YEAR: 2005

SEASON: Spring

MONTH: June

DATE: 12

STATE: Oregon

COUNTY: Deschutes County

LOCATION DETAILS: on the border of deshutes and jefferson counties

NEAREST TOWN: Sisters, Oregon

NEAREST ROAD: hwy 20

OBSERVED: Today is June 12 2005.My husband and I were around Lake Jefferson north of Suttle Lake out fishing and scouting elk. When we stopped to follow fresh bear and elk tracks. We could smell something very bad in the air and thought we were very close to a bear. A large bear.

We came across a large stump that had some kind of hair all over it. We studied this for some time trying to figure out what had happened there as the stump had hair all over it and it was also all over the ground. We brought some home with us because it was the strangest fur we had ever felt. This fur was white and very coarse.It was not elk or deer or any fur we knew of. We looked on the ground and notice a set of elk horns that had been dropped.
We continued down what looked like a game trail and found a wallow. In it were several foot prints from what looked like elk and bear. Also we saw foot prints that were at least 18 inches long and as wide as my foot.(I wear a 6 1/2). shoe.)

We followed the tracks and they headed toward a creek. The prints were easy to follow as the ground was clean where they stepped but surrounded with what looked like splashing from wet fur around each print. We investigated further, though I was scared to death, and had noticed the bushes and tree branches had been splashed as well with the muddy water from the wallow. There were tracks every where. What ever made the prints was very heavy. The tracks were deep. My husband who weighs 230 lbs. tried to make prints that deep by jumping next to some and barely dented the ground.

My husband, who was a logger and is very familiar with the wilderness had never seen anything like it before and was also astonished. He was curious and wanted to keep investigating but I was so frightened I just wanted to get back in the truck.

To the best of our reasoning we figure the tracks were a day old. It had rained on Friday and they had dried enough for us to see them on Sunday afternoon. We usually carry our video camera with us when we go out in the woods but forgot it on this trip. If it doesn’t rain this week my husband is going to go back and film it, he wants to gather more evidence of what is there. I don’t know if I can go back. It may not sound like much in the telling of this story, but in real life you could just feel that something very large and strange lives there and we should not be in this place. This has made such a lasting impression on us both, that we had to come home and tell someone right away.

ALSO NOTICED: lots of scarred up trees and broken branches.

OTHER WITNESSES: two witnesses.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: this happened about 5 pm till about 7:30 pm. The weather was nice and it was little bit breezy

ENVIRONMENT: recent forest fire on edge of the timber that was burnt and the timber that was green, shady, several cat roads around. Pine trees, creek,swampy draw. Lots of other critters around.

Follow-up investigation report:

I did view the videotape that was taken at the scene the following day the tracks were found. Impressive but I knew that I had a better chance at seeing the tracks for myself later that afternoon.

Upon arriving on scene, the witness K, filled me in on all the details of what happened before they went off into the forest.

I did find other impressions of large tracks that were still part of the original subject. Also, I had the opportunity to compare impressions with bear tracks that were less then a few hours old. Impressions were measured and the bear tracks found were used to identify subject from other known animals in the area.

The odd colored hair mentioned in their report was of an elk. It appeared to me to be some type of natural salt lick which was the source of attraction to the stump.

I did stay until midnight with witnesses. We walked a couple of roads and they wanted know what the BFRO does while out on expeditions or investigations involving overnight stays.

Listed were four witnesses, I had the opportunity to meet K and C, but not the other two. I talked to the third witness T. He was the first to contact me by phone. Each conversation, with T, K, and C matched each other’s story. All witnesses were interviewed separately, either by phone or in person.

I did view the cast taken, plaster of paris was the compound used to create the casts. They were unable to get Hydrocal in their area and used what they could before the tracks disappeared.

Hair samples were collected in two separate areas where the subject had walked and they were sent off to Dr. Henner Fahrenbach for his expertise on the subject. Will update the report when I receive his final analysis.

Sample one was taken from a small sapling, at a height of sixty-four inches. Also present were bear markings or scratches on the tree.

Sample Two was taken from another tree, which was laid over onto another tree, at a height of about forty-two inches. It was presumed that subject may have stepped over the sapling.

UPDATE

Hair samples collected from the area were of a bear, according to Dr. Fahrenbach (7/9/05).

Dear Mel,

Both samples were bear hair, only the short piece was much more pigmented than the longer one.

Keep the hair coming!

My best, Henner.


Sample one was of a bear.

Sample two I was hoping to be our subject. Strand was of a different color and texture and it was stretched, causing it to curl.

Thinking is. . . the spring left in the tree as the bear stepped over, snapped it up higher as it passed.

Thanks to Dr. Fahrenbach's assistance.

Even though the hairs turned out to be of a bear. Tracks found and followed in the area were of a much larger and different subject.

END OF REPORT

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