YEAR: 2004-2005

SEASON: Fall

MONTH: October

DATE: 2004-2005

STATE: Florida

COUNTY: Polk County

LOCATION DETAILS: [Edited - Near the border of Polk and Hillsborough Counties]

NEAREST TOWN: Mulberry

NEAREST ROAD: Hwy 60

OBSERVED: It started last year when it was cool enough to sit around a fire.
My husband, I and some nieghbors heard a growl or deep groan that we had never heard before coming from the woods behind our properties.

The next night it was late. My husband and I were sitting around the fire and we heard what sounded like something large running and knocking down trees. My husband said, "That was no hog or deer. They dont sound ike that." We ran inside the house as it got closer to us.

Later that week I heard our dog whinning and barking. I looked out the back door window and I saw it. It was standing at the fence line looking in the back yard towards the fire. It was the biggest scarriest thing I've ever seen.

I quitely walked away from the window and took my dog with me, in fear that the barking would bring it in closer. I burried my head under my blankets.

We told people about it and no one believes us. It seems the fire brings it in.

This year we are having fires again already. Late at night about 12-2am sitting by the fires the noises are back.

I would love for someone to come and see if they can find this thing. It is very swampy behind us. You can literally get lost back there.

Description of it: About 8-9' tall, Reddish brown colored hair, hairy all over, arms that literally hung to the knees and it stood slightly crouched. It was as if it was observing us. When it comes around there's a very pungent smell. Almost like a combination of dirty swamp water and a skunk. It's eyes are very dark almost empy looking. Width of it's body was about 4' give or take.

If it ain't a bigfoot... please tell me what it is!

ALSO NOTICED: The owls quit hooting before and the dogs freaked out along with that pungent smell I had mentioned above.

OTHER WITNESSES: First incident: My huband, and ex-neighbors and I a total of 4 people.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: late night between the hours of 10 to 3am

ENVIRONMENT: Very wet, swampy. Some thick, some thin areas throughout.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator PSM:

I contacted the witnesses by phone on 11/13/05, speaking mainly with the wife. I was told that they had another possible encounter shortly after 10/24/05 after the last hurricane came through.

The wife also added they had heard howling and wood knocks. They didn't mention this initially, thinking that they had nothing to do with the encounter.

The husband noted that their dog, whom he said was very hard to spook, had cowered on the porch when the wife had seen the creature.

This location will be checked out by Florida BFRO investigators.

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11/26/05:The couple contacted me about a hog hunting trip the day before Thanksgiving. While hunting about a half of a mile into the woods behind their house they experienced wood knocks and a bluff charge, but never saw the creature.

They also told me about their neighbors hearing whoops on several different nights.

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1/7/06:Myself and another BFRO investigator visited the sites where the witnesses had their encounters. While we didn't see anything out of the ordinary, we did hear moans off in the distance and a howl further off in the distance later that night.

About BFRO Investigator PSM:

PSM is a Deputy Sheriff and attended the 2005 and 2006 Florida Expeditions.
He will also be attending the 2008 North Florida Expedition.