YEAR: 1981

SEASON: Summer

MONTH: July

DATE: 15

STATE: Louisiana

COUNTY: Tangipahoa Parish

LOCATION DETAILS: in a subdivision called Sherl's meadows. It was just being developed and it was in an area by an old cattle crossing bridge over a bayou called yellow water creek

NEAREST TOWN: rural area at the time; 6 miles out of town

NEAREST ROAD: hwy 22 west ( about 1/4 mile away)

OBSERVED: Twice when I was 12 years old I had an encounter. The first time my cousin and I were riding my minibike through a new subdivision just north of the manchac swamp in tangipohoa parish in Louisiana, we saw something about 500 yards away lumbering towards us. It was upright, black, and hairy. I pointed it out to my cousin and we agreed to turn back. We stop a little was while backtracking and looked back and the "thing" was lumbering a little faster towards us in the middle of the road. I accelerated and my cousin fell off. I stopped, he jumped back on and yelled to go. We never looked back and never told anyone for many years. About a month later the same cousin and I were in the woods behind the same subdivision (it was behind our farm)and were returning from the bayou when, along a train a bush shook and a big hairy arm potruted out, grabs some leaves and went back in. It was late in the day and the light was fading so we couldn't see into the bush. We ran the entire 1/4 mile home-full speed. It was the last time my cousin entered the woods again. I still haven't learned my lesson.

I've had some questionable experiences in recent years while in the Manchac swamp. Other people have too, but I didn't have enough to go on to conclusively label mine.

ALSO NOTICED: no birds. no sounds.

OTHER WITNESSES: 2

OTHER STORIES: yeah, but not too many are anxious to tell. My friends son and daughter had a similar experience just a few miles east of there 4 years ago on a rainy night. They wouldn't mind relaying the story.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: great weather, sunny, some clouds.

ENVIRONMENT: sandy soil, mixed decidious and conifers.