Over the weekend, a man being called 'goat man' was photographed roaming the mountains of northern Utah, trying to get close with his hairy horned pals. 'Goat Man' has now been identified.
Hiker Coty Creighton spotted the mysterious 'goat man' as he was descending Ben Lomond peak, about 40 miles north of Salt Lake City. Creighton noticed that one of creatures on the hill looked a little strange. Upon closer inspection using binoculars, Creighton noticed that the figure wasn't a goat at all, but a man pretending to be one. He took several blurry photos of his strange discovery.
"He was clumsy, working his way down the cliff trying to catch up with the rest of the herd," photographer Coty Creighton told Fox affiliate KSTU-TV "With the binoculars, I could clearly see it was a guy dressed up in a homemade goat suit."
'Goat man' was wearing thick gloves as he crawled around the mountain on all fours. At some point, the man noticed Creighton and stopped his odd behavior.
"He kind of slouched down, like was getting nervous or was feeling really self-conscious," Creighton added. "He actually got off his hands and knees and sat on the hill for several minutes until he thought I was gone."
Officials were concerned about the man, not because he was doing wrong, despite how odd it may appear, but for safety reasons. Phil Douglass of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources feared that the man was unaware of the dangers. He didn't want the man to wind up getting shot by goat hunters in the area or for the goats to cause harm to him.
"My very first concern is the person doesn't understand the risks," Douglass said. "Who's to say what could happen."
He was also concerned that others would see the media and attempt the same odd act without understanding the risks. "I was concerned that this person understood the risks and that someone else might see it (in the media) and try it," he said as quoted by the Standard-Examiner . "I didn't want someone who did not know the risks to try it and get hurt."
The 'goat man' has reportedly come forward. Turns out he doesn't have some weird animal fetish and he isn't a wild man who would rather live goats than humans. 'Goat man' was just trying to get close to his enemies. He's a hunter.
The Standard-Examiner reported that 'goat man' is nothing but a 57-year-old hunter from Southern California who uses extreme practice tactics. On Monday, 'goat man' called Douglass to explain his behavior.
"He gave me details that convinced me it was him," Douglass told the Standard. "I'm satisfied that this was a person preparing for a hunt and did it with knowledge and experience."
The man explained that he was preparing for a future archery hunt of mountain goats in Canada and he was trying out his homemade goat suit, which consisted of a hooded painter's uniform and a fleece. He told Douglass that he came to Utah as the area makes it easier to get near goats for training purposes. He mentioned that he wasn't the only one who had a goat suit.
The mystery man didn't give his name to Douglass but he did say that he has hunted in several foreign countries including Mongolia.
Now that the mystery is solved, Douglass wishes he didn't know the truth so he could continue to enjoy the fun of the guessing. "I thought I wanted answers, but I was naive. I should have left well enough alone. Now I just want the mystery back," he said in an email to the Standard-Examiner.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
