There I was, trying to hide from the world when something mysterious, and even a bit wondrous, but scary, entered it. I never expected my life to include tragedy, redemption, and a legend come to life.

At the time, tragedy was my middle name. I sought refuge in the middle of nowhere, but I never knew what was lurking there; I never would have guessed it in a million years.

Here is my story…

The Beach

It was done. I had buried my wife of fifteen years. I was broken, lost in my thoughts, and feeling like the end of the world had come.

It is hard to lose someone who you felt was your soulmate. Like she said, “I was made for you, and you for me, my love.” My wife believed in the good Lord above, and she shared that love she had for God with me throughout our whole marriage.

I was a believer, but I worked a lot, and I mean, I was a workaholic. She always teased me about it, but she never browbeat me for working so hard.

She was kind. Gracious. Beautiful. Forgiving like no other, and I knew I’d see her again.

Almost a year and a half after the funeral, I knew I had to sell our home. I was becoming more and more depressed. I was also turning into a very grumpy person. What I needed was a new view from my living room window.

So, I sold our beach house in Santa Barbara and purchased a new one in Oregon, just outside of Port Orford, to be exact. I still wanted a beach view, and as much as I desired beauty, I also desired dark clouds and darker storms.

It was the definition of my life at the time.

The house was a bit smaller than ours had been. I did not need all that extra space. My wife was an artist; she hand-made and designed things like tiaras, bracelets, necklaces, and other jewelry out of things she found on the beach.

She was great at it; she even had a few high-profile actresses in Hollywood who would buy from her regularly. She also sold to shops all over Los Angeles. Now, I did not need the extra space for her work. Having it there just reminded me of what I’d lost.

Sounds selfish, and I agree, but those were my darkest days.

As for me, I am a day trader. All I need is a computer and a view to do my work.

This new house had large picture windows around ten feet high. The view was beautiful. Spread out below me was Highway 101, and beyond that, the sea, and a beach that was rarely trodden. Behind me was nothing but forest and mountain after mountain.

Coming from Southern California, with its sunshine, I was actually glad to see more clouds, the thick fog rolling in over the sea, and little to no people.

I had become a hermit, but one with means and a beautiful home.

Lights Are A’flickerin’

I had been there for a few months before a few strange things began to happen, which led to a truly amazing discovery. It all started in early autumn, I recall.

My bedroom was one of three upstairs near the back of the house. I never went in the others much, but I did deck them out with a couple of beds in each, nightstands, and some clothes hangers. You never know when my parents or in-laws would want to come and visit. I think they would just come to check on me and try to cheer me up.

One night, I believe it was late September, my motion light in the backyard kept going off constantly. This was before the days of RING. There were cameras available, but I didn’t want them. I lived in the middle of nowhere after all. What would be the point, right?

But that particular night, I was getting up to relieve myself when I noticed the backyard motion lights had come on. I peered out my bedroom window. It was dark in those woods; my lights were only strong enough to reach the edges of the trees that lined the backyard, but no further.

You could also see the mist blowing around, and around in the strong breeze that was brewing. I looked to the left of the backyard, then to the right. Nothing. I gave it up to a raccoon or deer, which I’d seen frequently visit in the early evenings.

I finally crawled back into my half-empty bed a few minutes later. The lights had turned off by then. As I started to shut my eyes, they popped on again. I lay there staring out at the light coming through the window.

Again and again, they would turn off, then come back on. Something was out there moving around. I got up once more to check things out. I looked along the edge of the patio and up into the treeline.

For the briefest of a millisecond, and out of the corner of my eye came movement. I was not sure what it was, but something, a shadow of sorts, moved slightly enough between the trees to notice it.

What it was, I could not tell; I did not get a good look. But an animal was moving around for sure. After a moment or two, I gave in to the heaviness of my eyes and fell asleep, dreaming that my wife was there with me, sleeping next to me.

I wake up before dawn every day. I live on the West Coast, which means I am three hours behind the market. I grabbed a cup of coffee, headed to the living room, and started work, which would only last me a couple of hours tops.

A little research, then pull the trigger on a trade. I’d then check my other trades, mostly options, then watch the new day break over the sea below me.

That morning, I decided to take a walk down to the beach. It seemed the storm had passed, and only a gray and guilty sea was left behind. I dressed for the wet mist and strong breeze and headed out.

There were game trails all over the property. They came from atop the mountain behind me and led to the sea. Of course, the highway was a dangerous place for them to cross. The deer and such that dared it usually ended up dead and stinking on the side of the road.

I followed the largest of the trails down to the edge of the highway. I did notice that there were a few large branches here and there, broken off and lying in the middle of the trail.

I gave that up to the wind and storms, but something inside of me told me that that was a very questionable theory. These were pretty large branches and healthy. It was odd, and looking back, I should have been a bit more like Sherlock Holmes instead of Mr. Bean.

The sea air was invigorating, but the wind picked up, and the rain started falling in sheets, sideways. I made it back to the house, did some more work, and read for the rest of the day.

That night, again, the motion lights kept going off. I tried to see what little creature was causing this annoyance, but I could see nothing, not even a shadow of something moving around the backyard.

Church

It was the middle of October, and yes, the motion lights were still going off from time to time. By this time, though, I felt that I needed some human connection, finally. So, off to the local church I went for a Wednesday night bible study.

It was nice chatting with people again; it was the first time in over a month that I had, well, other than my folks on the phone once a week. I met the pastor and a couple of other nice folks. It felt good to be around people again.

Especially when I met Heather, she seemed really nice, very talkative, and was a painter.

After church, I headed home. It was dark, and the rain was falling again. The wind was strong and gusty, but not too bad. Still, however, it made the slow drive up my steep driveway even slower. That driveway was nearly sixty yards uphill.

I came around the last bend when I noticed something move on the passenger side of the car. There were no lights but my low beams, but I still saw it. It was a large silhouette that seemed to have stepped back from the driveway and into the trees that lined it.

I came to a crawl with the car staring into the trees. I could see nothing now, but I saw what I saw. It took one step backwards and melted into the trees. It was tall, very tall. That had me a bit concerned, thinking a burglar had broken into my home!

I sped up, parked the car in the garage, and ran upstairs to survey the damage and find what might have been stolen. The house, I realized, was as I left it, neat and clean. no signs of forced entry, not even anything outside had been moved, nor windows broken.

I sat for a moment thinking. The lights are going off. The shadow that night in the backyard. Now something tall and dark literally stepped backwards into the trees next to my driveway to hide from me and, well, vanished!

Was it a bear standing on two legs? A very tall person casing my house for a potential robbery? I was at a loss thinking about what was going on.

That night, I decided to wait it out. My trades were in, research done, so there was no reason to wake up so early in the morning. So, I sat by my window waiting to see what or who was visiting my property at night.

It was just past midnight. I had to use the restroom. When I made it back to my chair facing the window, my heart jumped a bit as the motion lights sprang to life. I stood for a second, looking directly below at the patio.

Then I began to scan the trees, at least as far as the light would reach. There it was! That tall shadow of a figure standing just out of reach of the light. I stood up slowly, not believing my eyes.

Was I looking at the silhouette of Wilt Chamberlain standing between a couple of trees in my backyard in the middle of the night? Of course, that was absurd, but this thing was tall, taller than Wilt, that I was sure of.

It started to sway from side to side. It was wide at the shoulders, arms came down to its knees, and it seemed to have a sort of hunch to it, that was all I could tell by its silhouette, however, it was too dark to make out any other features. It swayed back and forth, just like my mind began swaying at that very moment.

Then, in the briefest of flashes, it stepped back into the cover of night and disappeared.

My jaw had dropped to the floor, and my mind was so alive and active that I could not fall asleep until the wee hours of the morning.

That’s Bananas

The next day or two, I spent hiking around looking for any sign of what that thing could have been. Between the mountain behind me and the sea below, I hiked and walked it all, trying to figure it all out.

If it were an animal, I asked myself, what would it be? This was two-legged, not some circus bear walking around on two legs around my property. I decided to do some research online after all that walking around.

Bigfoot.

Bigfoot.

Bigfoot.

This was all that I kept seeing in my searches. Nothing but Bigfoot. It was all I found of known or even unknown species of animals that fit the description I was seeking in the Pacific Northwest.

I decided to think about things for a few days. Sunday came, and I found myself in church again. I chatted with the pastor before the service started, and even made small talk with Heather.

The service was great, and the message started to get me thinking again. Of course, about my wife. This time, however, I walked out of there with a smile on my face. Her memory was now making me smile. I didn’t know how to react to this, but I realized I missed smiling.

When I hit my driveway, those thoughts gave way to the new visitor on my property. Was this really some legend come to life? Was I one of those nutty people who go around yelling Bigfoot! at every broken limb or shadow in the woods?

No, not even close. Not me! This had to be easily explained, I thought to myself. So, that evening, I had a simple plan: I would leave out a couple of bananas to see if there really was some giant monkey on my property.

Night came, and I grew tired of researching a new company called Facebook, a new investment opportunity I found interesting. I got myself ready for bed, even though I was not all that tired.

The objective of an early bedtime was to see if my motion lights popped back on and to see if something would snatch the bananas up. No lights came on, but mine went out. I crashed faster than I thought I would.

The next morning, I grabbed some toast and headed outside to check the bananas. They were gone! I looked around the table I sat them on, but it was not until I looked along the grass that I noticed them.

A set of impressions in the ground led from the woods to the table, then back again. Each one was enormous! I put my own foot in one, and it was literally larger than mine by at least seven or eight inches. That would put that thing at a size sixteen shoe!

The strides were long; I had to really stretch out the hamstrings to get from one to the other!

My mind was whirling again about the possibility that this might be a Bigfoot, and that I might actually be joining that group of people who yell ‘Bigfoot’ every time something strange happens in the woods.

I decided to calm down and take a walk along the beach to clear my head.

It was a decent day, actually. The clouds were relentless, for the most part, but the only thing they gave forth was a fine mist and darkness. I made it down there and took a seat for a few on some rocks.

The waves kept crashing, and my mind was still busy being blown away by the discovery. I was in such deep thought that I could not hear the voice calling my name.

It was a shock at first, but a hand gently touched my shoulder. I was startled and turned around. It was Heather.

She said she called my name several times. I told her I was listening to the waves crashing, and they were very loud. I did not tell her why I really couldn’t hear her; I was afraid she’d laugh me off the beach.

She asked me if I came to this beach often. I told her where I lived and pointed up to the house. She complimented the home, then I asked her what she was up to this far out of town.

She loved that beach. She told me that growing up in Port Orford, she and her mother would often drive out here and walk this beach. Then she told me how her mom had passed away recently.

One conversation led to another until we ended up at my house, sharing a cup of coffee and continuing the conversation. I did tell her about my wife’s passing away, and that was why I moved here. It was nice talking with her. Heather was intelligent, kind, engaging, sweet, and yes, pretty.

After the coffee was gone, I don’t know what it was, but I asked if she wanted to stay for dinner. To my surprise, she said yes, and with a rather big smile.

Over dinner, I decided to mention the strangeness I had been experiencing around the property. Again, to my surprise, she shocked me with her answer of what it was before I could even utter the embarrassing word, Bigfoot.

This is where things got crazy.

She told me she knew the folks who built this house. Before it was here, they had a small cabin right where the house sits now. They tore it down and had this built in its place to sell.

I asked why they moved, and her answer was simple and direct. “Bigfoot,” she said.

Her story was incredible. This Bigfoot would show up in the fall and winter, steal their food out of the smoker shack out back, and sometimes, when it was in a foul mood, slap their cabin and scream at them.

There were more incidents and stories of the old owners and Bigfoot told while we ate. As the evening had come to a close, I wondered if this was the same Bigfoot that was visiting me. Heather was sure of it, after all, the house was built less than five years before I bought it.

We said our goodbyes, but before we did, I asked Heather if she was up for dinner sometime. Surprise, surprise, she said yes, and with that larger-than-life smile, this time.

That night, the lights did not go off. But, for the first time, I heard what sounded like low chattering, or better yet, babbling. It was weird, it was like a deep voice speaking a whole other language softly through my window that was cracked open. I got out of bed and sat by it.

Whatever it was saying, it sounded almost grumpy or perturbed about something. I was not sure about that, of course, but it was the feeling it gave me. It never stepped out of the woods either.

After about three or four minutes, it stopped.

Hello Big Boy!

Three days later, and after buying some of that Facebook options, and some stock, I was heading back from a walk on the beach in the early evening. I felt something inside of me changing, something good, and the thoughts of my late wife only added to this feeling, which surprised me the most!

I also found myself thinking about Heather, and frequently. I must have been really lost in thought, because it took me a few minutes to realize that something was walking up the trail beside me, not ten or fifteen yards away.

I heard footsteps, heavy footsteps. I also started hearing a deep, raspy breathing! It was like King Kong was sucking in air between steps. Then came a smell that was so putrid I had to stop in my tracks to pull my shirt over my nose.

I started thinking Bigfoot right at the start. This thought, however, scared me! It was almost dark, I was in the woods, so to speak, and some large, bipedal giant of a thing was in the woods with me.

I started walking faster. So did the beast. What really started to scare me was the fact that it began babbling again. This time, I could tell it was not happy at all. It sounded almost angry, to be honest.

I scrambled up the trail as fast as I could, but this thing started moving faster, too. It was going to beat me to the top and block me from getting to the house, I thought. This thought really had me scared.

Just as I was about to hit the front yard, not that there was much of one, this thing let out a scream that I thought would shatter both my eardrums and the large picture windows on my house.

I literally crumpled to the ground!

Before I could get myself together and get moving again, this thing let out another of those thundering screams. I fought the urge to crumple up and let it kill me, if that was what it wanted to do, and I ran for the house.

As I opened the door, I heard it grunt behind me, a very deep and guttural grunt at that. My mind said no, but my body already reacted. As I turned around, this thing was standing on the edge of my little lawn.

It was enormous, and I mean extremely enormous! It had to be all of nine feet tall, for sure. It was covered in chocolate brown colored hair in the light. The hair was long, I’d say two to three inches long. It was literally blowing around in the wind.

It was covered in it from head to foot, except around the eyes, nose, and a bit around the mouth of this thing. Its eyes were wide open, and I could see whites. The pupils, however, were a brilliant red. I could see a bit of a neck, but not much, and this thing was as wide as the hood of my car! Its arms were long, and its legs seemed, well, weird. I can’t really explain it.

It stood there, breathing in and out loudly. It grunted again; this time, there was a ‘huff’ to go with it. Then, it turned and with one giant step forward, it walked off into the woods beside the trail and disappeared.

It seemed to me that this thing, this Bigfoot, was irritated by the fact that I was there on the property, and it was letting me know. But, to my relief, I suddenly felt like my life was not in jeopardy as much as I felt like a nuisance to this thing. Like I said, it was all weird, but scary, for sure!

I closed and locked the door behind me and headed for the kitchen for a beer. I could not believe what I’d just seen. I did not sleep until the wee hours of the morning that night.

Boogiemen and Redemption

I decided that I did not want to be a nuisance to this thing, and most importantly, I did not want to make it angry enough to tear me apart just in case it changed its mind and wanted to.

So, I sold the house and bought another one, closer to town, of course.

But even that got sold when I married Heather two years later. We dated and went to church together for those two years. We would walk the beach we both loved below the old house, but we never walked up there ever again.

Today, we live up around the Olympic Peninsula, where I still day trade, and Heather puts creation on canvas. I still think about my late wife from time to time, and deep down inside, I know she would be happy for Heather and me; that was the kind of person she was.

That is my story, thanks,

Thomas.