Geographical Index > United States > Arizona > Coconino County > Report # 24732
(Class B)
Submitted by witness on Sunday, September 14, 2008.
Hunters have camper shaken and hear whoops on the North Kiabab
(Show Printer-friendly Version)
YEAR: 2008
SEASON: Fall MONTH: September DATE: Sat 13th STATE: Arizona COUNTY: Coconino County LOCATION DETAILS: GPS coordinates N 36 degrees 20.564 W 112 degrees 05.643 NEAREST TOWN: Jacob lake NEAREST ROAD: 67 highway OBSERVED: On Saturday 09-13-08 around 2am in the morning in the Kaibab which is located in Arizona. My husband Chris and his brother were there to do some Grouse hunting. He stated that he was a sleep when he felt our pop-up camper being pushed and would stop and repeat. He said that he stood up and walked over thinking it was his brother moving alot in his sleep. He woke his brother up to ask him he said No! My husband goes out side to see what was going on he looked all around the camper and nothing. He said that all of a sudden he heard some thing walking in the woods behind the camper. He shined his flash light and saw nothing. He walks back in the camper when he heard this loud whooping sound it went on for a while. He has heard nothing like it before. He hunts alot,I found your web site the same recording of the whooping sound is the same sound that he heard. We are business owners,good people we have to see it to beleave it sort of people. For my husband peace of mind he wanted to contact someone to let them know. I didn't know if I should contact game & fish.I feel more comfortable contacting you. Thank you!! ALSO NOTICED: camper being rocked back and forth, whooping noise heard OTHER WITNESSES: 2 OTHER STORIES: first time in this area never hunted there before TIME AND CONDITIONS: 2am dark, cold ENVIRONMENT: pine forest 9100 feet
Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Lyle McKinley:
Although the witness's wife filed the report, I spoke directly with her husband (the witness) for about an hour.
The following details can be added:
>The 39 year old witness and his 35 year old brother were grouse hunting on the Kiabab National Forest just north of the Grand Canyon.
> The witness is an avid "full on" hunter and has spent 10 years hunting all over Arizona. He also estimates that last year he spent between 100 and 150 days in the field hunting and camping.
>Sometime in the middle of the night the witness, a self-described "light sleeper", woke up because his Coleman popup tent camper was shaking from side to side. The camper was shaking hard enough that he could hear the metal clasps on the outside of the trailer banging together. After the first shake he immediately sat up in bed and looked at his brother who was snoring in the bed at the other end of the camper. After a brief pause, the camper was shaken a second time which prompted the witness to get out of bed and wake up his brother. The camper continued to be shaken two more times even as the witness stood over his brother attempting to figure out what was happening. After the 4th shake, the witness decided to leave the camper, flashlight in hand, to investigate. His brother opted not to go outside. The witness looked around but didn't hear or see anything unusual. As he approached the forest and attempted to go to the restroom, he heard the sound of something "walking" in the timber at an angle away from him about 50 yards away. The witness estimates that the creature/animal walked about 30-40 feet before he was able to shine his flashlight on it. He aimed his flashlight in that direction and the walking immediately stopped. He did not see any movement at all. This event caused the witness to get an "eerie" feeling (which he said he has never felt before while out in the forest, even alone) and he decided to get back into the camper.
> Shortly after re-entering the tent camper, the witness heard a LOUD and very distinct whooping sound. He described it as being "whoop--whoop" where the W, O and P sounds were VERY discernable. The whoops occurred as a series of about 20 consecutive whoops roughly 100-150 yards south/southeast of his camp toward the Grand Canyon. He said it sounded "just like a monkey at the zoo".
>Earlier that day, in the late afternoon, the witness and his brother fired their shotguns in the camp area (took about 6 shots total).
> An unsealed trash bag that they had placed some pork chop bones from dinner in remained undisturbed under a folding table about 6 feet away from the camper all night.
> After returning home from the hunting trip and relating the experience to his wife, she found this website, filed this report, and played the 1974 Whoops and Knocks from the "Recordings from various states, Whoops & Knocks from the Sierra Nevada" sound clip really loud from their bedroom. The witness was watching a football game on TV in another room. When he heard the whoops he said, "I got chills on top of chills...Goosebumps up my arm," as he recognized the similarity between those sounds and the whoops he heard on the Kiabab.
> The witness saw numerous deer and a single bear while camping, but no elk or coyotes were observed. The closest occupied campsite was approximately 8 miles away.
> The night was clear and calm and the moon was visible.
About BFRO Investigator Lyle McKinley:
Mr. McKinley has a college degree in biology from the University of Arizona and is a high school biology teacher. He has attended Arizona Expedition 2006, Arizona Expedition 2008 and Arizona Expedition 2009.
|
