YEAR: 1982

SEASON: Fall

MONTH: October

DATE: 20

STATE: Oregon

COUNTY: Polk County

LOCATION DETAILS: About five miles south of Hwy 22 on an old logging dirt road. We were camping on the western most side of Polk County.

NEAREST TOWN: Dallas, OR

NEAREST ROAD: Hwy 22

OBSERVED: I felt uneasy the entire morning. I felt as if I were being watched. I had left camp alone and heavily armed. My friend and I were on an Elk hunting trip. As I walked through the forest, I found myself looking back over my shoulder for no apparent reason other than feeling like I was being followed.

I stopped by the creek to watch the salmon and have a bite to eat. As I was eating I was watching a clear-cut area where the power lines ran down ridge. This clear cut was about seventy-five yards wide and was covered with light colored grass about knee high (2 feet). I glanced down the clear cut just as something large, dark and upright moved across from left to right. It took this thing about ten seconds to cross. It was about two hundred yards away from me. It disappeared into the trees beyond the clear cut. I thought at first it might be another hunter, but dismissed that thought when I thought about the fact that it was all dark colored and didn't appear to be carrying or packing anything. After it crossed, I picked up my rifle and scanned the area where I had last seen it. I saw nothing and put the rifle down and resumed eating.

Moments later as I was watching the point where it had disappeared, it came back out. This time it was moving back to where it had first come from (from right to left). I got my scope on it, as it entered the forest again. I had a 9X scope. I was able to determine it was hairy and resembled a large man (est. 8ft tall). I could not make out any facial detail. I'm sure it did not know that I was watching it.

I'm a twenty-four year career Army Veteran. At the time I was a Staff Sergeant with twelve years of service. I was trained in survival techniques and as a scout for a number of years; I could determine distance and area details better than most civilian men.

This time I kept my scope on the point where I last saw it enter the woods. It came back out only this time it had a partner! The second creature was about half the size of the first. It looked just like the first creature only smaller. With the big one leading, they both crossed the clear cut and disappeared into the forest.

I went back to base camp and told my friend about it and he replied with "that explains why there's not game in the area.” My friend was a retired Green Beret Major. He suggested we pack up and move to a new location far from the one we were in. We made no attempt to track the creatures. I was all for leaving!

OTHER WITNESSES: None

OTHER STORIES: Nothing heard, but my friend is a sixth generation Oregonian and later told me that he had heard his relatives talk about Bigfoot. When I told my friend about my encounter, he was not surprised and responded rather matter of factly.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: Mid morning, mild temperature,clear and sunny

ENVIRONMENT: Heavy pine forest thick with high Buck Brush and heavily wooded with tall pine trees. Large creek (about thirty yards wide) passes through this area. Salmon were running up stream. I estimate the sighting location to be about forty miles from the coast. The area was also hilly with steep ravines and high ridges. Power lines with tall towers ran east / west.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Chris Minniear:

I spoke with the witness who now lives in California by phone for over an hour and can add the following details to his account:

The witness was following a clearing under power lines. A creek runs parallel to the lines for a short distance then cuts across the clearing. The animal was crossing near to where the power lines cross the creek. The general area is a patchwork of trees and clear cuts.

The first animal was over 7’ tall with broad shoulders 400 to 500 pounds. It was “thin and muscular” with a “pipe-like trunk” and it was covered in black hair that was “not long, maybe four inches” that appeared “groomed and shiny.” Although he only saw its face in profile through the scope, he could see some facial skin that also appeared black. It had a pointed head. The animal’s arms were long and the legs appeared like slender human legs. No mammary glands were noted.

The animal’s smooth gait was purposeful and its head remained focused forward. The arms swung, but not overly exaggerated; the posture was bent slightly forward. It took five seconds for the animal to cross approximately seventy five yards.

He wanted it to be a bear but could not convince himself that it was. “No way it’s a bear.” He thought, “I’m looking at a legend.”

The second animal was a smaller version of the first (about half the size) and walked directly behind. His impression was that they were parent and child. He believes that they knew he and his partner were in the area hunting and the adult was being cautious enough to scout ahead before taking the child across the open ground. At no point did the animals look towards him.

The witness was “shook up” and having a gun did not make him feel safer. The animals crossed in front of his direction of travel. He was unsure of what to do, so he sat there for over an hour contemplating. He decided to backtrack and take a different route back to camp where he sat with his rifle on his lap until his partner arrived. They left the next morning cutting their hunting trip short by three days.

Of interest, an hour prior to his sighting the witness came upon a dozen salmon that were lying on the shore up to ten feet away from the creek. “Eggs were scattered on the ground. Some fish still had eggs in them as I tested. They did not appear to be eaten on, but some heads were crushed as if they were possibly stepped on.”

About BFRO Investigator Chris Minniear:

Chris Minniear lives in and enjoys the great outdoors of Oregon and has had an interest in Bigfoot since childhood. He attended the 2008 Oregon and Northern California, 2009 Northern California Expeditions and cast prints of the London Tracks. In 2009 he had a Class B night sighting that will be featured on Animal Planet's-Finding Bigfoot.