Campers Hear Unusual Evening Sounds witnessed in Humboldt County, California

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Last Sunday (November 16, 2003) My friend, my dog and I traveled from Portland, OR to Northern California for some late season backpacking. We stopped at the Aikens Creek campground (West of Orleans, CA and just west of Bluff Creek on HWY 96) at approximately 6:00pm, as it was too late to hike in anywhere that evening and the Six Rivers NF website listed it as one of the campgrounds open through November. As we neared the pay station a sign deferred us to render payment directly to the campground host, and as we approached the host's site it became clear that the site was vacant with just a few small items left behind. So, we took the liberty to drive in and explore the portion of the campground that was open. Driving near the Southern edge (nearest to the Klamath river) we smelled a pervasive "skunky" odor, but thought nothing of it at the time. Eventually we pulled into a campsite (second or third from the entrance at the foot of a large hill). Our intent was to get out of the pic...