YEAR: 1992

SEASON: Summer

MONTH: July

STATE: California

COUNTY: Humboldt County

NEAREST TOWN: Scotia

NEAREST ROAD: 101

OBSERVED: While on vacation driving down from Seattle we stopped and camped at KOA Fortuna July,1992. On this trip was my wife and three children.
We decided to get an early start the next day so we could drive through Humboldt Redwoods State Park with little or no traffic to enjoy the landscape without too much distraction. We packed up and drove southbound as we approached an area of Hwy 101 were the Eel River makes a large bend towards the highway I saw movement down by the river. My vantage point was above the animal I saw and I was driving slowly. What I saw was a human like "creature" walking slowly away from the river across a rocky sandbar towards the forest. The color appeared to be a reddish brown. The creature walked with the same apparent gait as the creature seen in the Patterson film. It wasn't a bear, bears don't walk with an apparent human type gait. I talked to my wife after driving several miles down the road and prior to me asking her if she had seen anything unusal she said yes. Later on my daughter who was sitting in the back also said that she saw the same creature. I am a law enforcement officer and know that I saw "Bigfoot" - there is no doubt about it.

ALSO NOTICED: no

OTHER WITNESSES: 2 riding in vehicle looking at scenery going by

OTHER STORIES: no

TIME AND CONDITIONS: Early morning 0630-0700, clear weather , good light

ENVIRONMENT: forest riverbed, rocky

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Tom Yamarone:

I spoke with the witness by phone and have the following to add:
- The family members saw the creature for approx. 10 – 15 seconds at an estimated distance of 400 yards.
- He estimated the height of the animal to be 7 feet and described it as “very husky”.
- He clearly saw the arms swinging as the animal “walked” away from the river towards the forest.