BFRO #12818: Hiker leaves main trail and finds two sets of footprints

📍 Location

📝 Description

My wife and I were hiking for the afternoon in the Mokelumne Wilderness in Alpine County, California. Our destination was Granite Lake, two miles from the outlet of Upper Blue Lake. We reached our destination, had lunch and were returning, following the trail back the way we had come. When we reached a pond, about 1/3rd of the way back, I expressed a desire to my wife to take a hike southward across the same elevation level as the pond, to another lake called Evergreen Lake. There is no trail or pathway to this lake, and I thought it would take about 20 minutes to reach it. My wife declined to accompany me, so I told her I would return in a while. I began walking, trying to keep my position along the same contour line as the pond. The forest was fairly dense, and generally well covered with pine needle duff, generally underlayed with decomposed granite. After a short walk, I realized that very likely few people had ever gone where I was headed, as there were no signs of previous travel, and the going was sometimes difficult. I tried to stay on the contour, but kept slipping lower down I went. After a while - more than 20 minutes, I realized that I wasn't going to find the lake, so I started back. As I walked back I took a different route, trying to regain the elevation I had lost on the trip out. I came across a section of forest floor where there was mostly decomposed granite, and as I followed this - which was a bit easier to travel on - I come across two sets of footprints. The first set looked almost human, except they were wider and longer than usual. Noticeable were the toes, and a definite arch. The second set of prints were from a larger creature, and left a deeper impression, especially in the heal area. This track was wider still than the first, and looked similar to typical casts of Bigfoot prints. There was no noticeable arch, and the toes were not especially evident. Both set of tracks were superimposed at points, indicating that one creature was directly following the other, stepping in the same spots at times. The tracks quickly were lost in the pine needles further ahead.It had snowed two days before, and the ground was damp, but most of the snow had melted. These tracks were fresh, likely less than 24 hours old.

🔍 Circumstances

No other witness was present at the tracks.

🌤️ Weather Conditions

It was about 3:45 in the afternoon, and the sky was clear. The light was filtered forest light.

ℹ️ Additional Details

It was about 3:45 in the afternoon, and the sky was clear. The light was filtered forest light.

🔗 Sources (1)

👥 Community Contributions

Help improve this case by adding notes, observations, theories, or tags. Your contributions help the community understand patterns and connections.