National Park After Dark - Trail Tales 18

Episode Date: December 12, 2022

Today’s stories include spirited stays, adventure cats, grabbing a handful, mountain lion laser pointers, creatures of the jungle and near misses. Bonus stories included for Outsiders on Patreon.We love our National Parks and we know you do too but when you're out there, remember to enjoy the view but watch your back. Please take a moment to rate and subscribe from wherever you’re listening to NPAD! Become part of our Outsider family on Patreon to gain access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more. Follow our socials Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. To share a Trail Tale, suggest a story, access merch, and browse our book recommendations - head over to our website.Thank you so much to our partners, check them out!Gerber Life: Follow the link to get a free quote.Prose: Use our link for a free in-depth hair consultation and 15% off your first order.BetterHelp: National Park After Dark is sponsored by BetterHelp. Get 10% off your first month of online therapy by using our link.Miracle Brand: Use our link and code NPAD to claim your free 3 piece towel set and save over 40%. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Close your eyes. Listen to Monday.com. Feel the sensation of an AI work platform. So flexible and intuitive, it feels like it was built just for you. Now open your eyes, go to Monday.com. Start for free and finally, breathe. Girl, winter is so last season. And now Springs got you looking at pictures of tank tops with hungry eyes. Your algorithm is feeding you cutoffs. You're thirsty for the sun on your shoulders. That perfect hang on the patio sundress. Those sandals you can wear all day and all night. And you've had enough of shopping from your couch. Done hoping it looks anything like the picture when you tear open that envelope. It's time for a little in-person spring treat. It's time for a trip to Ross. Work your magic. Welcome back, everyone, to National Park After Dark.

We have decided to give you guys a Trail Tales episode. Yeah, after my long three series of full episodes, it's been a little bit since we've done a Trail Tales. Yeah. So hope everyone has. had a great holiday. The last time we recorded, an actual episode was a really long time ago. But we were just together. Cassie literally just left Colorado yesterday. So, hi. Good to see you. Hello. I know. I just saw you like 12 hours ago and now we're on Zoom across the country.

But we just had our live show in Denver. So we wanted to say a quick thank you so much, everyone who showed up. We sold out our first show, which was amazing. And we got to meet a bunch of you, which was so much fun. And some of you brought us gifts and just hearing your stories. of how you got there and just being able to really see you and talk to you in person. It was just such a special moment for us. So we wanted to just say thank you. Yeah, I mean, we were both very nervous. As soon as we got onto the stage, it seemed to like kind of melt away because it did

feel like being in a room with a bunch of friends. Yeah. Because at first I was like, oh my God, this is going to be the most intimidating book report of my life. You know what I mean? We were like peeking through the curtains. If anyone saw our faces coming out of the curtains, we're like, oh my God, there's so many people here. Yeah, we're like, can we back out? Is it too late to back out? But as soon as we got

on stage, we were like, wow, this is amazing. It's so cool that you guys are all here. And we had some fun stories. I mean, Danielle told a cannibal story in Colorado, which was intense, to say the least. But it was really fun. And I did a treasure hunt in Colorado. So it was a cool episode. Can I say that? A cool episode. It was a cool show to do. Yeah, it was. And a lot of people have been asking us, if we're going to be doing any more. And while the answer is not a yes right now, it's not a no either. So we'll keep everyone up to date as that happens and that gets in the works. But right now we have some fun stories for you. So let's do it. Yeah, let's do it. Oh, I did want to say before we start, I guess, because I did get to go to Colorado and we went to Rocky Mountain National Park. We also

went to the Stanley Hotel, which Danielle has been talking up for so long. And I will say that I think it lived up to its expectations. We had a lot of fun there. We did the haunted ghost tour, which was really cool and really scary, actually. I know, Cassie's like, all right, is this going to be over anytime soon? Because I am nervous. Our tour guide was great. And he showed us photos that other guests had taken on these tours.

And some of them were so scary. Like, there were, like, little kids with, like, eyeballs gleaming. And, oh, it was just, it was really cool to see the history. And then of course, that little, like, it wasn't an official tour or anything, but then that little tour that someone gave us just because we were there in what was that the wine? The wine tasting room? Okay, yeah. So after the tour, so we did the tour at like, what, 8, 830 at night. And then afterwards, we're kind of just wandering around the lobby. And a lot of things had changed since I had been there last, I think about three years ago. One of them being, they converted the music room to a wine bar. And we walked in and actually. I thought they were closing. I was like, should we even be in here? There was no one in there except for two servers. But they're like welcomed us, satisfied the fire.

So nice. So nice and so welcoming. And as we were, you know, paying to kind of, we got one drink. We're like, okay, sorry for being in your way. And as soon as we got up to leave, one of the servers, his name was David. He like pointed to Flora's piano. And if you know anything about the Stanley, F.O. Stanley created the hotel along with his wife, Flora. and she has this piano there that's over 100 years old, it's beautiful.

And when I was there last time, it was up kind of on a podium to the side and it was roped off. Couldn't go there. Yeah, couldn't go there. And now they converted the whole music room, which was an empty room when I was there last time to this beautiful wine bar. And it's kind of up and on display. And he went off about the piano, the history of the room. He, like, literally, he gave us a whole second tour.

It was probably like 45 minutes. Right. Yeah. And he showed us like the acoustics of the room and how it's designed in a special way to make it so you can hear the music or someone talking or the piano because he was telling us that microphones weren't invented yet when this was first built. So they created this room in a certain design. It was just so it was so cool. It was so amazing. And it's a relatively new room. So he was just taught he said that he had performed at the concert hall there too. And he did sing for us a little bit too, this really funny wine sound. Yeah, it was just. just like such a cool, cool experience. And I guess they're really encouraging people to go learn more and to go hang out in that room. So if you're at this family, you should go. Ask for David in the piano tour, which I don't think exists officially, but it should because it was awesome. It was awesome. It was so cool. And our official tour guide for the actual ghost tour, their name was Christian. And that tour was great too, of course. But either way, I went into, well, I didn't go into, but we walked past the Seance room and saw that they have events there. And I was like, all right, I got to come back.

So I'll probably, now that I actually live kind of close, I'll be back and maybe run into somebody chatting it up with David about Flora's piano. But anyways. Anyway, we do have trail tales, but I did want to talk about the Stanley because can I go first? Oh, do you have a Stanley one? I do. I have a Stanley hotel guest. Oh, sweet. Okay. It's the title. Yeah, yeah. This episode is brought to you by Prime. Obsession is in session. And this summer, Prime Originals have everything you want. Steamy romances, irresistible love stories, and the book to screen favorites you've already read twice. Off campus, L, every year after, The Love Hypothesis, Sterling Point, and more. Slow Burns, Second Chances,

chemistry you can feel through the screen. Your next obsession is waiting. Watch only on Prime. Leading us into this says, hi, I'm kind of a new listener, so apologies if this isn't really a trail tale. It is. My husband and I found your podcast when we were at the Stanley Hotel. We searched for podcasts about the hotel and we gave NPAD a listen and you've been my weekly rotation since. We were on our honeymoon, which also included visits to Rocky Mountain, Yellowstone, Teton, and the Great Sand Dunes. I'm a huge fan of paranormal, so staying at the Stanley has been a dream of mine for years. We were lucky enough to get a room on the fourth floor, which is the most active, mostly by the spirits of children. When we got there, I explored for a while.

and I noticed what I guess are old attic entrances, but you can see into the ceiling. It was just kind of creepy. Anyway, that night, I woke up around 3 a.m., drenched and sweat from an incredibly vivid nightmare, a la Stephen King, of a little blonde-haired demon girl in the attic entrance trying to get me. When I recounted this story to my dad, he casually said, I felt a child-sized something grabbing at my hand when I was walking around the fourth floor. The next night, around 1 a.m., we heard rustling, knocking, and footsteps, coming from what we guessed was an old storage closet next to our room. There wasn't even a doorknob

and no signs saying employees only. Nothing. Some may say my experiences were nothing, but when you're at one of the country's most haunted locations, you take it. I also want to tell you how much I love your send-off, enjoy the view, but watch your back. My grandpa, who is a police officer and avid outdoorsman, would tell my sister and mom, watch your back every time we said our goodbyes. He passed away years ago and my grief is still as strong as ever. Every time I hear you say, but watch your back. My heart simultaneously soars and breaks. Thank you so much for everything you do. Watch your back. Hi, Paw, Paw. Lindsay from Texas. See, I wish I could have an experience like that in the Stanley Hotel. We were kind of begging for it when we were there. We were taking so many pictures hoping some like

creepy little child would pop up in the corner of it. And we didn't. Al got him maybe. He got like, like a maybe that mirror photo. He got a maybe face. It was a maybe. It was so funny. I have a video actually of all of us like at the wine bar because we literally immediately sat down and every single person just had their phone in their face like studying the thousands of pictures that we each took on our phone like looking for any sort of shadow or figure or whatever. And yeah, I'll maybe go. I mean, I think we were all kind of convinced in the moment but now that I'm thinking about it, it's like probably not. He showed it to me again and I still am like, I don't know, it's kind of a maybe still for me, but maybe it is one.

Well, that was a legit experience. So my first one is titled, Getting a Grip. Hello and Shalom, sweetest chickadees. My name is Sarah, and since it's the most basic of names, please feel free to sing it off key. I think you are both the coolest and I'm so proud of the attention you've brought to the struggles of our indigenous peoples and the fight for indigenous sovereignty. My trail tale starts in the armpit of America, Columbia, South Carolina. I was Jersey.

Right, yeah. You guys can fight over it, the title. Yeah. Known for being famously hot and somewhat lesser known, Congrey National Park. My story doesn't involve this park. I just wanted to mention it because it's pretty rad. Let's flash back to November of 2021 and I'm stuck at a job that is no longer tenable. I spend my salaried hours daydreaming about the smell of coastal trees and tracing my fingers on canyon

walls. They are so crisp at the alpine start that I can snap it with my fingers. I managed the photography department at a zoo with an incredible staff. I lived in a beautiful home. I had some really great friends and a healthy relationship with my partner. It wasn't enough. Are you my soul sister? I just like have to know.

That paragraph really speaks to me. The life I was living was a circling drain. I did the same things every day. I went to that same target and home goods on my days off. I told the same stories over and over again. I could feel myself raging inside, absolutely thrashing to get out of this comfortable prison I had built myself into. Wow. God, I just like, I'm really resonating with this.

And the story hasn't even begun. Okay. There's a wild woman in all of us, I think. Some of us choose to let her out once in a while, like static coming from a radio. And some of us choose to turn off all of the other noise and listen only to that whistle of the wind. There's so much uncertainty in pursuing the life of your dreams. I had already begun cleaning my house for listing. I had traded my car for a truck and bought a camper from a sweet old lady.

It's pink and pocodotted. All of my belongings were listed on Marketplace and my friends had paraded out of my house with boxes of things passed on to them like they had been passed to me. And in the end, it really boiled down to having good friends, who are willing to be honest with you that you are wasting your potential for you to pull the trigger. I put in my notice with no small amount of courage. A few weeks later, I hit the road barely even knowing how to hook up a trailer or change my propane. My camper was, however, perfectly decorated.

I went west as an intrepid explorer does and spent two months on the road alone, learning some hard lessons and backing into a few fences. As April 1st approach, I began eyeing the calendar and my map and quickly diverted my path to southern Utah. This was the day that Angels Landing, America's famous hike in Zion National Park, was going to enact a permit requirement. To me, that means the trail would be all but inaccessible with wait times, wait lists, and an unlucky lottery system. So I had to do this hike and I had to do it now.

now. To some, late March may be spring, but in southern Utah, it is most definitely not. Ice and snow crusted the roadways and most assuredly the high hike I was about to attempt. I wouldn't have called myself a hiker back then, but I am a veteran and have been athletic my whole life. So stepping up to that elevation game looked on paper like an easy, breezy cover girl type of morning. I would never look at Zion's Angel Landing and say, easy breezy cover girl. I bitched out of that hike, so I can't relate. Anyone who has crested angels landing knows the hustle and bustle required just to get a parking spot. See permit requirement necessity.

And my experience was no different. To start, you wind over a bridge through a short track of valley and then begin your ascent. A switchback of dizzying degrees waits for you not once but twice. And if this wasn't the spooky part of the story, please mark it as an honorable mention. This hike, being fairly short, is noted for her difficult last stretch where you traverse over narrow ledges, the spine, with the use of chains. The top of the plateau offers views of over 1,500 feet of the canyon below and of the rock crusts that make up 270 million years of geological history of Zion National Park. Can you believe this spot was once flushed with the sea that swam below? Never thought of it before.

A lot of people who begin this hike choose to remain on scouts landing, a portion that offers stunning views of the valley below without traversing the fin-like, steep rocks ahead. Once you pass Scouts Landing, you begin climbing with your hands, wrapped as tightly as you can, around chains and posts that were embedded into the ground, who knows when. Even more people will turn around and head back to Scouts Landing once they begin to face the steep edges on either side. It doesn't matter how tough you are, your knees will shake. Your backpack will suddenly feel like the most unbalanced weight you have ever carried. Your shoes will feel like ballet slippers, silken, smooth, and dainty. You begin shifting your weight from toe to toe, trembling with the effort you are making to not look down, but never looking away from your feet. They're making me nervous just

hearing this. I'm like, my hands are sweating. I'm like, ah, I can just picture this. Yeah, and it's snowy on top of all this. I mean, I was there in April or May. I forget when, but there wasn't any snow, and I still couldn't do it. Yeah. I had arrived at the trailhead right as the sun was glowing over the horizon. I thought I beat the crowd, but encountered more people than I expected on the way up. I thought that if these people woke up this early in this temperature, then surely they would be making the entire trek. I hadn't yet learned what so many people before me had. Having finally made it through the hellish switchbacks, I stepped up to the first chained portion, leaving more than 80% of the group behind me on scouts landing. I passed some returners, scooting on their butts,

white-knuckled on the chain, telling me how far they had made it with a wild-eyed grin, and I started to wonder if maybe I wasn't as brave as I thought I was. With hands pink and solid from the cold, I hand over hand walked myself across the steepest ledge I've ever encountered, alone on a single file trail. There was no one in front of me and no one directly behind me. This was exactly the experience I wanted. I couldn't have gotten more lucky. As I encountered a particularly thin ledge just wide enough to allow for one flow of traffic up and down, I came upon a couple. From the looks of it, she was too scared to continue upwards and was picking her way back while her partner encouraged her from closely behind. Definitely panicking too.

We looked up at each other, did the nod, and I stopped to let them go first. Everything was going well until she reached me and turned to scoot past. She takes one step past me and slips. Not only does she slip, she windmails her arms like a maniac, full on panic mode. She reaches for her partner to help, but her backpack tipped her off balance, told you. I reach out lightning fast and grab her by the shoulder. I'm barely adult sized as it is, but I get her right side up situated all in the blink of an eye, like a mother slapping her arm across your chest when she hits the brakes. We laugh a little in that that wasn't funny kind of way. You know, that like thing that's going around. I'm nervous. Like, well, it's like not funny. Ha ha. Funny that was weird or something like that. Like this is funny,

but not funny and I'm shitting my pants. It's like I'm shitting my pants, but I'm laughing because we're still alive. I nervous laugh. So I totally understand. understand this. She's clearly shaken, but crisis averted. My heart is pounding. I step as far to the side as I can just trying to give them as much space as possible so they can continue on. And I heard it before I saw he slips. In these split seconds are where some of the best or most dangerous decisions can be made. Should I reach out and try to catch him too? He'll take me down like a pair of dirty underwear. I'm just too far. Could I get a book deal if I save them both? My reflexes answered before I could. Out shoots my arm, ready to catch this man and save his life too.

A bookdale did sound pretty nice. If we were to slow this moment down, I promise to you that we looked at each other and like another whisper in the wind, we knew what our fate was to be. My hand collided directly into this gentleman's junk. And this was no slow push on the brakes. This was,

Mama wasn't paying attention breaks and I hit him with enough back swing to save his life. This poor guy. With a whack. in the air leaving his lungs just as fast, my guy was saved from slipping off the edge, but at what cost, truly? An abundance of apologies, huffs of pain, remarks about how awkward this all was, and hoping we never saw each other again, we parted ways,

my face redder than my hands, my heart pounding through my chest, at how easily all three of us could have gone down. A few minutes later, I slipped on an ice patch, quite literally almost falling to my death, but this time was saved by a handful of half-dead branches. I had let out a sound of panic and fear that I had never heard before, a wild desperation to live that I didn't know existed inside of me. I grappled up on my knees and made it the rest of the way to the top.

I didn't even take out my camera because I didn't want to redistribute any weight. I snapped a few photos with my phone, stood around, congratulated myself and turned around shaking the entire time. You know what most people forget to mention about how scary hiking Angels landing can be? The going down part. In my singular experience, because of how popular the hike is, you end up in a single file line starting and stopping to allow others to pass as they ascend. Oftentimes, this leads to a perfect opportunity for casual conversation among strangers

because you don't have to look at each other, and sometimes that makes everything easier. Being the storyteller that I think I am and absolutely buzzing with adrenaline, I start regaling the lads with my hilarious antidote about how I saved this man's life by getting a whole handful of his situation. I think I even made a few, it's definitely cold out quips, that got a round of laughs. get it. We reached the trailhead, and as we were preparing to part ways, the guy who was in front of me, the whole way down, finally faces me. And, well, ladies, I'd recognize that crotch anywhere. Oh no. They closed the trail for ice damage, repairs, and safety concerns the next day. It wouldn't open again until a permit was required. Anyways, your show is excellent, creative, and so important to the continued conservation of our beautiful earth. Thank you for your dedication and time. You have really

built something incredible here. And to anyone who reads this, if you're looking for a sign to quit your job and chase the life you dream about, this is it. Love always, Sarah. Wow, that was an intense story. I was literally like my heart rate went up listening to that. Just, they paint a really beautiful picture of what exactly is going on in the story and then throw some humor in there, too. It was very well written and very scary and I'm glad you're okay. I'm glad everyone's okay and that you can laugh about it. Yeah. I mean, in the moment. seems like and afterwards. And, you know, this is a memorable story just for not only you, but that guy will never

forget that either. Guaranteed. Definitely not. I'd like to hear his version of this story. Imagine. He's like, I was, it was really cold, okay? I know, like lay off. And I almost died.

I was frightened. All right, you're up. My next one is titled Adventure Cats and Proposals. Hello, Cassie and Danielle. I have been listening to your podcast for a while. now and sometimes the best part of my day is listening while I get ready for my long 12-hour shifts. I had just listened to Trail Tales 14 when I felt inspired to tell you my favorite National Park story. I have visited 27 National Parks so far and all of them, but one, were with my big sister.

She got me into them and always plans the best road trips to them. My boyfriend at the time, Nathan, now fiancé, but we are getting to that. And I had visited Teton and Yellowstone this summer in early August. Yellowstone is my favorite park. I had always dreamed of getting proposed to in Yellowstone, so I hyped up the Grand Prismatic Overlook via Ferry Falls to him for weeks prior to the visit. We did the hike and got to the overlook, and to my dismay, he did not propose. It's my absolute favorite park, though, so I wasn't going to let that dampen my trip. A couple weeks went by and we planned a random last-minute trip to Black Canyon of Gunnison National Park with my two siblings and my sister's adventure tabby cat, Finn. My brother nearly backed out but decided two hours before we were set

to leave that he would go with us. We planned a two-night camping trip. On day two, we hiked to the Warner Point, which is a gorgeous overlook on the south rim. We got to the overlook and I asked my brother to take a photo of Nathan and I. I handed him my phone and asked Nathan to come stand by me on the edge. He instantly started acting strange and asked if I'd like to set my fanny pack and water bottle down. It was hot and I was tired and a little impatient, so I said, no, it's fine. He asked me again if I'd like to set them down. So I agreed and handed them to him and he put them on a rock. He slowly walked over to the edge by me and I laughed and said,

Is this where you push me over the edge? He kind of chuckled and then we turn and face my brother and sister. I saw his hand go into his pocket and instantly started saying, oh my God, as he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him, to which I screamed and cried and said, of course. We talked in excitement the whole hike back to the car, and I told him reluctantly, I had thought that you were going to propose in Yellowstone or Teton's two weeks ago, to which he admitted, the ring was in my car that whole trip,

but it didn't feel right to do it there, and I wanted your siblings to be here to witness it. Also, since I know you ladies are big fans of signs from the universe, I wanted to point out that as we drove into the park via the south entrance, there is a small gift shop with a large cocapelli sign. Our first date was at the Cocapelli Beer Company at Westminster College. Colorado back in 2020. He said once he saw that sign, he knew he wanted to propose in the park. My brother, who nearly backed out, was the only person who knew he planned on proposing, so he got some good pictures of it, and I'll attach some to this email. It was such a beautiful trip, and I was so

touched that he waited for my siblings slash best friends to be there. Even Finn, the Adventure Cat, who my sister and I actually adopted together, got to be on the trip for my proposal. Of course, I attached a photo of him for all those crazy cat people out there. Enjoy the view. and get engaged in national parks. Love Rebecca. Oh, that's a special story. How sweet. I love the little addition of the sign, too.

He's like, all right, here we go. It's time. He's like, this is the right time to do it. I was right to wait. Yep. It all falls into place. It does. As the Krispy Chicken sandwich from 7-Eleven, people always call me loud.

And I'm like, yeah, I know. I'm crispy. Did you expect me to whisper? If you want quiet, go eat some soup and reflect. Like, I know I'm a handful. I'm bold. I'm juicy. throw some pickles and barbecue sauce on me

and baby I'm a whole meal and with seven rewards I'm just $4. Quiet, no. Krispy, saucy and $4? Very. Only at 711. Valley 362326, participating stores only while supplies

lastly app for full terms. My next one does not have a title. It starts, Hi, ladies. My name is Romi and I've been listening to your show since the beginning and absolutely love both of you and your podcast. I binge listen on every road trip I do

and I drive a lot. I've been working seasonal jobs across the country for seven years now. I have worked at five ski resorts, three national parks, and have been a raft guide for four summers. Wow, very cool. Yeah, like, what a life. What a resume. As you probably already know, anyone living this lifestyle has some interesting stories to tell. The story my mind repeatedly comes back to happened in 2018 on a road trip to Yosemite with my late friend, Brian. Earlier that day, we had hiked the incredibly steep and unimaginably scenic trail up Yosemite falls. By the time we reached the top, we were beaten, enthralled, and hungry. After a long descent,

we arrived at camp. We immediately built a fire, cooked thick slabs of salmon, we had picked up from the closest market, and cracked the first beer from our stockpile. We had both sat down on the same side of the picnic table closest to the fire, warming up our cold toes, and started rambling on about the views and never-ending switchbacks of the trail. As we were blabbing, I heard a faint rustle in the brush behind us. I snapped my head around but saw nothing except the tips of low branches lit up by the fire. I cracked another beer and continued our conversation. I heard another Russell. This time, from under the picnic table we were sitting at. Brian and I leapt from our seats like there were embers under our asses. I wasn't sure what it was, but I grabbed his shirt and used him as a human shield

like any best friend would do. Smart. I saw the firelight reflecting in the eyes, the sleek, dark and shaped of a fully grown mountain lion under the table we were sitting at. We watched it emerge slowly from under the table and begin to run away. Neither of us had our headlamps, but Brian had a laser pointer and shined it towards the cat until it was out of sight. Apparently, laser pointers are not just for house cats. We remained standing up the rest of the night on edge due to the fact that we had not noticed that mountain lion until it was literally right under us. How long had it watched us? What was it getting ready to do. Moral of the story, don't cook salmon in a wildlife-packed area and bring a laser

pointer to detour even the biggest of cats. A very big fan, Romi. I don't think it was getting ready to do anything. I think it was scared. It was just hiding under the table. It's like, maybe, maybe I won't notice, like, they won't notice me. And then they're like, oh, shit, they saw me. Like, oh, shit. You know, like when you're trying, you're playing hide and seek and you like make one little sound and the person looks over and you're like, shit, shit, shit. Oh, no. They heard me. That's incredibly terrifying being like, imagine like you just like you hit something with your foot and you're like, what the hell was that? It's like soft and fuzzy. It's a cat. It's a really, really big cat. Well, I got a, this reminds me, I got a notification from like my neighborhood ring, like doorbell thing. You know how there's, do you have ring doorbell? No. But I know that they sink like your neighbors.

can tell you what's going on and stuff. Yeah, like a community setting or something. Yeah, there's been a bunch of mountain lion sightings recently in my neighborhood. Which is, I mean, of course, you know, I assume they're everywhere. But to like see it and have people be talking about it so close. It's like, it's kind of like, I know, but I don't want to know. So I just like don't think about it. But when people are talking about it, I can't help but think about it.

Yeah, you're kind of forced to realize that they're really. actually right outside your door pretty much. Yeah, yeah. Well, my next story takes place in Colorado and it is titled, Just Remember, You Were Never Here. I'm a park ranger in Colorado. Love to hear about your adventures out here, Danielle. And I've thought about sharing some stories from the field, but to be honest, I really resonate with the personal accounts of somewhat questionable decisions the two of you have also made in young adulthood. Although mine doesn't involve picking up through hikers or letting strangers stay over my house. Trust me, I've had my fair share of learning experiences too and thought I would share one of those here with the two of you. Anyway, I'm not sure if this

qualifies as a trail tale, but here it goes. I was a fresh college graduate feeling the pressure of getting a quote unquote real job and also tired of hearing the never-ending countdown of when I could no longer mooch off of my parents' health insurance plans. Please tell me someone else shares in this quarter life crisis experience. Yes, I remember when I had to get off my my parents' health insurance plan and it was rough. I liked not being able to think about it. After what felt like millions of rejected job applications, I decided to go woofing, worldwide organization of organic farming. This was partly a ployed to have a somewhat satisfying answer when my family would ask, so what are your plans? But I also knew of a few people that had

life-changing experiences working on remote farms in exchange for room slash board and decided to give to go myself. However, the pothead that I was at 23 years old decided on an illegal weed farm in Colorado. After days of driving from Ohio, I finally made it to the southwest Colorado. Miles later, down winding dirt roads, my cell phone service and Google Maps ran out. It was at this time that I pulled over and looked down at my phone. When I looked up again, there was a man outside of my car window with long, scraggly hair holding a push fork, and asked, are you Mallory? I immediately knew that I was in the right place, but had a wrong feeling. The man gave me a brief tour around the farm, showing me his tiny cabin and pointing out the other guy living in a converted school bus,

before explaining to me no one, which I thought was an odd statement then, would be here during the winter due to harsh weather conditions. Last on the grand tour was my off-the-grid RV that was supposed to sustain me through those cold months. The lack for a better word, charming trailer, had large holes in the floor, a recently broken water system, a single propane heater, and a dismantled generator and pieces on the forest floor out front. Most disturbingly was the mention of a front door lock that needed repair and the awkward help he gave me setting up the bedroom area. None of this was communicated to me in the multiple conversations we had had before my move. The farm owner was dismissive of my questions, and even though he was generally rude when addressing my

concerns, I tried to look past the red flags. I wasn't quite ready to admit defeat on my enlightening cross-country adventure and make that dreaded call to my family that I would be coming home. I began unloading my car, albeit hesitantly, and putting things into my new home sweet home. While doing so, the guard dog pack of pit bulls took notice of my best girl, a four-month-old Bernice Mountain dog at the time, and were on attack. As I pulled her from a pile of wooden debris, suffering bites and scratches myself. The thing I really took notice to was two men on motorcycles

continually circling and compound-tolering. We got a girl. I hate that. It's so scary. Oh my God. I immediately knew I needed to, excuse my language, get the fuck out of there.

Fearful of telling the owner I was leaving, I began slowly and secretly putting my things back into my car under the guise that he needed to buy a few things at the nearest Walmart. The sun started to set behind the mountains, and then altogether, it was really dark. I was unable to navigate the already confusing winding roads

and started panic off-roading in the direction I thought I needed to go. Two or three hours later, I made it to the nearest town, and as I cried defeated in a shitty motel room that felt like an oasis, I received a text message from the owner. Guess you're never coming back, question mark. Just remember, you were never here. Scary. Okay, like, do you have to ask that, first of all?

guess you're not coming back question mark like no yes you're not coming back just remember you are never here is scary though like do not tell anyone you weren't here don't say anything it's like the vibes i get yeah yeah i stayed in that town for a few days attempting to get my windshield fix from damage on the drive out to colorado as i waited in the auto shop the reception is asked what brought me to town when i explained my situation she replied oh sweetie no one goes out there Do not go out there. I guess it's impossible to tell for certain what might have happened if I had stayed longer than those six hours, but I'm glad that I never found out.

If you've made it this far, thank you for reading. I somehow heard about your podcast before the first episode was even released. Wild, considering NPAD is also the first podcast I have ever listened to, and I've been patiently waiting for your episodes to air ever since. Thanks for all the time and commitment to your listeners. Although my first quote unquote move to Colorado was a bust, I've been happily out here for years now and am excitedly anticipating your live show in Greenwood Village. If you find yourself in the Denver area more, don't hesitate to reach out to a fellow spooky

outdoor lover, Mallory. Well, thanks for coming to our live show. That already. We're just reading this after that live show happened. So that's pretty cool to see that now. Yeah. Well, nothing good could have come out of that. And we all know that.

No. No. No, that was scary. Especially you show up and he's like, yeah, come move here, work on this farm. And they show you this rundown trailer in the... the middle of nowhere with holes in the floor and they're like, yeah, you're going to live here this winter. Like, excuse me? Yeah, I don't know. How? How? Is that going to happen? Yeah, no. You kind of dodged a bullet with that one, I'm sure. Yeah, all the people that you encountered sounded really scary.

Yes. All right, my last one is titled, the Hmong Bigfoot. Have you heard of it? Hello, Danielle Cassie, and NPAD Nation. I have been a fan since early this year and I cannot express how thankful I am for this podcast. Thank you both for changing my mind that history can still be a wonderful subject to learn, especially after high school had ruined it for me. I have to say that from solely listening to this podcast, I have learned to appreciate nature, especially our national parks and my surroundings in a different manner. You both have taught me how to enrich my experiences by always wanting to learn something about the places I've been and will go, so thank you. I have heard you mention in a few episodes that you are a Bigfoot fan. Oh, that you are Bigfoot fans. I'm sorry, I'm making it about me. It's

not. It's about what I said. You're like, this sounds like me for sure. Cassie got me Bigfoot socks, like three different pairs of Bigfoot socks for my birthday. So I'm just like really in the Bigfoot mode right now. And so I've decided to write in about the Hmong Bigfoot in case you're interested. We are. I doubt many non-Mong have heard of the Hmong Bigfoot. My ethnicity is Hmong. Another reason I wrote in was to honor the Hmong new year this season, usually celebrated all throughout November to December, sometimes into early January. The Hmong New Year is a celebration of welcoming the new year and is a time of gathering, spiritual ceremonies, honoring and thanking our ancestors for the current year and wishing for good

fortune in the following year. There are usually big Hmong New Year events held by the Hmong communities in a variety of cities. If you know of any event that is near you, I highly suggest you go. There's food and entertainment all day long and everyone is welcome. For those who are unfamiliar with the history of Hmong people, we are an ethnic minority group with origins from the mountains of China. We do not have a country of our own, but you can find the majority of Hmong people residing in Southeast Asia, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, China, and the U.S. Most of the Hmong people you see in the U.S. today are descendants of the generation who are recruited by the CIA to fight in the secret war during the Vietnam War from 1961 to 1975.

Thousands of Hmong people faced persecution and genocide after the withdrawal of the U.S. in 1973. The Hmong people hid in the jungles of Laos in hopes to escape safely across the Mekong River to find refuge in Thailand. Many families were torn apart due to death and imprisonment during this period. After two years, the UN finally lent a hand in resettling the Hmong in the States and elsewhere, like France and Australia, but mainly the States in 1975. Today, there are more than 327,000 Hmong residents all over the U.S. with a high concentration in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and California. And I'm from Wisconsin. Thanks for bearing with me through our brief history.

Please keep in mind that almost everything from here on out are based on folklore, myth, and legends told throughout oral stories that predates our grandparents' grandparents. Okay, fuchs, finally, what we've been waiting for. Through oral stories told from generation to generation, claims of sightings, and encounters in the deep, deep jungles of Laos is a creature the Hmong called Malu. I'll attach an audio of the pronunciation. Thank you because I listened to it like five times. Today, the Malu is recognized to be equivalent of the Western Bigfoot.

But unlike Bigfoot, when it comes to documented information slash evidence, there is close to none about the Malu. Sorry to say, but don't bother searching online for more. All you will find are vague descriptions or YouTube stories told in Mong. According to Hmong folklore, the Malu is known to be six to eight foot tall, an ape-like creature, furry with long limbs, and walks upright. It's said to be that it has stiff legs, thus it cannot run very well. They are believed to have a small family and gather occasionally. Mong villages were thought to be built so near to the Malu territory that on their hikes to look for good grounds to farm and garden, they'd walk past areas that look like some sort of nesting ground.

These areas smelled of rotten flesh. Hair is shed all around with huge manlike footprints, too big to be a human. At first, the mong weren't sure what all of this means. It could very well be just another animal. However, people could not shake the eerie presence of being watched. Some caught glimpses of creatures described as above. And when people started disappearing, never returning home from a hunting trip or from the gardens, the mong feared that they are dealing with dangerous flesh-eating creatures. Hmong elders said that when Amalu captured a human, it would hold the human by the wrists. Look up to the sky to seek approval from the gods.

If the sky turns gray and gloomy, it lets the human go. However, if the skies are clear, it will feast on human flesh. The stories warned that if you travel into the jungles, it's smart to wear bamboo cones as sleeves so that when captured by their wrists, you can slip away easily to escape, and I have attached a photo for reference. Hmong people have tried to hunt Malu before in the past in order to protect their villages, but the Malu is believed to have the power of invisibility due to claims that it'll appear and disappear into thin air when spotted. There have been very little to no reports of sightings and or encounters since the war. Mong people believe that the Malu are either now extinct or have gone into hiding.

I personally believe they've gone into hiding. When I heard that you ladies are big fans of Bigfoot, like myself, I couldn't help but share. I understand that. that there is no written information and evidence to back up the existence of the Malu, and that oral traditions and storytelling can skew and spread misinformation. But every culture has their stories, and this one belongs to the Hmong people. Whether the Hmong Bigfoot is real or not, it's definitely an interesting piece of our culture, and it is up to you to take or leave it as it is. I apologize for such a long email, whether this makes it into trail tales or not,

I thank you for allowing me to share a little bit of our culture with you. Happy Mung New Year and keep up the amazing work, your Big Big. Hmong fan, ABX. I loved that. That was such a cool story. Yeah, thank you. I've never heard of that. I mean, I love that you're sharing a culture that we're not familiar with either. It's just like, I feel like I was educated on a lot of things. And then also there's some folklore thrown in there, which is just a fun mix. Yeah, it's a fun mix. And it's a little slice of something we would have never been privy to because, like you said, there's not a lot of information on it. It's really kind of just your culture's belief and stories and like I feel like that's pretty special to share with us because

I think it's even cooler that it can't be found on the internet or anything like that. Like it's just really special to your people and your culture and your history. And whether it's real or not, who care. Like it's real important to your culture's history and that's what matters. Yeah. So thanks for sharing. Yes. Thank you so much for sharing that.

And I will attach the picture on our socials because they did forward along. it's literally like if you can imagine you're just holding your hands up straight up and down and there's just a chunk of bamboo from like your wrists up covering your hands over it so if you're to get if you're to get grabbed you can just slip out of the bamboo i feel like there's a lot of situations that that would be useful in very true actually you're getting handcuffed by police and you're just like slip yeah not that we're condoning the use of yeah not that we're saying you should evading law enforcement yeah But if you were, then this bamboo sounds like a good idea.

I think that's everything for today. Cool. Okay. Except for our bonus stories that we have for Patreon. Yes. We're going to do another little bonus segment for Patreon. So if you are interested in that, you can go over to our link either in our bio or in the show notes and take a look at the extra content we have there. I think we're going to also share probably our audio with our Patreon members from the live show.

this month. Yeah. Yeah, we're definitely going to, we're working on that right now. Yeah. So, uh, well, hope you guys enjoyed all the stories. Thanks for sending them in. Keep them coming. NPAD Stories at gmail.com. We're always ready to hear more. Well, in the meantime, enjoy the view. But watch you're back. Bye. Bye. Thank you for joining us again this week. If you have a trail tale you'd like to share, send us an email at NPAD Stories at gmail.com. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at National Park After Dark and on Twitter at NPAD podcast. Become an outsider by joining our Patreon where you'll gain access to monthly bonus stories and exclusive content. And remember, when you support our partners, you're supporting our show. To access our special

discount codes along with source information from today's episode, check out the show notes. For information on the show, to shop our merch store, sign up for our newsletter and more, visit NPADPodcast.com. And if you're enjoying the show, please rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. You're listening to this podcast, so I know you've got a curious mind. Here's a helpful fact you may not know yet. Drivers who switch and save with Progressive save over $900 on average. Pop over to progressive.com, answer some questions, and you'll get a quick quote with discounts that are easy to come by. In fact, 99% of their auto customers earn at least one discount. Visit progressive.com and see if you can enjoy a little cash back. Progressive casualty insurance company and affiliates. National average 12-month savings of $946 by new

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