Based on a true story

Edited by Ren Babcock and Mrs. Kaufmann

Columbia County NY. August 23rd, 2018. The day when it all changed. It was a nice, sunny day that felt like a lovely vacation. I was playing outside in the nicely cut grass and dark brown dirt, using my monster trucks and toy animals. I was being the kid anyone would want to be when they were my age. Everything was perfect that day…until I looked towards the other side of the driveway, where the dark, creepy, and decrepit woods stared back at me. I’ve always wondered what was over there. It was something I wanted to explore. I wanted to see what lay under the rows of trees and dried leaves, I ran back inside and went to my grandpa, who was watching Nascar like he always did. He looked at me with the warm, welcoming smile only he could give.

“Hey Bubba, what’s up?” Bubba was the nickname everybody called me back then. I walked closer to him, and asked.

“Grampy, may I go to the woods?” 

“The woods?” he said with a shocked expression and sat up. “Are you sure? There’s lots of scary stuff down there like coyotes, bears, even wolves!” I chuckled at him. 

“C’mon Gramp, look at me!” I crooned, pointing a thumb at myself. I’m too tough for a couple of dogs!” I started to flex my muscles and my grandpa laughed and peered down at me. 

“Okay okay, you can go play out there but make sure you are up here by 7 okay? ‘Cause that’s when your ol’ man comes to take ya home.” I give him a thumbs up, put my boots on, and run out the door to the woods beyond.

I stand at the tree line, the place that separates me from the dark and scary forest. I was kind of scared to go in there at first. Gathering all my courage, I took a breath and entered the forest. So far so good. the woods had a bit of a cold chill. but it did not scare me. In fact, I thought it looked kinda cool to see the half-dead trees, the leaves on the ground, and. Excited, I began to run around the woods, grabbing sticks, smacking them against trees, throwing them around and breaking them, reveling in the sounds they gave off. I found rocks and threw them at trees, logs, anything I could see. I’d never had so much fun in my life; I was so happy. Hours passed, and it was getting dark. but I didn’t know what time it was. I walked deeper into the woods and I couldn’t find my whereabouts or any landmarks of where I was. A spot in the woods opened up and I thought it was the way out, but…it was something else.

I stepped into the open area and came upon a large wooden structure, made up of large branches, twigs, sticks, and other natural materials. It was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. My grandpa didn’t mention anything about something like this sitting in the woods! It looked so cool and while I wished I could stay longer to explore more, I glanced at the sun and turned around, tracing my steps back until I found my way out. I was only about 20 feet away from leaving the woods when I heard something that shook me to the core. It was like a mix between a howl and a roar, combined into one. I had never heard anything like it before. I could barely move, the fear creeping into my bones… I swiveled my head and looked around to find out where the sound came from. There, on the ridge, I saw… It. 

I thought it was a large bear at first, but then it stood up on two legs. Maybe it was a person, like my dad. I yelled up to the figure, but it just looked at me. The image of its eyes, orangish-brown, is still seared into my brain. Fear snaked through my spine, and the sight made me lose control of my bladder. 

The creature’s hair flowed in the cold wind, its eyes were dead, staring into my soul. It gave off a kind of vibe that if I came too close, it would fight. It wasn’t messing around.d. We stared at each other for a long while. Then, without warning, it turned and walked away, like it didn’t have a care in the world.

I raced back up to the house, swung open the door to my room, and flung myself onto my pillow, tears already staining the fabric. My gramma ran into my room and

“Darren, Sweetie, what’s wrong?’ 

I gulped. “Grammy, there’s a monster outside!” She raised her eyebrow, assessing me. 

“Honey, monsters aren’t real, you probably saw a bear or something.”

 “Well, does a bear stand up on its legs?!” She nodded her head.“Yes, bears do that.”I started to calm down, trying to piece together what I really saw. I hugged my grandmother and went to get changed.

Years have passed, and nothing has changed for me. I’m still scared, I don’t know what to do. I have told a lot of people about what I saw, and no one believes me. Everyone thinks I’m crazy and delusional. I thought that, too, until one day I was at home with my aunt and uncle. My grandparents had gone up north for the weekend, and my aunt and I were sitting in the living room. She was on her phone, reading the news. 

“Hmm, she hummed. Bigfoot spotted in Virginia…” She trailed off, but something about what she said sent a spark through me. I picked my head up where it had been resting on the table. said 

“What?”  She said, then repeated her sentence. “Bigfoot spotted in Virginia.”.

“What the heck is a Bigfoot?” I inquired. 

“Oh, Bigfoot, is like a big hairy monster-thing that’s bigger than a human and stands on its hind legs.” The moment she said that, my brain snapped to what I had seen that day in the woods. I raced to my room, went on my laptop, looked up Bigfoot, and my mind exploded.

 years have passed since my encounter, and I’m still on the hunt. I’ve learned so many things from a bunch of different theories, people, documentaries, etc. For example, people say that Bigfoot could’ve started from the extinct gigantopithecus, could’ve been a lab experiment gone bad, or originated as the beasts in legends that the Native Americans are said to have told. I live to this very day and I have a mission: to look for answers, to look for the truth, and to be heard and respected for telling my story. I am Darren Morey, and I am the last monster hunter.

If you’ve experienced a moment like this, contact Darren Morey d.morey@ppcsd.org & remember…

“You’re hunting something that’s hunting you & bigfoot is just the beginning.”

Quoted by Darren Morey