant memory has been tainted by time, distorting the image I had of my younger self.
It had already snowed before I arrived, not much, but a little bit of snow wasn't going to stop me from enjoying myself. The first thing I did after entering the cabin was set my luggage down and walk right back out. The day was still early and I had plenty of time to walk to the lake and do some ice fishing.
A while later after being at the lake for most of the day, I started to head back to the cabin. I had caught two Trout earlier and decided to have them for dinner that night. The cabin was already stocked with enough food to last for months but I wanted my first meal there to be special, something fresh and prepared by hand.
I spotted some animal tracks out by the lake earlier. They appeared to be bear tracks, I couldn't really tell. Usually bears around here start hibernating this late into November. At the time I thought nothing of it and continued back home. After dinner I threw away my scraps in the outside trash can and started planning my next day. Another hour later as the sun was setting it started to snow again, the fall was thicker that time and soon the ground had disappeared under a sheet of white flakes. winter had officially arrived.
The cabin was too far from civilization to draw power from a plant. Instead the lights here were powered by a small portable diesel generator that had just enough power to illuminate three light bulbs, a heater, a refrigerator and a record player that had been here since the cabin was built back in 1957. I had fallen asleep that night listening to my grandfather's big band jazz collection, specifically Glenn Miller’s Moonlight Sonata which was a fitting end to a perfect day.
Early the next morning I had gotten up around 4:00 A.M, eaving myself plenty of time to make my way towards the lake and up the hill to watch the sunrise. Before leaving I had noticed that something had been rummaging through my trash can. The tracks in the snow were definitely bear tracks. These prints were absolutely massive, appearing to be about twenty inches long. I didn't think that bears around here grew that big.
After cleaning up the trash mess, I went back inside to grab my bear spray just to be safe. If a bear that big feels comfortable enough to walk around an occupied cabin, who knows what it could do if I ran into him in his territory. Making my way up the hill, the sunlight had just started to wash over the mountain in the distance. Satisfied with the view, I started to head back down in a new direction. Shortly into the hike I came across an old rotted out tree, slightly leaning toward the right and standing on the edge of a small five foot cliff.
The roots of this tree were overgrown and the ones that hung off the cliff face had been broken off revealing a large hole underneath the old dead tree. It looked to be the entrance of a cave. Being a little curious, I peered my head down into the hole, daylight casting its way a few feet in lighting up a small portion of the entrance. And there, just a little ways in, tucked behind a rock was the skull of a male deer, still with its antlers. The only thought I had at the time was, “That sure would look great hanging on my cabin door”.
I stepped past the rock and pulled out the flashlight in my pack to get a closer look. The light in my hand illuminated the ground I stood on and showed this wasn't just the deer skull, it was the whole skeleton. Pure white, picked clean, something had been chewing on these bones. Then it hit me. I had just realized where I was. I was standing in the den of a hibernating bear.
Part 2
Not wanting to leave what I came in for, I quickly grabbed the skull and turned towards the exit. One of the bones had rattled loose and struck against the rock I stood over, sending a soft sound slowly increasing in volume as it echoed further down into the darker parts of the cave. Nothing but silence returned, at least for a moment. I again turned towards the exit and as I stepped out back into daylight, a low deep guttural growl bellowed out of the darkness behind me. I started sprinting down the hill and past the lake, clutching the deer skull tightly, eventually making my way back to the cabin. That was probably the fastest I had ever run in my life. There's nothing like the fear of death to really get you off your ass.
Later that day I had hung the skull on the outside of my cabin door, and I was right, it did look good. I figured that bear would be afraid to come around the cabin again if it knew someone was here. As the sun set I flicked on the porch light, lighting up the driveway all the way to the edge of the tree line. Surely any animal, including a bear would be intimidated by an unfamiliar sight such as that.
A few hours after I fell asleep I was woken by the sound of a creaking floor board on the front porch. I hopped out of bed and parted the blinds a bit to look out the window. With a full view of the porch I saw nothing but falling snow as it was lit by the golden yellow radiance of the bulb above. Sensing no immediate threat, I opened the door and stepped onto the porch to better analyze the noise I heard earlier. Looking to the ground below I finally spotted a clear trace. A set of tracks coming and going from the front door and trailing off into the forest straight ahead. Damn, this bear was bolder than I first thought, and its tracks seemed to suggest that it was walking on just its hind legs. I turned around to head back inside and stopped as my hand hit the door. The skull… it was gone.
I whipped back around and gazed into the darkness where the tracks had vanished into the trees, and there, standing low to the ground were a pair of eyes staring back at me. The bear stood too far to be visible under the light of the porch yet stood close enough for the yellow light to make it appear as if its eyes were glowing with anger.
I quickly pushed the door open and jumped back inside, turning both locks after it slammed shut. I spent the rest of the night sitting under the window, periodically peeking out at the bear, its eyes locked onto me for hours.
I had dozed off after growing tired of looking out the window and was suddenly awoken again by the sound of crushing metal coming from the side of the cabin. Too afraid to confront a bear of such massive size, I just sat there, waiting for the sun to rise.
After the sun had been up for a few hours. I felt safe enough to step outside. I was sure the bear was gone by now. It had probably gone back to sleep. Looking around the outside of the cabin, I saw what it had done last night. My trash can, stomped into the ground, completely flattened.
At this point I was more annoyed than anything. A bear wandering around was nothing to complain about, but this bear was destroying my property and showing clear signs of aggression, it had to be dealt with soon.
I hopped into my truck and made my way down the snow covered road back into town to alert the forest rangers of my nightly visitor. Clearly they did not believe my attempt to describe the sheer size of this furry giant. They gave me the usual spiel about bear spray and securing my waste receptacle, too late for that. If the rangers weren't going to help I had to defend my cabin by myself. I stopped at the hardware store on my way back to get a new thicker plastic trash can. I bought a few bear traps and took a few cases of 12 gauge slug shells for my grandpa's old shotgun as well.
It had started snowing again on my way back to the cabin. There was plenty of time to set the bear traps before the sun went down again. It snowed through the whole day and by 6:00 it had piled up about two feet, covering over the traps I had set earlier. Good, I thought. Maybe if the bear comes around again tonight he'd be more likely to step on a trap if he can't see it.
The night had been quiet for a while. I thought I was in the clear after seeing no more signs of the bear. Just as I had started to settle into bed, the sound of a soft thud came from the rooftop as if something had landed on it. Then another thud, and another. It sounded as if something was pelting my roof with small stones.
It couldn't be the bear, I thought. Bears can't throw rocks, can they?. Irritated by the intruding noise, I stepped out of bed and looked through the front window out toward the trees. “No… why”… its back. That damn bear came back again. Sitting where it did the night before, just staring me down.
After locking eyes with him again it was clear to me that this bear had some sort of personal grudge against me. It was probably just mad that I had woken him from his nap the other day. Whatever, it's not like he could do anything as long as I stayed inside. After a few more moments of looking him in the eye he shifted slightly. Then, out of the darkness, the deer skull came flying across the driveway, forcefully casted from the bear's direction into the glow of the porch light and landing right where I had placed the first trap. The trap snapped closed around the skull, breaking off both antlers and cracking it in half as bits of bone scattered across the snow.
With a single action the bear had shown exactly why he was there. He wasn't mad that I woke him up. He was mad that I, an ignorant human, had trespassed on his land and stolen what was rightfully his. It was at this point that things had been made clear, this bear wasn't letting this go without settling the score. I wasn't interested in sticking around any more and decided to end my vacation and head home early, but the only road out of here was snowed in and my clunky two wheel drive Ford wasn't getting through that any time soon.
fearful that my thin pine wood door would be no match for that massive bear outside, I loaded my shotgun and aimed it out the slightly open window, firing a single warning shot in hopes to scare him off. Nothing… not even a flinch. My body started to tense from the stress. I raised the gun again and fired another shot right at him.
A deep wailing moan of pain echoed through the air as the bear stumbled back. A moment of silence passed before I saw his eyes appear again, this time shaking with pure blind rage. I stood petrified with terror, my brain melting in fear as I stared ahead and saw those glowing yellow eyes as they slowly raised up and were now standing over 12 feet off the ground, shooting a look of murderous intent down at me through the darkness. Impossible… I stopped believing that what I was looking at was an animal. Whatever it was, it sure as hell wasn't a bear.
Part 3
That monster outside appeared to intentionally avoid stepping into the light. It did its best to remain mostly unseen but its silhouette was easy to make out. By its side I saw as it slowly raised its left arm and placed it on the back of the tree next to him and started pushing. Sounds of cracking wood vibrated through the air as the tree began to lean, then CRACK! The tree had snapped at the base and fell on top of the cab of my truck, shards of glass exploding outward as the roof had crumpled like a tin can under the weight of that heavy pine.
I stood and watched in fear as that monster looked back up and bared its teeth, yellow, chipped and gapped as it appeared to be grinning with satisfaction over what it had just done. I figured this thing would leave again before the sun came up. I just needed to keep him out till then.
That second shot I fired seemed to have had an effect, perhaps hitting him a few more times would make him back off. I stepped back from the window to reload, briefly losing sight of the monster. Looking back, it was completely out of view. Suddenly a loud crashing sound came from out back as all the lights had shut off. I quickly dove towards the kerosene lantern that was sitting on the table, struggling to light it as the monster made its way to the front door and started testing the lock. Finally after lighting, I reset the globe on the lantern and held it up to the door right as it was smashed in. Chunks of wood were blown back into the cabin and that creature rushed back behind the trees, avoiding the light again.
I looked out the back window and saw what had caused the power to fail. A large moss-covered boulder had been smashed down onto the generator, leaving it in pieces.
I wasn't sure what worried me more, the fact that the animal outside was strong enough to lift a rock that size, or the thought that this thing was smart enough to know that the generator powered the lights.
Some time had passed, cold air blasting through the open doorway. I huddled in the corner, staring at the front porch, expecting this thing to come charging inside any minute and stomp my head in. a few hours had passed, dawn would be breaking soon. I sat by the lantern that dimly illuminated the room, wondering if its low light was enough.
Suddenly, a massive log was hurled through the window, smashing into the lantern on the floor soaking the carpet with fuel and setting it ablaze. The fire, my last source of light to keep the monster out. I was in no hurry to put it out. I stood in the open doorway with the warm glow of flames growing larger inside as the cabin floor had disappeared in a blaze of orange and red. The sunlight had finally broken over the trees and the creature was nowhere in sight. I leaped off the porch as the cabin was engulfed in flames, the roof caved in as the walls had crumbled into ash.
I was left defenseless, without shelter, without transportation, I wasn't safe there. I had to leave before nightfall. That thing wasn't done with me yet and without light, there was nothing I could do to stop it. I started to trudge down the driveway through the thick snow knowing I had to walk the 7 miles to the nearest town before the sun sets again.
After a few tall steps into the snow, I was starting to realize that this was going to be more difficult than I first thought. One more step ahead and a sharp searing pain shot up my right leg as something had tightly clamped onto my ankle, with jagged spikes digging into my flesh and bone. I had just stepped onto the other bear trap.
I fell to my back onto the snow, grasping my leg, crying in pain as I tried to pry the jaws open. It shifted a bit then clamped tighter, completely severing my foot from my body. I rolled back, vibrating from shock, wallowing in a pool of blood and ice.
I had passed out for a moment. After the pain had subsided a bit I sat back up. Looking down at my leg, the bleeding had slowed as the skin around the wound had turned blue from frostbite. Feeling lightheaded, a surge of adrenaline pumping through me. Not ready to give up, I pulled off my belt and tied it around the stump on my leg. Crawling on my hands and knees to the side of the road to grab a stick to use for balance as I continue to shuffle my way down the road, trying to get as far as possible.
I didn't make it very far before the sun had started setting again. A few more miles to go and I wasn't going to make it. I fell to my knees looking up toward the heavens, pleading for assistance, anything to get me out of here. The sky had started to darken. I looked back up the road from where I came, the puddle of blood and ice still visible in the distance and as the sun set behind me the shadow of my body began to stretch slowly, covering up my bloody tracks in the snow as my world was once again cast into darkness.
I knew it was there, watching, waiting. It wasn't long before its burning yellow eyes met my gaze as it stepped out onto the road a few feet in front of me. This was it, it had a clear shot straight to me. I looked on with a feeling of defeat waiting for it to end my suffering, but it just stood there. With its eyes locked on me and its chest puffing in and out as it was taking short breaths, with a wide stance and its long arms pulsing and ticking as he remained fixated on me.
Locked in a stare down with a deadly vengeful creature and yet it did not advance. He was waiting… waiting for me to make a move. Looking off the road, I saw a potential chance for safety. Building up my nerve, I went for it. The monster started charging at me as soon as I moved. I dived off the side of the road into the ditch and slid myself into the tight stone culvert Next to me, feeling a swift gust of air on my legs as the creature took a swipe at me. I wiggled my way in deeper as a giant hairy hand reached in, its long cryptic fingernails scraping the bottom of my shoe.
I could feel the ground shaking as it stomped around the outside of the pipe, trying to dig out around it, chipping and smashing away the cement with rocks. I knew it was just a matter of time before it would dig far enough to reach me. My hope had started to dwindle for the last time, my head getting dizzy from blood loss. I layed back waiting for death to take me. Then it stopped. The monster was gone. I lifted my head, looking past my foot and out the pipe. The ground was flooded with a beautiful ray of golden light.
I quickly slid out the other end of the pipe, crawled out of the ditch and back onto the road. I was blinded as I basked in the bright gleaming light of my salvation, a snow plow, approaching from down the road, followed closely by the lights and sirens of a fire truck. In a fit of hysterical laughter I slumped forward, passing out from exhaustion on the cold ground.
Epilogue
I woke up three days later in a hospital bed. My leg had died from the frostbite and had been amputated. The emergency response team that found me had me airlifted to a hospital in Tacoma. After resting for a while, a duo of police officers entered my room looking to get a statement. They inspected the damage to my cabin and concluded that the fire was caused by a fallen tree. I wondered if they meant the tree that had destroyed my truck. They claimed that the charred trunk of a pine tree was found laid across the foundation of the cabin. That was all that remained among the ashes of what used to be my grandfather's beloved mountain home. That damn thing had managed to cover its tracks, and covered them well. As for my statement, I couldn't have told them about a 12 foot tall monster that lurks in the dark, who would ever believe that. I took a short pause to think and recounted my frequent visitor, “the bear”. That sort of explained my little bear trap incident. The officers finished their report and left me to rest.
For those who hear my story, I implore you, the next time you enter the backcountry of our western wilderness it's best not to overstay your welcome. Wearing down the land with excessive foot traffic, invading the homes of wild animals and disturbing the natural order of nature around you. And if you're still keen on camping, at least don't go alone. There is indeed safety in numbers, for what watches from beyond the shadows may not want you there and may just show its disdain for your presence.
When the sun sets upon the forest, when the woods around you fill with a deathly chill air at night. There, in the absent warmth of light… comes the dark.
#entertainment
source
| 16,000 mlx | |
| 24 | |
| 0 |