YEAR: 2014

SEASON: Summer

MONTH: June

DATE: 29

STATE: Arizona

COUNTY: Yavapai County

LOCATION DETAILS: Take I-17 south toward Flagstaff. Turn onto exit 179, travel 3 miles to Beaver creek. Hike 2 miles north into canyon at creek level.

NEAREST TOWN: Rimrock 5 miles to the south

NEAREST ROAD: 179 and I-17

OBSERVED: My 15 year old son, my friend and I were out frog gigging in a creek off of rd 179 near Sedona and I-17 in Az. This took place on 06-29-2014 at 1240 am.

We entered the creek which is knownas beaver creek. We all had our gigs and 100 lumen lights. And were walking up stream after we entered the canyon in which the creek was located. As we entered the canyon I noticed a wrong musky, stinky smell, but I did not say anything because this could have been skunk or javelin which is common in the area. After walking for about 200 yards, my son who was in front stopped and said he heard something walking away from him up the creek. I asked if it was a deer or elk. He told me he could not see because of the under brush, but said it sound like a heavy person.

We continued for a few more feet and we all then observed three large rocks thrown from the thick brush above are heads, about 20 yards in front of us over the creek to the opposite side. We all stopped and then heard branches crashing as something crossed the creek in front of us. We looked in all direction with our lights but the brush and trees were too thick to see. I stopped and hit my gig against a tree three times. We then heard branches breaking up stream. We then crossed the creek and stopped. A rock was then thrown toward us and landed in the creek 5 yards in front of us. I advised my son and my friend we need to go, but as we turned to go back out, something very large ran toward us from up the creek bottom in the thick bushes, breaking large branches. We searched with our lites but could not see anything. We then walked out and made it back to the truck.

ALSO NOTICED: It was very quiet no bugs or animals making noise as usual.

OTHER WITNESSES: Me, my son and friend.hiking single file.

OTHER STORIES: Ya other incidents have been seen in and around Flagstaff 40 mile away.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: 1240am, pitch dark no moon, no wind, about 90 degrees

ENVIRONMENT: High desert with junipers and cats on plateau. In canyon is large cottonwoods and sycamores with heavy under brush.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Chuck Jacobs:

I contacted the reporting party (RP) by telephone the same evening his report was submitted. He advised that the incident had occurred about 20 hours earlier, around midnight the night before. Two days later, AZ BFRO Investigators Tim Zamiski, Sandra McLemore, and I met at the location with the RP and his son, who was with his father when the encounter took place. The two showed us exactly where the incident occurred and took us step-by-step through what happened, and the following can be added:

- The rocks were thrown from the top of a small vertical cliff about twenty feet above them, crashing through the tree branches overhead and landing with a loud crash in a rocky area on the far side of the creek. By the sound they made when they landed, the RP believed that the rocks were likely somewhat larger than softball-sized. They did not actually see the rocks, as the only light was from their small flashlights. They did see tree foliage moving, probably the result of the rocks crashing through.
- They did not see the creature that ran away through the creek, again probably due to the limited light from their flashlights. They did see bushes moving, and heard it splashing through the water and running over the rocks on the far side of the creek. They said from the sound it was clearly bipedal.
- The creekbed is very rocky in this area, with thousands of round “river rocks” of all sizes, so it was not possible to figure out which rocks were the ones that were thrown, or exactly where they had landed. There was evidence of broken branches in the trees overhead, and some marks on the bark of larger overhead branches was noted that could be consistent with being hit by the rocks.
- The top of the small cliff was lined with large clumps of brush, which would prevent any person or animal from coming within approximately eight feet of the edge. This would also prevent anything from being seen from directly below. We located the most logical point where something would have been standing when the rocks were thrown, and found possible footprints, although they were of poor definition due to the type of soil substrate. The size of the prints indicated that the rock-thrower was likely a juvenile. In two nearby locations, depressions in the ground were found where rocks had been laying, which may have been from the rocks that were thrown. It would have been highly unlikely, if not impossible, for a human to be able to throw rocks of that size, that distance.

Based on the interviews and the investigation, this incident appears to be consistent with known Bigfoot behaviors, and the location is in an area with a history of prior Bigfoot activity. This creek area sees heavy recreation use during the day, but is closed to overnight camping. It thus seems logical that any visiting Bigfoots would not expect to find humans there at midnight. No vocalizations of any kind were heard.

The RP in this incident is a retired police officer, who is a life-long hunter and outdoorsman, and who I found to be well-spoken and very credible. He has a good basic knowledge of Bigfoot behavior, and had a previous incident in September, 2007, report 21535. His knowledge allowed him to immediately recognize what was happening, and his decision to have the group quickly leave the area when confronted by aggressive territorial behavior was absolutely the correct thing to do. By submitting his report as soon as he did, and agreeing to meet with investigators, it gave us the opportunity to conduct an on-site investigation within 36 hours of the incident. And although the physical evidence found was not very distinct, a heavy rainstorm two days later no doubt destroyed it completely. I had originally planned and came equipped to do a night investigation here, but the location did not seem to be a place where Bigfoots could be found every night. They probably only pass through occasionally, and the RP’s group just happened to be there at the right time.

About BFRO Investigator Chuck Jacobs:

Chuck is a retired fire officer, with an extensive background in firefighting, inspections, investigations, and education. He is also a long-time back country traveler, who has explored some of the most remote areas of the western states by Jeep and camper van. His interest in Bigfoot began many years ago, but he began seriously squatching when he learned about activity in his home area in the Arizona mountains. He has been on numerous trips, both solo and with small groups, and attended the 2013, 2014, and 2015 Arizona Expeditions.

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