YEAR: 2016

SEASON: Summer

MONTH: June

DATE: 26

STATE: Arizona

COUNTY: Coconino County

LOCATION DETAILS: The sighting was in the Kehl Springs CG at Mile Post
#7
(GPS info was taken and is available upon request)

NEAREST TOWN: Strawberry

NEAREST ROAD: Forest Road 300 (Rim road)

OBSERVED: It was a Sunday afternoon in late June 2016. I was camped in a developed USFS campground (CG) on the Coconino National Forest in central Arizona in the Mogollon Rim area. The CG is situated in an canyon within a mixed forest of spruce, fir, oak, aspen, and mainly Ponderosa pine. The cliff edge of the Rim is about 3/4 mile South of the CG.

I was sitting in the shade and had just finished reading a work of fiction by James Patterson which had a strange ending. I was musing about the ending and just looking West across the CG when a very fast moving dark figure crossed the CG heading from North to South. My first thought was of a large kid on a bicycle as it was moving so fast on the in camp gravel road. But its' travel path was counter to the road. Then I realized what it was that I had seen. It was a very large Bigfoot. The sighting only lasted about three seconds and I was very lucky to have seen it at all. It crossed the CG in a shaded area and blended well into its' background but the meadow beyond it to the West was bathed in afternoon Sunlight and backlit the dark figure. It was about 125 yards from my viewpoint so facial detail was not clear. It ran with a slight forward cant to its' body. I noted that the head did not bob up and down like a human runners head at speed. The coat was almost black looking but with the back lighting I noticed a slight reddish tint to the figures profile as it passed by. I had not noticed its legs or arm movement.

Later, I went over to where the figure had crossed. On the North side of the drainage area, there was an area of crushed grass near the beginning of the travel path. Then the figure had moved South across the in camp road and had gone into a depression in the high grass. There were other areas of crushed grass along its' suspected travel path. Also a crushed fern near the split rail fence that bordered the CG where I suspect it had stepped over, crossed the forest road, and went into thick timber. I believe the Earth depression and a row of large logs obscurred my view of its'legs as it passed by. I had only seen its' torso from the hips up but did note that the figure did not appear to have much of a neck, if any. The torso was very thick and I guessed it was a least twice the thickness of a human.

It was a once in a lifetime event and as I said, I was very lucky to have seen the Sasquatch at all. Truly, an awesome event which I will carry in my minds eye forever.

OTHER WITNESSES: One

TIME AND CONDITIONS: It was 4:15 PM MST.
Mostly sunny day with temp around 80F.

ENVIRONMENT: Heavily forested with a mix of trees.

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Chuck Jacobs:

This report came to me directly, and I encouraged the reporting party (RP) to submit this report to the BFRO website.

On 07.14.16, nine days after the incident, I met with the RP and we went to the location and re-created the incident. The following can be added:
- Even after nine days, the depressions in the tall grass where the creature passed were clearly visible.
- It was not possible to get an accurate measurement of the foot size, but the length of the stride was clearly longer than what a human could achieve.
- Based on our re-creation, the figure would have been in the 8' tall range, standing erect.
- The distance was far enough that no detail could be discerned, but it would have been obvious if the figure would have been a human. It was far larger and bulkier than a human, and moved faster than a human could run.
- The RP has been a squatcher for 17 years, and is a former BFRO Investigator. This is his first actual sighting.

I spent approximately fours hours with the RP that afternoon, and since then I have spent several nights in the field with him researching at other locations. I find him to be extremely credible, and have no reason to doubt his account of what he saw.

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.