YEAR: 2012

SEASON: Summer

MONTH: August

DATE: 10

STATE: Missouri

COUNTY: Lafayette County

LOCATION DETAILS: Please do not include exact directions in report online.

NEAREST TOWN: Oak Grove MO

OBSERVED: My husband and I were watching a movie in his brother's barn, where we have set up a movie projector and screen. It was during the last half of the second movie, when we started hearing loud splashing noises coming from the lake, not far from the opening of the barn door, where we were sitting. My husband asked if I heard that, and I said "yeah, it is probably fish jumping, or maybe a raccoon or something." We continued to watch the movie, still hearing loud splashing noises. As the splashing continued, it sounded too big and noisy to be fish jumping. It sounded like something large walking along the shore. When the movie was over, my husband went up into the loft of the barn to disconnect the projector and computer. I stood at the barn entrance, trying to see out towards the lake and see if I could see anything. While trying to peer out into the dark, I suddenly felt very uneasy, like I was being watched. The hairs at the back of my neck stood up, and I said to my husband "I really want to you to come back down here!!" Now, I keep horses at my brother-in-laws place, and I am out there all the time, all hours of the day and night. I am very familiar with this property and the surrounding area, and have never felt uneasy like that before.
When my husband came back down, I handed him a small flashlight and asked him to shine the light down towards where the splashing noises were coming from. He took the flashlight and walked down to the water's edge. When he started walking towards the water, the noises stopped. Then he shined the flashlight and there was nothing. I was watching still from the barn. After a second or two, I heard the noises further down to my right. When my husband would shine the light, the noises would stop, then continue in a different area of the lakeshore. He came back to the barn and said he wasn't sure what was going on, but that it "definitely was not normal." We both felt a little creeped out, and decided to go home.
The next morning, I went to the barn to take care of my horses, and decided to look around the lake shore area and see if I could find any tracks or evidence of what was going on down there. I came across a very large footprint!! I stood there staring at it for a few minutes, trying to figure out if I was really looking at what I thought I was looking at. It looks human in shape, but very large. My husband wears a size 14 mens, and it was much bigger than his foot. There were other prints that appeared to be partial, like a heel impression, a half footprint, etc. But this one was the only one that I could not reason off as anything else but perhaps a Bigfoot footprint! Especially when coupled with the events of the night before.

OTHER WITNESSES: My husband heard the noises, My brother in law, and his wife also saw the footprint. We tried making a cast of it, it broke in half while trying to get it out, but still have the cast.

OTHER STORIES: A few years ago, my neice, who lives at this property, told a story about seeing what looked like "a big gorilla carrying a deer over it's back". My brother in law, who owns the property, has heard wood knocking and screaming type calls before.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: heard the splashing noises about 11:00 to 12:30 at night.
found footprint around 11 the next morning.

ENVIRONMENT: 10 acre lake on property, wooded areas surrounding. Nature preserve about a half mile down the road. Middle of drought in the summer.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Carter Buschardt:

I went to the site and interviewed the original witnesses, as well as the brother-in-law, wife, and their daughter, actual owners of the property. They were all lucid, remembered things clearly and related them to me very matter of factly with no embellishment. All members of the family were down to earth, well-spoken, and very open to sharing all experiences. Though this started as one reported event, as we spoke, it became obvious there has been ongoing activity at this location for a seven year period. I will add to the original reported event the information I gathered as we spoke in detail, then I will also add the information from the actual owners of the property by pasting his email verbatim. This email dialogue relates the ongoing activity over the past seven years. I personally viewed and photographed the print AND cast, as well as gathered other photos relevant to the original report. I was also provided photos of the cast and print by the owner, who was quite meticulous in his recollections and photo evidence.

Photo of the print:



Photo of the casting:



Here is the additional info from the original witness to add to this report.

When he went out to flash the light on the source of the splashing, it stopped. It was standing in the water behind a willow tree that was on the shoreline, so it was hidden from view. There was also a bit of fog rising from the lake. When that splashing stopped, another began splashing appx 75 yards to the east. When he shined his light at the direction of that sound, it stopped, and began again in the original location, coming from something in the lake and behind the willow tree. He had a very powerful flashlight, but vision was hampered by the distance and fog. I have photos of both locations. This went on, going back and forth, for several minutes.

I will now add the email from the owner that is cut and pasted into this report. Some of it is a repeat of the original report, but it is in context. It is his words verbatim:

"The night the encounter was reported by A., W. and I were on our way back from seeing a movie. S. and A. were watching movies, projected in the barn, with a large surround sound system. They experienced a sense of uneasiness, and also heard splashing, knocking, and observed the animals acting strangely. Specifically, at a point of particular unease, a horse that was in the barn in a stall went outside, into the corral, only to return quickly, snorting as if frightened. The dogs, staying distant from the barn, began barking as well. Splashing was occurring in different areas of the lake, and what sounded like footsteps, large ones, in the water continued until flashlights were used. The following day, when A. found the foot prints, she called me to show them to me, which is when I went on a bit of a wild goose chase to find something to make the casting with. It was about 3 years ago when S., my daughter, saw a sasquatch, during a rain storm, under an apple tree, carrying something that might have been a deer carcass on its back. Since moving here 7 years ago, we have had seasonally consistent vocalizations (howls and chatter) and wood knocks. We have found a deer carcass in the woods that seemed to be killed and consumed in the fashion described (broken and torn off legs). And we have periodically had feelings of "being watched" or "getting spooked" when walking around our property, even in well lit areas, at night. All told, my entire family (5 of us) have heard this stuff going on. A. and S., of course. Other friends of ours have heard vocalizations as well. As is consistent with other reports, children laughing and playing outside seem to cause some curiosity, and even my kids now will sometimes do a call and get a response."

They have also reported that on occasion, the horses will appear to be spooked by an unseen entity, and there are no known predators in the are that would make the horses react in fright. There is also a state nature reserve less than a mile up the road, which easily connects to their property via a creek and woods. Perfect habitat. I will add there were two other prints, but they had been obscured and all that was left was the heel. The measurements all coincided with the original print. The sightings and experiences have been going on at this location for about 7 years. Although the term habituation can take on a few different meanings, with the exception of feeding and personal interaction, there does appear to be an ongoing visitation experience.

About BFRO Investigator Carter Buschardt:

Carter is originally from Texas & moved to Missouri in 1988. Professional drummer for 20 years. Improv & sketch comic and writer for 5 years. Lighting technician for major touring groups for several years. Experienced outdoorsman and was a trained investigator for MUFON. Studied Herpetology in college. Longtime special interest in Sasquatch long term habituation, burial research, infra sound, language & stick structures. He led three Missouri BFRO Public Expeditions:, 2012 & 2013 & 2014. Led public expedition for BFRO in Illinois in 2019.Participated in Iowa, 2012 Illinois. Michigan 2016. Private Expeditions: Illinois 2011, 2012, 2013. Missouri 2011, 2012 (3) 2013(2) 2014. Iowa 2012, 2014 & 2015. Consulted on two Animal Planet Finding Bigfoot TV shows. Expedition leader in Missouri 2013 (1) & 2014 (2) & Illinois Expedition 2019 (1). Led night ops on numerous BFRO expeditions. Hosted a public Town Hall meeting in Missouri in 2017.