A hair raising scream....on Halloween

I created this blog two years ago, and it's about time I start writing something in it.
The most impressive (and almost heart stopping) event that happened to me so far in the field, from the time I decided to join in on the search and investigation of unknown hairy bipeds that possibly inhabit our forests and more mountainous regions here in the Northeast..... would be a vocalization that took place on Oct. 31, 2009 while camping in the southern parts of the Allegheny NF, in Elk Co, PA.
We (my camping partner Floodman, and myself) had chosen a spot back in off a dirt road that had an open area, with deciduous forest surrounding, and a stand of pine forest and ridge line to our west and north. The map showed a creek on the other side of the ridge. We had selected this general area, based on a sighting report that took place, back in the spring. While my partner relaxed by the fire, I walked off a short distance and found a tree that I had selected earlier, to do a few wood knocks...hoping for some response. I did several sets of them, spaced apart...with no replies, as my recorder was rolling. A while later, I thought about doing a vocalization, with my best effort at a whoooooop (much to the entertainment of my more skeptical partner) , also in hopes of some response. My vocalization to the east, got none. After waiting for a while, I tried another to the west, and heard it echo in the distance. Waiting quietly for around 20 minutes, I looked at my watch and saw it was 8PM, and decided it was time to cook some dinner.
I walked back to my vehicle, and leaned the knocking stick on the tailgate, and made the piss poor decision of pushing the pause button, and placing the little Zoom recorder on a tripod (also sitting on the tailgate)....on standby. Just as I joined Floodman at the fire, and sat down to help prepare our dinner, I got my reply...and what a dooosey it was. The vocalization came from a NW direction in the area we estimated was at the top of the ridge line. It started off as a wooooooooh sound (almost identical to the pitch of my voice ), and then transformed (rather quickly) into a higher pitched scream...that echoed past us, with a force that left us both speechless.... and quite nervous. The scream (female like) had a kind of waivering, wailing, insane sound, that actually.. jumped octaves in pitch. It was nothing either of us, had ever heard before. It produced an echo that could be heard in back of us, in the forest to the east. The hair was standing up on the back of my neck, and arms, and my mind was racing, and thinking..." something IS out there". I tried to make eye contact with my buddy, that was sitting across the campfire from me...just staring into the fire. The look on his face, was one of those priceless moments, that I'll never forget. All of a sudden, I thought about the recorder, and got up to take it back off pause, while nervously shining my headlamp into the trees that surrounded our camp...looking for, who knows what. As I returned to my camp chair, Floodman finally looked up at me, and said " you shouldn't have called that thing in here.....it could be watching us right now....maybe we should pack up, and get the hell out of here".
I know my friend didn't want to hear this at the moment, but after a long pause and much scanning of the tree lines with our lamps, and much uncertain thought...I replied "this is what we're here for. I don't think we're in any danger...so let's relax, and eat...first". I had no idea if my reply was really correct, but after a while, the fears eased up...and I assured him that I wouldn't be whooooping anymore, for the rest of the evening. Before we turned in for the night, I got up the stones to take a walk in the direction of the scream, and place my H2 recorder in a select tree, recording for the overnight. Floodman would have no part of that little nocturnal walk in the woods, and to be butt honest...I was still terrified, and shining my headlamp everywhere. No results, other than a couple known species (that I needed to , and have since identified) were recorded. I've had the winter to think about this, and can't come up with anything known , that could have produced this vocalization. If the vocalization was in the capabilities of a very talented human....than it would of HAD to be assisted by some form of amp or powered megaphone. Sure, it was Halloween, and we were out camping....but there were no roads in the direction of the vocalization, for several miles. If it was a prank, then it was quite the production, with someone trail blazing up to the ridge, through at least a mile of forest. There was a pickup truck that drove past us later, several times on the dirt road below....with spot lights, looking for deer or other animals...which is not at all uncommon. On our trip home, my buddy Floodman kept asking me, if I had somehow pranked him, and set up this vocalization out in the field.. to break his balls or something. In fact, he asked me so many times, that I got pretty annoyed.. and finally pulled over the vehicle, got out and opened the back.. exposing all of our equipment and camping gear from the trip. I asked him to please find the PA system or megaphone setup, that would be needed to produce the sound and volume that we had both heard.. and then tell me, how I pulled it off. He got the point, and started slowly talking about ..What it was, and not Who did it, anymore.
I'm done beating on myself, for not getting this strange and powerful vocalization recorded. Yes, it was a big disappointment, and one I'll just have to chalk up to experience. It was a vocalization that could have been studied further, compared to known animal and human vocals, and analyzed. One of our NESRA members and note keeper, has the right idea....to Never turn off the recorder, and record on a lower format, with the largest memory card you can, and carry several of them. I've purchased a 2nd portable recorder, and one will be designated for just that purpose. After hearing some recorded vocalizations from Ohio, by several other researchers.... I have made some comparisons and found some similarities to what we heard, both in pitch and in the wavering sound... although every one of the vocalizations recorded (that I've heard so far), seems to be unique.