Recollection of a daytime bike path crossing in front of three youths near Columbia witnessed in Boone County, Missouri

Open Map

I am 27 years old now, this happened when I was about 11, I believe the year 2000. I realize I was young, however, I have thought about this experience many times over the years and have not been able to explain what was seen that day. I was with two other people, one female who was my age at the time and her brother who was about 13-14 years old. The two of us girls were walking and he was on a bike. We were on the outskirts of Columbia, MO, I am not sure of the exact location but I did force my dad to walk that path with me again in the days after so I'm sure he would remember. The bike path was wooded on both sides, the weather that day was overcast but since it was the middle of the afternoon the visibility was fine. We were about 30 yards from where the path opened up to a lake. We were just walking and chatting and, unannounced, this creature walked out of the left side of the woods (no excessive noise, just a little bit if rustling like a deer was moving around) it then crossed ...