Geographical Index > United States > Virginia > Warren County > Report # 36850
Report # 36850  (Class B)
Submitted by witness on Monday, October 29, 2012.
Honeymooners feel bone rattling growl while hiking the Appalachian Trail
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YEAR: 2012


MONTH: October

DATE: 17

STATE: Virginia

COUNTY: Warren County

LOCATION DETAILS: 109 Trillium Trail Rd, Linden, VA. About a mile southwest of cabin at stated address.



OBSERVED: October 16, 2012, between 2 and 3 am. My wife and I were on our Honeymoon in Linden, VA. We rented a cabin for the week. During the night, I woke up to a sound similar to what I thought was our dog dragging a suitcase across the hardwood floor. But she was in fact, in bed with us, on point looking out the bedroom window. The draggin sounds were long footsteps coming from outside. We listened to them for about 20 seconds or so as they were getting closer. A silhouette then quickly, but smoothly, passed right by the window. We quietly listened until we could not hear anymore footsteps, and then talked about what it may have been for a little while until we decided to just go back to sleep (our dog ALWAYS growls and barks at people, but she didnt, so we figured it was just an animal, or a tree limb swinging past the window). October 17th, 2012, 1pm. We decided to take a walk on the Appalachain Trail being it runs just a couple hundred yards from the cabin. About 35 minutes into the walk, we both heard the most bone chilling growl. It was so low in tone that we actually felt it in our joints and ribcage. it lasted a few seconds before we high tailed it out of there. There was no way after hearing that, that I was going to stick around, unarmed, with my family. The growl wasnt loud at all, it was just bone rattling deep. Listened to hundreds of soundbytes of animals to compare to, but nothing came even halfway close to what this was. Ive personally heard wild cats, dogs, and bear through years of hunting, but this was something almost out of this world sounding. Note that nothing was seen on the trail that day, but dont blame me for getting outta there ASAP. All I could think about was getting back to the cabin with my wife safely.

OTHER WITNESSES: 2 witnesses. My wife and I.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: Early afternoon, light was excellent being weather conditions were warm and sunny.

ENVIRONMENT: Forest with mid to heavy ground foliage. Thick, tall trees spaced apart. Top of the mountain with a few rock ledge areas.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator D.K.:

The witness and his wife were honeymooning at Hot Tub Heaven cabin #1 in Linden, VA, when two incidents caught their attention. The first was on Tuesday night at around 2:30 a.m. The witness and his wife first stirred after hearing thumps on the cabin's roof, like tree branches falling onto it. Then two minutes later they came fully awake as the sound of long dragging footsteps approached outside the cabin's bedroom window. They both froze because the window, which was about 8 feet off the ground, had been left slightly open. As a silhouette briefly passed by the window their dog, who had gotten up onto their bed with them, went on point but did not bark. As the visitor passed, the witness heard distinct footsteps, long in stride and bipedal, not quadrupedal like a bear.

The following day the witness and his wife went for a walk on the nearby Appalachian Trail, which passes just 300 yards away from the cabin. About 20 minutes into their walk, they both heard a growl that was very unidentifiable. It wasn't loud, but it was close. The witness commented that he "felt" the growl in his chest and joints before he could actually hear it, and described the sensation as similar to laying down on a portable back massager. The growl lasted four to six seconds, started low, climbed in pitch, and then dropped to an extremely deep tone. Again, their dog went on point and he beat a hasty retreat with his wife from the area.

The witness, a veteran of the military and a government contracted helicopter mechanic, grew up in the mountains of Pennsylvania and has hunted since the age of seven. He's encountered every species of animal known to the area and is familiar with their sounds. He described the growl as absolutely chilling and something he is unable to reproduce with his own voice.

About BFRO Investigator D.K.:


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