YEAR: 2005

SEASON: Fall

MONTH: October

DATE: 1st week in Oct

STATE: Minnesota

COUNTY: Lake County

LOCATION DETAILS: It is on private property. to get to the area from Ely, MN, take Hwy 1 East for about 30 miles, if you hit the Knotted Pine Bar you have gone too far. Any questions about the location feel free to contact me.

NEAREST TOWN: Isabella

NEAREST ROAD: Hwy 1

OBSERVED: My friend and I had a job feeding sled dogs up in Isabella, MN. One night we were out pulling the blocks of meat out of a large walk in freezer (like in restaurants). While we were in the freezer the door slammed shut on us (which was extremely weird as the door was very heavy, up on a 3 foot platform, and angled so it would hang open rather than close). We were both very shaken up as we opened the door. We had a flashlight with and we shined it up towards the trailer, I saw two eyes big as golf balls about 7 feet up shining back at me. When I looked over at my friend I could tell by the look on his face that he had seen the same thing. We went into the feed shed for another flashlight, and when we came back the thing had disappeared.

ALSO NOTICED: Right before the incident all of the 130 dogs started barking at something.

OTHER WITNESSES: There was me and a friend. We were pulling frozen meat out to thaw before we began feeding the dogs.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: It was late at night, probably between 11:00-1:00am

ENVIRONMENT: The property is connected to state forest, with old logging trails which are now snowmobile trails. The Stony River runs through the area.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Paul Paczynski:

Additional information added after speaking to both witnesses:

The dogs went silent after the door slammed and were silent until well after the incident concluded.

The eyes were seen at a distance of about 20 yards. No other details could be seen because the flashlight mentioned was a small LED headlamp and there was very little moonlight on this evening.

The eyes were very large and shined similar to other wild animals with a yellow/green hue.

The 2nd witness said that after they shined the large flashlight from the shed and saw nothing, they retreated to the shed to regroup and retrieve a loaded 357. They stayed in the shed for a few minutes because he wasn't sure his 357 would be enough for an animal that tall. He has lived, hunted and camped in this area and has never seen an animal that could have stood this tall, including moose.

The freezer door is large and very heavy. The night was calm and clear. There was no wind to speak of and for a wind to slam the door it would have to be very strong, witness suggested 60 mph. The freezer door had never slammed on them before or after.

About BFRO Investigator Paul Paczynski:

Certified Public Accountant since 1993. Experienced big game hunter and tracker. Hunted in numerous parts of the US and Canada. Attended 2008 Michigan UP expedition