YEAR: 1981

SEASON: Summer

MONTH: August

STATE: Arizona

COUNTY: Yavapai County

LOCATION DETAILS: Where the park ended and the dirt road began.

NEAREST TOWN: prescott

NEAREST ROAD: thumb butte loop

OBSERVED: I was on the Thumb Butte Loop in Prescott next to the city park. While driving I spotted a reddish- brown ape like creature. I stopped the car immediately and observed the creature. The hair on his arms was longer than the rest. It appeared to have little or no neck. It appeared to be very muscular and covered ground quickly. It was hard to judge the height of the creature because of the distance and shock but I knew it was tall. It walked in the tree line and there was a gap in the tree's about 75 meters long. I watched this creature walk through the opening. I remember his arms swinging and he only looked forward. I estimated (through military experience) that it was 100 meters from my position. I was sitting in the car with my head turned looking out the back and side window. I estimate that I saw him for at least 10 seconds although it seemed longer.
What I remember most is my mind was wrestling with the thought that what I was seeing was not supposed to exist yet I was viewing it. It was a most unsettling experience.
What I tell you is the truth. I have never told anyone out of fear of ridicule and having my sanity questioned. I hope this information can help your organization.

OTHER WITNESSES: One. Myself

OTHER STORIES: Yes. My friend spotted one in his yard about a mile away. It was 20 years later though.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: It was turning into dusk although there was plenty of light for me to see

ENVIRONMENT: It was a pine forest 100 meters from the road. No structures although the park was only 1/4 mile or less from incident.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Sandra M.:

I met the witness near the Thumb Butte trail head just outside of Prescott. We then drove up the same road where he saw the animal. Since the sighting was 30 years ago, the forest had changed quite a bit; therefore the witness could not pinpoint the exact location. He did find a location where the topography was similar so that he could recreate the sighting for me.

The forest was rather thick in those days with large ponderosa pine. Late one evening in the summer of 1981 at approximately 6-7 pm, he was driving very fast up the dirt road toward Deering Park when he saw an animal appear in an opening. He saw the side of what he described as a very large ape. The animal was on his right and parallel to the road, walking just inside the tree line. The witness slammed on the brakes and skidded to a stop on the gravel road. After he came to a stop, the animal was behind the car. It did not look at the vehicle—not even when it skidded. Once the animal traveled through the opening in the trees, it disappeared into the tree line.

The following details may be added from the interview:
• Gait was “huge” and the animal traveled 75 meters “in no time”
• Hands swung up close to shoulder height
• Side of the face that was visible to the witness was black
• Animal was very muscular and very large

The witness was 18 at the time of the sighting. He has since retired from the Army and described this sighting as more disturbing to him than what he witnessed in the first Gulf War. He did not go back to look for prints as he was “too freaked out”. He expressed that the animal seemed to have no fear and was a definite “king of the jungle”.

When asked why he decided to submit a report after all these years, the witness stated that he has lived with this for 30 years and wanted to tell someone. Until our meeting, he has only told his daughter and his best friend about this sighting. I found the witness to be very sincere and credible.

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