my dad was a logger in Upper Tennessee for the last 30 years of his life I worked at a sawmill and only did logging when the old man needed help finishing up a contract on time he worked on government land which meant he worked in the National Forest around here logging suited me just fine but the pay wasn't regular you have to bid and win those contracts then you hope like hell nothing goes wrong with your equipment and none of the people working for you get hurt or just plain don't show up getting sick and
missing work was just out of the question for my dad though and until I took over his business I never understood how and why he would drag himself out of bed and go into the woods before the sun was even up when he was sick as a mule I took over the business when the Old Man Died a few years ago my wife and I had divorced and the kids were all grown so I didn't have much reason to stick with the Sawmill job that offered a steady paycheck but made me miserable for 6 days
a week I won't lie I had the stupidest grin on my face when I won my first job I was going to be working just a few miles from home my brother and nephews were going to work with me me and I thought I was going to make my family's fortune in logging don't judge I was still young enough to have high hopes and thank you very much the world has corrected the course of my life accordingly and now I'm just a sour grouchy glasses half full kind of guy but a few years ago man
I thought I was all that in a bag of chips sure I was getting a late start for someone trying to build a family fortune but I was sure I still had enough life and gumption to do it now of course when you're logging in an area you have to leave your equipment back in the woods usually up on a mountain some people had burned one of my dad's pieces of equipment took the tires off of his truck and even stole his logging chains about 15 years ago so it was a fast rule that we
never left the equipment unmanned overnight we had a small pole up behind camper and one of us stayed in it every night even with the schedule made that listed every one of us in our nights to stay I usually ended up staying I didn't really mind most of the time I was the only one who no longer had family waiting at home and to be honest I kind of got used to the peace the Solitude and the Darkness man-made lighting is overrated there's something to be said about living so close to the Natural Rhythm of
the world now I'd like to sit here and write that I built a fire every night for cooking light and heat but I can't not if I'm going to be honest anyway most of the places we worked open fires weren't allowed because of the risk of wildfires so I used the electric lights the stove and when necessary the heater and the camper we worked in some places where there was a lot of space and we worked in some places that were so densely forested that you couldn't walk 5T in any direction without hitting a tree
those thick dense places they were my favorite yeah I mean yeah it made you work harder and it was sometimes a little bit more dangerous but I liked it and one of those places in the end is what caused me to make up my mind to turn Trail and run out of the woods and not to go back now this happened a few Summers back I'm not going to say how many Summers and I'm only going to give a general idea because some of you are from around here and you'll know who I am in
the incident I'm talking about if you're over the right age and no I'm not going to say what the right age is either if you live in Tennessee and you know anything about the devil's Looking Glass Bumpus Cove and yeah that's the new spelling it used to be Bumpass because we all laughed and called it Bumpass Cove I guess some official or someone other caught on to the joke and changed the spelling to bump us Cove or maybe because there's a town in Virginia spelled Bumpass and they didn't like that it was being confused but
now that that's cleared up a few Summers back me and the boys had put in a long hard day clearing enough of the tree off a new contract lot somewhere in the general vicinity of the devil's Looking Glass Joe had cut his hand while pulling cable and it was his turn to stay with the equipment I sent him on down to the hospital because I figured he'd need stitches and I volunteered to stay that night it was silent and still except for the insects that night nothing unusual for the first few days on site the
wildlife is fast exit stage left and slow to return and as for people well the site was a bit out of the way there were no Trails leading to it and there was a government Gate way down the mountain where we came and we went my brother had the key to the gate so he and the boys could get back in the next morning by the time we were on that job I had figured figured out there was money in the logging business but not enough to make me and my family Rich we did all
right for ourselves though but I was bummed out that night with Joe getting hurt he wouldn't be good for much until his hand healed so we would be one worker short not a good way to start a new job especially not a big job that was going to push us to finish in time anyway after supper I went outside and I sat on a stump a few feet from the camper the air had cooled and there was a nice gentle breeze the sun had gone down far enough that I couldn't see it anymore but there
was a deep Crimson glow off in the west and I watched the world Fall Into Darkness as I drank the last of my coffee I turned on the LED Lantern and dialed it down to almost the dmst setting and then I closed my eyes and listened to the crickets tree frogs and the jar flies I know a lot of people don't care for those sounds they call them noises but hell I happen to enjoy it it's a hell of a lot better than relaxing to the ambient sounds of vehicles Sirens stupid commercials on TV were
the neighbors arguing for the third time that day 20 minutes into my own special Mountain Man meditation session the wind shifted Direction and with that shift a new smell hit me and knocked me right out of the relaxed State I was in my eyes flew wide the fine hairs on the top of my arms they stood up and my gut tightened I couldn't place the smell but it shouldn't have been there I was supposed to be alone and it wasn't the odor of bear or any other natural wild animal there was an under note of
Cedar and something else something that made it seem almost like musky men's cologne but not quite I cranked the LED up brighter and I held it out in front of me as I moved toward the camper three steps and the jar flies went silent then the Crickets and the tree frogs followed suit I felt eyes on me from the darkness beyond the bright white from the lantern but I couldn't tell in what direction it was a pervasive feeling of being watched from all sides sweat beaded on my forehead and face my throat tightened adrenaline pumped
every tiny sound was like an elephant stomping around every scent was strong enough to make me wince and then there was something else something harder to explain but there was an energy in the air like the air itself was electrically char charged that's the best I can explain it if you've ever been outside just before a bad lightning storm well hell you kind of get the idea but there was a feeling of dread with it too I left the lantern a couple steps from the front of the camper I went inside and I shut the
door I made a mental note to pick up a few more of the lanterns next time I was in town it would be better to have a few I could hang around the outside of the camper at night at least I'd be able to see more than a wall of black when I looked out the tiny Windows about the time I convinced myself that I had imagined that weird dirty colog likee smell something bumped against the back wall and the whole camper rocked my first thought was a bear smelled my supper and maybe came to
check it out we mostly have black bears around here and most people think the Curious smaller there is cute and gentle but trust me they could be deadly granted most of the time they're easily scared off but if one is hungry enough to come knocking at the camper for some supper he might be more dangerous than I wanted to deal with and of course he was at the back of the camper where I couldn't get a good look at him I had a rifle and a shotgun for protection but I didn't want to shoot unless
he made a more aggressive move he could couldn't get through the window and I didn't think he could get through the wall either but if he made his way around to the front where the door was I would have to shoot my mind raced and I remembered that I had brought Nutter butter cookies with me they were in ziplock baggies and a tin I'd put the tin in the cabinet over the bed and I didn't have any supper left but I had those cookies I grabbed the tin and the bear rocked the camper again the
baggie hit the floor I tossed the tin in the lid and they clattered against the floor and the bear growled it was a deep guttural sound unlike any bear I'd ever heard before and with the baggie in one hand I froze was it a bear I listened for another minute or two and heard no more growling maybe the sound of the tin scared it off I stepped to the door and looked through the window there was no animal but my coffee cup sat right beside the lantern like I'd placed it there on purpose but I
hadn't the coffee cup should have been laying over by the stump I knew I hadn't put it beside the lantern but how did it get there a bear might have batted it around or stuck its nose in the cup but it wouldn't have carried it and placed it by the Light like that now logically a person would not have been out there there not with whatever animal had growled only a minute or two before if a person had been out there that animal would have gone after them and I would have heard the commotion and
the screams that was the first time in my life I was so scared I couldn't move and I didn't know what to do next I stood there staring at that stupid cup for at least 5 minutes before something shuffled at the front end of the camper ran toward the truck and then I heard the Springs of the truck squeak and protest as something heavy got on top of it I darted to the window and that end and jerked the curtain back there was enough dim light from the lantern that the side of the old beater
forward was visible and almost enough light for me to see in the bed of it the light reflected off the back window of the truck and something blocked that reflection it was on two legs and it looked like it had arms with hands it was not an animal but it wasn't human squinting I pressed closer to the window and I held my breath the few feet between me and the thing in the bed of my truck might as well have been the Grand Canyon for all the detail I could see the darkness was just too
thick its hand had been over the side of the truck as if it had been using it to keep balance I was sure I had seen a human arm and hand that was just a a little too long to be normal without warning the bed of the truck moved and again the camper moved whatever had been in the truck was out I followed the sound of its walking to the other end of the camper every Instinct was telling me to shoot first and ask questions later if it would have moved just a little more to
the light maybe I would have but I didn't it growl close to the window then it ran toward the thick Woods on the other side of the Logging Road now about an hour later I heard a deer screaming in that same direction I had never wanted to get out of a place so bad but there was no driving out my brother had locked the gate and he took the key with him there was no way in hell I was going to try my luck walking out I did think about driving to the gate and then
getting out to run past it but that thought was laughable and lasted about as long as the dying deer's scream had I was stuck right and proper until the next morning now that was about 2:00 in the morning my brother would show up around 5:30 or 6 with his boys and toe that thought comforted me for a couple of hours and then I thought about one of them getting out to unlock that damn gate it would likely still be dark that thing was out there somewhere and what if and before you go harping on about
why I didn't use my cell phone there's no signal back there none the only thing I had on me was the AM FM radio and since I'm not mcgyver or member of the eight team I had no way of getting a hold of anyone the lantern still burned outside but it had dimmed a little the batteries wouldn't last until sunrise I stood at the doors staring through the little window if I was going to do anything I had to do it soon my flashlight was in the truck my keys were in my pocket but the
driver door of the truck was about 20 ft away out there where the thing was I told myself it had to have been a bear but that didn't do any good even in idiot knows when they see a bear bears have legs and Paws it's just a biological fact moving from window to window I kept trying to see where I knew I couldn't I listened and heard nothing but the insects the whole time that thing had been outside I hadn't noticed any noises in the forest except for the noise that it had made since the
insects were singing again I quietly opened the door just a crack and I looked toward the truck I couldn't get out of the woods with it but I could get to the gate before my brother and nephews got there I could warn them to stay in their truck until the sun came up and we could see if that thing was anywhere around I would just tell them it was a bear that was acting weird and trying to get into the camper they never believed the truth and so screwing up my courage I opened the door
a little more and stuck my head out the insects continued to sing the air smelled of the previous day's fresh cut timber and nothing seemed out of the ordinary creature was gone for the time being I gripped the Ford's door key in my hand and I pushed the door wider ready to yank it shut again at the first hint that the creature was back but there was nothing I let out a long breath and smiled with relief maybe the deer had satisfied its hunger or its need to kill or whatever it wasn't near me at
that moment and that's all I cared about after another minutes of braving up I finally stepped outside the camper and ease the door shut the soft click was terrifying what if the thing was waiting around the corner for me to shut that door with the extra two seconds it took to open again cost me my life and so with the rifle under my arm I stepped over and I grabbed the Lantern and then hurried toward the truck trying trying to be as quiet as I could I didn't want to draw the thing's attention if it
was still sitting in the woods put the key to the door but was holding it upside down cursing under my breath I turned it over and pushed it into lock the keys on the Rings dangled and clanged against the metal I sucked in a sharp breath as all the insects went silent again it's just me it was just me the noise I made I said on low voice as I turned the key when I pulled it out of the lock the whole ring slipped out of my grasp Ah hell I went to pick him up
and the barrel of the gun whacked that damn door the sound echoed sharply through the silence I stepped back and let the lantern fall as I grabbed the gun with one hand and then I picked the keys up with another but then something growled across the road and my heart heart nearly exploded I yanked the door open tossed the gun in and I jumped in myself I hit the lock with my left elbow while I jammed the key in the ignition the engine grumbled to life as the headlights washed the world white in front of
me and there it stood 7t tall and humanoid shaped with dark fur covering it from head to toe it shielded its eyes from the brightness of the headlights and it screamed the sound was Almost Human could have been mistaken for human if I hadn't been looking right at the thing the almost human hand was tipped with long black claws that curled downward it dropped its arm the face was that of a short snouted dog and the eyes reflected red that was the second time I'd ever been paralyzed with fear it wasn't a trend I didn't
like and I didn't need but I couldn't move anything but my eyes I realized that the starter was grinding and I told my hand to release the key but it took several seconds for it to happen my foot was on the accelerator and the engine sounded like it was getting ready to blow I had to get control of myself the creature laid back its ears turned to face me leaned forward and screamed over the hood of my truck Fury burned in its eyes when it screamed I screamed before I could get my body to obey
my brain's commands the thing was on the hood and thrashing at the windshield it hung on after I got the old Ford moving too hell I think I screamed for the first 5 minutes of the drive I screamed until there was no more screams left in me the terror was replaced with determination at the foot of the mountain where the gate was I could probably get enough cell reception to call my brother and warn him he would have his rifle he could shoot the thing off my truck without getting out of his I took a
sharp turn too fast and the camper caught in a deep rut when it tipped up on one side the force yanked the truck the creature fell off and yelped and I laughed a little I laughed until I realized that I couldn't drive fast enough on that rded narrow road to outpace the monster I heard its claws rip into the camper heard it move toward the truck and almost my pants when it hit the window right behind my head it thrashed and clawed at the window and I laughed when I realized that it couldn't break through
the thick glass a chill went up my spine and my skin shrunk two sizes as I heard the distinct sound of a cinder block scraping across the the bed of the truck all I could do was brace and cover my head for what I knew was coming next the impact shattered the glass and it pelted against me I didn't freeze that time though I think all my Panic had left when the screams ran out earlier I slammed the shifter into park and a heavy furry Mass hit me from behind teeth snapping at my right ear
but I had the door open and was at out before its body thed into the sea I slammed the door as hard as I could and the thing yelped again as the door hit it in the face I ran for the camper it was the only place I could go the horrible sounds of the creature clawing out that busted back window caused a terror I couldn't even begin to explain and as it leaped from the bed of the truck I opened the door it was on my heels it SW wiped at my back shredding my
shirt and then I was inside but my hand was still on the door and that's how it bit me the pain was like a dozen Hornets stinging I found my ability to scream again and I also realized that in that moment I would go down fighting I shouldered the door into the monster and its teeth ripped out of my hand the warm gush of blood was sickening but I would take that over the alternative of any day jerking my hand inside and stumbled to the table where I propped long enough to wrap my hand in
my shirt I didn't want to look at it I didn't have time to I had to call my brother and warn him but it didn't do any good to warn him when he heard my voice he said he knew I was injured and there was no way he was just going to play it safe and let me stay there until the coast was clear he drove to where I was his son had his rifle out the window but they said that they saw nothing all the way up to where I was I told him it
was a bear and I never wavered from the story not when he and his sons questioned all the damage done to the truck and camper not when the doctors were making their reports and for sure not when the forest ranger and cops were questioning me for their reports so you might be wondering why I'm telling the truth here I started not to tell this story I mean it's been a few years and I've been fine healthier than ever actually and I had almost convinced myself that I really had just seen a bear that had somehow
been provoked to violence almost you see last week I had a nightmare three nights in a row mind you I was running from something in the dark woods I couldn't see it but I could hear it screaming and growling behind me I woke up all covered in sweat my heart racing my bones aching on the fourth day my clothes didn't fit exactly right anymore they were just a little too small just about everywhere on the fifth day I bumped my head on the shower curtain bar as I got out and now today there's dark dark
fur covering the bald spot on the top of my head and I smelled like I rolled in that stinky cologne with undertones of Cedar you see I'm afraid that tomorrow I won't be able to tell you my story I already have a craving for raw meat and an all consuming need to go run through the woods under the full moon
