Report 18298: Man collecting pine nuts retreats from intimidation approach, above French Gulch near Lake Shasta

In early June 1991 French Gulch, CA. My son and I took a short vacation to my childhood memories trip area to French Gulch where I remembered an eerie thing that happened back in the mid 60's with my father. I had lived with my grandparents in an small town called Summit City just a few miles below Shasta Lake Dam when my father one day took me to French Gulch way way back deep into the woods North and North East of the French Gulch town. I remember always feeling as though being watched and sometimes herd really eerie sounds. I remember the eerie sound that made this worse for me to be comfortable. I was a naturalist though and always felt drawn to the deep woods and so it was hard to keep me from it. In latter years after retiring from the U.S. Army I took a trip visiting relatives in Redding, and one evening I packed up the truck for an deep adventure back to those woods and was their mostly to get those big pine cone's with delicious pine nuts. We left late that evening, getting their as it turned near dark and I felt my memories would help me find the places I had been as an teen with my dad and park and get some sleep and then wake up at some old cabin. It was as if I could practically reach out to the stars that clear bright night and (as well the moon was out partially) some of the ledges on those high peaks were a bit scary driving by them as it was so dark and far down I couldn’t see how far. Then after about three hours of this turn and that and many miles I had forgot to count, and my son fell asleep; I became tired and stopped. I turned off the truck engine and left the headlights on as I saw so many pine cones about an foot or longer and I began to load a few up. I had a camper shell on the little Plymouth arrow Pickup and could lock ourselves in for the night when time came. Before I stopped, I just happened to turn the truck around on the road as it made it easier to load some of the pine cones and as I got out beginning to loading more pine cones, that is when I heard that noise and it was very close. I was petrified at the sound as it is nothing like the elk calls that sound a bit eerie too. I began to slowly pick up a few more pine cones as these were only for decorating for our Christmas seasons and as in my childhood days, I would get the green ones that made it from last autumn and were still on the pine trees as I was still the tree climber. I had reached down to pick up the fifth pine cone and it was then I just froze up and full of panicky fear. I could hear up the side of the ledge, ridge, to my right clearly a heavy pounding of what sounded like something very large. Only two distant sounds pounding the ground and the damn thing was coming fast. I dropped the pine cones at once and ran up to the driver’s side fumbling in fear with the door trying to get in the truck. Then I started the truck up and was trying to put it into 1st gear and jammed it in just as I let out the clutch awaking my 7 year old son. I had heard the sound coming down behind the right rear of the truck just before I got the truck started. I happened to look back in the darkness behind the truck as it darted forward and in the dimness of the tail lights I seen this awful dark hairy figure standing upright behind the truck. The moon and the stars were out which helped me see this figure form as well. I had been stricken with such fear that I had never known before at this moment and nearly drove off the side of the road when my son said, “Dad, watch out !!”. I then nearly flipped the truck over, just missing a small log. I had no gun with me.  I would have not feared what this was, and would have shot in the air as a warning or at it if I had to. It was that darn eerie sound and the sound of the thing coming down the steep hillside, and at that second the issue of absolute fear of not having any defense, that got my spirit stirred. I knew for sure it wasn’t a bear, as that memory is still just as plain to see today. It took a while before my son got me to say what happened on the way back as I was barrowing down the mountain as fast as I could, and am surprised I didn’t forget each turn I had to make on the roads I chose going out on the way back. We just pulled into French Gulch when daylight was breaking and I had to stop and sleep for an hour or so when my son woke me up whining about being hungry.  I woke up a bit dazed and it came back to me what had happened and I started up the truck and headed back for Redding.  My son was teasing me, “Oh dad it was probably just a bear”. We reached Uncle Bills place on the right side of the road well before Redding where he lived on some property of his brothers wife’s Father; an Italian whom passed away. Still to this day my son teases me at his age 23. I was a ranch care taker a few years back in Flagstaff, Arizona, and I had seen a lot of things and heard a lot of things, but nothing that could ever compare to what I experienced on that early morning above French Gulch, and I surely didn’t want to.  I always carried a gun with me on that ranch just the south side of Rodgers Dry Lake even in the surrounding woods. Their were signs posted before entering that forest North of French Gulch stating to keep out during the evening (Night) and cut firewood only during daylight hours.  I hadn’t been their for so many years and wanted to experience what I remembered as an teen, but I sure wouldn’t have if I had known what I would have encountered that night. I’m very serious, because I've studied the Sasquatch or Bigfoot ever since, and would go with someone else today and be a lot more prepared for such an venture, but never again alone like that night and without some serious protection. I have never herd of where this big beast has come up on some one like me and acting like it did, but it sure did with me. I hope someone does get some physical evidence because I haven’t enjoyed being teased all these years; also we could put an end to the mystery of this beast. I've known what it was like to have big bears visit at night up in the high country of the Colorado Mountains, Rabbit Ear Mountain-Pass area, where I camped with wife and our first born.  I’ve been around the world and seen a lot of things from the mountains in West Germany and in South Korea in the Ming Dung Mountains where the Siberian tiger still remained back in 1975. In all those years I have never had such a scare. My body and hands were trembling and I was scared down to the core of my being. Sincerely, Sgt. M.L.D. Ret, U.S. Army