Incidents That Happened In The Field, You Can't Explain.. But Want To Know More About

[SWWASAS]

Wasn't sure where to post this.  I don't think it was squatch related but....

 

On a bike ride along the American River here, just North of Folsom, CA, I heard some odd things while ascending a hill at around 10:30 am this past Wed.  This is a suburban area, well developed.  However there is quite a bit of forest along the river valley, and on both sides of the trail we were on.  And strangely enough, there is local lore of BF tossing dirt clods and debris at cyclists late at night.  Also, there is a lot of wildlife.  Many deer, turkey, coyote, rattlesnake, gopher snake, lizards.  I have also seen a bobcat.  There are periodic reports of mountain lion as well.  The blackberry's aren't quite in season.

 

First was a whoop.  Sounded quite a bit like Moneymaker on FindingBigfoot.  Plenty loud too.  I chalked it up to local kids, however they were still in school (or should have been) at this time of the morning.  A few minutes later I heard a few seconds (lasted about 5 seconds) of extremely low pitched "mumbling."  I couldn't make out any actual words, the pitch and volume were too low.  I'm not sure this was kids.  My wife was about 200 yards behind me and didn't hear anything. 

 

Either way, it was interesting and I don't know what or who made those sounds.

I have heard the whoops that you mention.   My vocalization encounter in July of 2012 started with a single whoop follow by a response from about 30 Deg away from that.     One on my side of a creek and the other on the opposite side.   Initially I thought it was two owls that I had never heard before, communicating in some way with whoops,  but this was at 1114 AM.      The whoops started moving, coming directly towards me and the other making more of an angle with the first, seemingly following the other side the creek on a human trail.     They whooped at each other about every 15 seconds, one seemingly answering the first.    Having been on both sides of that creek many times since, I know that you cannot see through the trees so perhaps whooping allowed them to maintain audio contact with each other and know each others position.     I still did not know what it was at that point (expected to see two owls fly out of the trees)  until I heard very heavy bipedal footsteps (reminded me of Jurasic park)  cracking dry down wood coming through the forest directly towards me.   So much for owls.     The whoops continued until the one headed directly for me went down to the ground in a thud that I could feel through my feet.      It sounded like the thud was 20 or 30 yards from me.       I have only heard one thing similar since and that was a single howl, starting at a high pitch for a human, and dropping to the bottom of an adult human male vocal range.    Not repeated and could have been human but there were no other humans in the area that I was aware of.      I was the only human parked at the nearby trail head.    

[SWWASAS]

Has anyone heard reports or encountered chest thumping intimidation behavior from BF?.   This was about 3 miles from the location of my 2012 vocalization encounter.  In this case,   I heard a strange noise coming from the treeline near where I parked recently.     Running the noise through my head the only thing I have heard in nature similar is the chest beating intimidation behavior exibited by mountain gorrillas I have seen on videos.    I had just parked,  gotten out of my truck, walked around to the treeline side,  turned my back, and started to pee.    As soon as I started, the noise began from the woodline about 30 yards away.    I estimate about 3 or 4 beats a second, loud and very low in pitch, lasting 2 to 3 seconds.    If whatever did it wanted to intimidate me,  it worked.    I nearly got in my truck and left.   I was scared for about 30 minutes.    But in spite of circling around and trying to get behind it I never saw anything so have no idea what made the noise.   When I went into the area there was disturbed ground cover but no prints I could find.      I do not recall ever hearing of any similar reports so I am mystified at this point what it could have been.    Certainly it was a new sound for me.        

[LeafTalker]

I've read about chest thumping behavior, but of course can't remember where.  

 

I haven't figured out how to search BFRO reports, so here's a reference from Bigfoot Encounters:

 

http://www.bigfootencounters.com/stories/davis.htm

[SWWASAS]

Thanks for that reference. Difficult to tell if it was the same thing from that report as he reported fewer thumps. My thought at the moment was that me peeing set off the response. It certainly did not start until I started peeing. I read one report out of Canada where someone in the dark nearly peed on a bigfoots leg that was standing very close. That reaction was even stronger with a growl or roar. Another report out of California mentioned an intimidation roar when someone peed in front of a bigfoot. Most male animals have some sort of marking behavior where urinating has social significance. That certainly could apply to bigfoot too.

[LeafTalker]

I think you're right that peeing can be seen as an aggressive act. One member here has a story about himself and some friends peeing on a bunch of logs that they knew had been left there by some BF. The friends came back to find that those logs had been smashed into splinters.

I think that these displays are more likely to occur when the parties are not known to each other. If you start to frequent the same area and make it known that you're a friendly guy and not looking to cause trouble, you'll be left alone to pee in peace.

[SWWASAS]

Since posting on November 2 what I believe was an intimidation chest beating encounter, I have been contacted by a researcher in Canada that experienced the same thing. She had also dug up a report from California of a similar occurrance there. While it may be rare, apparently the behavior has been reported in other areas and may be common in certain circumstances. In my case I must have violated a social tabu urinating while being watched. Not sure what the others did to set it off but human intimidation seemed to be the goal. While interesting, I would not recommend the experience to anyone because of how frightening it was. R

Edited November 7, 2013 by SWWASASQUATCHPROJECT

[Guest]

I was walking my dog in the forest when in a clearing in tall grass was an area matted down 'bout the size of a squtch. What was weird was the was "fur" or furish-hair, dark dark gray to blackish all around the periphery of the matted area...........

 

On another bright summer Saturday morning my wife and I were walkin the dog on a ridge near home.

The backside of the ridge plunges down into a valley the up a steep wall about 1000' or so away from us.

On the steep wall, on an outcrop I saw something black sitting there. I stopped and pointed it out to my wife.

We stood there for 10 or so minutes trying to discern the shape. The size said BIG very black bear or squatch

crouched down like a catcher or ape would just sitting there not moving. Maybe sleeping, in the bright sunshine for all to see.

 

It was too far to make anything out except a black unmoving blob.

We finally gave up trying to focus on it and went home for lunch.

 

I can tell you it's gone now. Something was just siiting there looking over the valley.

 

I call day watcher. :-)

 

On yet another dog walk during late September / October hunting season I was on the same ridge and about 4:00 pm when on the asphalt bike path about 1/8 mile from me appeared to be a very tall thin brown man (carhart color from head to toe) standing there looking at us. I stopped and stared back. After about 15 seconds "he" turned and purposely and deliberately moved off the bike path and up the slope into the tree line and disappeared.

 

Huh. A hunter should / better be wearing camo and orange.......

 

And off we went.

 

One Saturday morning I was (you guessed it) walking my dog when on the heavily forested mountain right in front of us came a "wwwwwwwwooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo". That sounded exactly like a fire truck, even mechanical starting LOW and rising up the back down low - one oscillation cycle. It was every bit as loud as a fire truck but there are no roads at all on that mountain, just a single track walking path that runs horizontal halfway up the mountain.

 

And on we went.

 

One Friday afternoon I was walking a trail with my dog. There was a woman with a spaniel about 100 feet ahead.

The rounded the corner into the forest in front of us. When they disappeared into the forest and we got near to the forest entry, I heard the sound of a woman screaming like she was being stabbed to death. I never saw the spaniel or her again. When I expected one or both to come tearing out of there.

 

Wigged me out that's for sure.

 

We went the other way we did. :-)

Edited November 8, 2013 by SummitSquatch

[LeafTalker]

SWWASASQUATCHPROJECT, glad you're in touch with someone who's had an experience similar to yours. 

 

And recently I figured out you can just google a phrase that includes the letters "BFRO" to find reports of specific behaviors. (Doh.) So here are some more reports about chest beating (or possible chest beating behaviors):

 

http://www.bfro.net/GDB/show_report.asp?id=8259

http://www.bfro.net/GDB/show_report.asp?id=16719

http://www.bfro.net/gdb/show_report.asp?id=1815

http://www.bfro.net/gdb/show_article.asp?id=648

 

SummitSquatch, awesome experiences! Well, except for the last one.  

[Gotta Know]

^I think I'd give up dog walking. Scary!

[wiiawiwb]

Has anyone heard reports or encountered chest thumping intimidation behavior from BF?.   This was about 3 miles from the location of my 2012 vocalization encounter.  In this case,   I heard a strange noise coming from the treeline near where I parked recently.     Running the noise through my head the only thing I have heard in nature similar is the chest beating intimidation behavior exibited by mountain gorrillas I have seen on videos.    I had just parked,  gotten out of my truck, walked around to the treeline side,  turned my back, and started to pee.    As soon as I started, the noise began from the woodline about 30 yards away.    I estimate about 3 or 4 beats a second, loud and very low in pitch, lasting 2 to 3 seconds.    If whatever did it wanted to intimidate me,  it worked.    I nearly got in my truck and left.   I was scared for about 30 minutes.    But in spite of circling around and trying to get behind it I never saw anything so have no idea what made the noise.   When I went into the area there was disturbed ground cover but no prints I could find.      I do not recall ever hearing of any similar reports so I am mystified at this point what it could have been.    Certainly it was a new sound for me.        

 

Any chance it could have been a grouse thumping very close by? They can be vey loud and sound like a chest thump. Here is an audio of it:

 

[Galahad]

I recorded a sound that intrigued me on one of my field investigations to an area where sasquatch activity had numerous reports. I was able to record a sound that I thought was very close to a Gorilla Chest beat. It is a slapping Skin on Skin sound. Attached are two sound files one is a Gorilla Chest beat the other is what I recorded between 3:00am and 4:00am on an all night recording adventure.

Exhibit B Gorilla chest beat looped 5 times.mp3

Exhibit A Unknown sound looped 5 times.mp3

[LeafTalker]

Wow, Galahad, those recordings are amazing. Great catch, that "Exhibit A"!

[Galahad]

Thanks Leaf Talker.... Imagine my surprise... To be honest I don't know what made the sound as I did not see the culprit. It would be good to know what other possible critters can make this sound. The slapping sound does not have a Ruffed Grouse thump to it nor does it start out slow and build in speed. It really sounds like skin on skin just like the Gorilla with the same cadence

. So it definitely goes in the Ummmmm... category.

[See-Te-Cah NC]

I had a couple of instances last year in September that I found to be odd. Both occurred in the same location - on the deck of my late girlfriend's house, which was less than two miles form an area with BFRO reports. I had access to a large tract of property in the area, with one of the reports less than a half mile from the site. Both occurred within a couple of months of each other, one in the late evening and the other after midnight.

 

- The first incident was an ear fluttering. I was on the deck enjoying a nice cigar and an adult beverage. The area is heavily wooded and is located in the middle of nowhere. It was dark, with the only light coming from an area light located approximately 150' away. I was standing on the deck leaning against the railing, looking directly into the woods. I had just set my drink down on the top of the rail when I noticed a very pronounced, very strong fluttering in my right ear. It wasn't a sound, per se', but a "sensation" for lack of a better term. It wasn't accompanied by wind movement of any kind. It was about 6-7 seconds in duration, long enough for me to look to my left and notice it dissipate and to turn my head back to my original position and notice it intensify for about two or three seconds.

 

I looked around after it ended in an attempt to find the source of the fluttering. I found nothing - No bugs, birds, bats or other possible candidates were observed.

 

What I found to be strange was the lack of air movement around my ear. Had a fluttering insect like a moth been responsible, it would have had to have been close enough to my ear to produce what I experienced, remained adjacent to my ear for the duration of the incident, and it would have had to be large enough to produce the sensation I experienced. The wind was calm and there was no one else around.

 

I've heard every explanation conceivable, yet none have convinced me that what I heard was made by any of the suggested probabilities. To this day I'm perplexed by the event.

 

- The second incident occurred with me and my late girlfriend in the same location. We had been to a family get together that evening and had returned home around 12:30 AM. We mixed a nightcap and went onto the deck. The only light present was again the area light described earlier. We were rather rambunctious and somewhat loud, laughing and cutting up... just having fun. While we were doing so, a loud scream came from very close behind her home. It was a very loud, high-pitched scream/shriek combination that was about 5 seconds in duration. Obviously, we froze and went silent. Just enough time passed for my girlfriend to ask what it was when the sound again permeated the air.

 

Me, being the guy I am, proceeded to let out a "whoop." Again, the same scream went out, only this time it was much longer and even louder. My girlfriend asked me what it was. I told her it was a fox, knowing full well that it wasn't. She was obviously "concerned," and I was trying to keep her from being fearful. I whooped again. This time, we heard what can only be described as the most sinister, guttural, gurgling growl I have ever heard. It was like no other animal sound I've ever heard. It was long in duration and low insofar as frequency. It reminded me of an elephant roar to a degree, being low in frequency with that gurgling effect. However, it sounded like the amount of air volume required to make the noise was elevated in nature as compared to an elephant, like a smaller - although large - creature was producing it. It was a throaty sound... as I earlier described it as being guttural. It was not cat-like, nor was it canine in nature. As I stated earlier, it was a very sinister sound, almost like whatever was producing it was telling us that it was there, it wasn't happy and it wanted us to leave or shut up.

 

At this point, my girlfriend had what we call around here "a come apart." The gig was up, as she stated, "That's not a fox!" I instructed her to retrieve a rather large handgun from inside of the house, which she quickly did.

 

What's odd was the fact that her dog, a rather large doberman that barked at anything it heard or noticed, was completely silent. It just stood in the yard (fenced in) and looked off into the woods. Only a few whimpers were heard from him.

 

I'm not claiming that it was a Bigfoot, but I am saying that it is indeed possible that it was. I am very familiar with the wildlife present in my state. This was nothing I've ever heard. I've searched the web in an effort to identify the growl with no success as of this time. The closest thing I've heard to the screaming shriek was this clip from Stan Courtney's fine collection of sound recordings:

 

http://www.stancourtney.com/sounds/bigfoot/2008.07.22_Scream_01.mp3

 

Truly one perplexing event regarding the flutter and a very concerning situation in regard to the screams and growl. I'll never forget these events.

[SWWASAS]

I recorded a sound that intrigued me on one of my field investigations to an area where sasquatch activity had numerous reports. I was able to record a sound that I thought was very close to a Gorilla Chest beat. It is a slapping Skin on Skin sound. Attached are two sound files one is a Gorilla Chest beat the other is what I recorded between 3:00am and 4:00am on an all night recording adventure.

Thanks Galahad, that was the sound I heard. Too fast to be drumming unless two sticks were used like a snare drummer. More of a slapping sound than drumming. The grouse sound I have heard before but the beat frequency varies considerably with a grouse. What I heard and hear in this recording sounds almost mechanical in origin but you can hear, and would see on a wave analyizer, slight variations in beat frequency. Ruling out, in my analysis, a purely mechanical origin. That points to something animal making the sound rather than a device of some sort. The sound in my case was loud enough to feel my chest resonate with the sound. That may serve to increase the intimidation value. Have you noticed that subwoofers in a movie theatre, during the high intensity scenes, produce a lot of nearly infra sound that you feel in your chest and body. The movie makers know what sets us on edge. R