YEAR: 2000

SEASON: Fall

MONTH: October

DATE: 7

STATE: Washington

COUNTY: Pierce County

LOCATION DETAILS: I was driving west after turning off the Orting-Kapowsin Highway. I sighted the bigfoot about halfway down the lane on the left. At the end of the lane, a left turn onto a gravel road takes one past 3 houses to my friends' gate. The neighbor I spoke with lives in the last house on the right before the gate.

NEAREST TOWN: Graham, WA

NEAREST ROAD: Orting-Kapowsin Highway

OBSERVED: At about 9pm, on October 7, I was driving down a private lane near the Orting-Kapowsin highway. I was on my way to farm-sit for my friends, who have a large piece of property in woods and pasture. It was full dark, with scattered lights from houses and pole lights in some yards. A 4-foot cyclone fence ran alongside the lane, with open gates at intervals.

I passed a man walking in the same direction on my left, and shortly after passing him, I noticed someone else moving on the other side of the fence, through the yards. I turned my head to get a better look, and saw the figure from the side and behind as it passed me going the opposite direction on my left.

The 'person' was extremely tall and broad. I thought for a minute that it might be a bear, but it was moving completely upright, with the gait of a man. I probably saw it cover about 100 feet very quickly, and it was soon out of my field of vision. The figure was completely uniform in color, with no lines of demarcation that would indicate clothing or skin. Then, with a sense of wonder, I realized that it must have been a Sasquatch. Possibly the line crew working down the street, which had lots of flashing lights going, drove it off its normal path.

I don't know why I didn't stop the car to get a better look, except that I was tired and already late getting there. As I got out to unlock the gate, I had a few seconds of trepidation, but was soon greeted by the three large dogs I had come to tend, so I felt secure. That night, I left all the outdoor lights blazing. About midnight, I was startled awake, but I don't recall what the sound was. The dogs went crazy, and made so much commotion that I had to let them out. Once outside, they just ran around in circles sniffing. They calmed down right away when I let them back in.

In the morning, I looked to see if there was something in one of the yards that I could have mistaken for the figure I saw, but I could find nothing. I checked again the following night, in case it was a shadow or something, but again, there was nothing there. I don't think that there would be footprints, as the ground is extremely rocky there, and it has rained heavily since then.

The following weekend, leaving early on Sunday morning, I heard a strange scream coming from the woods. I chose to think it was some kind of bird, but it was definitely unusual, and definitely not the peacock which lives in the pasture.

On the 21st , I was locking the gate as I left, and the neighbor came out to talk. I told him my story, and he told me that a week or so earlier, he and his wife had been awakened by a loud scream right outside their bedroom. He felt whatever it was must have been inside his fence, a five-foot solid wood enclosure. They were both frightened by it, and had never heard that sound before or since. He also told me he had heard rumors of a couple other recent sightings in the area, but he didn't elaborate.

OTHER WITNESSES: No witnesses, except the neighbor hearing the scream. The man walking on the road before the sighting may have seen something, but I think some bushes blocked his view.

OTHER STORIES: Another person from my company saw one near Enumclaw the same weekend. I believe he has posted his story on your site.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: Dark and clear, with lights from scattered homes and some pole lights.

ENVIRONMENT: Heavily wooded with maple, douglas fir, alder, and cottonwood, interspersed with homesites, pasture, small creeks and wetlands. The area is close to the Fort Lewis reservation, and sparsely settled from Graham all the way to Mount Rainier. The Kapowsin area has had problems recently with cougars coming into yards, due to a moratorium on hunting with dogs.

A & G References: Pg. 63, D6

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