Backyard Research

[Guest bsruther]

Maybe try lighting the cigarette and put it out, to give it a little stink.

What does your brother think of your ideas of what may be doing these things?

That looks like a nice river.

My items were knocked off the log last night, but I think it was just the usual suspects.

[Guest]

He thinks I may be right. He is the night owl and hears more going on at night than I do and tells me about it so I can look for evidence. The only thing I've heard or had happen lately was beating on the side of my condo when I had my new chandelier turned on at night ( You can see it in my dining room from the bluff very easily)and the screaming I heard back in March that sounded just like Chris Barrackman's bigfoot yell. That screaming went on for nearly two hours every 3-5 minutes, it woke me out of a dead sleep. Prior to the beating on my wall incident, two years ago, I had put out old chipped chandelier crystals strung up like Xmas lights about 10 feet off the ground in a tree on the river bottom. Something unwrapped the fishing line I used and took them. That's why I assume the wall beating is related to my chandelier, it only started after I put it up, and only when it is lit up at night.

This happened about 2 1/2 years ago in October and is what I consider the first strange thing that happened. I only thought of bigfoot as a possibility in retrospect. My brother and I had gone to see that alien movie set in Alaska with all of the owls. We were out on his deck discussing owls at about 11:30 pm and all of a sudden several owls started hooting at us from all along that bluff. I thought that was very odd. I know we have owls but I never heard them before or since then. The hooting went on for hours after that and moved north up the river.

Then there was the hissing incident that may have been a bobcat. Once again, we were out on my brother's deck and something chased a deer up the bluff off the game trail by the river into the light at the side of the building. It saw us and hissed, a massive hiss. I couldn't see what it was, but then the stench hit us. I was very frightened by that so I went back inside.

Thank you, it is truly beautiful here. That river goes from Lake Lure in NC to the Congaree Swamp then empties out in the Atlantic near Savannah.

[Guest bsruther]

What's Cliff Barackman doing in your back yard? I think that would freak me out more than if BF were back there.

Seriously though, that sounds like some creepy stuff you've experinced.

I could be wrong, but I think most type of owls have territories, with the size of their individual territory relative to the abundance of food. When I hear more than one barred or great horned owl, their calls will always come from different directions and never multiple owls from the same direction. I guess mating owls might be an exception, but I wouldn't think "several" owls would be heard from the same area. Maybe fledglings getting ready to leave the nest? Saskeptic would probably know the answer.

Is that a crawl space, behind the AC unit? If it is, I dare you to camp in there and observe.

[Guest]

Oh Hell No!!! Water mocassins get up under our decks out here. Now I might camp on the deck with company as long as I'm situated closes to the door.

edited to add: The thought just occurred to me, this thing is really tall. If I am camping on the deck and roll over because I hear a noise I would die if I found myself face to face with this thing, not to mention a hairy arm coming through the slats of the deck to grab my hair or feet. I think I'm reconsidering my position on the deck. It's going to be under the window by the wall, next to the door.

[Guest]

Call me crazy but a lense on a camera looks a lot like an "eye".... that alone may spook them off, much less the flash.

Had an idea Jodie, they make a reflective film you can get at auto parts stores, kinda like a two way mirror? Maybe if you put that on your deck door Then camped out in front of it? It's applied with water, so no perminent damage if you want to remove it.

[Guest]

I actually have a non functioning security camera thingy I got from a friend and mounted on my deck. My brother hasn't gotten to that point yet but I haven't had any trouble since I put mine out.

[Guest bsruther]

Since the last impression I found (pictured in my first post), nothing unusual happened, up until Saturday night, a week ago. I was asleep in bed and my eyes suddenly opened. Based on my sleeping and waking habits, it was as if something startled me awake. My eyes were instantly wide open and it wasn't from a dream.

The instant my eyes opened I heard an odd and unusual sound. Immediately after hearing it, my mind began to process it and I tried to make a mental description of the sound in my head. This wasn't easy, since it wasn't a growl, howl, hoot or anything like that. I knew that if I didn't try to put a description to the sound, I'd forget it.

The only way I can think to describe this sound is that it was three identical short tonal phrases. The tonal phrases were somewhat melodic, but not musical.

To me, it was sort of like a song bird's call, only it was vocalized. To me the pitch of the sound seemed to be in the upper mid-range. The sound did not sound electronic, in any way. At the end of the tonal phrase being repeated for the third time, it ascended to a pitch I would compare to a police siren, then stopped. The whole thing lasted only about 3-4 seconds. I'm absolutely sure it wasn't a coyote, it wasn't like that at all. I usually can't hear them when the windows are closed anyway. I wish there was a better way to describe it, but that's all I've got.

All the windows in the house were closed. The AC was on, but not running at that moment. The sound was quite clear and seemed to me, to be coming from about 40 ft away. If it were closer, whatever made the sound, would have tripped the motion lights. The next evening I found what looked like a large Deer lay, between two apple trees, on the neighbor's property, maybe 100' from my window.

One thing that really bugs me about having heard this sound is the fact that I heard it just as I woke up. I know that a mind can play tricks in the area between asleep and awake and that's what makes this most frustrating. All I know is that it was very strange. If someone else has heard a sound like this, it would be good to know and possibly help confirm that it wasn't my imagination.

[bipedalist]

bsruther,

I have placed items of interest in new untouched ziploc bags. If the bags are opened or moved fingerprints can be left behind. Same with a clean glass container with an item of interest inside.

The ziploc bags I have examined appear to have been opened by inserting a finger or finger sized blunt object and tear an opening in the side of the bag. Occasionally larger teeth marks. No small teeth/claw marks. Experiments aimed at getting a clearer picture of what's happening at your study area.

This is an interesting technique. When I had quaker instant oatmeal packs opened in the same way in a food drop hanging basket, it looked as if something had taken a razor blade and sliced open the side of the packets......I always assumed it was very sharp raccoon claws (or teeth) but I always scratched my head on that one because the cut was far from showing any ragged edges.

Edited January 15, 2012 by bipedalist

[Sunflower]

Great observations all! Hubby and I noticed that our trash cans were opened one day in early Spring a couple years ago. The lids were neatly standing behind the cans between the cans and a short fence. A small plastic bag of trash was sliced open and a styrofoam tray that had contained sausage removed and licked clean. The trash was not scattered at all. It was just very neat and tidy. A dog or other critter would not have been so particular I'm sure. We scratched our heads about that one.