7 String
All things 7
The following is my personal experience from years ago as a child of 12 years old in the summer of 1980-something......
Summers in Northern Michigan ( Cadillac Mi. ) can be long drawn out days of sweltering humidity. Midsummer daylight can last till almost 11:00 p.m. I was about 10 or 12 years, with an older brother and sister. My father owned his own Construction business and kept late hours. We lived out in the country and our house sat on 20 acres of wooded land, pine tree grove to our North, hardwoods and pine mix to the south,west and east. There was a small Creek that ran through our back yard that would lead back to a beaver damn. About 3 miles or so up the road from us was an Old landfill. Now like I had mentioned my Father owned his own business, and worked late hours. Often he would come home around 9 or 10 p.m. and after being out in the heat all day. He would find more comfort in his full size duely Ford with air condition and some cold beer. So he would come home and often pick my Mom up and they would just go cruising the endless country dirt roads enjoying beer and catching up on the days events. Quite often they would drive down to a road that lead into the old landfill which was basically a dead end road. They would park on the side of the road very close to the ditch. My Dad use to do that to freak my Mom out. The country roads of northern Michigan grew very thick brush that extended through the ditch and right up to the very edge of the road. My Dad use to tease my Mom by saying a bear is going to press it's nose up against the window and roar. They have done this cruise thing for years and generally only saw the occasional raccoon or deer.
Our parents came into the house somewhat rushed,,,my Mom lead and Dad followed trying to explain something. I asked "what happened?" My father explained the following: "We were parked down on the road going to smiley's as we sat there your Mother said she could hear something moving around in the bushes". It was 11:00 p.m. so it was dark now. My Dad apparently tried to ease my Mom by saying if it were a bear it would have eatin her by now? The night ended.
A few days later my parents again went to there hang out and parked in the same place, it got dark and again my Mom was the first to hear something in the woods on her side of the truck. This time they both heard something, this time is was much larger,large sticks were breaking and snapping this time. My Dad figured it must be a deer or a black bear. They turned down the radio and sat and listened,,, my Mom said she could hear something breathing out there! My Dad soon too heard the same thing, it was getting closer and then they "Felt it" brush up against the side of truck that was near the ditch! It caused the truck to sway! My Mom screamed and insisted they get the hell out there! Again they came home and told of the experience. My Dad figured it must of been one Big **** bear but as he sped off and looked into his rear view mirror the large black object was bounding across the road sort of going from a 2 legged run to all 4's and dissappearing into the dark.
I remember just being amazed by this story! You see my Dad is a simple man life then was cut and dry, black and white everything can be explained. But there was something different in his eyes that told me he wasn't convinced, nor when he glanced at my Mom and she would return this look of fear that I will never forget.
The after work cruising had stopped now, my Mom refused to go. My dad would come and sit at the table in our dining room with the lights off, and discuss the day in the dark with my mother. Living in the country in Michigan with no air conditioning meant that at night every window in the house would be open. Things had been quiet for a few days. It was around 11:30 p.m. and us kids were all in bed. I shared a room with my older brother and my sister was next door. I must have just drifted off,,, and then it happened! The most Terrifying howl/scream I have ever heard! It was so loud it was as if it were right next to the house! I can still hear that sound in my head as if it happened just the other day! Growing up in the country in Northern Michigan and being out doors all day until dark you hear it all. My Dad was a hunter and knew all the native animal sounds but what we heard that night none of us not even my Dad could say what the hell it was. Upon hearing that screatchy howl and **** near ****tin myself I heard my Dad jump up and slam the dining room chair into the wall exclaiming to my Mom " Get my 12 gauge". My brother and I are now in the dining room along with my sister who heard the screatch! My Dad's composure was now different, it was fight or flight and he was getting a gun loaded. This was more than a bear, we have had bears in the back yard before and my Dad would just use a flash light and yell at them and they would usually move on. This night was different. My Dad had told my Mom to shut the sliding glass door after he walked out into the back yard. I remember looking out the back door from a safe distance as my Dad dissappeared into the darkness with his gun and a flashlight. We had just one light on the back of our house near the door which didn't offer light beyond 20 feet or so. My Dad was now walking straight out into our back yard towards a small storage shed. Our back yard was cleared and mowed about 8 acres back to the river and 10 acres wides from North to south. It was like we just cut out a chunk of wooded land and stuck a house in the middle. Being surrounded by pine trees and hardwoods was usually an advantage to Michiganders in the winter time because it was a natural snow fence. However this night there was only one advantage and it wasn't in my Dads favor. He walked with his gone shouting ( nervously as I remember ) hoping to run off whatever the hell was out there. I was still standing in the dining room which lead directly into the living room where we had a large window which showed out to the front yard. There was moon light and the sky was clear. I remember looking out the front room window and seeing a large dark object run across our driveway alternating from back legs to all 4 legs similar to how you might see a large Gorilla run. My brother saw it, and yelled out to my Dad through the kitchen window "it's out front and it's heading to the side yard to your right"! My Dad stood out there frozen and listening,,,, it got quiet. We heard nothing from in the house. We had a dog outside that never made a sound, I remember thinking "Rex is dead". This dog barked at everything except tonight, he barked once upon the initial screatch, then fell silent.
My Dad came rushing back into the house after what seemed to be an eternity. He told my Mom to shut and lock all the windows and doors! He then said something that to this day gives me the chills! He said " I don't know what in the hell is out there, but what ever it was I felt like it was hunting me"! He then explained that once it ran into pine trees to the north that it was staying just inside of the tree line keeping cover". As he walked it would move, he heard branches breaking, sticks cracking loudly from it's weight, he would occasionally catch a glimps of something dark and then see a branch wiggle. The creature kept moving,,, at one point as my Dad stood still, he could hear it continue to move to west, then south then east on the other side of him. That was when he came back in and decided to lock down the house. Whatever it was he felt it clearly had the upper hand regardless of the gun and flashlight. My Dad sat up for the rest of the night in the kitchen with the gun in his lap.
It was probably about an hour later or so later that I was again awaken by the hideous scream of a rabbit being captured. Anyone who has ever heard a rabbit cry will understand this one. My Dad stated " that son of ***** is after the rabbits". The dog in the back yard never barked. The next morning my brother and I went out to have a look around, my dog Rex he was all right! But he stayed cowarded in the back of his dog house. He had to be coaxed out. We wandered out behind the shed and saw something that just blew our minds! Our shed simply sat on the ground no cement foundation. Rabbits had burrowed tunnels under it, and we had a population of around 50 or so rabbits that just ran free in our yard. But when we walked to the back of the shed there was a huge pile of sand and a tunnel that I could have surely of fit into. There where huge claw like marks where "it" was digging, we could make out impressions of what appeared to be maybe a rear end and 2 heal like prints out in front. It reminded me of how you might see a child sitting in a sand box digging a hole with the feet planted in front of them and the hands would drag back sand and push it to either side of them? There was rabbit hair everywhere. A few rabbits that survived thumped there feet and ran off to the brush obviously still nervous from what took place earlier. We told my Dad when we saw him again, and he just had this look on his face that was less than convincing when he said "it must of been coyotes or something". I guess we knew to ourselves what he really meant, none of us really knew. But in times like this and at my age a answer is an answer I was able to find some reassurance but have always known that there was more to it. I don't ever remember hearing that creature ever again, but there would be times when I felt like something was watching me from the tree line. We never really spoke much about it after that night. Even to this day, my Dad still has that unassured look when he tries to give an explanation. My Mom sticks to the Dogman story. Me? I find the woods of Northern Michigan to be a place of enchantment and great mystery. There is something out there, the native American tribes of Michigan knew it, now I do as well.
~A
Summers in Northern Michigan ( Cadillac Mi. ) can be long drawn out days of sweltering humidity. Midsummer daylight can last till almost 11:00 p.m. I was about 10 or 12 years, with an older brother and sister. My father owned his own Construction business and kept late hours. We lived out in the country and our house sat on 20 acres of wooded land, pine tree grove to our North, hardwoods and pine mix to the south,west and east. There was a small Creek that ran through our back yard that would lead back to a beaver damn. About 3 miles or so up the road from us was an Old landfill. Now like I had mentioned my Father owned his own business, and worked late hours. Often he would come home around 9 or 10 p.m. and after being out in the heat all day. He would find more comfort in his full size duely Ford with air condition and some cold beer. So he would come home and often pick my Mom up and they would just go cruising the endless country dirt roads enjoying beer and catching up on the days events. Quite often they would drive down to a road that lead into the old landfill which was basically a dead end road. They would park on the side of the road very close to the ditch. My Dad use to do that to freak my Mom out. The country roads of northern Michigan grew very thick brush that extended through the ditch and right up to the very edge of the road. My Dad use to tease my Mom by saying a bear is going to press it's nose up against the window and roar. They have done this cruise thing for years and generally only saw the occasional raccoon or deer.
Our parents came into the house somewhat rushed,,,my Mom lead and Dad followed trying to explain something. I asked "what happened?" My father explained the following: "We were parked down on the road going to smiley's as we sat there your Mother said she could hear something moving around in the bushes". It was 11:00 p.m. so it was dark now. My Dad apparently tried to ease my Mom by saying if it were a bear it would have eatin her by now? The night ended.
A few days later my parents again went to there hang out and parked in the same place, it got dark and again my Mom was the first to hear something in the woods on her side of the truck. This time they both heard something, this time is was much larger,large sticks were breaking and snapping this time. My Dad figured it must be a deer or a black bear. They turned down the radio and sat and listened,,, my Mom said she could hear something breathing out there! My Dad soon too heard the same thing, it was getting closer and then they "Felt it" brush up against the side of truck that was near the ditch! It caused the truck to sway! My Mom screamed and insisted they get the hell out there! Again they came home and told of the experience. My Dad figured it must of been one Big **** bear but as he sped off and looked into his rear view mirror the large black object was bounding across the road sort of going from a 2 legged run to all 4's and dissappearing into the dark.
I remember just being amazed by this story! You see my Dad is a simple man life then was cut and dry, black and white everything can be explained. But there was something different in his eyes that told me he wasn't convinced, nor when he glanced at my Mom and she would return this look of fear that I will never forget.
The after work cruising had stopped now, my Mom refused to go. My dad would come and sit at the table in our dining room with the lights off, and discuss the day in the dark with my mother. Living in the country in Michigan with no air conditioning meant that at night every window in the house would be open. Things had been quiet for a few days. It was around 11:30 p.m. and us kids were all in bed. I shared a room with my older brother and my sister was next door. I must have just drifted off,,, and then it happened! The most Terrifying howl/scream I have ever heard! It was so loud it was as if it were right next to the house! I can still hear that sound in my head as if it happened just the other day! Growing up in the country in Northern Michigan and being out doors all day until dark you hear it all. My Dad was a hunter and knew all the native animal sounds but what we heard that night none of us not even my Dad could say what the hell it was. Upon hearing that screatchy howl and **** near ****tin myself I heard my Dad jump up and slam the dining room chair into the wall exclaiming to my Mom " Get my 12 gauge". My brother and I are now in the dining room along with my sister who heard the screatch! My Dad's composure was now different, it was fight or flight and he was getting a gun loaded. This was more than a bear, we have had bears in the back yard before and my Dad would just use a flash light and yell at them and they would usually move on. This night was different. My Dad had told my Mom to shut the sliding glass door after he walked out into the back yard. I remember looking out the back door from a safe distance as my Dad dissappeared into the darkness with his gun and a flashlight. We had just one light on the back of our house near the door which didn't offer light beyond 20 feet or so. My Dad was now walking straight out into our back yard towards a small storage shed. Our back yard was cleared and mowed about 8 acres back to the river and 10 acres wides from North to south. It was like we just cut out a chunk of wooded land and stuck a house in the middle. Being surrounded by pine trees and hardwoods was usually an advantage to Michiganders in the winter time because it was a natural snow fence. However this night there was only one advantage and it wasn't in my Dads favor. He walked with his gone shouting ( nervously as I remember ) hoping to run off whatever the hell was out there. I was still standing in the dining room which lead directly into the living room where we had a large window which showed out to the front yard. There was moon light and the sky was clear. I remember looking out the front room window and seeing a large dark object run across our driveway alternating from back legs to all 4 legs similar to how you might see a large Gorilla run. My brother saw it, and yelled out to my Dad through the kitchen window "it's out front and it's heading to the side yard to your right"! My Dad stood out there frozen and listening,,,, it got quiet. We heard nothing from in the house. We had a dog outside that never made a sound, I remember thinking "Rex is dead". This dog barked at everything except tonight, he barked once upon the initial screatch, then fell silent.
My Dad came rushing back into the house after what seemed to be an eternity. He told my Mom to shut and lock all the windows and doors! He then said something that to this day gives me the chills! He said " I don't know what in the hell is out there, but what ever it was I felt like it was hunting me"! He then explained that once it ran into pine trees to the north that it was staying just inside of the tree line keeping cover". As he walked it would move, he heard branches breaking, sticks cracking loudly from it's weight, he would occasionally catch a glimps of something dark and then see a branch wiggle. The creature kept moving,,, at one point as my Dad stood still, he could hear it continue to move to west, then south then east on the other side of him. That was when he came back in and decided to lock down the house. Whatever it was he felt it clearly had the upper hand regardless of the gun and flashlight. My Dad sat up for the rest of the night in the kitchen with the gun in his lap.
It was probably about an hour later or so later that I was again awaken by the hideous scream of a rabbit being captured. Anyone who has ever heard a rabbit cry will understand this one. My Dad stated " that son of ***** is after the rabbits". The dog in the back yard never barked. The next morning my brother and I went out to have a look around, my dog Rex he was all right! But he stayed cowarded in the back of his dog house. He had to be coaxed out. We wandered out behind the shed and saw something that just blew our minds! Our shed simply sat on the ground no cement foundation. Rabbits had burrowed tunnels under it, and we had a population of around 50 or so rabbits that just ran free in our yard. But when we walked to the back of the shed there was a huge pile of sand and a tunnel that I could have surely of fit into. There where huge claw like marks where "it" was digging, we could make out impressions of what appeared to be maybe a rear end and 2 heal like prints out in front. It reminded me of how you might see a child sitting in a sand box digging a hole with the feet planted in front of them and the hands would drag back sand and push it to either side of them? There was rabbit hair everywhere. A few rabbits that survived thumped there feet and ran off to the brush obviously still nervous from what took place earlier. We told my Dad when we saw him again, and he just had this look on his face that was less than convincing when he said "it must of been coyotes or something". I guess we knew to ourselves what he really meant, none of us really knew. But in times like this and at my age a answer is an answer I was able to find some reassurance but have always known that there was more to it. I don't ever remember hearing that creature ever again, but there would be times when I felt like something was watching me from the tree line. We never really spoke much about it after that night. Even to this day, my Dad still has that unassured look when he tries to give an explanation. My Mom sticks to the Dogman story. Me? I find the woods of Northern Michigan to be a place of enchantment and great mystery. There is something out there, the native American tribes of Michigan knew it, now I do as well.
~A
