Back Story;
In the mid to late 1990’s; I had been living and working with one of my older brothers, building houses in the Washington State coastal town of Ocean Shores. Several homes where built for resale. Once a home was completed or once a major step in the building process had been done; We had made it a habit of taking a break and doing a backpacking trip. These trios where always done somewhere on the Olympic Peninsula. Sometimes a beach hike, sometimes inland. Enchanted Valley, Pony Bridge, Pacific Beach Trail or Pacific NorthWest Trail. This would be Jefferson County, the Northern portion.
One one particular trip out for some rest and recreation we decided this hike would be the stretch of trail that travels from Oil City at the mouth of the Hoh River, to Beach 3 just South La Push.
Once a hiker travels from the trail head, aolong the Hoh River and to it’s mouth opening up onto the Washington Coast; There is a series of “Heads” that impede the walk somewhat. The trail allows for most heads to be taken over land, or gives the option of hiking the beach and rounding the head. While the first head in the series; The one at the river’s mouth; there is no overland option and the head must be rounded “At extreme low tide only” So you have to get your timing just exactly right, or abort your travel until the next tide that allows. Usually you might have something like 30 minutes to round this head before a rapid tide shift. Well, this particular hike, my damn watch was off, and right as we where just at the point of the head we found ourselves becoming dangerously trapped by incoming September tide and breakers.
Our only option was to now scale the bluff or the face of the head and make it to the overland trail eventually. No easy task.
The Encounter Experience;
Once at the top of the bluff, we took a short break to take in some water, rest in the sun and dry off our sweat. We where both covered in Sword Fern spores, and we cleaned up the best we could. Once we where rested enough, we started our venture into the woodland and in search of the trail. The going was not easy. This is heavy woodland, lots of deadfall, no trail, and the terrain in a constant up steep slopes to a peak, and then down steep slopes into valley, and immediately right back up another slope. Repeat umpteen untold times. It’s remote.
Sun was setting and we still had not come across the trail. We set up camo the best we can; Clearing away as much of the larger debris making way for our small 2 man packing tent. Then we, (or I) make us a hot meal. We both get out our little packing stoves and my brother is tired, so I make our meal allowing him some rest. He places his stove unused next to his pack on the ground.
After our meal it is now well past dark and we open our bags up and hit the tent. Nit much comfort to be found here for a long night’s rest. The ground was still littered with debris, lumps and large bumps of ground protruded into any body part making contact with the ground. I’m not going to get much sleep. I open up a small paperback book that I kept stowed along in my rolled up bag when we went out and using the dimmed light from my lantern started to read, while my lovely older brother did all those things a man of his age does when he sleeps. Snoring and farting and there was no way I would be falling to sleep any time real soon. Note to self; Bring my own damn tent next time !
I had finally just got settled and comfortable enough, still reading; When my ears tuned into something. I couldn’t tell what it was really. Whatever it was it was being very stealth. it was not the sound of snapping twigs, it was noi animal call or sound, it was like someone had just snuck up on us. Then what had to be a very large knee started to lean right up against the side wall of the tent. It was very much as if a very large and tall man had been sort of kneeling or squatting right there outside the tent, and his knee was pressing against the tent fabric. this shape came in enough to be able to see the general bone structure and it sure did look just like a huge knee to me. Only the edges and boundaries had been slightly muted by what looked to me to be a lot of hair or fur. I froze in terror. I held breath and didn’t make a sound. I very badly wanted to wake my brother but honestly was just too scared to do anything at all but freeze. Things outside the tent where very quiet. I could hear and feel my heart pounding. Was that the soft sound of a breath I was hearing? Almost like a sniffing at a scent. There was something out there and it was really checking us out. Then the knee shape retreated fro the tent side and a very short moment later what I see is what I can only describe as the back side of 4 knuckles from the back of a very large hand. The knuckles where just above me and their well defined shape was coming thru the top of the tent. This shape paused briefly, moved back and forth slightly, and then glided along the entire length of the tent before disengaging. One second later what I hear is a distinct yet soft pad like trotting off. I was still pretty frozen and just plain scared. I just laid there remaining propped up on my elbow for as long as I could before finally waking my brother. We both got up, went outside the tent, made as much noise as we could and then pissed all over our campsite, and then crawled back in to talk about it. Finally I did get some sleep that night. In the morning when we got up, there was no sign of anything really. Nothing had seemed to be disturbed. If it where a black bear, it would have gotten at our packs at least.We where sloppy with our packs that night, mostly because it was dark I think and we didn’t want to deal with trying to hang them off a branch in the dark. Once we go about starting to cook a morning meal; I have my sove going and my brother is looking all around. His stove had been moved from where he had placed it the night before; And when he went to light it, he discovered that the fuel cap was missing. We both looked everywhere for that damn thing and couldn’t find it. After we ate and broke camp, refiling our backs with tent and bags, I was helping my brother get his pack on. It had been leaning against a large fallen tree. His pack is on and I’m helping him with some strap adjustments, when I notice a large weird sort of knot in one of the straps. I open the knot and there is the stoves fuel cap. This is just too bizarre and we talk about what ever the hell it was visiting us that night. then we hustle out as fast as we can.
Although I did not directly set eyes on any large mammal that night, as the fabric of the tent prevented that; There was some large mammal of some intelligence that came visiting that night. This experience changed some things for me. It took me from the place of being a maybe there is a large primate living out there to knowing that there sure as hell is something out there and it’s very unlike any other of the large mammals I know of.