Skinwalkers

What would you think the odds are of knowing two people in different, non-adjacent, states that have seen Skinwalkers. Neither had ever even heard of them before, so it is not that either one was trying to just scare me. I didn’t even realize it until a couple months ago.

Lately, I have been listening to some of my favorite YouTube personalities and their stories of the creepy and weird, and started to hear stories about something I had never heard of before, Skinwalkers. At first I thought it might just be another name for a Wendigo, but no. Not really. They are frequently described as being ….Well, wait for that. I don’t want to get ahead of myself. I will start with a story that was told to me by my brother in law.

Demon Horse

This was years before he married into the family, he and some friends were visiting a neighboring town for a night out. They were responsible and had a DD, but most of them had been drinking. So for years I discounted this story completely because of that. They were all piled into a mini-van and headed home in the wee hours of the morning when the conversation turned to full bladders and the like. We all know how that goes. once one person says it, suddenly everyone needs to go. The roads are very dark out there, no towns to speak of and the road is very winding.

The driver chooses a wide drive where he can pull over and be far enough off the road that other cars will not hit them and his intoxicated passengers can do their business and they can get back on the road quickly. The passengers all pile out into the dark countryside. Most of them take only a few moments and quickly load back up, but my future brother in law and another friend strayed slightly further away from the van. As they are both finishing up they see something coming toward them. It looks to be well over 6 feet tall, and for all the world looks like a horse with flaming eyes walking on it’s hind legs. Not walking, running. Running right toward them. They hightail it out of their and leap back into the vehicle in a panic.

For years he has been teased about the “demon horse” incident, but is that what they saw?

What was that?

The second person I know lives no where near me, and certainly nowhere near the traditional location of the American Southwest. For privacy sake, I will not give her name or state. She and her teenage son were driving home late in the evening. It was full dark and the road they were on did not have any streetlights and other illumination. The forest is a large area, with little or no development. Typically, this is a very peaceful place, especially during the daylight hours, but now I wonder. As they drove, suddenly something darted out across the road in front of them. It moved inhumanly fast. Before my friend could even react, it was already gone. Not believing her own eyes, she asked her son if he had seen anything, and terrified he described the same thing she saw.

What had crossed the road in front of them was no person, and not any animal they had ever seen before. She and her son both describe it as at least 7 feet tall (a little over two meters), walked on two legs, but had the head of a deer with a full rack of antlers.

She told me this as we drove down the same road at night.  I will be honest with you, it freaked me out a little, and I am not easy to spook.

I had never heard of anything even remotely like that and had no idea what it could have been. A couple years later, I had all but forgotten the story when I heard my first Skinwalker tale.

Skinwalkers?

Wait a minute. Sever feet tall with the head of a deer? Walks on two legs? Inhumanly fast? You have to be kidding me. That description sounds awfully familiar.

I had to let my friend know right away. Strangely, she was less enthusiastic to have a name for this thing than I thought she might be. (I kid of course) Though she did tell me another story of animals acting strange int he area, and that fits in with the Skinwalker mythology.

Traditionally, most people associate Skinwalkers with the Navajo. It’s real name is yee naaldlooshii, and it is a medicine man who has turned toward the evil side of magic. He takes the form of animals to harm others. That is a very simplistic definition, but we can start there.

Did I mention that talking about or even thinking about these creatures can draw them to you?

Skinwalkers are not just creepy deer headed monsters. There are plenty of stories of them taking other forms, coyotes, dogs and more. One of the tricks the Skinwalker uses to lure people into the wilderness is mimicking the voice of friends and family. Or they may use the victims own voice and words. Some people describe hearing a bark like a dog or meow like a cat. However, not like the actually animal, like a human being mimicking the animal sounds. Frankly, these creatures are never good news. If you want to learn more about them, check out some of these other folks: Darkness Prevails and Swamp Dweller they have the best stories about Skinwalkers that I have found so far.

I would be curious if anyone else has seen one or knows anyone who has seen one. Let us know!