1 00:00:06,040 --> 00:00:09,560 Speaker 1: I was born in nineteen sixty five. My family lived 2 00:00:09,599 --> 00:00:12,880 in a little town in eastern Oklahoma, just a few 3 00:00:12,919 --> 00:00:16,280 miles north of five forty, about thirty five miles from 4 00:00:16,320 --> 00:00:20,760 the Arkansas state line. I grew up hunting, fishing, trapping, 5 00:00:20,800 --> 00:00:24,079 and taking care of our farm animals. My dad was 6 00:00:24,120 --> 00:00:27,480 a prominent mechanic in town, and in his free time, 7 00:00:27,879 --> 00:00:31,760 he loved a coon hunt. We traveled several thousand miles 8 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:37,320 on foot around our area chasing dogs. My best friend, Slick, 9 00:00:37,359 --> 00:00:40,079 and I love to get out and explore the mountains 10 00:00:40,079 --> 00:00:43,000 to hunt and fish. It was early spring and we 11 00:00:43,039 --> 00:00:45,399 had planned a trip to the Blue Mountains to camp 12 00:00:45,439 --> 00:00:48,759 out and fish the numerous streams and traverse the area. 13 00:00:49,960 --> 00:00:52,359 I loaded up my eighty two Dodge with all we 14 00:00:52,439 --> 00:00:55,439 thought we needed and threw it in a campershell and 15 00:00:55,520 --> 00:00:59,280 set out Friday evening after work. We made the trip 16 00:00:59,359 --> 00:01:01,479 south to the mount Mountains just in time to find 17 00:01:01,479 --> 00:01:04,480 a suitable place to set up camp, which was nothing 18 00:01:04,519 --> 00:01:08,439 more than a fire. After working all day and driving, 19 00:01:08,680 --> 00:01:11,719 we hit the hay early and got a good night's rest. 20 00:01:12,680 --> 00:01:15,560 The property was leased for oil and gas production as 21 00:01:15,599 --> 00:01:19,680 well as logging, and spanned several thousand acres. There were 22 00:01:19,719 --> 00:01:22,959 service roads running through the property and a few cabins 23 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:27,000 built here and there. There was no electricity running through it, 24 00:01:27,079 --> 00:01:31,359 so there were no full time residents. On the first day, 25 00:01:31,439 --> 00:01:34,799 we fished a stream that meandered several miles, but that 26 00:01:35,000 --> 00:01:38,079 night we camped in a different spot at the crossing 27 00:01:38,120 --> 00:01:41,519 of another creek. We enjoyed the fish that we caught 28 00:01:41,560 --> 00:01:44,400 that day. For dinner, we decided to go to bed 29 00:01:44,599 --> 00:01:48,760 and get an early start. The night was almost uneventful, 30 00:01:48,799 --> 00:01:51,920 except for the rustling and scratching of something outside our 31 00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:56,680 shell camper around three am. Not long after that, I 32 00:01:56,799 --> 00:01:59,280 was woken up to something bumping into the truck and 33 00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:03,799 shaking it. It wasn't a violet shake, just a slight bump, 34 00:02:04,040 --> 00:02:07,200 but it was loud enough to get my attention. I 35 00:02:07,280 --> 00:02:10,000 hit the fender well and I yelled, get out of here. 36 00:02:10,879 --> 00:02:13,479 Nothing more happened. In the morning found us headed out 37 00:02:13,479 --> 00:02:17,520 with a pack full of rations and fishing gear. Slick 38 00:02:17,560 --> 00:02:20,199 and I were gun nuts, so we were armed. We 39 00:02:20,319 --> 00:02:22,800 fished for the better part of eight hours, and we're 40 00:02:22,840 --> 00:02:26,240 casually walking along the creek to head back, when half 41 00:02:26,240 --> 00:02:28,560 a mile from the truck, I was struck with a 42 00:02:28,599 --> 00:02:32,479 feeling that I was being watched. I stopped and looked 43 00:02:32,479 --> 00:02:34,400 at Slick, and I could tell that he had the 44 00:02:34,439 --> 00:02:38,400 same feeling. We heard several solid knocks to the north 45 00:02:38,439 --> 00:02:41,759 of us, and my hair stood on end. Our fighter 46 00:02:41,919 --> 00:02:45,400 flight response kicked in and we drew our weapons, preparing 47 00:02:45,439 --> 00:02:48,919 to high tail at east along the creek to the trucks, 48 00:02:49,439 --> 00:02:52,840 and then massive rocks started hitting the water and made 49 00:02:52,879 --> 00:02:57,159 our decision even more immediate. We were looking up at 50 00:02:57,159 --> 00:02:59,840 the Sheer bluff wall. We could see the top of 51 00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:02,960 a tree moving back and forth, but there was no wind. 52 00:03:03,919 --> 00:03:06,439 I said to hell with this, and I let loose 53 00:03:06,520 --> 00:03:09,680 with eight to ten shots from my weapon, and Slick 54 00:03:09,800 --> 00:03:12,599 touched off a couple from his into the bluff wall, 55 00:03:13,199 --> 00:03:15,639 and then we hauled us and didn't stop until we 56 00:03:15,639 --> 00:03:19,319 were at the truck. We had no more evidence, nor 57 00:03:19,360 --> 00:03:23,360 did we see any physical shape, but things played out 58 00:03:23,479 --> 00:03:27,879 like a lot of other Bigfoot stories I've heard. When 59 00:03:27,919 --> 00:03:30,120 I was twelve years old, I boarded a plane for 60 00:03:30,199 --> 00:03:33,439 Oregon to see my brother. He was logging in the 61 00:03:33,479 --> 00:03:36,159 Mammoth area with a good friend of his who was 62 00:03:36,280 --> 00:03:40,080 a Vietnam Vet. They had a logging camp with trailers 63 00:03:40,120 --> 00:03:43,000 and equipment in the mountains a few miles from town. 64 00:03:43,800 --> 00:03:46,479 I spent the first few days there around the landing 65 00:03:46,560 --> 00:03:49,960 with my brother loading log trucks, but as soon as 66 00:03:49,960 --> 00:03:52,280 the owner found out that I could run equipment, he 67 00:03:52,319 --> 00:03:55,280 put me to work. I was running an old John 68 00:03:55,319 --> 00:03:59,879 Deere four forty skidter, piling treetops and dressing a skid road. 69 00:04:00,759 --> 00:04:03,360 It was small, menial stuff, but for a twelve year 70 00:04:03,439 --> 00:04:07,360 old I was the king of the hill. Several days 71 00:04:07,360 --> 00:04:10,080 went by before any of us went to town, and 72 00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:12,680 then as the weekend rolled around, we rolled up in 73 00:04:12,800 --> 00:04:16,399 crew trucks and headed off the mountain. We hadn't gone 74 00:04:16,399 --> 00:04:18,360 a mile before the truck in front of us came 75 00:04:18,399 --> 00:04:21,879 to a screeching stop, and the guys all piled out, 76 00:04:22,399 --> 00:04:24,480 and we rolled to a stop behind them, and we 77 00:04:24,519 --> 00:04:27,920 bailed out too. When we walked around to the front 78 00:04:27,920 --> 00:04:31,560 of their truck, I was amazed and immediately scared. There 79 00:04:31,560 --> 00:04:35,920 were several enormous barefoot prints leading across and down the road, 80 00:04:35,920 --> 00:04:40,600 apiece easily twenty inches long and pronounced in the deep 81 00:04:40,720 --> 00:04:44,680 dust of the dirt road. These tracks had to be fresh, 82 00:04:44,720 --> 00:04:47,519 because the last logging truck had just left an hour 83 00:04:47,600 --> 00:04:51,399 before us and would have wiped the tracks out. Several 84 00:04:51,399 --> 00:04:53,439 of the guys who were raised in the area had 85 00:04:53,480 --> 00:04:56,639 seen those tracks before, and some had even seen the 86 00:04:56,680 --> 00:05:00,879 creatures themselves. I was young, and I had nightmares for 87 00:05:00,959 --> 00:05:06,240 several days after that. In the summer of nineteen ninety three, 88 00:05:06,480 --> 00:05:10,199 we lived on the Arkansas River. The river was to 89 00:05:10,279 --> 00:05:13,680 our west, and the six hundred and forty thousand acre 90 00:05:13,839 --> 00:05:19,000 Campgruber Military training facility was north south and east of US. 91 00:05:19,680 --> 00:05:22,480 A highway ran through our little town, but even then, 92 00:05:22,920 --> 00:05:25,959 with green Leaf Lake not far away in Camp Gruber, 93 00:05:26,319 --> 00:05:30,480 there was plenty of natural habitat. My brother and I 94 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:33,079 were members of a bass club at green Leaf Lake, 95 00:05:33,360 --> 00:05:36,199 and we fished in a tournament every Friday night throughout 96 00:05:36,240 --> 00:05:39,879 the summer. One evening during a tournament, there was a 97 00:05:39,959 --> 00:05:43,560 three quarter moon just peeking over the mountain to the east. 98 00:05:44,000 --> 00:05:46,600 We were fishing on the east bank and trolling along 99 00:05:46,720 --> 00:05:50,560 silently and concentrating and not talking and ready for a bike. 100 00:05:51,720 --> 00:05:54,639 We were coming up on a small pocket about sixty 101 00:05:54,639 --> 00:05:57,839 feet wide and two hundred feet long when I noticed 102 00:05:57,879 --> 00:06:00,839 a dark shadow on the edge of it the water. 103 00:06:01,959 --> 00:06:04,439 I thought it was another boat that we hadn't seen, 104 00:06:04,480 --> 00:06:07,240 and I whispered to my brother, I guess we'll cut 105 00:06:07,240 --> 00:06:11,279 across to the other point. When I uttered those words, 106 00:06:11,360 --> 00:06:14,920 the shadow came alive. It let out a deep, guttural 107 00:06:15,079 --> 00:06:19,000 growl and started plowing through the water. This thing was 108 00:06:19,040 --> 00:06:21,879 so powerful that it caused a huge weight as it 109 00:06:21,920 --> 00:06:26,319 headed to the bank thirty feet away. When it reached 110 00:06:26,319 --> 00:06:29,279 the shore, it plowed through the timber and scrub like 111 00:06:29,319 --> 00:06:32,279 a bulldozer. We could hear it for a minute or 112 00:06:32,319 --> 00:06:35,360 so as it headed up the mountain well. We sat 113 00:06:35,480 --> 00:06:39,480 dumbfounded until finally asked my brother what the hell was that. 114 00:06:41,040 --> 00:06:43,720 We came to the conclusion that it had to be 115 00:06:43,839 --> 00:06:46,480 nine feet or taller because the water depth in that 116 00:06:46,519 --> 00:06:50,079 particular spot was six feet deep and it was at 117 00:06:50,160 --> 00:06:53,639 least three feet above the water line. We couldn't make 118 00:06:53,639 --> 00:06:56,720 out any definition, but we both saw the outline as 119 00:06:56,759 --> 00:06:59,560 it got close to the bank, and whatever it was, 120 00:07:00,079 --> 00:07:04,439 this thing was big. This took place about six miles 121 00:07:04,439 --> 00:07:08,439 from another confirmed sighting in the area of ten Killer Lake. 122 00:07:09,399 --> 00:07:12,680 Sosquatch theory did an interview with a lady about it. 123 00:07:13,720 --> 00:07:16,240 We only lived three miles from Green Leaf, so the 124 00:07:16,240 --> 00:07:19,959 next day my brother and I went into detective mode 125 00:07:20,000 --> 00:07:22,040 back to the water to see what we could find. 126 00:07:23,040 --> 00:07:25,839 We found big impressions in the grass and weeds at 127 00:07:25,839 --> 00:07:29,879 the shoreline, but no definitive tracks because the ground was 128 00:07:29,920 --> 00:07:33,759 too hard, and when we ventured into the woods well 129 00:07:33,800 --> 00:07:37,920 healed with forty four mags, we came across several arm 130 00:07:38,079 --> 00:07:41,240 sized limbs that were broken off at the seven foot level. 131 00:07:42,160 --> 00:07:44,759 It was easy to trail by the broken limbs, which 132 00:07:44,759 --> 00:07:49,160 we followed for three hundred yards before returning to the boat. Now, 133 00:07:49,199 --> 00:07:52,240 I haven't told anyone about this encounter because we still 134 00:07:52,279 --> 00:07:54,720 live in this area and I don't want to scare 135 00:07:54,759 --> 00:07:58,000 my two boys away from hunting here. We had black 136 00:07:58,040 --> 00:08:01,360 bears at certain times of the year, usually in the fall. 137 00:08:02,199 --> 00:08:05,079 What my brother and I saw was not a black bear. 138 00:08:06,000 --> 00:08:07,839 I know what it was, and I don't feel that 139 00:08:07,920 --> 00:08:13,319 it's dangerous, maybe curious, but maybe not a threat. Thank 140 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:16,199 you for the platform to voice our experiences.