A listener sent this possible encounter to me. After listening to the show I think a lot of people think back to a strange event like this one: “About 4 years ago I was backpacking by myself near where I live in Vail, CO. It was a cold, rainy, middle of September night. I was up near a town called Leadville (that I have learned has had several sightings throughout the years). It was late when I finally got to where I camped and had my camp set up. There was another couple guys across the lake when I got there but it was a Sunday night, so they were leaving when I was setting up.
I was trying to get a fire going but the wood was pretty wet and it was very smoky. I was being loud, kind of cursing that I couldn’t get the fire going. At that point I stood up and looked behind my tent with my headlamp and saw a red eye moving across the little hill behind my tent. I yelled thinking mountain lion and it stopped at looked at me with both eyes. Two big red eyes looking at me and not moving. Thinking it was a lion I picked up some rocks and started throwing them at it.
If it had been daylight I could have easily hit it because it wasn’t far away. Instead, the rocks landed around it and the eyes would dart to the rock hitting the ground and then right back at me. Unfortunately my headlamp was dying so I went to my tent to get my backup that isn’t nearly as bright. I was still able to see it’s eyes, but couldn’t get anything else.
Finally, I picked up a rock about the size of a shoe and kind of grenade style lobbed it toward him. when it hit, he looked at it and took off towards the trail (the only way I could get out as I had myself backed into a corner of the lake and a cliff). But it made absolutely no noise when it ran off. I couldn’t bring myself to pack up and leave because my light situation wasn’t good and whatever it was ran toward the trail out. I finally got myself calm and was able to fall asleep and at some point in the night was awoken to something walking next to my tent. I thought again it was an animal so I unzipped the tent window and looked out with my light. Because the light reflecting in the screen made it hard to see out, I could only see what at the time I thought was a bear. It was two large, hairy legs. I didn’t think anything but a bear walking upright. It ran off very quietly and I never heard anything else that night.”
Jane M
Yypes!!!!
Bryan H
Everybody goes out unarmed, and I always ask why, as we are not top of the food chain. Thank your lucky stars, as being backed into a corner, you made it out alive. Even if it was a bear or mountain lion, that time of year, the big boys in the woods are looking for the most calories to store away for the winter.
Christopher c
That’s nuts!