YEAR: 2009

SEASON: Summer

MONTH: June

DATE: 22

STATE: New York

COUNTY: Dutchess County

LOCATION DETAILS: From the Rhinecliff Bridge heading towards Rhinebeck, go straight at the first light. Turn right at the second light, and drive until you see another light in an intersection. Make a left at the intersection, and Pilgrim's Progress is the first right on that road.

NEAREST TOWN: Rhinebeck

NEAREST ROAD: Pilgrim's Progress Road

OBSERVED: I was driving on a backroad in Rhinebeck, NY. I was heading to a rehearsal at the Rhinebeck Center of Performing Arts at about 6 :30 in the evening. The road is called Pilgrims Progress Road. While I was driving on this road, I passed a 20 mph road sign because it's a sharp right turn, but on the same road. The road is very curvy. I passed this turn, and in the middle of the road was a Hannaford bag with an open cereal box, and a log placed in the bag. I had to go in the left lane to miss the bag. As I passed the bag, something darted behind my car from the left. I looked in my rear view mirror, and saw this big, black thing right where the bag was. At first, I thought it was a bear because it looked like it was on all fours. I kept driving, looking in my rear view mirror. After a few seconds, it was out of my vision. I kept driving down the road until I pulled into a driveway on the right, and turned around to see what it was. As I got to the location where the bag was, I noticed the bag was missing. I kept driving for about 0.2 miles down the road, past the 20 mph sign. As I turned, I saw something walking on two feet about 50 yards in front of my car. It was walking on the side of the road. I could see that it was definitely not a bear. It was black, and it looked as if the hair was short. It's back was towards me, and the shoulders were very broad. It looked like it was slouching, and I couldn't really see it's arms. I don't know if it was holding something, or if it was the way it walked. I'm about 6'5", and It looked like it was taller than me from what I saw. I saw it for a good three to four seconds, until it leaped up this little hill to the right. I sped up to the location I saw it leap from, and got out of my vehicle. I looked all around because there weren't many trees. The grass was very high though. I didn't see it after that.
I was nervous, confused, and excited at the same time.

OTHER WITNESSES: No. Just myself.

OTHER STORIES: No.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: 6:30 in the evening. It was fairly sunny, and partly cloudy. It wasn't raining, or anything.

ENVIRONMENT: Over-grown fields, and woods.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Brian Spinner:

I spoke with the witness on two occasions, several months after his encounter. He is a 19 year-old aspiring college student who was more than willing to share his experience over the phone. A satellite view of the area shows geographical depictions to be accurate.

While recalling the encounter, more details emerged: He first noticed the creature in the side mirror, as a flash of black darted from the left side of the road, behind his car. He then observed it in the rear view mirror. He described it as being large, dark and crouching on four limbs. He viewed it for only a few seconds and stated that it appeared to be tampering with the contents of the bag. He then lost sight of it as he rounded the corner. Judging by its size, shape and color, the witness initially perceived the figure to be a bear. He became very curious due to the uncertainty of what he had observed, so he turned around in the next driveway to see if the creature was still there. As he reached the location, the creature and the bag were no longer visible. He continued driving and after about 0.2 miles, he approached a straightaway and observed a dark figure, walking upright, approximately 50 yards ahead. He viewed it from behind while it walked west, on the right side of the road. The witness was astonished by the distance it had traveled since his initial sighting.

He described the creature as being “huge” with a height of 7 to 7.5 feet. It seemed to be slouching and its head appeared disproportionately smaller in comparison to its large body. According to the witness, his best view of the creature came when it leaped, (propelled itself off one leg) from the road and ascended an embankment to the right. At this time, he saw the profile of the creature from a distance of about 75 feet. He conveyed that as it proceeded up the embankment, its arms swung in an exaggerated fashion (front to back). Its palms appeared to face upwards during the back swing and its head was slightly tucked into its chest. A few steps later, the creature was over the embankment and not seen again.

The witness stated being familiar with stories pertaining to the Bigfoot species and had seen several TV programs on the subject. Comparing his knowledge of other eyewitness accounts, he stated the creature's hair was shorter than he had imagined. He is convinced it was neither a bear nor a human and experienced a “weird” feeling while viewing the creature, as if unable to comprehend what was being observed. He also stated feeling “nervous, confused, and excited at the same time”.

The immediate area in which the sighting occurred is sparsely populated and contains apple orchards, overgrown fields and forested land. The surrounding area consists of low lying mountains, lakes, ponds, rivers and streams. This incident occurred approximately 10 miles from Report #11630.

About BFRO Investigator Brian Spinner:

Brian works in Healthcare and currently resides in Dutchess County, NY.
Expeditions attended: NY Oct. 2009,PA 2012, Southern NY 2015

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