Geographical Index > United States > North Carolina > Buncombe County > Report # 69464
(Class B)
Submitted by witness on Sunday, July 18, 2021.
Large trees shaking 15 miles SW of Asheville
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YEAR: 2016
SEASON: Spring MONTH: June DATE: 06/15/2016 STATE: North Carolina COUNTY: Buncombe County LOCATION DETAILS: I can't give the street or address. This is a high end gated community. NEAREST TOWN: Arden N.C NEAREST ROAD: I26 OBSERVED: I live near Asheville NC. I own a landscaping & Irrigation company. I grew up about an hour east. My parents had 30 acres that was surrounded by 6,000 acres of game land. I've played in the woods, hunted, and camped my whole life. Plus my business also allows me to be outside year round.
I was starting up a irrigation system in a large gated & wooded golf community in the mountains of Arden NC basically 15 mins from Asheville. This community joins Pisgah National Forest, approximately 300 square miles of forest.
This was around April or June of 2016. I was standing in the back yard facing the control box which is attached to the house. So my back was to the woods maybe 25 to 30 yards to the tree line. And I hear this large crash. The same sound a large tree makes as it falls through other tree limbs when its falling. I turned quickly to see a massive Beach tree rocking back and forth. Leaves were floating down but no tree was falling.
I've been in trees this size. I'm 6'2 250 pounds. There is no way I could make this tree rock like this. But i didn't see what did it. So watched for probably 30 or 45 seconds. Nothing happened so turned to finish my work. Then it happened again but a different tree. This time I knew something was up. Bears don't jump from tree to tree like that. So I walked to the edge of the yard and watched for a few minutes. No movement in the trees. The canopy is really thick here. The only way I could have really seen anything that was hiding would have been to walk to the bottom of the tree and look up. But I wasn't about to do that. So after a while I walked back to the control again but I walked backwards. Seems silly but I felt whatever it was it was watching me.
When I reached the control I turned to face it. Then turned back to the woods again quickly to see if I could trick it or catch it jumping. But nothing happened. So I started working again assuming the show was over.
Then it happened again, a third big tree was rocking after the loud crash. At this point I was freaked out so ran to the truck and left. Rescheduled the job.
I've been in the forst my whole life. I've never been afraid in the day time. Bears don't do that. They climb up and down. Cats don't make loud crashes if they would have they would have run after the first one. What ever did this has to be huge. I couldn't make those trees rock if i wanted to. Plus it was watching and waiting for the perfect time to jump so I wouldn't see it. Bears here aren't that worried about being seen. They know they can't be hunted in those developments. You have to make them leave. This was something different. I wish I had the balls to walk to the base of the trees. But I don't. I was afraid. I've been training to handle myself. I always carry a gun. But this wasn't something I could handle. I just know . ALSO NOTICED: Not that I can think of OTHER WITNESSES: No OTHER STORIES: No. Never. TIME AND CONDITIONS: It was probably around 10am ENVIRONMENT: Behind the house its thick forest
Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Rick Reles:
I spoke with Ryan Millwood, the witness reporting, and have driven near the area where the incident occurred. This is a high end residential community, SW of Asheville N.C. (Exact location requested to be withheld). This property abuts the Pisgah National forest which is extensive for miles.
He described how three massive, full grown trees, were sequentially, shaken violently in the woods, behind the property he was at, while installing an irrigation system. He approached the woods after the first action, and heard something massive, sound like it was jumping physically from tree to tree. The second tree shook, bending 25%. A third did the same, this time further in the woods. He was scared, and evacuated the property summarily.
About BFRO Investigator Rick Reles:
Rick has been on numerous BFRO expeditions over the last 7 years, and has been investigating witness experiences for 5 years in Wisconsin and Tennessee. He has three times published a guide book to Stick Structures found in the woods.
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