I came up from the valley Before the morning light Old folks said don't climb that ridge And damn sure not at night They talked about the footprints They talked about the trees Something living on that mountain That nobody ever sees I laughed and packed my rifle Threw my gear across my back Said if something's living up there I'll find its tracks I found one by the river Nearly twice the size of mine Then somewhere high above me Something knocked against a pine One knock, Then another From somewhere farther west I told myself it wasn't him But something in me guessed You might think you're hunting something You might think you're doing fine But something on that mountain Might be following yours behind The woods became much quieter The farther up I went I caught him on the ridgeline Just before the sun went down Too damn big to be a black bear Too damn quiet for that ground He stood between the pines Looking down at me Old n' Gray, Tired Bigger than any man Had any right to be He didn't roar He didn't run He looked at me like an old man Who just wanted some damn rest Then slowly turned away And disappeared behind the pine That's when I should've left him That's when I crossed the line I followed those tracks Up the mountain after dark I followed those tracks Past where the old trail stopped I thought that I was hunting him I thought that I was fine Then I noticed something strange His tracks weren't ahead of mine I stopped, Nothing I turned, Nothing Then somewhere down the mountain A dead branch broke behind me One step, Then another Heavy, Slow No hurry in them at all I started walking faster Those footsteps matched my own I started running downhill Those footsteps followed on I heard no roar behind me No angry animal cry Just something walking through those woods Taking its damn sweet time I ran until the moonlight Found the little cabin door Threw myself inside And dropped my rifle on the floor Locked every window Pulled the curtains tight Sat there in the darkness Listening to the night Nothing, Not a sound Then something crossed the window Slowly blocking out the moon One knock On the cabin wall One on the door I stared across that little room And heard one knock more Not angry, Not violent Just enough to let me know This is my mountain And it's time for you to go I waited until morning Before I opened up that door There was one track on the doorstep Nearly twice the size of mine And one broken little branch From an old mountain pine I walked back to the valley Never turned around And I haven't climbed that mountain Since the day I came back down So if you find those footprints Leave the old man be He's been living on that mountain Longer than you or me Don't follow those tracks Up the mountain after dark Don't follow those tracks Past where the old trail stops You might think you're hunting something You might think you're doing fine But the old man on that mountain Might be following yours behind
