1.02 Wendigo

Sam and Dean protect Haley and her brothers from the Wendigo
Title	Wendigo
Episode #	Season 1, Episode 2
First aired	September 20, 2005
Directed by	David Nutter
Written by	Teleplay: Eric Kripke Story: Ron Milbauer Terri Hughes Burton
On IMDB	Wendigo
Outline	Dean and Sam follow John's coordinates to a hunt for missing campers in Colorado.
Monster	Wendigo
Timeline	November 10, 2005 November 11-12, 2005
Location(s)	Lost Creek Trail, Grand Junction, Colorado Black Water Ridge, Colorado (fictional)
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Synopsis

After spending a week in Palo Alto looking for the thing that killed Jessica, Sam and Dean head to Blackwater Ridge and the coordinates their father left in his journal. At the Lost Creek Trail Ranger Station, Ranger Wilkinson mistakes the brothers for friends of Haley Collins, the sister of a boy, Tommy Collins, who went missing while on a camping trip. On a hunch, Sam and Dean visit Haley, and she shows them the last video Tommy sent her via cellphone before he disappeared. She also informs them that she and her younger brother, Ben Collins, have hired a guide and are heading into the hills to find Tommy the next morning.

Sam does some research and finds that people go missing in Blackwater at regular intervals - every 23 years. He also plays Tommy's last video in slow motion, and he and Dean spot an extremely fast moving shadow on a tent wall. They go to visit Shaw, a survivor of an alleged bear attack in 1959, and the old man tells them that it was not a grizzly that attacked his family, but a creature that was smart enough to unlock the cabin door, roared like no man or animal, and moved like lightning. They go back to Blackwater the next morning and arrive just as Haley, Ben, and their guide, Roy, are setting out for Tommy’s campsite. When the group reaches the campsite, they find ripped tents and damaged equipment. Screams for help sound in the distance so they all run to check, but no one is there and when they return to the campsite their packs have been taken.

With the help of their father's journal, Sam and Dean realize that they’re facing a Wendigo. They inform the disbelieving group, and Dean draws Anasazi symbols for protection as they make camp for the night. Sam tells Dean he wants to abandon this hunt and search for their father. Dean replies that they have to help others; it is “the family business.” Once again, cries for help can be heard, and Roy ignores Dean’s warnings and runs into the dark with his gun. He doesn't return.

The next day Sam and Dean explain that Wendigo means ‘evil that devours.’ They were once human but became something else when forced to eat human flesh to survive. Tommy may still be alive, as Wendigo hibernate and like to store live food, so they follow the Wendigo's bloody trail. Eventually, Roy’s dead body falls from a tree and the Wendigo appears, causing everyone to scatter. Haley and Dean are taken by the Wendigo, but Sam and Ben follow a trail of peanut M&M’s that Dean leaves behind. They eventually find Dean, Haley, and Tommy hanging from the ceiling of an abandoned mine, and they cut them loose.

Dean finds two flare guns along with the rest of their stolen supplies, and while Sam leaves with the Collins siblings, Dean tries to draw the Wendigo away. The Wendigo follows Sam instead, cornering their group; however, Dean appears from behind it and shoots his flare gun into its chest. The Wendigo bursts into flame and dies, and they're able to escape and get help. The group fabricates a story to tell the police - they were attacked by a bear. Haley thanks Dean and then leaves with Tommy and Ben in the ambulance. Dean states that he hates camping and informs Sam that they will find their dad. Sam agrees but in the meantime - he’s driving.

Characters

• Dean Winchester
• Sam Winchester
• Roy (guide)
• Haley Collins
• Tommy Collins
• Ben Collins
• Ranger Wilkinson
• Shaw

Definitions

• Wendigo (creature) ^PoD
• Skinwalker ^PoD
• Black Dog ^PoD
• Silver-tipped Bows and Arrows ^PoD
• Jack Fiddler ^PoD
• Anasazi

Music

• "Out of My Hands" by Dave Matthews Band

(played during Sam's nightmare in which he visits Jess' grave)

• "Hot Blooded" by Foreigner

(plays in the car when Sam wakes from his nightmare)

• "She Ain't Lonesome" by Steve Fister

(plays in the car when Sam wakes from his nightmare; Netflix version)

• "Down South Jukin'" by Lynyrd Skynyrd

(plays at the bar where the guys discuss the case and watch the video on the laptop)

• "Fly by Night" by Rush

(plays at the end when Sam's driving the Impala and they leave the woods)

Quotes

Dean: I don't know, maybe we should know what we're walking into before we actually walk into it.

Sam: What?
Dean: Well, since when are you all 'shoot first, ask questions later,' anyway?

Sam: Since now.

Dean: Her brother's missing, Sam. She's not just gonna sit this out. No, we go with her, we protect her, and we keep our eyes peeled for our fuzzy 'Predator' friend.
Sam: So finding Dad's not enough? Now we gotta babysit, too?

Roy: You're rangers?

Dean: That's right.
Haley: And you're hiking out in biker boots and jeans?

Dean: Oh sweetheart, I don't do shorts.

Hailey: Why didn't you just tell me that from the start?
Dean: I'm telling you now. Besides, this is probably the most honest I've ever been with a woman... Ever.

Sam: I mean, why are we still even here?
Dean: This is why. [holds up their dad’s journal] This book. This is dad’s single, most valuable possession. Everything he knows about every evil thing is in here, and he’s passed it on to us. I think he wants us to pick up where he left off, you know, saving people, hunting things. The family business.

Sam: How do you do it? How does Dad do it?
Dean: Well for one, them. [gestures toward Haley and her brother] I mean, our family's so screwed to hell, maybe we can help some others. Makes things a little bit more bearable. And I'll tell you what else helps. Killing as many evil sons-of-bitches as I possibly can.

Dean: [to Wendigo] Hey, you want some white meat, bitch? I'm right here!

Hailey: So really, I don't know how to thank you. [Dean grins] Must you cheapen the moment?
Dean: Yeah!

Trivia & References

Tommy is seen reading a copy of Joseph Campbell's The Hero with a Thousand Faces before he's taken by the Wendigo in the episode teaser. Eric Kripke has confirmed more than once that his writing is influenced by the Hero's Journey.

A "Northern Indian Tribe" is referenced not only in the episode but by the writers and Eric Kripke as one of the sources for the Wendigo legend. This tribe is actually the Ojibwe of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and lower Canada. The name comes from the Ojibwe word "Wiindigo" (pronounced WEEN-di-GO). Many traditional members of the tribe believe the creature to actually exist in the woods and at times put out offerings of tobacco or food to appease it.

Carrie-esque shot from "Wendigo"

In Sam's nightmare, the visual of the hand coming up out of Jessica's grave and snatching his wrist calls to mind the end of the movie Carrie, based on the novel by Stephen King.

The Wendigo legend features prominently in the Stephen King novel Pet Sematary.

When the Winchester brothers first meet Haley Collins, Dean tells her they are Lost Creek Rangers, from park services. When Haley asks for ID, Dean holds up a convincing fake ID with the name Samuel Cole. This could be a reference to Samuel Colt, the maker of The Colt and its original thirteen bullets. Haley, notably, does not call Dean on having an ID with his face that says 'Samuel' when he just introduced his companion, not himself, as being 'Sam'.

Dean: ...our fuzzy 'Predator' friend.

This could be a reference to Predator, a film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger that features a fictional extraterrestrial species characterized by its trophy hunting of other species, including humans, for sport.

Dean: [to Roy] Tell me, uh, Bambi or Yogi ever hunt you back?

Bambi the Deer and Yogi the Bear are both famous forest-dwelling cartoon characters.

Sam: [finding Dean's trail of peanut M&Ms] It's better than bread crumbs.

A reference to the Grimm's fairy tale Hansel and Gretel, in which the children leave a trail of bread crumbs through the forest so they'll find their way home.

Ben: Like the Donner Party.

The Donner Party were a group of 19th century settlers who were traveling west when they were caught in the blizzard in the Sierra Nevada, and some whom resorted to cannibalism.

The title of the episode, "Wendigo" and the plot of the main characters having to face a creature of the same name is very similar to the Charmed episode "Wendigo". There, the main characters also kill the monster with a flare gun.

Minutiae

Cory Monteith who played Finn in the TV show Glee appears in the teaser. Unfortunately, Monteith passed away on 13th July 2013 of a drug overdose

"Wendigo" filmed in July 2005 in Vancouver.

On Tommy's last call home, he indicated it was "day 6" of his camping trip, Haley told Dean and Sam that she and Ben hadn't heard from him in 3 days, and Ranger Wilkinson said Tommy wasn't a missing person because his backcountry permit to Backwater is good until "the 24th".

The coordinates John left point to Arizona, not too far from Flagstaff. The Lost Creek Wilderness Area, part of Pike National Forest in Colorado, is approx 39.3,-105.5.

Sides, Scripts & Transcripts

• 1.02 Wendigo (transcript)

Promotion

• Episode Stills
• Episode Promo: 1.02 Wendigo & 1.03 Dead In The Water