“Not once did my instincts set me off in those woods until that very moment when I absolutely beyond a doubt realized I was prey and ran for my life.”
The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word cryptid as “An animal whose existence or survival is disputed or unsubstantiated, such as the yeti.” For the following witnesses to living cryptids, there is no dispute. In this series of National Cryptid Society’s case files, you will read what the witnesses have experienced in their own words.
Keep an open mind when reading these accounts, and also remember one’s perception and memory of an event can be influenced by the emotions felt at the time of the occurrence. The contributors to this series of articles are doing the best they can to recount what are in some cases very shocking and traumatic experiences.
If you have a personal cryptid sighting story you would like to tell us, our contact information is at the bottom of this article.
NCS Case File #55: Something Very, Very Large in the Woods Around Ashland, Wisconsin.
Submitted by: RM
Date: 1998
“I saw a humanoid…something in the woods outside my childhood home.
This was rural northern Wisconsin and I was 14. Up until that day I had zero fear of the woods. I spent most of my time out there exploring and feared nothing.
My parents had a lousy marriage and fought a lot and I felt more at home outside than in the house. On hot nights, I’d take a sleeping bag and sleep on the roof of an old shack on our property.
I saw bears, I saw wolves. They were always more afraid of me than me them. I didn’t believe in ghosts, Bigfoot, demons, or even God. I only got lost out there once when dark fell sooner than I expected. I stayed calm, found the north star, and knew that if I continued south I’d eventually come across the old railroad tracks near my house. Even the thought of spending the night out there didn’t bother me, the thought of my mom’s rage when I didn’t come home did.
So it was summer, I had just turned 14. My mom had left my father, father worked all the time, sister was living on her own. Once school was out it was me and my cat and this is before the Internet or smartphones.
We lived on a dead-end dirt road and around noon I took my usual stroll down the long driveway to check the mail. My cat followed me everywhere and I actually kind of relied on him to give me a heads up if there was a bear or something close by.”
“A bit of movement behind me as I stood at the mailbox made me aware there was something across the road in the trees but there were pesky deer everywhere. I heard a loud crash then–like something very loudly making its way through the brush.
It’s like every goddamned classic horror story. My brain had no capability for the thought of anything paranormal or spooky. I simply tucked the mail under my arm and headed into the woods to investigate. My cat followed close behind. I got about 10 yards in when I noticed what I hadn’t noticed before–there was no noise. Nothing. It was a beautiful June day and there wasn’t a single bird singing, no insects, no leaves rustling. It was absolutely silent.
At the same time I registered the silence, I got that eerie feeling that something was watching me. I stopped immediately and started scanning the woods for deer. Hunters know what I’m talking about when I say you look for the shape of a deer instead of trying to pinpoint them by color.
That’s when I spotted it. Two brown furry legs, the top of it concealed by tree branches. I went to sigh with relief when my cat hissed. I looked down and he was completely poofed out with his back arched. Looking at the same thing I was. I should probably add that I thought I was looking at a deer’s forelegs, but once it took a step I realized the legs were far too thick and human (but with fur) for that. And there were only two legs, not four. Plus I realized it was way too tall for a deer to be concealed by the tree branches. It all happened within seconds.”
“I looked back up and the legs moved. Not like a deer. Like a human. Everything happened at once after that. I dropped the mail, picked up my cat by the scruff and ran for it. Whatever was out there with me was running after me. I have never run so fast in my life. I tore up the driveway, into the house, locked the door and grabbed the phone.
I called my next door neighbor who was the ex-chief of police and he came over immediately with his pistol. He checked out the spot I was in and found nothing. I was so hysterical I was in tears. He stayed with me until I was able to reach my mom and have her come get me.
Of course they thought I was completely high or delusional. I know exactly what I saw and felt. It was broad daylight. I never felt safe in those woods again and stopped sleeping outside.”
“I was (and still am) the calm, rational middle child and my parents trusted me (they let me sleep outside. Sometimes we all did to catch a meteor shower). I’d casually mention running into a wild animal and my Dad would just as casually say “You made a lot of noise? Good.” And put his newspaper back up to his face.
I was quiet and sensible and had never freaked out about anything before then. I had my neighbor’s number for emergencies and had never called him prior to that. This is how shaken I was. I was embarrassed when he and my mom looked at me like a fool and later, when my Dad also didn’t believe me.
Not once did my instincts set me off in those woods until that very moment when I absolutely beyond a doubt realized I was prey and ran for my life.”
NCS Notes:
- Two hunters encountered what was thought to be a Sasquatch screaming and crashing through the brush in this same area. [Read report HERE]
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It may have chased you because you ran. i had a clan of 7 living around my home in Michigan and eventually moved because of them.
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This did occur to me afterward. Normally I just wait when I see something in the woods to make sure what its’ reaction will be and focus on keeping my breathing the same and not panicking.
It’s only when I see aggression in the animal and that they’re not happy I’m there that I make noise, swing my arms to look bigger, and scare the bear/wolf/buck off.
For all I know, it was chasing me saying “Hey little girl, you dropped your mail!” because having spent years in those woods without seeing anything remotely like it, it had to have seen me before and obviously didn’t harm me.
That instant start of the legs after its first slow step when I broke for it made me feel otherwise.
It wasn’t what I saw that had my hackles up, it was what I felt which was that it had ill intent.
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