YEAR: 2008

SEASON: Spring

STATE: Florida

COUNTY: Marion County

LOCATION DETAILS: Just about 2 miles south of county road 316 on dirt road 1 (old name was 67)

NEAREST TOWN: Fort McCoy

NEAREST ROAD: County Road 316, and dirt road 1 (old 67)

OBSERVED: I was leaving a hunting camp and just drove on to the main dirt road and picking up speed and I just came over a small hill and I was looking ahead of me and as always looking for deer or a bear crossing the road. In front of me crossing the road was bigfoot it stopped just off center on the road. I hit the binders, it froze and stood there for just a moment.
Turned and went back into the timber line.

Of course my camera was in the back seat, my cell phone had no signal. I didn't know what else to do. I was scared. I should have drove up to the spot and tracked it into the timber but I didn't. I not told this story to to many people because they wouldn't believe me

OTHER WITNESSES: Just me

TIME AND CONDITIONS: Noon

ENVIRONMENT: Timber and scrub, palmetos, pines

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Cathy Betz:

I spoke to Curtis V over the phone and found him to be sincere, forthright and very knowledgeable about Florida ecology and wildlife.

After leaving his hunt camp at approximately 1130am, Curtis was driving down an unpaved forest road in the Ocala National Forest when he saw an upright figure walk out of the woods 150 yards in front of his vehicle on the left hand side of the road. Curtis immediately slammed on the brakes and watched as the figure stepped onto the road, turned at the waist to look directly at him, then it turned the rest of the way around and walked back into the woods. The entire encounter lasted about 3-5 seconds.

His description of the figure was:
-Dark-brown and covered with hair
-Over seven feet tall
-Weighed over 300lbs
-The head was large and sat directly on the shoulders
-There was no visible neck
-The shoulders were broader than a man’s shoulders
-The arms were longer than a man’s arms and very muscular
-The legs were very muscular and it stood upright the entire time
Curtis stated that he could not make out any facial detail because of the distance. He could not see individual fingers but that the hands appeared to look human.

After the figure disappeared from view Curtis stated that he initially did not move forward. He knew immediately that what he had seen was a Bigfoot, not a bear, and did not know what to expect if he did drive forward.

When he finally did drive up to the spot that he had seen it walk into the woods, Curtis decided that he did not feel safe exiting his vehicle. He did take note of the terrain it walked into and said that it was ‘very thick, too thick to walk through without bulldozing your way in’.

This sighting took place in the Ocala National Forest, which consists of over 600 square miles of pristine wilderness and near the 74-mile long Ocklawaha River. It is also very close to a 2007 Class B vocalization near Fort McCoy, report #29371 , as well as a 1977 sighting by a Baptist Minister, report #728.

About BFRO Investigator Cathy Betz:

Cathy has been a nurse for over 27 years and currently works in a busy ICU. An amateur naturalist, Cathy has been intrigued by the bigfoot phenomenon from an early age.
Attended the following expeditions:
- The 2006 Florida Expedition
- The 2007 North Carolina Expedition
- The 2008 South Florida Expedition
- The 2008 North Florida Expedition
- The 2009 Central Florida Expedition
- The 2009 Utah Expedition
- The 2010 TN Survey Expedition
- The 2011 East Texas Expedition
-The 2012 North FL Expedition
-The 2013 Michigan Upper Peninsula Expedition
For more information, please see the Florida BFRO