YEAR: 1983

SEASON: Winter

MONTH: January

DATE: 1

STATE: California

COUNTY: El Dorado County

NEAREST TOWN: Meyers

NEAREST ROAD: Highway 50

OBSERVED: I think the year was 83 or 84. That year there was a huge mudslide on the south (River) side of Highway 50. I remember because we had to turn around, go back up around Tahoe, and take Highway 80 back to the Bay Area. We were among the first to the slide area, and got out of our truck to look. It was early evening, and I saw a huge, bi-pedal creature on the slide side of the river. It was on the Tahoe (east) side of the slide, as were we. It was high on the hill, and appeared to also be regarding the slide. I saw it for about 15 seconds, when it ambled up the hill and out of sight.

I have seen many bear, and this was no bear. A bear might rear up, but aside from circus bears, none will walk that way for any length. Even circus bears have an ungainly walk when trying to go on 2 legs. The motion of this creature was much smoother.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: 4:00 p.m.

Follow-up investigation report:

The witness added the additional information to the report:

--Witness believed it was a Sunday.
--He could not tell the gender of the animal.
--Sighting occurred from about 200 yards away.
--Creature was dark in color, almost black.
--Creature seemed to be leaning on a small tree, as the terrain was steep.
--For the duration of the sighting, it never came down to all fours; it stood, and then walked up and away.

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