An Influencer Vanished into the Upper Peninsula Wilderness, Leaving a Recorded Eerie Howls That Defies Logic
The forest has a way of swallowing secrets, keeping them hidden beneath layers of damp moss and rotting leaves until the earth itself decides to breathe them out. For six long years, the Manistee National Forest in Michigan held the fate of Kevin Godfrey in its silent, swampy grip. But on December 30th, 2024, the silence was finally broken. This is the complete, terrifying account of the disappearance and discovery of Kevin Godfrey—a story of a young man’s final, frantic moments and the shadow that followed him into the dark.
I. The Argument and the Departure
Kevin Godfrey was a man built for the outdoors. A former high school wrestling champion from Southfield, Michigan, he possessed the kind of rugged physique and iron will that made him seem invincible in the wild. By 2018, the 28-year-old had built a following as an outdoor influencer, documenting his bicycle treks and hunting trips across the scenic landscapes of the Great Lakes State.
On June 29, 2018, Kevin, his girlfriend Sarah Rule, and another couple, John and Mariana, set out for a summer carnival like no other: the Electric Forest Music Festival. They planned to camp at the Oak Null campsite, a sprawling, primitive area just ten miles from the festival grounds. It was supposed to be a weekend of music, bizarre costumes, and celebration. Instead, it became a descent into a nightmare.
The tension began on July 1st. While the Manistee National Forest was teeming with festival-goers, the air at the Oak Null campsite grew thick with a personal storm. Kevin and Sarah had a volatile argument in their car. Kevin, driven by an impulsive need to reach the festival’s bonfire party that night, wanted to leave immediately. Sarah, wary of the treacherous, swampy terrain at night, insisted they wait until morning.
At 5:00 p.m., Kevin was seen by his friend John wandering the perimeter of the campsite. He looked tense, walking off his anger. As the sun dipped below the horizon, the day-trippers cleared out, leaving the forest in a suffocating, indigo silence.
Kevin never returned to the tent.
II. The Midnight Search and the Hunter
By 9:00 p.m., panic set in. Sarah, John, and Mariana entered the treeline, their flashlights cutting weak paths through the dense, swampy brush. The Manistee is notorious for its maze-like trails and deceptive bogs. They shouted Kevin’s name, but the only response was the heavy, damp thud of their own heartbeats.
Suddenly, their flashlights illuminated a figure standing motionless in the bushes. It was a hunter. He was a grisly sight—blood smeared across his face, several dead grouse hanging from his belt. He seemed startled, shielding his eyes from the light. When John explained that their friend was missing, the hunter’s response was chillingly blunt.
“His chances are low out here,” the hunter whispered. “Call the police. Now.”
His behavior was erratic, and he vanished into the shadows almost as quickly as he had appeared. The group retreated to the cabin, terrified. At 1:00 a.m., Sarah tried Kevin’s phone one last time. To her shock, he answered. But there was no “hello.” There was only the sound of rapid, heavy breathing—the sound of a man running for his life.
III. The Evidence in the Static
Despite a massive search involving bloodhounds, helicopters with night vision, and hundreds of volunteers, Kevin Godfrey vanished. The only clues left behind were a series of cryptic text messages sent to his family:
To his sister, Carrie: “I will miss you often.” (Sent June 29)
To his sister, Kelly: “Everything is fine.” (Sent July 1, 1:55 p.m.)
To his father, Jerry: “Nothing much.” (Sent July 1, 10:13 p.m.)
For six years, the case grew cold. Then, on December 30, 2024, a hunter named Austin, while retrieving trail cameras, found a black backpack and a scatter of bleached bones. Among them was a human femur. Dental records confirmed the grim truth: Kevin Godfrey had been found.
When investigators bypassed the corrosion on Kevin’s recovered phone, they found the digital ghost of his final hours. Between 10:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m. on the night he vanished, Kevin had made five desperate 911 calls. Each one had been cut off after only seconds, as if the signal—or the caller—had been forcibly suppressed.
IV. The Shadow on the Trail
Two files on the phone provided the most haunting evidence.
The first was an ATV video recorded on June 29th, two days before the disappearance. In the 12th second of the footage, a massive black figure can be seen standing perfectly still by the roadside. It was nearly eight feet tall, broad-shouldered, and appeared to be watching Kevin with predatory intent.
The second was a 10-second audio recording from the night of July 1st. In the clip, Kevin is heard whispering, his voice trembling with a terror that wrestling championships couldn’t prepare him for:
“Y’all seeing this?”
Behind his voice, the recording picks up a sound that has haunted Michigan for a century: a deep, rhythmic howl that sounds part-human, part-canine.
V. The Naked Man and the Legend
Further complicating the mystery was footage from a separate motion-activated camera owned by a local named Justin. On the night of the disappearance, the camera captured a pale, thin, completely naked man walking past the lens in the dead of night. He held a wooden stick in his right hand and moved with an oddly tense, predatory gait. He was never identified.
Investigators were left to piece together three conflicting theories:
The Human Predation Theory: Sarah believed the bloodstained hunter they met in the woods had accidentally shot Kevin and hidden the body, or perhaps the naked drifter was a feral killer living in the swamps.
The Disorientation Theory: Police suggested Kevin, blinded by anger and drugs from the festival atmosphere, wandered into a swamp and succumbed to the elements.
The Cryptid Theory: Cryptozoologists point to the “Dogman” of Michigan—a creature first reported in 1887, described as a seven-foot beast with a man’s torso and a dog’s head. The audio of the howls and the black figure in the video align perfectly with sightings of the legend.
Conclusion: The Forest Keeps its Own
Kevin Godfrey’s remains were found in a non-remote area that had been searched a dozen times before. How he remained hidden for six years is a question forensic science cannot answer.
Was Kevin Godfrey a victim of a tragic accident, a human predator, or something much older that stalks the Manistee? The “Nothing much” text to his father remains the most haunting piece of the puzzle. Was it a code? A final attempt to stay calm? Or was Kevin already being watched by the huge black figure when he hit “send”?
In the Manistee National Forest, the wind still carries a low-frequency hum, and the locals still whisper about the “Dogman.” Kevin’s story is now part of that folklore—a warning to those who think they are the masters of the woods. The forest does not care about your strength; it only cares about its secrets.
