YEAR: 1993

SEASON: Summer

MONTH: September

DATE: 4

STATE: Arizona

COUNTY: Greenlee County

NEAREST TOWN: Alpine

NEAREST ROAD: Highway 666 (191)

OBSERVED: I was archery deer hunting in September 1993, when I had a visual encounter with this creature. Around 7:00 a.m., I was slowly stalking down a hiking trail in a heavily wooded area when I began to feel extremely uneasy and almost unnerved. I had the intense feeling that I was being watched and/or followed. There were no other people in the area other than my hunting companions and they were not in this general vicinity. I kept moving along the trail literally one step at a time, all the while anxiously looking around for the source of my uneasiness. After about 25 minutes, I was standing on the trail just looking behind me when I saw this creature walking rapidly down the same trail towards me. I watched it walk closer and closer for about 6 - 8 seconds (it seemed like minutes) then when we were about 70 - 80 yards apart, it turned 90 degrees from the trail and disappeared over a ridge. I followed it to the top of the ridge to try and get another look at it, but when I heard a sound that can only be described as a cross between a grunt and throat clearing, I decided I had enough and left the area.

I returned to the area 6 weeks later to novicely investigate and came across what I can best determine to be a posssible bed. The following year, while hunting the same area I came across an abandoned shelter that has no human signs as far as being built or utilized.

ALSO NOTICED: Yes,
-possible bed
-possible shelter
-suspicious trees broken off about 5 feet high

OTHER WITNESSES: No other witnesses to the sighting, but several witnesses to the possible evidence.

OTHER STORIES: I've heard of other sightings from third party individuals.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: 7:00 a.m.

ENVIRONMENT: 9100 feet in elevation, mountainous pine and aspen forest.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Stan Courtney:

I spoke with the witness by phone. He stated that before his brief encounter that he had experienced a very uneasy feeling and thought that there was some type of large animal in the area.

He described the animal as being about six and a half feet tall, dark brown in color and weighing perhaps three hundred pounds.

About BFRO Investigator Stan Courtney:

Stan Courtney has a special interest in wildlife audio recording. He has attended numerous BFRO Expeditions. See Stan's blog StanCourtney.com for recordings he has collected over the years.

Stan Courtney can be reached at [email protected]