YEAR: 1972

SEASON: Fall

MONTH: October

DATE: ?

STATE: Idaho

COUNTY: Benewah County

NEAREST TOWN: clarkia id.

NEAREST ROAD: mary's creek road

OBSERVED: This happened to my dad in 1972.my mom and dad went hunting in a place called the incline,by clarkia,id.my mom didn't carry a rifle she just went with my dad for the exercise. anyway as they walked down the trail they met up with a highly excited hunter who was almost running towards them announcing that he had just jumped a black elk.my dad thought that was pretty strange as the unknown man ran by.he didn't dwell on what was said until later.my dad and mom came to a small clearing in some very dense forest and some movement caught my dad's eye.he had a 308 with a 3x9 scope on it,it was set on 3 power at the time.he pulled up to have a look and at about 75yds. away a tall, black, muscular, hairy, creature was standing behind a small tree with it's hand wrapped around it staring straight at my dad.he said it's domed head took up a good quarter of the scope.he said the things gaze was inhuman and he started to shake uncontrolably.he looked at it for a good minute and a half ,the thing stood there like a statue the entire time he was looking at it.he then dropped the thing from view and then pulled back on it and it was gone.he didn't want to alarm my mom who had no idea what had just happened so he told her they better be going and off they went,back to the truck and then home.my dad said he didn't like the things eyes.he finally told me this story a few years ago.he said it was highly intelligent looking,no neck.head set low between the massive shoulders,domed head,long coal black hair;shorter on the face area,he could see it's massive chest rise and fall with every breath it took,my dad estimated it at about 10ft. tall.the things hand was wrapped around a approx.6inch dia.tree and it's thumb and index finger were touching.it made no noise.he said it probably wasn't much of a plant eater due to his seeing a hint of teeth protuding from it's mouth.it changed my dad after he saw this thing.he has never been the same since.he used to be quite an outdoorsman.he quit hunting,dirt bike riding and camping immeadeatly after this incident happened.he does not talk about it at all.he said if things like that are out there he doesn't need to be out there.

ALSO NOTICED: before-the man saying he had jumped a black elk.during-the sheer size of the creature was overwhelming

OTHER WITNESSES: no my mom wasn't told until later on.

OTHER STORIES: no in other places close to it

TIME AND CONDITIONS: a nice fall morning

ENVIRONMENT: dense forest,very steep and remote

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Caroline Curtis:

I spoke to the son at length by phone. He was fourteen years old at the time and wasn't told the whole story about what happened that day until years later.

When we discussed the 10 ft. tall estimate, he explained that his Dad worked with lumber and cut boards for 20 years. He was very confident that his Dad had a good sense of height. Having recently visited the area with 5400 ft. steep, rocky and remote canyons, he feels it is an ideal spot for such a creature to live undetected.

We also talked about an experience he and his buddy had while hunting elk in the area. They were the only ones to make tracks in the 8-inch deep snow with four-wheelers. His buddy walked down one ridge and he walked down another and they met up later that morning. His buddy said he had not seen any elk but had seen a few deer and then asked if he was throwing snowballs at him. At the time he just said no and he continued to hunt.

About BFRO Investigator Caroline Curtis:

• Worked as an Assistant to a Circuit Court Judge in Florida for thirteen years
• An avid outdoorswoman, growing up in the UP of Michigan on a family-owned fishing and hunting resort
• Certified Visual Tracker, Level 1
• Attended and assisted with numerous public and private BFRO expeditions
• She and the Florida BFRO organized South Florida Expedition 2008, North Florida Expedition 2008 and Central Florida Expedition in 2009.
  
• She and the Michigan BFRO organized the Lower-Michigan Expedition in 2011, Michigan UP Expeditions in 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018 and Wisconsin 2018
• BFRO Secretary for almost 20 years

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