Y'know, that crossed my mind as I got back to camp and out of danger. My friends and I used to wear a jedi-type robe and scare people at night for pranks (mostly scared ourselves; gotta love being a teenager.) Only thing is, we were miles and miles away from anything, and nobody goes down that trail. We knew there were bears around; some brilliant Boy Scouts had buried some beef stew in their campsite.
That's a pretty wild area, too. The year before I hiked the same trail alone (I was being a thinker, I know). On the way back I noticed some large cougar tracks that hadn't been there on the way up. Ah, the sweet feeling of sweat dripping down one's back. A mile from camp, a turkey gobbled right behind me. Thing is, I didn't stop to think about what made that loud noise, I just knew I'd better get the heck out of Dodge before I was eaten. Ever sprint for a half mile at 9,000 feet?
Eddie