This footage was recovered of a JVC GR-SXM260U camera I found at a second hand-store. In the following text I have tried to recount the events captured on this camcorder.
Entry one.
The footage begins by panning over an autumn valley. A woman’s voice can be heard in the background. “Beautiful isn’t it?” A man responds, most likely the person holding the camera. “Shut up, I’m trying to film.” His tone is jovial and after a few seconds he adds “You’re right though, it really is.” The sun is setting.
Entry two.
The woman is walking in front of the camera, following a trail leading through the forest. She is wearing a bright red windbreaker, beige cargo pants, a large backpack and black hiking boots. The man behind the camera can be heard breathing hard. “Wait up!”. The woman stops and turns her head to face the man. She smiles and begins walking towards him. “You’re too slow!” She chuckles. “Oh fuck you!” The man responds, both beginning to laugh. The woman reaches out her hand. “Here, I’ll hold that for you” The camera is handed over to the woman and the man comes into view. He bends over, placing his hand on his knees. “Oh come on, look around you! Look at all of this beauty, I mean, don’t you just get energized? What do you say we run the rest of the way huh?” The camera swings around as the woman is talking, capturing the woods around them. The trees differ in their vibrant hues of orange, yellow and red. There is a shape moving among them. Captured only for a brief moment. A dark brown hide and a hulking body. The man laughs.
Entry three.
Darkness. To begin with nothing of value can be made out of the video captured. Light shuffling and breathing can be heard. “What is that?!” The woman whispers. “It’s probably just an animal, it must’ve gotten a scent of our food. It should be alright. Since we put it in a tree away from the tent it shouldn’t get too close.” Something heavy can be heard circling the campsite. Aside from the sound of the animal and the man and woman breathing it is deathly quiet. “What if it’s a bear!” The woman’s voice quivers. “It’ll be alright honey, sounds like it’s moving away.” The sounds of the animal lessen gradually and after about three minutes there is complete silence.
Entry four.
The man is filming the campsite. Surrounding the couple’s olive-green tent are dozens of deep, wide tracks. The man puts his foot into one of the tracks, it is around three times larger than the man’s boot. “Big son of a bitch” The man mutters. “This doesn’t feel safe Adam, what if it is still around here?” The woman sounds upset. “Yeah, let’s pack up and get out of here.”
Entry five.
The man is filming down a valley. A light patter of rain can be heard. Walking through the valley is a grizzly bear accompanied by two cubs. The camera zooms out and we can see the woman standing with her arms crossed, she seems concerned. She frowns, the camera zooms back in on the bears. “She must’ve been the one rummaging through our camp last night. Probably wanted to get her kid a quick snack” Suddenly the three bears dash into the forest.
Entry six.
It is dusk, we hear the couple walking. Further up the road in a clearing stands a log cabin. “My grandpa built this cabin back in the forties, it ain’t much but he built it all by himself. And I mean everything, he was the one cutting down the trees. He built the fireplace. It was pretty much all he left behind when he passed.” Suddenly all the nondescript noises of the forest die. Not one bird call, not one twig snapping, nothing. The couple do not take any notice. “He must’ve been quite a man, your grandpa.” The man sighs. “Yup, all to wither down and die in the grand span of three months. I’ve never seen my dad like that, bloodshot eyes, stooping shoulders. Fuck man, it got to me. That was the worst part.” They walk on in silence. “Cancer’s a bitch” she says. “Mhm, Cancer’s a cunt”
The couple walk for about one and a half minutes in silence. The man films the ground. Suddenly something charges the man. A grunt. He is struck either from the side or from the back. The camera falls to the ground. The woman shreeks. A high pitched wail which pierces the veil of acidic silence. Until her scream stops. There is thrashing and moaning. Another short scream, this time coming from the man. Then there is a wet squelching noise and the man is silenced. We hear shuffling, whatever attacked them is turning its attention to the woman now. She is crying, light and defeated sobs are the only sounds that escape her. Then there is silence again. The attack lasts for around four minutes.
Entry seven
A wooden floor, light breathing. Then the mutter of a man. “Shit”
Entry Eight
A man sits in front of the camera. His head is partially wrapped in white gauze and his eyes are sunken. He is sitting in front of a dark brown wooden table, in front of him is a plastic bottle of water. It is half full. Behind him is a wall made of logs. Heavy rain patters against the roof of the cabin. Thunder can be heard in the distance. He sighs deeply. “My name is Elliot Andersen, I am forty-nine years old. I am a resident of Bend, Oregon. At this particular moment I’m in a forest in Wyoming. There is a storm brewing outside and I am completely fucked. Although less fucked that I would have been if I hadn’t found this cabin.” The man stops and takes a swig from the water bottle in front of him. “Anyway, I hope the owner doesn’t mind me taking shelter in here. I lost my backpack somewhere along the way, there was so much rain and thunder. Complete darkness. I fell and hit my head. It was bleeding when I got here but I’m all patched up now. Lucky the owner had some medical emergency shit. Too bad he didn’t stack up on some more water and canned beef. I’m hoping the storm blows over fast so I can get the fuck out of here. Signing off”
Entry Nine
The man is sitting in front of the camera again. His head in his hands. The water bottle has fallen over, it is empty. A kerosene lamp is burning. “I figured out how to watch what’s already been recorded on this thing.” He pauses. Suddenly thunder and lightning bears down onto the cabin. The man is illuminated. Waves of flooding rain crash against the walls, roof and windows. “Fuck. They were mauled. I can’t get over the sounds. I’ve never heard someone scream like that, let alone cry like that. They must have invaded that bears territory, it had cubs. They get crazy when someone closes in on their kids. Jesus christ, there’s a bear out there. Fuck. I’m all out of water and there isn’t shit to eat in here. I’m going to wait a while. I’m praying that it lets up, otherwise I’m going to have to brave the storm.” He pauses again. “If I don’t make it out of here, I love you Sarah and I’m sorry things got all messed up. I’m a dick, I know. I don’t deserve you, but if I get through this I’ll never hurt you again.” The man sobs, his voice breaking. “I wish I could be with you, in our warm bed. Fuck, I’m a fucking idiot. I love you Sarah, I love you so, so much.”
Entry ten
“I found them”
It is the voice of Elliot. “Not the couple, the bears. I tried to push through the storm. I was walking down the dirt road. Some of the trees have fallen down, the wind was as strong as ten men. It felt like I was being pulled back towards the cabin by an invisible rope. I climbed over one of the fallen trees blocking the road and that is when I found them. All three of them. Massacred. They had been mangled, something had snapped their bones like they were twigs. The cubs were nothing more than crushed piles of sliced meat and bloodied fur. Something had slit their stomachs open. There were intestines spilling out of their bare chest cavities. A mother and her babies. The teeth in her maw had been reduced to dust, her entire snout had been crushed. I turned and ran right back to the cabin. Something has been pacing outside the walls. Something big. At first I thought it was another bear. A freak of nature. It would have to be to be able to do such a thing. But it isn’t a bear. Bears don’t knock.”