YEAR: 2014

SEASON: Summer

MONTH: September

DATE: 09/06/2014

STATE: Washington

COUNTY: Chelan County

LOCATION DETAILS: I could point the exact locations out given a topographical map.

NEAREST TOWN: Winthrop

NEAREST ROAD: Hwy 20

OBSERVED: My son and I were hiking near Lake Ann in the Northern Cascades around 6:00 pm on Sat. Sep. 6, 2014. We were in a little cirque just down the trail from Lake Ann. From the bluff high above us (to our northwest) to a crag on the other side of the highway (to our east), there was a weird vocal exchange going on for 5-10 minutes. It weren't no bird. It wasn't a wolf howl... I'm trying to recall. It was rather high pitched, but it also varied... there were a variety of sounds. Two bear had been sighted up the trail at Lake Ann itself, but we didn't see them.

We ran into two other hikers just after the exchange. They had also heard it and thought it strange. I just don't think it could have been human. For one thing, the points from which the exchange took place were so inaccessible, not good campsites. It was starting to rain. Night was falling soon. Humans would have camped together or used cell phones. And the sounds were eerie. Pranksters don't need to go to such remote places for an audience of so few. The sounds weren't like someone trying to spook us or joke. They were eerie.

ALSO NOTICED: bears?

OTHER WITNESSES: My son was with me. Two other hikers, but I don't know their names.

OTHER STORIES: It was my first trip to the region.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: 6pm (about?)

ENVIRONMENT: alpine, mountainous

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Darrel Verney:

The witness and her son were on their way up to the lake when they heard the eerie exchange of calls. It was raining and they had a late start for their hike, so they heard the vocalizations in the evening.

Since the calls lasted around 10 minutes, the witness felt the two callers were “talking” back and forth. Her adult son (age 22) wondered what was making the calls, saying those aren’t people or birds. They met two hikers coming down from the lake who also questioned, “What could that be?”

Within about 10 seconds of hearing the high pitched and varied calls, the witness knew where the callers were located. She was certain one individual was on the ridge above them, which put it at an elevation of around 6600 feet. The other was across the valley on top of a mountain, at an elevation of about 7790 feet. The line-of-sight distance between those two points is two miles.

The witness and her son were in an open area of the slope below the ridge, approaching another forested section at the time. Their location was at an elevation of around 5200 feet. They continued up to the lake, but didn’t spend much time there before returning by nightfall. The experience made an impression on the witness and she wondered if those calls were made by Bigfoot.

About BFRO Investigator Darrel Verney:

Originally from Alaska, Darrel now lives in north central Washington. He studied Wildlife Biology and Wildlands Recreation, and has worked for the National Park Service and National Forest Service in the past. He feels fortunate in having had several sightings and numerous encounters during expeditions and informal outings. Darrel has attended the Redwoods ’06, North Cascades ’08, ’09 & '16, Olympic ’09 & ’11, and Morton ’12 & ’13 expeditions.