YEAR: 1980-81?

SEASON: Summer

MONTH: July

PROVINCE: British Columbia

COUNTRY: Canada

LOCATION DETAILS: Take Hwy 11 7 km east until you get to Sylvester Road. Turn left on to Sylvester and follow it until you reach McConnell Road. Turn left on McConnell and follow the road west until you reach Hartley Rd. Follow Hartley Rd. north until you reach Miracle Valley compound. Access road is on the left side 100-200 metres inside the compound.

NEAREST TOWN: Mission

NEAREST ROAD: Hartley Road

OBSERVED: I am a 41 year old high school teacher, but I have had a passing interest in cryptozoology with a particular emphasis on Sasquatch and all his/her relatives.

One story I can personally relate was an encounter I believe I had with "something" when I was 14 or 15.

During the summer of 1981, I visited with family friends of ours who lived close to Miracle Valley at the end of Stave Lake / McConnell Creek area (a detox centre and retreat run by the Salvation Army). A small group of ours (myself, my brother, our friend "C" and his father and their Lab dog) set out to take the edge off the summer mid-morning & afternoon heat with a swim in the river down a gravel forestry access road. The road was about 6 km from the river and we alternated between getting a ride on our friend's dad's motorcycle and walking. "B" (my friend's dad) would ferry the 3 of us to the river.

After an hour or two of swimming, we started the walk back. During this time, I started to get a funny feeling we were being watched or paced. C (my friend) and I were walking ahead and we would occassionaly hear snapping of branches or rustling of bushes as we walked along the road. C started to feel awkward too. We both thought it could be some local kids having fun or perhaps some deer or other wildlife that live in the area. We crossed a strip of logged out area where the hydro lines were strung (approx 60-80m across) which ran NE-SW along the area. We noticed that the snapping and rustling obviously stopped but the feeling of being watched never did.

As we re-emerged into the forest with about 1/2 km left to the main paved street (Hartley Road), the activity paralleling us increased in frequency and strength. Thinking the local kids were continuing their little joke, we started yelling at the general area to come out and "Get lost, you jerks!" but nobody stepped out. C started to throw rocks at the general area of the bushes on the right-hand side of the road and my brother and myself joined in. What scared the hell out of us was that the rocks were answered with rocks being thrown BACK at us! The dog began to bark and growl (which Nobby rarely, if ever, did!) This coupled with a growling/grunting sound and an overwhelming urge to leave the area NOW ended the encounter. We ran out of the area as fast as we could and took refuge at the S.A. activity centre a few hundred metres up the road. C's dad came looking for us and asked us why we were here and we told him what had happened (except for the rock throwing). He didn't disbelieve us but he thought it was probably a bear.

OTHER WITNESSES: Myself & 2 other witnesses (15 yrs old & 12 years old respectively)

OTHER STORIES: Many recent vocalizations further up the valley near Chehalus & Harrison rivers 2006. Deroche encounters in 2002 & 2003. Area is a well-know hotspot for BF encounters / reports.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: 3pm. Clear. Broad daylight with liitle if any clouds visible. Hadn't rained for at least a week.

ENVIRONMENT: Heavily-wooded conifer forest area; mostly second-growth and cleared for hydro right-of-way. Area somewhat hilly. Nestled in Fraser Valley between Coast mtns.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Blaine McMillan :

I spoke to the witness by telephone and he clarified the following details:

On the way back home from swimming the witness stated that his group had heard something bipedal parallel them. It walked as they walked and stopped when they stopped. After a while the subject was challenged by the group with vocalizations and rock throwing and it responded with grunts/growls and rock throwing. The group of friends never actually saw a sasquatch during this encounter but they all shared the feeling that they were being watched or observed. The witness informed me that it felt as if they were being escorted out of the area and when the rocks were thrown back at them his group ran for safety.

The area of the Fraser Valley where this incident occurred does have a history of both Class A and Class B sightings that continue to this day.

About BFRO Investigator Blaine McMillan :

• Retired Canadian Military (Reg Force) Safety Systems / Aviation technician with experience fighters and various SAR platforms. Author of Wood Knocks and Tossed Rocks:Searching for Sasquatch with the BFRO


• Married with two young sons. An avid camper, hunter and fisherman.


• Holds a BA in Criminology from the University of Manitoba, courses in Alternate Dispute Resolution, Anthropology and Political Science


• Attended the BFRO BC Expeditions in August of 2005, 2006, 2012 as well as Vancouver Island 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014.


• Organized the 2007, 2008 Vancouver Island as well as 2009 North Vancouver Island Expeditions.


• Author of "Woodknocks and Tossed Rocks: Searching for Sasquatch with the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization.