YEAR: 1993-94

SEASON: Fall

MONTH: September

DATE: 1-7

PROVINCE: Ontario

COUNTRY: Canada

LOCATION DETAILS: Red Gut Bay, Rainy Lake, ONT, Canada

NEAREST TOWN: 45 kms east of Fort Frances

NEAREST ROAD: Kings Highway 11-71

OBSERVED: What I saw when I was 14 years old is still hard to believe to this very day, it was around the first week of September I headed out to do some bird hunting like I had done years before with my grandfather. On this day he figured that I was old enough and wise enough to do this on my own now. So I went to the same old skidder trails that I have hunted since I can remember. I went out at approx: 7:00am with my 410 shot gun and my little mixed dog which was very aggressive and had run ins with bears, moose deer and everything else that lives through out the bush in northern Ontario {Red Gut Bay, Rainy Lake} since we were both young in the vast forest I had been hunting for about an hour or two with no results {Grouse} very odd for these trails which had always carried a large population of birds. I tried three or four different trails when my dog began to act very nervous and skittish on the fourth and most northerly trail, I knew something was near most likely a bear since I was starting to smell what I can only describe as a wet dog mixed with a garbage smell, it was more intense the farther up I walked the trail. With in seconds my mean little hunting dog which would and had chased or fought off anything we had come across before because she was so protective of me had suddenly took off like a greyhound in a race down back the trail when I had just started to call her name "Tina" when I heard the tall grass about three feet high in those grown over trails begin to shuffle when what I will say was a huge man-like creature which was at least twice as big and tall as any bear I had seen before or seen since. This, what I can now call a "Bigfoot" stood up, glanced at me for a second then calmly crossed into the other side of the trail in what I think was maybe two or three steps. I was 6 feet tall at that time it would have taken me half a dozen or so steps to cover that kind of ground with old logs and rocks hidden under that grass. It made almost no noise as it did so. The most outstanding features on this creature was the size of it's upper body but mostly the dark almost grayish black eyes, large ridges over its eyes were the eye brows would be, big brownish red lips, yes I was this close and scared to death even to scared to think about running or using the shotgun that was in my hands. I think I stood there for a minute or so I think maybe longer frozen with fear, the thing that may have snapped me out of this was where is my dog, my best friend that had took off so quickly. On my very fast way back down the trail I heard large branches being broke as if it was running from me as fast as I was from it. I asked myself a hundred times what the hell that could have been, now I am certain it was a Bigfoot, with it's reddish black hair or fur and walking upright with human features there was no way it could be anything else period! I have kept this secret for a long time not even telling my grandparents when I got back to the cabins. I was so stressed about this that I did not hunt for two years after that, and have never went back to those trails since.

ALSO NOTICED: bad smell, really bad

OTHER WITNESSES: no

OTHER STORIES: Only on your website, but I'm just learning more on the computer

TIME AND CONDITIONS: Approx time 8:30-9:00am weather was wet and damp visibility was great

ENVIRONMENT: Thick pine forest, with small rock faces, very remote part of Rainy Lake

Follow-up investigation report:

The witness was staying at his grandfather's cabin in Red Gut Bay. He took his dog and went grouse hunting on Indian Island which is situated on Rainy Lake not far from the cabin. He used a long abandoned trail that lead from the waters edge into the interior of the island. Since the trail has not been used for many years, grass about 3 feet high has grown over it. The area is totally secluded and contains all sorts of game such as moose, deer, bear, lynx, rabbits, skunks and lots of blueberry and raspberry bushes.

When the witness and his dog came upon the creature, he said that he must have startled it because it had the look of "surprise" on its face. He froze in his tracks when he saw this creature rise up from the left side of the trail where the grass meets the brush. He thinks it was possibly lying down or sitting. It rose up and just looked at him. He was approximately 20 - 30 feet from it and describes it as follows:

- approximately 8 feet tall
- 500 - 600 lbs.
- heavy thick torso
- massive defined muscles in its arms, shoulders and chest
- no neck
- reddish/black hair all over the body
- dark leathery face with short, patchy 1" hair all over the face except the nose, eyes and lips
- dark, sunken "lifeless" eyes with a pronounced brow
- thick reddish/brown lips
- wide slightly pug nose
- smelled of wet dog and garbage
- leaves and twigs stuck in its hair leaving an ungroomed appearance.

The duration of the encounter was about 5 seconds and during that time it made no sound. It just strode across the trail from left to right and then into the brush. He remembers it swinging its heavy arms as it walked, reminding the witness of the "Patterson" footage. The witness then ran back down the trail from where he came and he could hear the creature running in the opposite direction snapping and breaking branches as it ran through the brush.