YEAR: 1976

SEASON: Fall

MONTH: October

DATE: Friday

STATE: Georgia

COUNTY: Berrien County

LOCATION DETAILS: 2 miles east of Alapaha Ga on 82 hwy right on Ocilla road 500 ft right on dirt road (farm road) then one & half miles.

NEAREST TOWN: Alapaha,Ga

NEAREST ROAD: US HWY 82

OBSERVED: I will start this with what my uncle had always told me and my father about what he called the monkey people (thought he was B.S.). On the second weekend in Oct. 1976 First day of bird hunting season I had stopped in the morning and set 4 catfish lines on the Alapaha river where it joined my uncles land (2 miles from Alapaha Ga. on US Hwy 82 east) This area is known as the [little lot] by local old timers. After I had finished hunting at just about dark - 7PM or so.I stopped back to see if I had any catfish this is on a winding private dirt at least a mile and a half from my uncles home. I had left my gun in the truck and only had my pocket knife to cut the lines-as I worked with the lines I heard a sound I had never heard before very deep very loud breathing then I smelled a strange smell the smell made me feel uneasy I was unable to see anything but as I backed towards the truck it moved out into a clearing and I was able to see it from about 10 feet. At around 6 foot tall it looked wet as if it had came from the river it also had green river scum on its left leg and side. It stopped dead still when it seen me and I wasted no time getting the hell out of there.

ALSO NOTICED: When I told my uncle his reply was if that one shocked me he had seen as many as 3 at a time and he thought they used the river to get around and that they had never tried to harm him and had only stole sweet corn or watermelons.

OTHER WITNESSES: no

OTHER STORIES: There have been reports in the Tifton Gazette mostly making fun of folks who reported it .

TIME AND CONDITIONS: Around 7 pm

ENVIRONMENT: Back field that joins river

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Leigh Culver:

The witness recounted his experience as described in the report. The witness was in the process of laying several catfish lines and his intention was to go bird hunting shortly thereafter. While laying the lines he heard a very “loud and raspy” breathing. He described the breathing as being similar to the “breathing that a cow makes when calving.” The witness, knowing that black bear frequent the area turned to see what was making the noise. A very powerful stench-like smell was also present. The witness stated that the smell alone was such as to make one want to immediately leave the area.

The witness stated that what he saw did not look like the sasquatch as presented in the Patterson-Gimlin film. What he saw was described as being more “like a man covered in fur.” He said that the creature’s forehead was hairless and had a prominent brow-ridge with a wide nose. The eyes were very white and were the most prominent feature remembered by the witness. The body was covered in a “mousy brown” colored hair that was wet and matted. The upper body of the torso was wider and broader than the rest of the body, as well as, longer than the legs. The left leg was covered in river algae. The arms looked “big and heavy.” The witness, being armed only with a pocket knife immediately left the area.

The witness and his brother returned to the site the following morning to look for tracks. None were found. They were, however, able to estimate the height of the animal due to it’s standing near a tree branch from which the witness and his brother were able to measure the height from. They estimated the animal’s height as being around six feet. The witness has hunted and fished this area since about age 14. Since the encounter he has never again hunted or fished the area.

The witness, also, recounted some of the experiences as described by his uncle (now deceased) who had lived in the immediate area since the 1930s. In brief, his uncle had stated numerous times that he has seen these animals, sometimes, in small groups. They, apparently, would often steal melons and sweet corn from his farm. The goats or chickens, that were also kept there, were never molested. His uncle felt that the animals passed through the area between spring and autumn, as it was during these times, that he would encounter them.

According to the witness, there has been, at least one other sighting in this same area that was published, circa 1980, in the Tifton Gazette, a local area newspaper. The witness of that sighting was apparently a Georgia Power lineman who apparently had an encounter that occurred about a mile or so from where the above reported incident happened.