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I have a theory that our ancestors decided to wipe them out a long time ago, so long ago that they receded into myth and legend. Trolls, goblins and all that whatnot may have some sort of basis in reality. The only ones that would have survived in this scenario would be the ones that were reclusive. IOW I am saying its built-in to their gene pool now as a result. I am basing this partly on that 'Them and Us' scenario described at this website: http://www.themandus.org/ On that site it is proposed that Neanderthal pushed us through a similar genetic bottleneck. What I am thinking is that we don't really understand our own history all that well; the Denesovians just got added to the family tree based on a finger bone and a toe bone. A lot of skeptics argue that there is no evidence of BF in the fossil record but I don't agree. I think we know that record by a different name.

The RFP Research Project - Report of Encounter Preface: The witness, whose name is Greg, is the person mentioned in the article written by Zack Glover which was published in the Alabama Game & Fish magazine January 1, 1998 and entitled "Stalked in Dallas County." He was contacted by this RFP Research Project field investigator while the investigator was interviewing other witnesses in Lowdnes and Dallas Counties during the week of May 14, 2007. This writer was particularly interesting in obtaining from Greg more details of his encounter and a more detailed description of the animal he saw if possible. At about 3:30 pm on May 16, 2007 Greg drove to the Southern Sportsman Hunting Lodge near Benton in Lowdnes County where the writer was staying, and, each driving our own truck, led me to the parcel of leased hunting land in nearby Dallas County on which the incident occurred. When we reached a point a few hundred yards from the actual encounter location he asked me to park my truck and ride the rest of the way with him. After driving through a large "green field" we reached the timbered, southeast corner of the property. We parked and began walking toward the tree on which Greg had placed his stand. Greg was admittedly very nervous, and he said he had not been back to this area since the incident occurred 13 years earlier. While leading the way and while stepping over a very small, natural drainage ditch, Greg passed within about three feet of a large, barefoot human-like foot impression in dry leaves that had been piled in the small drain by water runoff. I stopped him and silently pointed out the track. When he realized what he was seeing, he became noticeably anxious and he later said that the hair on his arms began standing up as he looked at the track. As I began looking for other tracks, Greg told me to go ahead looking at the ground, but that he would be looking in the timber. The ground in the whole area was unusually dry and hard as a result of a prolonged drought, and the animal had been walking the drain bed. Only dry smudges on small mounds of soil in the ditch showed where it had stepped. Because the area had not experienced heavy rain for quite some time, it was not possible to estimate the age of the tracks. We continued about one hundred yards to the small sweet gum tree where Greg's stand had been located, and he pointed out the animal's route as he described the event as recorded below. Date Report Submitted: May 16, 2007 Date of Encounter: During the early part of the October, 1993 bow hunting season for deer. Time of Incident: The incident began during twilight and ended about three hours later in total darkness. Weather Conditions: Clear, warm with a slight breeze from the south. State: Alabama County: Dallas Nearest City or Town: Benton Location: About 1 mile south of U.S. Highway 80 and about 1 mile east of Dallas County Road #7 near the Dallas/Lowdnes County line. Nearest highway or road: Dallas County Road #481 which runs east and west, about 1/2 mile south of the site. General Land Use Description: Timber lands containing numerous wild game "green fields" and food plots, with some pasture lands in the general area. General Terrain Description: Mostly lowlands with some wet lands when the area receives normal rainfall. Nearest Lakes or Streams: The location is about 1/4 mile west of Soapstone Creek which flows north and empties into the Alabama River in the town of Benton, just below the Robert F. Henry Lock and Dam. The location is about four miles from that part of the river. There are several stock ponds in the general area. Witness Profile: Gregg is now 39 years of age, and was 26 at the time of the encounter. He is a native resident of the area and an avid outdoorsman and hunter. Activities of Witness Prior to Encounter/Incident: He was bow hunting for deer from a "climbing stand" which he had placed about 15 or 20 feet above the ground on the south side of a sweet gum tree. He had been on the stand for some time, and intended to stay until near darkness. He had arranged to be picked up from a particular spot by his father-in-law just before dark. He had seen several deer that had come from the south and walked past him out of range and to his right (west). A slight wind was blowing into his face from the south and the deer apparently never caught his scent. Details of Encounter / Incident: During the early part of twilight Greg began to notice a very strong, musky animal smell. A short time later he heard the sound of crackling brush due south of his stand, but could see nothing moving for a few minutes. Then he noticed movement in the brush just the other side of an old fence that runs somewhat east and west and corners about 150 yards to his left. Within seconds he detected a large dark colored animal moving very slowly through the brush about 150 yards south of him. He could see the shape and size of the animal, and he immediately decided it was a large black bear -an animal somewhat uncommon in the area. The animal's movement was unusually slow and it stopped every few steps and remained perfectly still for 10 or more minutes. The animal slowly moved, with long periods of remaining motionless, until it reached a small area of more open woods slightly to his left, and about 60 yards away. By that time Greg was not sure what he was seeing. In the more open area, the animal stopped and stood fully erect. At that time Greg could see that it was not a bear, and he began to become very alarmed. As he watched carefully, the animal stretched out one arm and picked something off a nearby tree or bush and placed it in its mouth. It took another few steps while still on two feet, and again reached to pick something off a bush or tree and place it in his mouth. Greg could not comprehend what he was seeing. The creature was more man or ape-like than a bear, and its movements on two feet were totally man-like. He considered the possibility that what he was seeing was a deranged black person without clothes that was gathering berries or fruit to eat. He discounted that idea because there were no fruits or berries ripe at the elevations the animal had been reaching. He came to the shocking conclusion that whatever it was, it was eating leaves. During that period he could hear the animal making small "popping but muffled" sounds. It seemed to Greg that the animal would never get past him. The animal was still in view and it was fast approaching total darkness. The animal continued its slow progress to his left, continuing to stopping to remain perfectly still for what Greg thought was an unbearably long time. Eventually it reached an old trail just past the land's corner post, and in a few minutes it was out of sight in a dense thicket on the other side of the trail. By then it was totally dark, and Gregg was long overdue to meet his father-in-law at the prearranged spot. Although Greg could still hear the animal moving in the thicket, he decided he would wait another 15 minutes before he manipulated the "climbing stand" back down the tree as quietly as possible. After waiting, he began to work the stand down the tree, and the noise that he made sounded deafening to him. He immediately heard quick movements in the thicket the animal had entered and he frantically worked the stand close enough to the ground to jump off, discarding his archery equipment in the process. He began trotting toward the point he was supposed meet his father-in-law. The route carried him through a large area or dry reeds and small switch-cane. He could not hear anything but the sounds he made crashing through the reeds and canes until he entered open woods on the other side. He was then terrified to hear something running and following behind him, and he broke into a hard run. At this point in his account of the encounter, he revealed information that was not published in the original article by Zack Glover because Mr. Glover wisely advised him it should be omitted. Other people know that information, and Greg said that it should probably be made known now to provide the "whole truth." Although the act is clearly in violation of Alabama's hunting regulations, Greg had a 9mm automatic pistol with him during this encounter. He stated he never considered using it while he was watching the animal before dark, and he never considered shooting a deer with it. He stated he carried it because of the large and abundant rattlesnakes, copperheads and cotton-mouth snakes that inhabit the area. When he entered the open woods and heard the animal chasing or closely following him, he could tell that it was gaining on him. At that time he pulled the pistol and emptied an eleven shot clip over his shoulder toward the sounds the animal was making as it ran. He hoped the animal would stop at the sound of the gun, but it did not. In near panic, he loaded another full clip into the pistol and emptied it in the same manner. Again, the animal ignored the sounds and continued to run after him. He saved a third clip until he neared the point he was to meet his father-in-law but the animal was still behind him so he emptied that clip over his shoulder. The animal slowed, and Greg finally made it to his pick-up point. His father-in-law "gave him hell" for being late, and asked what was going on. Greg refused to provide details because he did not think the man would believe him, but simply told him there was something unusual in those woods. Greg knew that if he told any of the men at camp about what had happened, they "would give me a bad time." Description of the Animal: When first seen the animal was walking in a quadrupedal manner and was initially mistaken for a bear. It later stood upright and walked like a human, and not awkwardly like an ape or orangutan. It had hands rather than claws like a bear. It appeared to be approximately 6 feet tall when walking upright. It limbs and torso were very large and bulky for its height (when compared to a human). Greg stated the animal's arms did not appear to be noticeable longer than those of a human of the same height. Its head sat close to its shoulders with little or no visible neck. Its head was somewhat rounded and the face was "flat" rather than showing a snout like a bear. Because of the low light levels, no other facial features or ears could be seen. It was covered in very dark colored hair, although the length and actual color could not be determined. Gregg stated the animal may have weighed as much as 500 pounds. Photos or Drawings Made? No. Description of Related Sounds: Muffled popping sounds which the witness thought the animal made by snapping his teeth together. Description of Related Scents/Odors: A foul smelling, musky animal odor. Other Details: Greg did not reveal the details of his encounter to anyone until the deer bow season three years later when Brian, another hunting club member, was frightened and chased out of the same area while bow hunting by something making loud aggressive noises. (See the account of Brian's experience which is contained in Zack Glover's article in the Alabama Game & Fish magazine.) When Brian returned to camp and began packing his bags to leave, and the members asked him why he was leaving, he told them what had happened. The camp member began laughing and kidding Brian so much that Greg felt like he should defend him and his story. That is when Greg told the group to, "Leave him alone, he's telling the truth!" He then revealed for the first time what he had experienced. Historical Notes: Brian has since moved from the area, and this writer has been able to locate him. He reportedly still lives, and has a business in Alabama. Since Brian's and Gregg's encounters, Gregg's father in law and others have had similar experiences in the same area, although they did not actually see the animal. The incidents involving Gregg's father-in-law will be submitted later in a separate "Audible Encounter" report. ****************************************************************************** Report received and recorded by: Tal H. Branco, Field Researcher/Investigator, The RFP Research Project

At the age of 14, I might have stated: "Very large, hair-covered, aboriginal humans do exist. You say they're called bigfoot?"

OK, Chelefoot, I finally found the report I believe you wanted to see. It's a long one. ***************** The RFP Research Project (RFPRP) - Report of Multiple Encounters Date Report Submitted to the RFPRP: The initial oral report was received at the site on October 24th & 25th, 2006. On November 18th, 2006 the writer received from a family member a handwritten document and copies of a few of the numerous photographs the family has taken of tracks they have found on their property over the years. Family members, relatives and neighbors provided additional details by telephone at various times prior to the publication of this report. Date of Encounters: Various encounters from about 1969 to about 2004. Time of Incident: Mostly daylight sightings, some at night. Weather Conditions: Various. State: Alabama County: The county is in the Northwest portion of the State. Nearest City or Town: Not disclosed. (The events described below have become public knowledge in the local area over the years and the property owners have been troubled by large numbers of people coming into the area and onto the property hoping to kill or get a glimpse of one of the creatures. The problem became so acute that the owners were forced to restrict entry to the properties.) Location: Not disclosed. Nearest highway or road: Not disclosed. General Land Use Description: Farming and poultry production. General Terrain Description: Rolling hills with bluffs along the creeks. Nearest Lakes or Streams: A large spring fed creek adjoins some of the family property, and the creek empties into a large man-made lake a few miles from the site. Witness Profiles: The man and his wife are approximately 70 years old now. They have six children; five daughters and one son, the oldest in her late 40s. Both the parents and all of the children have seen one or more of the animals at various times and under various conditions. The oldest daughter who still lives in the immediate vicinity has a son who is now 17 and a student. He has seen and encountered the animals on several occasions. Mature neighbors have also seen the animals. Background Information: About 1958 the family began a small poultry farming operation in Northwest Alabama. The single chicken house is behind their present home, although for about 12 years they lived about 3/4 mile from the chicken house and they raised chickens in that same building. There is a small fenced pasture behind the chicken house that has a small tree-lined branch passing through it. That branch discharges into the large creek about a mile from the house. The extended family has other parcels of adjoining land. A family member who lives out of state has one large parcel that adjoins the large creek on one side, and the creek actually cuts through one corner of that property. The witnesses oversee that property, and several years ago about 25 acres of that land was cleared for hay production. The family refers to that land as "the bottoms", although the hay field appears to be about 100 feet above the creek. The creek bottom itself is very dense with very large timber, brush and vines. Across the creek are numerous limestone and sandstone bluffs, some with overhangs and, reportedly, some caves upstream. The creek itself is wide and deep in places and reportedly contains abundant fish, and is noted for its population of large catfish. Beginning when the family lived away from the poultry house the children helped in caring for the chickens. Before they moved to the house which is on the same property as the chicken house, the children initially were allowed to walk alone to the chicken house to do their chores. Summary: This family's experiences, and the experiences of relatives, neighbors and one visitor, over a period of more than 30 years are unique. Based on their statements, and on vivid face-to-face descriptions, and on the numerous clearly detailed photographs of tracks made on the property, there are compelling reasons to believe that these people are credible, and their accounts of somewhat routine encounters with enigmatic primates are factual. What makes their experiences even more unique and interesting is that while there appears to have been a small family group of animals that either resided or foraged through the area which completely fit the generally accepted description of the reclusive forest primate called "Bigfoot", it appears there was also a different type of primate that traveled with, or followed the Bigfoot troupe. According to the witnesses, that "different" primate was larger than a human, had black hair, walked on two feet, had arms that appeared to be somewhat short and/or deformed. The animal's head appeared to have been injured or deformed as its eyes were unevenly spaced vertically and there was a scar across its nose and part of the face. There was some exposed skin on the face and it was a "dirty grey" color. Its face as a whole looked somewhat like a monkey, although its nose was said to be shaped more like a human's than a monkey's. The animal was also said to have a sickening odor at all times. Some of the numerous tracks seen, photographed and cast by the witnesses indicate there were small, immature animals of both types in the group -or at least following the same pathways. It should be clearly noted that at no time were the immature animals indicated by the tracks actually seen by the family, although one smaller animal was seen by a neighbor. The entire history of the family's association with the animals is more suitable for a book than a report such as that normally posted here. The family is considering writing such a book, and the writer has encouraged them to do so. Written Accounts Submitted by Witness: One family member, the oldest daughter, agreed to write a brief account of her own experiences with the animals to be included in this report. That account was received on November 18, 2006, and it is recorded verbatim below, except for the deletion of names of individuals and specific locations. "Sorry this took so long, my boys play sports, we coach and do books for the school. I'll try to start from the beginning, around 1969. We were picking peas with my Grandmother, my sister xxxxxx needed to use the bathroom. We were not close to the house so she went to the cornfield which was next to the pea patch. What happened next was the start of our childhood fears. Xxxxxx came back from the cornfield with her pants around her ankles saying something big and black was in there. The rest of us did not see this. We went and looked but it was well gone or hiding very well. From this time on we started to notice a bad smell when it was around. We also could hear it whistle. One time when it came up to the house it let out a very low (base), very loud roar. (Not sure how to tell you the sound it made.) Kind of like a bear sound. I never did see this thing face to face. Only the back. I just know it was tall and black. My sisters xxxxxx, xxxxx, and xxxxxxx saw this thing many times face to face along with my brother xxxxx. It seemed to always know when we were outside alone. We have a lot of woods around here. My family owns over 200 acres here with a log company owning the timber of at least 300-400 acres around us. So you see it has a lot of woods to call home. My parent raised chickens when we were small. This was a place it was seen a lot. Xxxxxx had one of them to try and reach out for her. She pulled back and it scratched her arm and ripped her shirt arm off. My sister xxxxx had it try and talk to her at one time. It tried many time to get her to understand them. Them I mean by at least one black and one a reddish color. My Dad took us to the zoo (B'ham AL) to see if we could find anything there that looked like what we saw. Every cage we went up to , he would say, "Did it look like this?". Every time they would say no. The one my family saw when we were young is not the one my son xxxx saw about two years ago. The reason I know this is my sister would say it had one eye up higher than the other with not so long arms. My son said it was 8' - 10' tall with long arms, not as much hair on the face but thick oily hair on its body. Everyone always talks about the bad smell. If you want to know more about it you will have to talk to my brother, sisters or my son. This thing has not only been seen in our woods, it has come up to our chicken house and our home. At times it came right up to my sisters' window, face to face. You have to be over 6' tall for this to be possible. This happens at night, not real late, somewhere around 9 - 11 maybe. I felt many times when we went to the woods something was watching us. Trust your feelings if you think you need to run, do it. We learned fast to scream and run. Little did we know how fast this thing can run. My Dad tried many times to get there fast enough to see it face to face but it never happened. One time he tracked it for a long way and never did see it. (Investigator's note: The father did see the animal, but not "face-to-face"). We thought at one time when we got older that it was not around any more but about 5 years ago here it comes again! This time my child was seeing it. He was around 12 or 13 the first time he saw it and hearing it along with the smell. (At first) he said, "Mom I think something was in the woods with us (he and a friend). I smelled something that was bad." Well I knew right away. He came to fear being in the woods as we did as children. It seems to pick out people it wants to be around - children. Back in the early 70s it seemed the whole world was coming with guns and dogs to track the things down. When we first started telling people they came. Night and day they came, young and old to hunt for it. Even the cops came. The local paper even did a story about this. Me and my family will help you any way to find out what this is. We are just happy someone really believes us finally." Other Witness Accounts- Summarized: Although family members have tried to establish the dates as closely as possible, some of the dates in this report are approximate, and the sequences of events may not be in chronological order. The large black animal was the most often seen because it appeared to try to play, communicate or otherwise interact with the children when they were outside during the day time. It also came to the window of the room in which three of the girls slept. This animal was quickly give the name "The Black Thing", simply because of its color and the fact none of the family could identify it. The family tried to obtain outside assistance in identifying these animals and evaluating the possible danger to the family from having them on the property. According to family members, a local newspaper wrote an article about the situation, the county sheriff's office sent deputies to look into the matter (which was reportedly a very superficial look), at least three "Bigfoot Investigators" came to the scene, and eventually, after the affair became public knowledge in the area, the place was overrun with curious people and hunters. All of the plaster of Paris castings made by the family were reportedly taken "for examination" and for safe return by the "Bigfoot Investigators", but the owner reported he never saw the casts again. Because the animal was only seen by the children the first few times, the parents were not sure that what they had seen was not a bear or some other native animal. After the animal reportedly approached the children at play a few times, it grabbed the shirt sleeve of one of the girls on one occasion, and tore the sleeve and scratched the girl when she pulled away from it. Although the family did not believe the animal ever tried to hurt the children, but simply wanted to play with them, the father began carrying a high-powered rifle with him when he and the children were outside after the animal touched the child. A few days later the father saw the animal for the first time while the children were cleaning the chickens' water containers. They were loudly laughing and having fun with their tasks. At the time the father was working on a well pump about 75 yards away. The "Black Thing" appeared and began approaching the children with its arms extended while it was "jabbering" constantly. The kids began to scream and run toward their father. When he heard the children screaming he grabbed his rifle and started toward them. From his position, he only saw the animal's head at first, then he saw the animal cross the fence into the pasture. He yelled and gave chase. The man jumped the fence and started running to attempt to get a clear shot at the animal, but he stated the animal was running at such an unbelievable speed that it disappeared into the thickets along the small branch before he could get a bead on it. Later the father saw a large hirsute bipedal animals while he was doing bush-hogging on the hay fields. The first time the animal was standing just inside the field on the opposite side. As the man circled the field on the tractor, the animal would step out of sight into the woods when the man and machine came within about 100 yards of it. He said the animal was a different colored creature than the black one. He said that animal was a lot taller and its hair was brown. He said it was standing upright, and he estimated its height to be about 7 or 8 feet. On another occasion when he was driving a tractor down the narrow road to "the bottoms" an animal that appeared to be the same one that watched him at work earlier crossed the road in front of the tractor. He stated that animal was running at a speed faster than anything he had ever seen. On the old sandy road leading to that hayfield and the creek, the father often saw tracks crossing the road in the same general location, and he photographed, measured and cast them on different occasions. On one such occasion while he was studying the tracks, he smelled one of the animals close by, and turned to see it watching him from the wood line about 100 yards away. The family's only son saw the "Black Thing" many times, and some encounters were too close he thought. About dusky dark one day during the early winter of 1971 the boy, who was 8 years old at the time, was working alone at the chicken house. He was cleaning the clinkers out of a coal-fired stove used to heat chicken house. He was using a large metal poker to break up the clinkers, and had the poker in his hand when he went outside to get a bucket of coal. Outside he smelled a strong odor of rotten meat mixed with a sulfur smell. He looked around and heard a low growling moan. Then he saw the "Black Thing" standing behind the coal pile. At that time the animal was only 5 or 6 feet from him. He yelled at the animal and drew the poker back as if to strike it, and the animal darted around the corner of the chicken house and out of sight. Some time later the chickens were removed from the chicken house and the boy and two of his sisters were playing outside the chicken house when the "Black Thing" came around the corner of the building with its arms outstretched. The animal was "jabbering" constantly and acted as if it wanted to play with the children. The kids fled from the animal and it apparently left. On another occasion the mother and some of the children were picking corn and loading it in a pickup truck. As the mother drove slowly along the corn rows, the children were picking and throwing the corn into the truck. Again the kids were talking and laughing loudly. The "Black Thing" suddenly appeared in the corn rows near the truck. The children screamed and ran to the truck and jumped into the bed. Once on the truck they yelled for the mother to drive off, but she said she wanted to see the "thing" and stepped out of the truck for a few seconds. Because the kids were terrified and screaming, she got back in and drove to the house without seeing the animal. The mother stated she had only seen the animal once, and it was running away from her at the time. Her sighting occurred when the animal approached the children at play. She was not sure when she had seen it because the animal approached the children at play several times. She said that on most of those occasions, the children simply ran to the house and the animal left. Some of the children stated they had smelled the "Black Thing" many times when they could not see it. These incidents usually took place when the kids were playing in the woods, or when the children were in the corn field for any reason. One of the younger daughters was both terrified and intrigued by the "Black Thing." When the animal approached her and the other children at work or at play, she would "freeze" while the others ran away. In most cases, the animal would approach her with its apparently deformed arms waving and emitting quick "jabbering" sounds. Before she regained her composure and ran, she had a very close-up view of the animal on several occasions. The same thing happened when the "Black Thing" came to the window of the bedroom the girl shared with two of her sisters. When the animal was at the window, and unnoticed by the girls, it would scratch on the screen to get their attention. The other two girls would immediately flee toward their parents' bedroom shouting. "The black thing, the black thing!" The younger girl would often remain staring at the animal until it left, which was usually within a few seconds. When this particular daughter was a little older, she began to put out food for the animal near the pasture fence. There was a barrel there which was turned upside down, and the girl would shell corn or bring other food and place it on the up-turned bottom. While doing so she would whistle in short bursts, and often the animal would answer with whistles of it own. It would never come into view while she was there, but within a few minutes after she left, the food would disappear. Several times during the summer months, when the field corn was in the "roasting ear" stage of maturity, the family would find where ears of corn had been "shucked", and the kernels eaten off the cob as if done by a human. At times there would be impressions left in the ground to show where one of the animals had rested as it fed on the corn. An older woman, now deceased, who lived nearby told her family that she had seen one of the animals in one of the nearby corn patches during that time of year. The family's encounters with the animals continued until the children grew up and quit played outside as often as before. The family believed the animals left the area about that time. The oldest daughter, who lives near the parent's property, has a son who is now 17. At about the time the boy was 11 or 12 years old he and a friend were walking in the woods behind his home and stopped beside a small pond. From the other side of the pond they heard a loud, deep whistling sound and they stopped. Shortly thereafter from the same area they smelled a rank odor and heard "a really deep growling sound." They both turned and ran to the boy's home. When they told the boy's mother what had happened, she told them the "Black Thing" had probably returned. When the boy was 13 or 14 years old, he and a friend were hunting deer in the area. They had placed two lawn chairs on a flat rock outcrop alongside the top of a hollow. From the chairs they were able to see into the hollow and see the side of the ridge across the hollow. While sitting there they noticed a "huge", dark brown hair covered animal walking on two feet on the hillside across the hollow. They said the animal was walking parallel to the hollow and taking long strides, with its long arms swinging in long arcs. It was walking in a slightly stooped position, and the hands were at, or slightly below the knees. The boys were astounded at the animal's size, and the primary witness stated it was massive through the chest, shoulders and back. (At all times they had only a side view of the animal.) The animal appeared to be at least 8 feet tall, and never looked toward the boys. The primary witness stated he was carrying a .30-.30 Marlin lever action rifle with a Simmons Whitetail scope. He lifted the gun to try to observe the animal through the scope, but said he was shaking so badly that he could not view the animal through it. The animals soon walked out of their sight, and the boys left. This boy's most frightening encounter with one of the animals came when he and a friend were camping on the bank of the large creek during the summertime. About midnight, while both were sleeping in separate hammocks, the primary witness awoke needing to urinate. In the flickering light of the campfire he walked 5 or 10 yards from his hammock and began to relieve himself. While doing so he began to smell a putrid odor and immediately heard something walking in the leaves close behind him. He turned quickly and was terrified to see one of the animals standing between him and his friend's hammock. From the light of the campfire, which was to his left, he could see the animal was very dark colored, and that its hair was "oily looking" in the firelight. The boy tried to scream to alert his friend, but was unable to make a sound. In a panic he darted into the woods, intending to run home for help. In the darkness, barefoot, without a shirt or light, he became lost, but continued to run until he was exhausted. He fell over a log, and remained on the ground beside it to rest and catch his breath. He could hear something moving in the brush around him, but he remained behind the log for several minutes hoping the animal making the sounds would go away. When the sounds got closer, he bolted from behind the log and continued running. In a few more minutes he ran onto a road which he recognized, and he followed the road to the home of a neighbor. He jumped a cattle fence and ran to the door of the home, beating on the door until it was opened by the home owner. He told the man what had happened, and the man drove him home. (The neighbor was contacted by telephone by the writer, and he confirmed the boy's story. In addition, the neighbor stated that when he drove back into the yard of his home, the vehicle's lights briefly illuminated a very large and dark form retreating into the woods from behind the fence the boy had jumped over.) Shortly after the boy arrived at his home, the friend that he had left behind at the campsite drove to the house on his four-wheeler and berated him for running off and leaving him alone. The boy explained why he had left, why he had been unable to alert him, and showed the friend the cuts and scratches he had received all over his body during his flight. The next morning the boys and the father of the primary witness went to the campsite where they found the primary witnesses' hammock in shreds, his shirt thrown on the ground away from the camp, and large human-like barefoot tracks beside both hammocks. Prior to the above described encounter the boy and other friends had camped along the creek several times when they would be kept awake by the sounds of sticks being beaten against trees. They had no idea at the time what was making the sounds. At other times at night the boys would hear loud, human-like screams that they assumed were panthers, because they had been told by others that panthers made such sounds. On one occasion during the day time, the boys heard loud and deep "barking-like" sounds that soon ending in short howls. The boys stated the sounds were in no way like those made by canines. One day in 1982 a woman who lives near the family walked into her back yard with her 14 year old granddaughter at dusk. The weather was clear. She said that when she looked toward a "burn barrel" which was near the wood line and a thick patch of kudzu vines, both saw a black animal standing on two feet beside the barrel, and looking into the opening. The animal was sideways to the barrel, and it was only about 1 foot taller than the barrel. The animal was facing away from the witnesses, but apparently detected their presence, and ran quickly on two feet into the woods and vines. The woman was certain the animal was not a bear. One summer about the same year, the woman was picking blackberries around the edge of the woods near her home. She was accompanied by her small dog. As she walked across a small grass covered opening and approached the edge of a dense pine thicket, the dog began to act very nervous and became hesitant to go any closer to the thicket. As the woman neared the thicket she noticed a large fresh animal bed in the grass just inside the edge of the thicket. She saw the bed was much larger than that made by a deer, and out of curiosity, she stopped to examine it. The dog nervously approached the bed, took a brief sniff and began staring into the thicket. The dog suddenly turned and ran toward the house, but stopped several yards away. The woman then realized the dog was trying to warn her of something, and she left the area quickly. About two years ago a friend of the father drove from Birmingham drove to visit and to hunt on the family property. After spending some time with the family, he drove his small truck down the old road and hunted awhile along the creek and hay field. Later the father was in the yard and heard the small truck coming toward the house at breakneck speed. The hunter sped into the yard, got out of the truck while loudly cursing and waving his arms. The father asked the man what was wrong and the man loudly exclaimed he was never going to hunt on this place again. The hunter said that as he got into his truck to leave the "bottoms", a huge, hair-covered animal ran out of the woods on two feet and passed just in front of the truck. The man repeatedly said the animal was massive in size, and that he believed the animal had deliberately tried to scare or intimidate him. According to the father, the man had hunted the land before, but he never again returned to hunt. The incident was amusing to the father because the friend had never really believed the family when they told him about the animals being in the area. Photos or Drawings Made?: Some of the numerous photos made by the family of tracks found at various times are included with this report. Description of Related Sounds: As described above. Description of Related Scents / Odors: As described above. Investigator's Comments: The information contained in this report is believed to be factual and as chronologically accurate as could be expected when considering the time span and the number of witnesses involved. ****************************************************************************** Report received and recorded by: Tal H. Branco, Field Researcher/Investigator, The RFP Research Project

This one is re-published here by special request. A lot of field time was spent by myself and others in Winston County, the Bankhead National Forest and The Sipsey Wilderness Area after the report was initially received. The RFP Research Project - Report of Encounter Date Report Submitted: April 20, 2008 Background Information: On April 19, 2008 the witness contacted the Host/Moderator, Mike McLain, of the Alabama Bigfoot Forum by e-mail to briefly share some of her family's experiences with a creature they called the "Hairy Man" while they lived for several years in a somewhat isolated hollow in Winston County, Alabama. Mike, who is also a valued Investigator/Researcher for the RFP Research Project), forwarded the e-mail to the writer and asked that I contact the witness for more information about those experiences. The witness was contacted the first time by telephone the next day. Profile of the Witness & Her Family: The witness's family lived in the secluded hollow for about twenty years before she was born and she lived there with them for about ten years . She was the youngest of six children, all girls. Her oldest sister was seventeen when the reporting witness was born. Her father died before she was old enough to remember him. After her father's death, the girls and their mother continued to live on the same property until the house burned in 1970. The reporting witness was about 10 years old at that time. The girls and their mother cultivated a large vegetable garden each year and canned the produce to provide food during the winter. They also raised hogs and chickens, but had no cow for milk. About once or twice a week they traded eggs to a neighbor who had a cow for milk. The witness stated that during the spring and summer they worked in the garden nearly every day where her mother paid special attention to the quantity and stage of maturity of all the different vegetables so that they would have everything ready when the particular crop was ready to be canned. The mother also "took in ironing" and cleaned houses for others for income when she had the spare time. The family had no motorized vehicle, telephone or electricity for the home. Their nearest neighbor lived about two miles away. Writer's Note: Due to the number of incidents that occurred during the period covered by this report, the format has been modified to present the events in chronological order for clarity and continuity . Location Information: All of the incidents occurred on or very near the same small farm located in a hollow formed by a branch of Clear Creek a few miles northeast of Double Springs in Winston County, Alabama. The property is located near the end of a dirt road off of County Road #24, and U.S. Highway 278 is a few miles south of the property. General Land Use Description: At the time covered by this report the land in the general area was primarily for timber production. In the immediate area the land along the creek was used for gardening and farming. General Terrain Description: Small rolling hills with some bluffs, cliffs and caves along the eroded creek hollows. Nearest Lakes or Streams: Clear Creek , Rock Creek and the Sipsey River. All of these streams flow into Smith Lake a few miles south of the home site. Dates of Encounters: The witness's first visual encounter occurred when she was five years old (1965). Details of Encounters / Incidents: The witness first saw one of the enigmatic creatures early one fall evening as she was using the small outdoor toilet. While seated inside she noticed through a diamond shaped opening in the door a large, hair covered man-like creature standing upright on top of a bluff beside the creek. The creature was about 200 feet away and it was intently staring at the outhouse while slowly swaying side-to-side. She stated she "hurriedly did her business", arranged her clothes and ran screaming to the house. She burst into the house repeatedly telling her mother that "a booger man was outside and had been watching me". She stated she vividly remembers that her mother calmly told her that what she had seen was "probably a bear or wolf". The witness knew that what she had seen was neither a bear nor a wolf but could not seem to be able to convince her mother of that fact. (It was some time later before she discovered that her mother knew exactly what the girl had seen, but did not wish to alarm her further by telling her the truth.) During the next few months or so the witness became aware of woman-like screaming sounds sometimes coming form the surrounding woods at night. He mother told her the sounds were made by "panthers" and told her not to worry about them. Both the witness and her sisters did not think the sounds were being made by panthers or any other feline because the sounds were entirely human-like with no cat-like qualities. The family often heard hooting sounds and whistling from the woods, sometimes both day and night, and the sound of rocks or sticks being struck against trees. The children were told the sounds were made by typical native animals or birds. Late one afternoon when she was about seven years old, she and her next oldest sister (who was about eleven at the time) were out in the yard when her sister saw one of the creatures on the bluff beside the creek. Her sister immediately ran back into the house and got a shotgun and ran back outside. The girl's mother saw that the girl had the gun and followed her outside. Her mother shouted to tell the girl not to shoot at the creature, but the girl raised the gun and shot toward the animal anyway. The creature quickly ran off into the woods. (The witness stated the creature was too far from the girls for the shotgun pellets to have actually injured it.) The girl's mother immediately told her, "Now you've done it, we are going to have problems now!" The witness stated that a couple of days later, they found that the latch on the chicken house, (which was designed so that no known animals could open it), had been opened and they found that two of the chickens had been killed (but not eaten) by their necks having been broken. The carcasses had been thrown on the ground inside the chicken house. By this time all of the girls knew they were dealing with animals that were not typical. The mother was afraid that other damages would be done, so she began cooking extra pans of "corn pone" (corn bread) and leaving them outside for the animals as a sign of appeasement. The corn bread was taken by some kind of animal, and no other damages occurred on the property. It was typical that when the garden produce was ripening some of it was taken during the night. The more noticeable losses were ripe tomatoes, squash, sweet corn and watermelons. The losses were not massive, nor were the plants damaged. On several occasions the family found large bare humanoid foot prints in the garden soil, but the girls' mother lightly passed them off as being bear tracks. During the summer the mother and the older daughters would gather apples, peel and slice them to be dried in the sun for use in pies during the winter. For drying the apples, two saw-horses were covered by a sheet of plywood, and the plywood covered with white cloth flour sacks that had been sewn together. The apple slices were spread out on the cloth during the day, and the apples were brought into the house during the night to prevent dew from causing them to mold. Although the witness did not see the incident, she remembers that her older sisters saw two (or three) small "monkeys" stealing the apple slices off the drying table during the day, and told her mother about it. The witness does not remember what steps, if any, her mother took in response to the thefts. During hot summer nights the family often slept on the front porch on "pallets" (quilts or blankets used as mattresses) because the home had no electricity for fans or air conditioning. During many of the nights on the porch, the family heard the typical night sounds, plus other sounds that were puzzling to them. The witness stated sometimes late at night they could plainly hear the sounds of people talking in dialects they had never heard. In later years, after hearing Native Americans speaking in the movies and on television in their old native language, the witness stated those were similar to the sounds they heard on those summer nights. The witness's next oldest sister (the one who fired a shotgun at one of the animals) had the family's only transportation, and it was a bicycle. It was her responsibility, once or twice a week, to carry eggs to a neighbor's house about two miles away to trade them for milk. On one occasion, shortly after that girl had fired the shotgun at one of the animals, the girl left home with eggs and the a milk can and pedaled to the neighbor's house. After she had left the eggs, picked up the can of milk and got about halfway home, the girl suddenly saw one of the creatures standing alongside the road a short distance in front of her. She immediately swerved and lost control of the bicycle and fell, losing the milk can in the process. (The lid on the can kept the milk from spilling.) She quickly recovered the bicycle and, leaving the can of milk beside the road, pedaled home as fast as she could. When she arrived, her mother asked her where was the milk. The girl excitedly told her what had occurred, but the mother told her to go back and get the can of milk as she needed it to prepare supper. The girl tried frantically to convince her mother that she was too scared of the "hairy man" to go back down the road that day. But her mother insisted, saying the creature would not harm her. The girl finally made the return trip, picked up the can of milk, and returned home without seeing or hearing the animal again. The witness stated that their home was built off the ground five or six feet because the creek sometimes flooded the hollow in which the home was located after heavy rains. She stated that one of her older sisters would sometimes see a man-like face staring through the center part of the window in her room at night. She said that for some reason the "person" seemed to appear more often when it was raining. The witness also stated that when one of the older girls began her "monthly period", it was usual that at least one of the other girls began her "period" as well. During these times the family was very aware that the sounds of one or more "women screaming" were heard more often, and seemingly the sounds originated closer to the home. One day in April or May when the witness was eight years old she filled her recently received Easter basket with food and went to creek bank to play and have a picnic alone. When she got there she placed the basket of food on the bank and went back to the house for fresh water that she had forgotten. When she returned she found that the basket had been taken away without any spillage of the food that had been piled in it. She and her sisters searched "all over the place" for hours but never found the basket or any sign of its contents. Much later she concluded that she knew of no typical animal that could have, or would have, removed the basket from the area without spilling or eating the contents and leaving the debris from the basket's contents. During the summer months of this period of time the girls often went to the creek below the home to bath and play in the water. As the creek level lowered during hot weather, they noticed that large "wallowed out" holes appeared in the sandy bottoms of the larger holes of water in the creek. They never saw what made the holes in the creek bed, but suspected the enigmatic creatures did the work to have deeper water to cool off in during hot weather. When she was nine years old her oldest sister married and moved to a home on the slope of another hollow that was only about a mile or so from their home if measured "as the crow flies". By road, the witness knew that the distance was much more than that. After the girl married and moved to her new home, the witness's mother plotted a trail across the creek, over a large ridge and across a small branch to the newly married girl's home. Because of the depth and steepness of the ravine in which the smaller branch flowed, the trail included a "foot-log" over that branch. The mother and the other daughters often visited the elder daughter/sister by walking that trail to her home during daylight hours. During their trips along the trail they would hear a loud "whoop" call nearby as they entered the woods near their home. That whoop call would be answered by another such sound, usually further up the main ridge. While walking along the trail they could all usually hear the sounds of heavy bipedal footsteps on the trail behind them. At time the footfalls were so close that the family could feel the vibrations of the footsteps in the ground. From the very beginning of those incidents, the children's mother would repeatedly tell them, "Just keep walking and don't look back, it won't hurt you." When the group would arrive at the foot-log across the small branch they would hear the animal following them whoop again, and the call would be repeated from somewhere away from them. And when the group approached the daughter/sister's house, another whoop call would be heard behind them, with a response from somewhere in the vicinity. When the mother and daughters left the oldest girl's home, one of the animals would be waiting unseen in the nearby woods, and the same vocalizations would be heard at the same locations on the trail on their way back home. About this time the witness's mother told the daughters that she, and her own mother, (who was a full-blood Choctaw Indian) knew about the creatures and had always referred to them as "The Old People". The witness's grandmother was from Mississippi, but moved to the same area of Winston County Alabama after she married. The grandmother had explained to the witness's mother that the creatures were in all respects human-like and were protective of the people who lived among them as long as the people respected them and their families. The witness and her sisters believed that the escorts they had through the woods from their home to their sister's home was for their protection. The witness believes the escort was always in vocal contact with the others members of the creature's family to let them know the location of the mother and her children so that no unexpected encounter occurred between the human family and the creature's own family. At no time did the family experience any direct aggressive behavior from the creatures. While the family lived in the hollow, a man who lived a couple of miles away owned and cultivated some bottom land across the creek from their home. The man was known and respected by the family. He had for some time planted sugar cane in the field in the bottoms but told the children's mother that he quit trying to grow it because something kept stealing and it and eating it as it neared maturity. He planted corn and watermelons in the field, and told the witness's mother that he was continually losing more corn and melons than could be attributed to raccoons, squirrels, deer or other typical animals. When the neighbor was working across the creek in warm weather the girl's mother would fill a container with cold water from a spring above their home and carry it across the creek to him. On one such occasion, at the start of the cultivation season, the man was in the fields "turning under" a crop of turnips and other greens that been planted the previous fall for use during the winter. The witness's mother filled a container of cold water from the spring and began walking toward the creek on the woods road across her property that the neighbor used to access his fields. Suddenly she heard the tractor engine and the tractor itself running at high speed as it came across the creek and through the woods toward her. When the tractor came into view, the neighbor began shouting to her to, "Get back in the house, — get back in the house!!" Not knowing what had happened, the woman hurried back to her house, and the neighbor continued to drive the tractor at high speed to his own home. Days later, the neighbor came back to finish plowing his fields. The witness's mother made a point of asking him what had happened during his last trip to the fields. He told her that as he was plowing under the winter turnips and greens, three or four "somethings" came charging through the woods from different directions toward him and his tractor, and the "somethings" were aggressively screaming so loudly that he heard them plainly over the sound of the tractor engine. He told her he did not know what kind of animals were making the sounds, but said that this would be his last year to cultivate the fields. According to the witness, the fields were never cultivated again after that season. The witness remembers that she and members of her extended family would go to a creek off of Highway 33 which led into the Bankhead National Forest. The primary purpose of the trips was to gather "silver dollar-sized, black mussels" from the creek which her mother would "steam like you would prepare clams". For the girls, the creek was one of their favorite swimming holes. After a year or so, they found that the creek had been cleaned of mussels, and they only found "mussel shells that had been cracked opened and piled on the creek bank". The witness stated that neither she nor the other family members knew what had taken the mussels, but they saw no evidence of otters in the area. (When asked by the writer, the witness stated the piled shells would probably fill a two and one-half gallon bucket.) The witness and relatives returned to this area years later and found that the road to this particular area of the creek had been closed. When they asked local residents (who had built homes in the area relatively recently), the residents stated that authorities had closed the road, "because of bears in the area". She said that sometimes she and her immediate family would get together with her aunt and uncle and their boys and go on overnight fishing trips in the backwaters of Smith Lake in the Robinson Bottoms area. She said they would take an old tire or two and gather wood along the lake to make a fire that would burn all night while the adults and older children fished off the bank. She said that she and the other younger "kids" had quilt pallets in the bed of their uncle's truck where they tried to sleep. She said that it was usually hard to sleep because a group of unseen animals would be howling, yelling and screaming angrily at the group after dark. She said she thought the animals "were throwing a fit" because her family was encroaching on their nighttime foraging area. She said that other residents of the community that went into the Robinson Bottoms area to fish at night had the same kind of experiences. When the witness was between nine and ten years old a man who lived in the general area set up a whiskey still in the hollow just above the family's property. The man installed the still at that location so that during the dry season he could use the water from the cold spring which was on their property. Her mother became aware of the still, and resented the man taking water from her spring for its operation, but said nothing to the man about it. He later approached her to complain that the whiskey still was being heavily damaged when he was not at the site, and basically accused her of having her girls damage the still. She rightly denied the accusations. During February a few months later their mother awakened the children about 4:00 am to get them out of the house because it was on fire along the back side nearest the woods. By the time they gathered a few clothes and got out of the house it was too late to control the fire . As the family stood outside, a man who lived in the area saw the blaze as he was driving to work down the nearby county road. The man could do nothing but try to console the family. The witness's mother told the man to call her cousin when he got to a telephone and have him come pick them up. The man soon left and the family sat down in the yard, close enough to the fire to keep warm, and could do nothing but watch the home burn. While they sat, they noticed a very large, massively-built animal walk out of the woods and into the yard. She said the greyish colored animal was "between eight and nine feet tall and very healthy looking". She said it was walking on two feet and stopped about 100 feet from the group. The witness said that for a little while the animal stood erect, swaying slowly side-to-side. As they watched it, the animal slowly turned its head from looking directly at them and then turning to watch the burning building. The children's mother quietly told the girl, "Don't move, and don't say nothing". The animal then slowly squatted and remained in that position, alternately looking at them and the burning house. The witness said that as it began to break day, the animal stood up, turned and walked off into the woods. According to the witness the animal was completely silent when he was in their presence. The family thought the fire had originated because of a flaw in their wood heater or its flue piping. The family was forced to move from the home site because they did not have the funds to rebuild. Several years later, after the whiskey maker died, his wife made a trip to visit the witness's mother. The man's widow apologized to the family for the loss of their home and admitted that her husband had "burned them out" because of continued, heavy damage to his whiskey still that he always thought the family was causing. Description of the Animals: The first time the witness clearly saw one of the animals she described it as being "really tall and hairy, standing upright on two feet in a slightly hunched position with its arm so long that its hands were below it knees". She said that animal's hair appeared to be dark brown. On the second occasion that she saw one (when her older sister fired at the creature with a shotgun) it appeared identical to the first one except that in the sunshine its hair appeared reddish brown. The last animal that she saw was the large grey colored animal which is described above. Photos or Drawings Made?: No. Description of Related Sounds: Sounds of a woman screaming in pain or grief, whooping and hooting sounds, loud whistling sounds, primitive-sounding speech in an unknown language and, while on Lake Smith, angry yelling and screaming sounds -some nearly like a human crying in pain or sorrow. Description of Related Scents / Odors: The witness stated that at no time did they smell the animals. Historical Anecdotes: In the late 60's, one of the witness's older sisters had a male school mate who went with a few friends to what the local residents call Saltpeter Cave in the Sipsey Wilderness Area of the Bankhead National Forest in Winston County. The boy reportedly went into the cave first with a flashlight and met a large black animal charging toward him on four feet. The story was that the boy ran screaming back past the others to his truck and locked himself in the cab. The others reportedly heard the animal inside the cave and tried to get into the truck cab, but had to settle for the truck bed until their frantic beating on the top of the cab finally resulted in the first boy unlocking the truck and speeding off when everyone was inside. In the late 70's or early 80's the witness stated there was a story which was quickly spread by word of mouth across the area which she remembered and which she thought at the time might be related to the enigmatic animals her family was familiar with. According to her, the story was that a young National Forest Ranger and his wife moved into a "ranger's house" that was then located in or near the Sipsey Wilderness Area. Shortly afterwards, the Ranger's wife reportedly had a baby which was soon brought home to the ranger's house. Sometimes later, the house was reportedly attacked by a group of screaming animals at night, and both the ranger and his wife stayed up all night with firearms to prevent the animals from breaking into the house. The house was said to have been heavily damaged by the attack, and the next morning the Ranger reportedly removed his family. Sometime shortly thereafter the Ranger's House was torn down and never replaced. In the early 80's the witness stated that one of her male cousins bought 10 acres of land in Winston County in the vicinity of Addison. Her cousin told her that when he began constructing a building on the property himself he noticed when he would use a hammer to fasten lumber, he would often hear the same number of hammering sounds coming from the woods nearby. He reportedly began experimenting and varying the number of hammer strikes used to drive the nails. He was surprised to hear a repeat of the sounds. He continued to return to the site and work on the building at various times. He said that sometime later be began to hear loud grunting sounds, reportedly similar to those made by a large boar hog. Shortly afterwards he saw a very large, hair covered man-like creature walk to the edge of the wood line on two feet. The creature squatted at the edge of the woods and grunted occasionally as it watched him work. The man realized the creature was not aggressive and after a while he became accustomed to seeing it at times he was working on the building. At one time he told the witness "I would have given it a hammer and put it to work if it would have come on out of the woods". ****************************************************************************** Report received and recorded by: Tal H. Branco, Field Researcher/Investigator, The RFP Research Project

If you really want to know why BF avoids humans, all you need do is go to Wal~Mart on Black Friday, or like I'm about to do, the mall the last Sunday before Christmas. That alone will tell you all you want to know about interacting with humans. Wish me luck. If i'm not back on the forums this evening please send a search and rescue team.

The answer is clear. They simply haven't learned how to photobomb yet.

For a Sasquatch to actually know what a camera is and what it does is quite a leap. They would not only have to know what the device is, but also what a picture is and what the context of a picture is. I don't think they get on line too often to look at blogs, forums or YouTube, and I don't think they subscribe to any of the Nat Geo or Argosy type magazines, so I really don't think they know exactly what a camera is, or a photo for that matter. To attribute their knowledge of something that isn't even in their world is a stretch at best. Now their interpreting it as some sort of weapon would make much more logical sense.

This is one of several reports from the same general area in which Greg's "running shootout" took place. The RFP Research Project (RFPRP) - Report of Encounter Date Report Submitted to the RFPRP: May 18, 2007 Date of Encounter: In March of 1995 or 1996 Time of Incident: Approximately midnight. Weather Conditions: Clear and cool with a partial moon. State: Alabama County: Lowndes Nearest City or Town: Benton Location: On county highway #40 between the Robert F. Henry Lock and Dam on the Alabama River and the town of White Hall. Nearest highway or road: County Road #40. General Land Use Description: Undeveloped wetlands intermingled with farm and pasture lands adjoining the Alabama River and its impounded R. E. Woodruff Lake. General Terrain Description: River bottom lands. Nearest Lakes or Streams: The lock and dam is about one and one-half miles west of the sighting location and Big Swamp Creek flows just south of the county road at that location. Witness Profile: He is a 70 year old male who has lived in the area since birth. He is avid fisherman and has fished the river, and later the lakes, at night for catfish for many years. He spent much time in the more inaccessible areas of the county years ago while providing for his family during bad economic times. He now works for a local governmental entity. Activities of Witness Prior to Encounter/Incident: The witness had been fishing alone from his boat for catfish in the lake until near midnight. He then loaded his boat onto the trailer at the Prairie Creek Camp launch ramp and began driving toward White Hall on County Road #40. Details of Encounter / Incident: The witness had driven to the point on the highway where Big Swamp Creek makes a sharp, "U' shaped bend to the north and passes within about one-half mile of the road. The roadbed along that stretch is elevated and there are guard rails along each shoulder. From an initial distance of about 100 yard, the witness noticed a very large black animal coming up the north side of the road bed approaching the guard rail. He immediately thought that someone's Black Angus cow had gotten out of a pasture, and he began slowing down gradually. As he drew nearer to the animal it continued up the bank to the back of the guard rail. His vehicle was still moving toward the animal and he saw that it was walking on what he thought was four legs. He was then shocked to see the animal reach with arms and hands and pull itself over the guardrail and onto the shoulder of the road. At that point he brought the vehicle to a complete stop thirty yards or less from the animal. His shock turned to complete fear and awe when the animal stood erect on two feet, stopped, and looked directly at the vehicle while keeping its body facing the opposite side of the road. At that time the witness locked all the doors in the vehicle and he checked to see that the lights were on bright. As the animal stood looking at the vehicle its eyes glowed a dull red. In a few seconds the animal took two or three slow, short steps onto the roadway, continually watching the vehicle. It then stopped again, staring at the witness. Seconds later the animal took another two or three slow steps, and stopped again. At that time the animal was near the center of the roadway. By this time the driver was alarmed, and he said that if he had not had the boat trailer attached, he would have turned the vehicle around to get away from the animal. He then decided to try to make the animal move faster and he blew the vehicle horn. The witness stated the animal never flinched and continued to stare at him. (The witness said that he got the distinct impression from the animal's actions that it was as much as saying, "I ain't scared of you, and if you want a piece of me just come on!") It then slowly walked to the south side guard rail, dropped back onto "all fours", climbed over the guard rail and ambled out of sight down the embankment toward Big Swamp Creek. Description of the Animal: The witness stated the animal appeared to be between five and one-half and six feet tall. He said the animal was massive in size and nearly completely covered in very long, dark brown hair that flowed from its legs and arms when it walked. He stated the head was shaped like that of a large gorilla and its face had gorilla features that could be partially seen in the areas not covered by the long hair. The witness stated that even though long hair was hanging from the sides of the head, he could distinctly see part of the animal's ears. He side the ears were larger than those of a human's and were "shaped like those of a big monkey." The witness stated that he never got a frontal view of the animal but that he did not see breasts either when the animal was on "all fours", or when it was walking sideways to him. He stated the animal's body did not seem to taper to the waist but looked "square built." The witness was particularly impressed by the size of the animal's legs and arms which he described as "massive". (In trying to indicate the size of the legs visually, the witness used his hands to shown their diameter, and the hands were indicating a circle nearly as large as a five gallon bucket.) He said the animal's arms were only slightly smaller. He firmly believes the animal would have weighed from 500 to 600 pounds, considering its body thickness and limb sizes. Photos or Drawings Made? No. Description of Related Sounds: None heard. Description of Related Scents / Odors: No odors were detected. Historical Notes: This encounter took place within about three miles of the one mentioned in the January 1998 issue of the Alabama Game & Fish magazine, and in the same area as other encounters which have been recorded. ****************************************************************************** Report received and recorded by: Tal H. Branco, The RFP Research Project

This report is a good one. Because the man approached me at the country store when he heard another witness and I talking, I went to the encounter location with him a few days later. After our visit, we (the RFP researchers in Clark and Washington Counties) were allowed access to that property for multiple investigations and outings. It was the most active research site in Alabama for us. Maybe I can find some of the other reports involving this property. I have several photos made during my first visit with the witness. They were not posted with the report. It was a spooky old home. If anyone wants to see some of them, I don't thinks the property owner's would care now. Everyone in the county knows about it anyway. The RFP Research Project (RFPRP) - Report of Encounter or Related Incident Date Report Submitted to the RFPRP: 09/30/04 (Report received in person by Tal H. Branco.) The witness contacted the writer after he overheard the field investigator discussing local reports of enigmatic animals with area residents at the country store at Gainestown.) Date of Encounter: Sometime in the late 1980s during the late fall. Time of Incident: Late at night, about midnight. Weather Conditions: Clear, cool and still, with some moonlight. State: Alabama County: Clarke Nearest City or Town: Jackson. Map Location: (gps or township/section coordinates if known): Known but not included. Nearest highway or road: Undisclosed. General Land Use Description: The land was once a large farm consisting of several hundred acres. No one now lives on the property and it is leased to a group of hunters. There is a very old house still standing on the property. Most of the old field have now been planted in pine trees. Some small fields are kept mowed by the hunters, and some of those fields are lightly cultivated and planted in winter grass for deer and turkey. General Terrain Description: The soil is a sandy clay/loam, and the property has a gentle slope from north to south. There are outcrops of seabed limestone near the southern edge of the property. Nearest Lakes or Streams: A large creek passes through the southern part of the property. The creek discharges into the Tombigbee River a few miles further south. Activities of Witnesses Prior to Encounter/Incident: Four young men were together in a car in Jackson during the early evening. They were celebrating a personal event in the life of one of the men. They were drinking beer, and were seen doing so by a police officer. They were not intoxicated, so the officer told them to either leave town or he would arrest them for drinking in public. They left town. That night they decided to stop by one of the young men's home to pick up a rifle and spotlight and go to the property described above to hunt deer. (Some of the men's relatives had the hunting lease on the property.) The men had no key to the gate, so they parked outside the gate and walked about one half mile on a farm road to the old house. Details of Encounter / Incident: The men entered the old house by stepping onto the open-ended hallway that passes through the center of the home's length. The floor of the hallway extended through the main part of the house and terminated at the opposite end as a porch which was covered by a lean-to roof. (Old homes such as this were called "dog trot" houses because of the open-ended hallways.) From the hallway the men entered the first room to their left which was apparently the living room. There is a fireplace centered in the south wall of the room, with a window on each side which looked out onto a closely adjoining patch of winter oats. The men found old chairs and couches in the room, closed the door to the hallway, and sat near the windows watching the oat field for deer. They were not being loud, but were joking and laughing. Sometime later one of the men heard something or someone walking through the only strip of dense brush, briars and trees that connected the home site to the woods surrounding it. The rest of the area surrounding the home had either been planted in winter grass, or had been kept mowed. The dense strip of vegetation extended from the woods to the open end and side of the porch. The man cautioned the other three to be quite and listen, which they did. They all heard the sound of what they first thought was a man breaking through the brush and vines as he slowly approached the porch. Although they assumed that it was a person, they were perplexed and alarmed because they realized a rational person with good intentions and/or common sense would never deliberately choose to walk to the house through the thicket. (Although it was fall and cool, the area has abundant rattlesnakes that were still active and they grow to impressive sizes.) At that moment they independently concluded that the visitor was either a crazy person or a vagabond seeking a place to sleep. (One of the rooms across the hall from where the men stood had old mattresses on the floor which apparently been left there by the last residents or by deer hunters sometime in the past. The deer hunters who held the lease did not camp inside the house at the time of this incident because of the rotted condition of the floor in many places.) There was a moment of silence when the visitor reached the end or side of the porch. By that time the men were standing. In a few seconds they felt the house move and heard it creak as the visitor stepped onto the porch. They stood silently as they heard the soft thud of footsteps slowly walked the hall toward them. As the steps approached the wall that separated the room they were in from the next one on that side, they could hear deep raspy breathing that the witnesses described as sounding like a very large person with bad asthmatic problems. The men were frozen in fear by the sounds because of the duration and volume of air inhaled and exhaled during each breath. At the same time the men began to detect a strong odor. By that time they had all decided the visitor was not a human, and were terrified because they had no idea what kind of animal was approaching them in the hallway. The animal made two more steps and was at the door. At that time the animal touched and rattled the door knob. Immediately one of the men switched on the spotlight, and the man with the rifle screamed and jumped to a half crouched position with the rifle pointing from his hip toward the door. He did not fire the gun, but the animal uttered a loud roaring snarl, wheeled and began running back down the hall to the porch. With each footfall the house shook. When it reached the porch it was in a full run and all of its running weight was enough to cause the entire porch and the roof above it to come crashing down. Immediately one of the men ran to an exterior door in the end wall of the room they were in. The door was barricaded from outside, but the man kicked the door down and all four men ran from the house and, instead of following the road back to their vehicle, cut across a weed and grass covered field to reach it. One witness stated that at the time he was not concerned about the possibility of stepping on a rattlesnake in the weeds and grass; he simply wanted to get away from the place. Description of Animal(s) if Seen: The animal was not seen Photos or Drawings Made?: No. Description of Related Sounds: Deep, prolonged raspy breaths, and later a load roaring snarl. The primary witness stated that the sounds of the footsteps in the hall were that which would have been made by a large barefoot human. Description of Related Scents / Odors: A strong musky odor. Was Physical Evidence Obtained? No. Other Reports From This Area? Yes. About two months after this incident occurred, the brother of one of the witnesses was walking toward the old house from his deer stand in the creek bottoms a mile or so south of the house. It was nearly dark and he noticed an animal hiding behind bushes along the side the farm road he was traveling. The animals was dark colored, and at first he thought it was a bear standing on four feet because of its bulk. As he stopped walking to view the animal, it stood up on two feet and ran effortlessly away. He then saw that it was completely covered in hair, and had the general shape of a large human. ****************************************************************************** Follow-up Investigation Report(s) by The RFPRP See RFP Field Investigation Report #CC-01.04

OK Chelefoot, I'll try and find that report, if you don't get mad when I (gulp)----- tell you I've not written a report from East TN. (Spent time in Overton, Fentress, Morgan and Scott counties. Heard stories, mostly second hand, and some weird sounds along the East Fork of the Cumberland, but nothing to write home about.) Sorry I also read that story somewhere, but it was a while back. I don't remember where I say it either. Thanks for the comments.

Here's the report I promised WV FOOTER. The RFP Research Project - Report of Encounter or Related Incident Date Report Submitted: February 4, 2006 Date of Encounter: Summer of 1951 Time of Incident: Late afternoon Weather Conditions: Clear & warm State: West Virginia County: Preston Nearest City or Town: Rowlesburg Map Location: (gps or township/section coordinates) : Not known Nearest highway or road: Highway 72 General Land Use Description: Small farms, coal mines and timber production. General Terrain Description: The area is within the Allegheny Mountains. The location of the sighting is about 25 miles south of the Pennsylvania state line and about 10 miles west of the Maryland state line. At the time of the sighting the area was sparsely populated and heavily timbered. The sighting area is about 10 miles from the northern end of the Monongahela National Forest Nearest Lakes or Streams: The incident occurred in the Cheat River Valley. Activities of Witness Prior to Encounter/Incident: Walking along one side of the Cheat River near his home. Details of Encounter / Incident: The witness was ten years of age and was walking on family property which straddled the Cheat River. On the other side of the river a B & O Railroad line ran parallel to the river. Alongside the main railroad there was a "dinkey" railroad and a storage building for railroad equipment and supplies. The witness happened to look up at a large clearing on the side of the mountain behind the storage and saw a large hair-covered creature standing on two feet watching him. He was a few hundred yards from the animal but he quickly determined it was too large to be a human, and not an animal known to him. He watched for several seconds as the creature stood staring at him, and then the boy wheeled and started home quickly. After walking a few steps the boy turned to look again at the spot and the animal was gone. He was immediately alarmed because he did not believe the animal could have traveled out of the large clearing and into the forested slopes above it in so short a period of time. He thought the animal may have been running toward him and using the storage building for cover as he did so. The boy then ran to his home and told family members about his encounter. When they went outside they saw no sign of the animal. Description of Animal(s) if Seen: Very large with wide shoulders and covered with light tan hair. Because of the distance, he could not see more details. The witness is now 65 years of age, and just recently saw the Patterson footage on TV. He said the animal he saw was very similar, except for the coloration of the hair.) Photos or Drawings Made?: N/A Description of Related Sounds: None heard at that time. Description of Related Scents / Odors: None. Was Physical Evidence Obtained? No. Additional Comments: The witness stated that when he was about sixteen years old he was fishing alone one summer's night on the Cheat River. While he was busy with his gear, he heard a loud animal sound on the mountain above him. He became wary, but continued to fish for another few minutes. He stated something then walked down off the mountain behind him and emitted an ear-splitting scream which caused him to quickly gather up his equipment and leave for home. A few years later two of his friends saw a very large hair-covered man or ape near a cabin in the nearby mountains. The witness also mentioned that his brother and a friend were rabbit hunting with Beagle hounds a few years ago along the Cheat River between Albright and Rowlesburg when the dogs quit a hot scent trail in a thicket and disappeared. They looked for the dogs without success and walked home. They found the dogs had returned to their pen and were all cowering and trembling inside the dog houses. He said the dogs had never done that before, and the hunters were sure the dogs had encountered something that was very frightening to them. Field Investigator's Notes & Comments: I interviewed several residents of this particular area while I was in West Virginia in late January and early February of 2006. A woman told me that in December of 1977 she was alone at home with her sleeping infant child when she had to use the outside toilet. She was followed by her Golden Retriever which waited outside the toilet. While she was inside she heard a baby crying loudly. She hurriedly left for the house with the dog walking closely by her side but watching the woods line intently. The dog remained on the ground by the porch steps as she went in to tend to the child. She found the child was still sound asleep and had not moved. She then heard loud animal sounds outside and the dog began to bark frantically. As she started to the door she heard the dog utter a loud yelp, and then it became quite outside. She was afraid to go outside, so she secured the doors and windows and stayed inside until morning. She then found the dog on the ground by the steps with its skull crushed. She stated she later heard the sounds of a baby crying in the woods near the home on two different occasions. ****************************************************************************** Tal H. Branco,