YEAR: 1972

SEASON: Fall

STATE: Arkansas

COUNTY: Baxter County

LOCATION DETAILS: Approximately 10 miles south of Mountain Home AR. Off of Hwy 5, close to the northern fringe of the Ozark National Forest.

NEAREST TOWN: Mountain Home

NEAREST ROAD: Hwy 5

OBSERVED: I was standing about 10 feet down in the forest around a deep ravine not really too far from the house but it was right next to a patch of woods going back further south into the national forest. (The narrow patch of woods then stretched on northward.)

Leaves were on the ground. That was the first thing that impinged on my consciousness -- the sound of something walking through leaves. It was a measured long tread, I could tell. I started really looking around trying to see what was making those sounds. (I was much braver back then.)

Then over on the other side of the ravine close to the bottom but definitely walking uphill, I saw it. For all of about three seconds, seemed like longer at the time, and about 50-100 yards away. It was very large and I could see that it was hairy. I could see the ground between it's moving legs, and some vague image of arms, but not the head. Some forest branch obscured my view of the very top part of the body. I could tell it was walking upright uphill. It wasn't a bear; it was striding with a purpose up the hill on the other side. It was quickly out of sight.

Now I know I wasn't thinking clearly, because I decided I had to try to get a better look at it. So I ran as quickly as I could around the rim of the ravine, since it's origins began in our front yard (not the best playground I can tell you). Anyway, it didn't take me long to reach the other side and move down into the woods slightly to look around and see if I could find it again. I did not see it again. I was there for only a minute or so when it suddenly occurred to me that I didn't hear anything anymore at all, no sound, no birds, no nothing, and fear like I'd never known before hit me and I went running practically screaming back to the house for mother.

I told her what I'd seen and she, of course, did not believe me, though she told me to never tell anyone else the story. For a long time I didn't tell anyone, except family members, but they didn't believe. It didn't help that only one or two people since then truly believe that I saw a BigFoot. Since then I have lots of trouble going out alone in the woods. While no one actually calls you a liar, they look skeptical and you can tell they either think you'd been drinking/drugging or saw a bear.

ALSO NOTICED: None, but then I kept well out of the woods after that unless I was with my father or brother.

OTHER WITNESSES: I think I'd just gotten home from school and was wandering around outside after playing with my dog or something. I was a sophomore in high school, but rather sheltered and did not run around or do any partying in those days. We had just moved there that summer. My parents kept close tabs on me and I was into horses, dogs, cats, rabbits, books, etc.

ENVIRONMENT: Deciduous forest, small ravine that flattened out quickly with patch of wooded area stretching through cleared pasture land. You'd have some woods then some clear spots then more woods. It was north central Arkansas -- the Ozarks -- lots of woods. I don't know anything about its elevation and longitude or latitude.

• Explanation of the report classification system
• Submit a report for the sightings database
• Please send any comments or inquiries to ContactUs@BFRO.net