Time Traveling Through Shenandoah National Park: The Adventures of Bubba Jones #2
CHAPTER 1 looked down at herself and looked even more confused at seeing that she too was dressed in animal skin An unusually cool breeze blew through the forest caus ing us to shiver We huddled closer together for warmth This did not feel like the same Shenandoah National Park a place that draws over 1 2 million visitors annually that Papa Lewis had described to us Our grandfather Papa Lewis named after the famed Meriwether Lewis of the Lewis and Clark expedition had explored Shenandoah National Park on many adventures and had shared all of his exciting stories with us Whenever he talked about Shenandoah he had a twinkle in his eyes and a smile on his face that let us know how special the park was to him After hearing him describe it we couldn’t wait to explore it ourselves The sound of snapping twigs and branches grew louder Whatever this beast was it was getting closer to us Small trees swayed nearby as this animal easily pushed through them Whatever it is it’s big I thought to myself Can it smell us Does it know we’re here A jolt of fear shot down my spine and a lump formed in my throat Where are we Hug-a-Bug asked Hug-a-Bug is my sister Her real name is Jenny but we call her Hug-a-Bug for her love of everything outdoors We’re at Rockfish Gap near the south entrance of Shenandoah National Park I whispered Hug-a-Bug knew from Papa Lewis that if we were at Rockfish Gap entering Shenandoah National Park then we should be either hiking on the Appalachian Trail or driving on Skyline Drive Papa Lewis had told us all about Skyline Drive a road that rambles along the top of 12
IS T HiS Sh ENANdoAH N ATIONAL PARK the mountain from Rockfish Gap Virginia for a hundred and five miles all the way up to Front Royal Virginia He had also described countless hikes along the Appalachian Trail which follows alongside Skyline Drive through the entire length of Shenandoah National Park I watched as my sister scanned the landscape for signs of the trail or the road Finding neither she looked even more con fused She looked down at her clothing again What am I wearing It looks like a buffalo skin to me I replied casually as if that was nothing out of the ordinary Shhh Stay quiet everyone We don’t want to draw attention from whatever is making the noise Papa Lewis whispered as we remained huddled in a stand of trees Tree limbs cracked just inches from us Dad also known as Clark after the famous Lewis and Clark duo picked up a large rock to possibly throw at the unknown creature Whatever was moving through the forest was literally almost right on top of us We all sat still and quiet wondering what next You could have heard a pin drop Suddenly the tree branches shook above us and a mas sive head appeared At first I thought it was an elephant but then I noticed its tusks were thicker and longer than any I had ever seen before Its ears were relatively small not at all like an elephant’s And it was furry If it took one more step its enormous foot would crush us Unable to take the waiting in silence any longer Hug-a-Bug stood up and slowly backed away from the beast Now backing away slowly is recommended in black bear encounters if you get too close but this creature was no black bear 13
CHAPTER 1 Fortunately however Hug-a-Bug’s movement seemed to frighten the animal because it turned and thundered off into the forest The sounds of snapping tree branches faded as the beast plowed through the trees and disap peared Wh what was that Hug-a-Bug asked trembling with fear That was a woolly mammoth an ancient cousin of the elephant Woolly mammoths and mastodons lived in this area until they became extinct about 10,000 years ago They began to die off as the glaciers retreated at the end of the Ice Age and the climate warmed up Right now there are still glaciers within a few hundred miles of the area which explains the cooler temperatures Woolly mammoth and mastodon bones have been found in the valleys near the present-day Shenandoah National Park These huge creatures were herbivores and didn’t eat meat so we were safe from being its next meal But I’m guessing that some kind of carnivorous predator chased it up here from the valley hoping for one huge slab of mam moth steak for dinner Since it didn’t get the mammoth it might come looking for other prey and that includes us Papa Lewis explained in a hushed tone I’m confused Let me get this straight Are you saying that we just came face to face with a woolly mammoth that went extinct 10,000 years ago How could that I cut my sister off in mid-sentence and blurted What sort of predator are you talking about Well based on the animal skin we’re wearing the pre historic Paleo-Indians are here and they might be trying 14
IS T HiS Sh ENANdoAH N ATIONAL PARK to hunt that woolly mammoth for food It could also be other predators like a mountain lion or Before Papa Lewis could complete his explanation something flew by us with a whoosh followed by a thunk Instinctively we dropped flattening ourselves to the ground About the same time we hit the ground so did a primitive-looking spear That explained the whoosh and the thunk a spear had sailed by us glanced off a tree then fallen to the ground just a short distance from us Quiet No one move Papa Lewis hissed We heard voices coming from the brush but I couldn’t make out what they were saying As we watched holding our breath the branches on a nearby bush shook then were pushed aside as a figure emerged Near as I could tell he was some sort of Indian He had coarse black hair and was clothed in animal skin He was soon fol lowed by three other men of similar appearance They walked within a few feet of us scanning the nearby trees and searching through the grass It looked like they were trying to find the spear they threw Time slowed to a snail’s pace as we lay motionless in the brush hoping to go undetected I scrunched my eyes shut in fear and while hearing the men talking again realized the reason I couldn’t make out what they were saying was because they weren’t speaking English A few more moments passed when I heard more rustling followed by more talking Opening one eye to see what was going on I saw the hunters regroup and move on apparently giving up the hunt for their spear They followed the path of broken tree limbs and tracks left by the woolly mammoth and soon disappeared from view 15
