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The Bigfoot Branch?

July 11, 2012 by Linda Godfrey

The branch

If a tree branch falls in the forest …

Sunday, July 8, 2012, at about 7:30 PM, I decided to take a short hike in a little area of southern Wisconsin’s Kettle Moraine area that I’ve walked for about 19 years without incident. While strolling along next to a deep kettle, a huge bowl-shaped depression left by the last glacier, I noticed three young saplings had been bent over by someone or something to form a perfect rainbow-styled arch. I know this sort of formation can happen naturally, but some people believe Bigfoot creates these tree sculptures for various reasons. Anyway, it made me start wondering if this could be a good habitat for a Sasquatch.

That gave me the idea to pick up a stick and bang on a nearby tree a few times, just as a lark. I’ve never been sure about the efficacy of having a crowd of Bigfoot hunters pounding trees en masse, but I think it might not seem so much of a threatening invasion if there are only one or two people hitting a tree – keeping in mind that we still don’t know for sure what such knocks might mean to a ‘Squatch.

I knocked three times. Nothing. I tried several more rounds of three knocks each and then suddenly I heard what sounded like a return knock coming from down in the kettle. I knocked several more times and received responses. While there are homes dotted around this area of the Kettle Moraine, there was absolutely no one else around and the kettle was on private land too overgrown for even diehard hikers. The slopes of many of the kettles are also very steep and quite treacherous for humans to navigate, so I thought it unlikely some jokester was down there.

After a few more knocks I heard the unmistakable sound of something very loud crashing through the underbrush toward me. I couldn’t see anything, however, and the sound then stopped at least 50 feet away from the ridge where I was standing.  I probably should have run but I was in denial that it could be anything dangerous and instead I whacked the tree again. I heard another crashing charge toward me. Again – idiotically — I hit the tree. There was a period of silence accompanied by muted scuffling sounds that seem to be getting farther away from me, and then I heard another knock from down in the kettle. I answered and it did too, except this one was accompanied by what sounded like wood tearing. I thought that was strange but I answered anyway and then there were two knocks again accompanied by the sharp sound of splitting wood. I gave my tree two sharp thwacks, reasoning that I was still close enough to the public pathway that I was probably safe, and then it happened.

I heard a deafening crack and watched in disbelief as a huge branch that I later measured to be over 20 feet long and at least 8 inches in diameter seemed to tear itself free from a giant old oak tree rooted in to the bottom of the kettle. The branch was at least 30 feet above the base of the tree but because I stood on a ridge it was directly at my eye level. I could not see anything moving the branch before it fell horizontally and thudded on the forest floor below. One end of the branch was covered with fresh green leaves and there was fresh wood on the tree where the branch of cracked off so I knew this was not a dead or hollow tree ready to shed its limbs. There was almost no wind and it was a blue-sky-white- cloud kind of day with great visibility, about 80 degrees Fahrenheit. I could think of no plausible reason for that healthy limb to have cracked off the tree at that moment, and that’s when I realized that only some truly massive force could have done it. That’s also when I dropped the stick and ran.

I wanted to go back before dark to have a look at the tree limb and reassure myself that it really happened but I was not going in there by myself. I called my friend Sandra Schwab, an experienced investigator, and she immediately grabbed her 21-year old daughter, Natalie, and drove to meet me. Although I was still in shock, the three of us plunged in and made our way down to the bottom of the kettle where it was easy to find the torn branch. We were astounded by the size of it and by its obvious freshness. We confirmed it was easily 8 to 10 inches in diameter and over 20 feet long, counting the smaller branches at the end of it. We peered up at the tree and could see a freshly broken spur where the branch had been only a half-hour earlier. It was at least 30 feet above the ground.

The tree split into a fork about halfway between the ground and where the branch had been, but it still looked like a really tough climb even for Bigfoot. But when we walked around behind the tree, we saw a pile of logs and small branches that seemed to have been deliberately collected on the ground to use as a stepping stone to a higher perch where it could’ve sat unobserved to tear the branch away from behind.

The tree

You can see the freshly splintered remains of the branch — 30 feet up from the tree base!

As it happened, we found an oval patch of bark that had been rubbed off the branch leaving very fresh wood underneath. It was about the size that I imagine a Bigfoot hand would be based on many witness observations. Moreover, Natalie found the piece of bark that had been rubbed off lying not far from the branch. It was buckled in two places and had shred marks as if something with very strong nails had dug in and applied great force to it. It also stank strongly of musk. Since Natalie had already handled it and there did not appear to be any skin shreds or hair that would be useful for DNA, we each inspected it in turn; I smelled that musk odor on my own hands the rest of the night. We also found bare spots of ground that reeked of musky urine. Whatever the massive force was, it was rank.

The ground was too hard for tracks but we saw various places where the wild ginger and other plants were strangely flattened. And our adventure was not over.

We climbed the ridge behind the tree and looked down into the adjoining kettle. Suddenly, Natalie gasped that she saw it! Sandra and I both turned toward where she was pointing. But it was too late — it was out of our view. Natalie did not see the entire body but said she saw what looked like a tall biped covered in tan fur that was lighter than the numerous deer in this area. She said it was moving quickly but not running and not walking like a human exactly, either. The word she finally settled on was “striding,” in very long strides, as it disappeared into the brush. I should add that Natalie had been a skeptic on the idea of Bigfoot, but is no longer.

We stood there staring and hoping to get a glimpse of it again when we heard a very menacing growl from somewhere in the kettle below us that was like nothing any of us could recall. If only I would have turned my camera on and switched the dial to video I could’ve recorded it, but the sound was over before I could come to my senses and make my move. (If I had been smart, I also would’ve brought my digital audio recorder.) We all felt that the growling was a warning to leave and decided that was the prudent thing to do since it was fast getting dark and we did not want to be lost in those woods with a creature strong enough to tear an 8 inch branch off a live oak tree.

9×4 section of bark found next to tree

We returned the next day to have a better peek at the back of that tree.  I was looking for fur tufts or other clues that we might have missed. We didn’t see any but did notice much of the top surface of the branches piled behind the tree had been rubbed smooth on top as if it had been used often. There were no other sounds or incidents, and the musky smell was gone.

Ironically, my plan for Sunday evening had been to take a drive over to Rock County to some other active sites. Instead I ended up being where – and when — something was actually happening. This illustrates the point I often make that both Bigfoot and the Dogman have large territories to roam and are just as likely to be seen in any favorable habitat — whether someone else has seen them there already or not.  The key is to know what kind of places they prefer and to be alert to subtle clues. And then it still takes luck.

Because Natalie actually saw some kind of tall, furry creature and the three of us heard that strange growling, I feel a lot more confident thinking that this may have been a Bigfoot rather than some other unknown phenomenon. I don’t believe it was a Dogman because I think that a canine would have a very difficult time scaling a tree like that much less use its canine arm structure to tear off a giant branch. Bears can climb but can’t knock on trees with sticks. And it would’ve been next to impossible for most any human to have done what I witnessed without using an axe or other equipment.

And I may have had a previous glimpse. In May of this year, I was walking in the same area when I heard a medium-sized branch crack off a tree at the top of a kettle just behind the side yard of a nearby home. I looked just in time to see it drop as something very long and covered in light tan fur also descended quickly into foliage below. The only thing I could think of at the time was that it might have been the tail of a mountain lion that had just alighted from its perch, breaking the limb as it did so – rather a stretch in itself. Now I wonder if it was the arm of a Bigfoot that had just snapped off a tree branch while standing hidden below! There just aren’t many critters around here with light-colored fur.

I’m still rather in awe of the experience and I think that I will see and hear that giant branch falling off the oak tree for the rest of my life. Was it Bigfoot? I can’t prove it, but I can’t come up with any other explanation other than that it was the most extreme coincidence imaginable, considering the way everything happened. And Natalie did see something. I will let you all know if there’s more to the story!

(Location must remain confidential since the kettle itself is on private land and owner does not want disclosure of the site)

Looking up at tree from behind — broken spur at top right

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Camp Monster:New Report of an Old Bigfoot sighting

May 21, 2012 by Linda Godfrey

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Monsters and camp stories just seem to go together. but this recounting of a young teens experience in 1961, strikes me as much more than a mere campfire tale. He tells it so well that I’m going to just put it in his own words, leaving out names since I don’t have permission to give them. I think it’s a fascinating look at Bigfoot behavior in many ways, particularly in regard to interest in humans and human activities. Coincidentally, the report came in while I was at Creature Weekend 2012 in Cambridge, Ohio. (The photo above was taken in their resort lobby) Enjoy!

Listening to Coast to Coast, I was shocked to hear about bigfoot in southeastern Wisconsin.  Let me tell you about my experience.  Keep in mind that I am a college graduate and a recently retired high school teacher.  I do not belong to any strange sects; in fact, I’m rather nerdish.  Truly, I’m quite believable. 

In 1961 I was a 15 –yr old summer school student at St. John’s Military School in Delafield, Wisconsin.  I lived in one of about 20 cabins that were organized in a semi-circle in a forested area.  In the 20 cabins lived other boys who were my age.  At the center of the semi-circle, there was a night lamp on a high pole; vision was excellent.  Under the light pole was a water fountain.  The pole and fountain area is where group meetings took place.

One night (I don’t remember the time – perhaps 1, 2 or 3 AM), I awoke to see a very large ape-looking creature who was drinking out of the fountain.  The creature had to bend awkwardly to reach the fountain because it was at his knee level.  By observing the awkward bend, I was able to ascertain that his/her height must have been enormous.  Instead of drinking , the creature would spray the water out of his/her mouth and into the air.  Then he/she would return for another gulp – and spray again!  Due to the light, I had a very clear view.  I was amazed but not yet frightened.

 

After leaving the fountain, the creature took long strides and entered the first cabin.  He/she stayed inside for less than one second.  It seemed that as soon as the cabin door shut behind him/her, it instantly opened and he/she left the cabin.  I noted that the creature had to “duck” in order to enter the cabin.  Vision was not that great at the first cabin.  The doors were rudimentary cabin doors with a spring and no latch.

After leaving the first cabin, the creature continued to the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, ect. cabins, spending 1 second inside each.  I began to think that this behavior was consistent with a counselor doing a “bed check” – but I was really curious about the huge size and hairiness.   My cabin was about the 12th cabin.  As the creature went cabin-to-cabin, my vision was getting better and better – and I slowly began to feel frightened.  Keep in mind that vision was excellent at the fountain, but when the creature entered the first cabin, I could not see very clearly.

By the time the creature was preparing to enter the cabin next to mine, the student inside the cabin let out a huge shout.  “Help!”  Truthfully, I was getting ready to scream also.  Upon hearing the scream, the creature immediately sprinted with long strides to the rear of the cabins and disappeared into the forest.  The creature ran through bramble and briar that would be difficult for a human to negotiate.  As the creature approached the cabin next to mine, I did get a very good look.  BIGFOOT!

The boy who screamed was traumatized.  A couple days after the incident, his father came to Delafield to take him home.  

Curiously, St. John’s summer camp lore had a legend about the creature.  There were many stories about the creature.  

 

Needless to say, I plan to investigate this one further!

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Last of the Saurians? Book Review

February 27, 2012 by Linda Godfrey

Mokele –Mbembe: Mystery Beast of the Congo Basin by William J. Gibbons,  Coachwhip Publications 2010

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My absolute favorite comic strip as a kid was Alley Oop, the beautifully drawn adventures of a caveman with a very sweet ride:  a savvy stegosaurus named Dinny.  This fantasy of humans getting to share real time with living dinosaurs has fueled mass media entertainment from The Flintstones cartoons to Michael Crichton’s tale of resurrected saurians, Jurassic Park. But in the end, say scientists, their lovely bones and fossils show that all the dinosaurs perished in a mass die-off many millions of years ago.

Or did they? What if, in the deepest, least accessible parts of the African continent, a small relict population of something like an Apatosaurus lives on? The Congo’s legend of the creature called Mokele-Mbembe insists that is exactly the case. And author Bill Gibbons is one of a small group of investigators to have made that trip in person – several times.

Other adventurers had traveled to western mid-Africa from as early as 1776 in search of huge, long-necked semi-aquatic beasts reported by local people and missionaries. Gibbons covers all these previous expeditions in proper detail before delving into his own considerable efforts that began with his first trip in 1985. Gibbons lays out a meticulous account of his expeditions, including not only a thorough record of creature lore and sightings reports but his own trials with sickness, risky travel situations, and local people that were often not cooperative. He also experienced a striking religious conversion during his first trip and shares his epiphany as an integral part of his story.

Although Gibbons was never able to get that definitive proof, he does a good job of compiling all known data and evidence of Mokele-Mbembe  and of several other mysterious beasts. I do wish that the book included a standard index! But Gibbons hopes to return for another shot at filming this creature.  As a fellow seeker of elusive and anomalous animals, I wish him the best of luck, and I think that Alley Oop would say the same.

 

 

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20 Years of Beastliness

December 31, 2011 by Linda Godfrey

Believe it or not, Thursday was the 20th anniversary of my original news story on the creature I dubbed The Beast of Bray Road. Little did I know what it would lead to! And yes, although similar creatures are reported to me regularly from all over the US, the Beast is still spotted on Bray Road. The most recent credible report was from a middle-aged couple who saw it cross the road near Hwy NN and then easily hop a fence, all on two legs. They said its shaggy fur “flowed” in the wind.

My first book on the topic, “The Beast of Bray Road,” is now out of print but can now be had on Kindle (used book copies are quite pricey!) That was published in 2003, and fall 2012 will see my 5th book dealing with unknown, upright wolf-like creatures “Real Wolfmen – True Encounters in Modern America” from Tarcher/Penguin. No one is more surprised than I am at the creature’s longevity. 

Will there be more? That depends entirely on whether enough new cases come to me or if some truly amazing evidence comes to light. I am starting to wonder if the mystery will ever be solved, but I do intend to keep investigating. 

The year changes tomorrow as I enter my 21st decade of creature-seeking, and the hunt begins anew…

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“Spirit Werewolf Stabbing” like “Kacking?

November 14, 2011 by Linda Godfrey

Today’s Milwaukee Journal Sentinel carries a very humorous column by Jim Stingl about the most unfunny stabbing of a man by two Milwaukee women. The stabber-in-chief said they were just trying to achieve a risque form of entertainment they called spirit werewolfism. Since many of my book titles include the word “werewolves,” I received a call from Stingl — of whom I am a fan — who wondered if I had any thoughts on the bizarre event.

I told him that it seemed like an eerie replay of a 1989 event where one Deborah Kazuck and a woman friend lured a man to their apartment and then ambushed him by leaping from behind the shower curtain with an ax. They chased him while shouting Redrum! (murder backwards). They explained later that they were trying to invoke the spirit of Jack the Ripper by “kacking” someone.The kackee survived, as did the werewolf spirit victim, but both suffered severe injuries. Stingl, in fact, wrote a 1996 column about Kazuck’s possible release from a mental hospital

The parallels seem amazing to me, as does the fact that both these cases are obvious instances of mental illness. In 1989 Jack the Ripper was popular as a violent power symbol, and right now it’s the werewolf. I’m not sure what the next big anti-hero fad will be, but I advise lonely single guys in Milwaukee to be very very careful of any woman’s apartment decorated with posters of, say, the devil. And for safety’s sake, they may want to consider dating upright canines or lady Bigfoot instead — at least no one I know of has been sent to the hospital by those creatures.

 

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Wondrous Werewolf Fan Art

November 3, 2011 by Linda Godfrey

 

I’m a fan of fan art. I am always tickled when people send images inspired by my books on upright creatures, and am often amazed at how accomplished these efforts are. Here are two sculptures created by the Wentz family which runs a backyard haunted attraction in Ogden Utah. The first looks like a classic hellhound…

And the second is surely a Manwolf, although a bit nekkid. Kudos to the Wentz’s!

And then there is this painting by California eyewitness Anthony S. Chaney. It includes a lot more background than I reproduced here, and is a great rendition of the dogman described by many other witnesses.

I  also receive many notes from writers, musicians and film makers that my research has inspired them to create something werewolfish. I applaud all original efforts and say go for it! After all, there is no more perfect metaphor for the tortured soul of an artist than the transformative loup-garou!

(Image copyrights belong to individual artists, used by permission)

 

 

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Two New Books Make Summer Skies Eerie

June 2, 2011 by Linda Godfrey

The topic of UFOs is one that has fascinated me long before I heard of contemporary werewolf-like creatures. Two new books by my author friends Brad Steiger and Nick Redfern have reminded me just why I find aliens and Men in Black such compelling mind fodder.
Author Brad Steiger, or as I liked to call him, Mr. Thoroughness, never writes anything half way. This trait has endeared him to many of us who love to see as much as possible on any given topic in a book, and Real Aliens, Space Beings and Creatures from Other Worlds does not disappoint in its coverage of otherworldly entities.

Co-authored with Sherry Steiger, this 354-page tome takes readers on a meet-and-greet with intergalactic (or home-grown!) visitors of every type and description. There are the Blonde Nordics that look like us, the Reptilians that look like big lizards, and the robots that look like all sorts of things. There are creatures that want to probe us, some that seek to enlighten us and others that appear to view us as breeding stock. All of this unwanted attention begs the question: why are they so interested in humanity? The remainder of the book explores the unsettling possibilities.

Although the Steigers provide plenty of firsthand accounts of encounters with UFOs, abductions and other human-alien interactions, I like the chapters that interface with little-known historical details best. My favorite is titled Nazis and the Aldebaran Aliens. It illustrates the amazing lengths – including outer space — der Fuhrer and his Nazi minions would go to in their quest for world domination. As it turns out, Hitler not only believed in aliens but coveted alien propulsion systems to the point of obsession. According to the Steigers’ research, part of Hitler’s plan involved highly trained psychics working in secret societies. The psychics said they received plans from aliens to make saucer-type vehicles that some say actually worked until rival aliens stopped them. The very complex story left me wondering how much we really know about our own history.

In the final chapters, the Steigers examine the true nature of these visitors, and suggest that far from being new arrivals, these so-called aliens may always have been with us. The Steigers also recommend that until the true nature of “grays,” “Nordics” and other non-Terrans is known for sure, we not invite personal experiences with them. I think that is probably wise.

The book includes a bibliography and comprehensive index, which makes it not only a compelling read but a valuable research resource. I give Real Aliens, Space Beings and Creatures from Other Worlds two opposable digits and three antennae up!

Men in black, mysterious figures in black suits that pop up at UFO sighting scenes like mushrooms after a spring rain, have become so solidly entrenched in pop culture that very popular – and imaginative – movies have been made about them. Nick Redfern’s new book tracks their history from the days when MIB were esoteric lore known only to UFO geeks, to today’s guys with cool shades who show up on your local theater screen.  The real Men in Black are far more sinister than I had guessed.

The book was especially persuasive to me personally since it includes the experiences of colleagues I’ve come to know and trust over the years including Brad Steiger, Marie D. Jones and Raven Meindel. The terror they and many others experienced was subtle – compared to sightings of, say, Bigfoot or werewolves — yet very traumatic.

Sporting black suits and hats some have compared to those of the Blues Brothers, Men in Black started showing their pale and unexpressive faces in the middle of the 20th Century, around the same time flying saucers entered the public consciousness. Witnesses and researchers of the UFO phenomenon found themselves threatened and harassed – often in unexplainable ways – by the lurking strangers who usually drove shiny black cars. Scarily, MIB continue these terror tactics to present day, sometimes updating their transportation to black helicopters or other vehicles.

In my book, Strange Wisconsin, I reported an incident told me by a farmer in western Wisconsin who was deer hunting with his children when the three saw a UFO rise from a nearby tree top and then shoot off over a field. They were so terrified they decided to forget hunting and just leave, but as they exited the woods they saw a convoy of shiny black pickup trucks heading single file across the field in the same direction the UFO had gone. Just the sight of so many new trucks in the sleepy area was strange enough, but where did they suddenly come from and why would they all take off across someone’s field in mid-November? What was their connection to the silver, discoid craft and how did they know it was there?

Readers will discover similar weird anomalies in every tale in Redfern’s book. And after grounding readers in many frightening examples of the MIB mystery, Redfern spends the second half of the book wrestling with possible explanations for the creepy figures. Redfern notes that strange people clad in black have appeared to those dabbling in occult studies and practices throughout history. If this is true, perhaps the MIB are not connected to aliens from space at all. Redfern explores such disparate possible origins for them as elaborate thought- forms created by human imagination, time cops from far in the future and perfectly human secret agents.

Author and MIB researcher Colin Bennett is quoted extensively in the book, and he comes to the conclusion that the MIB entities appear to “eat” human energy generated by the fear they provoke. This was interesting to me because I have often said the same thing about the unknown, upright canines I have studied and written about for the past 19 years. Are strange creatures, MIB, UFOs and other scary phenomena part of some massive, unknown entity that exists just one step above us on the psychic food chain? Perhaps unreality bites.

Whatever MIB may be, Redfern and the many experts he consults agree they are not desirable company. There is one simple weapon that seems to work against them but I won’t give that away here. I’ll just say that to be forewarned is to be fore-armed, and that you will want to read this book to know what to do before the MIB come calling on you.

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Author Know-how? Go Web, Young Man, Go Web!

March 7, 2011 by Linda Godfrey

I love communicating with other authors, aspiring or established. Along with artists and Lhasa apsos they are my favorite people. But I recently received an email from a would-be author, of the kind that makes me say, “Oh, fudge,” and then go eat about a pound of said substance. The email was from a distant relative’s acquaintance who heard I’d had a few books traditionally published and wanted me to tell him how he could get his book traditionally published, too. I wish I knew!

 Well, actually I do know. Do a mountain of work and research to make sure your book is well-written, compelling and has an audience, and then do a lot more hard work and research to find agents or publishers who are looking for that type of book, and then do even more hard work and research to learn how to properly sell it to them. And don’t expect it to happen by next Tuesday. If it happens at all. 

I learned all this the hard way, and it entails far more than I could cram into one e-mail. Besides, I’m not necessarily worthy! Just having books published doesn’t make me anyone’s career expert or a fairy godmother even if I do like magic wands and pixie dust. And I’m still learning, meself.

 But luckily for him, me and everyone else, in the past three or four years many first-rate agents, writers, and publishers on the blogosphere and social media sites have created a cyber-university wherein anyone can earn a virtual doctorate in Book Authorology by absorbing all the amazing FREE advice and insights a humanoid brain can hold, plus so much more it will slop right out onto your Live to Write t-shirt! I cannot post loudly enough about what a valuable development this is for every aspiring writer. I surely wish it had been there ten years ago when I was beginning my own adventures with books. Its vastness, however, can be daunting. 

To get started, I told the emailer, mine the gemmy topics listed in the sidebar of top blog dog Nathan Bransford. Go deep. Then there are the perennially fresh and useful insights of agent Rachelle Gardner. I also subscribe to blogs like those of Victoria Mixon, Guide to Literary Agents and the crazy-useful Querytracker which puts powerful search-and-record tools at your callused fingertips. The esteemed pros at literary agencies such as Dystel and Goderich, including my own incredible agent, Jim McCarthy, also often take turns sharing their wisdom. All of these sites include favorite industry links that you may combine exponentially to create your own How to Succeed in Publishing and Subsume the Universe Manual.

What makes all of this even more helpful is the opportunity to get personal. Most

True Jedi Enlightenment

 sites have comment sections and/or community forums filled with posts from other intelligent folks. Also, search for and follow members of the huge writing community on Twitter and then interact in real time for true Jedi enlightenment. So many people are already doing this that I can’t believe everyone doesn’t know about the depth of the Web-Lit explosion, but the emails I receive – and I’m not even an agent or editor — from unaware beginners tell me they either have no clue or have failed to take full advantage. (Another came in while I was writing this!)

 I knew that this wasn’t what the nice and understandably hopeful e-mailer wanted to hear. What he – perhaps unconsciously — wanted me to say was, “Sure, even though I don’t know chickpeas about you or your book, let me set you right up!” It makes me feel bad that I haven’t the power to get anyone else’s book published, and that in turns makes me eat more fudge. And sooner or later I’ll end up on a reality show for obese writers called Pride and Fudge-udice, or The Biggest Wordsmith.

 So that I may avoid such a fate, I encouraged this potentially best-selling author to delve into all the wonderful things mentioned above, and then come back with specific questions I still might not be able to answer. I haven’t heard back, so either he is unhappy OR he has become one with the online writing world and is even now empowering his own path to publication. I do hope he chose the latter.

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Horse kill scarier than cougar

January 8, 2011 by Linda Godfrey

  • Jan 7, 2011

    Deerfield Necropsy is in: Cougar not the Killer

     

    Mystery cat taken in Rock County several years ago

    The DNR’s investigation into the Deerfield horse-killing Dec. 29 is concluded today with the release of the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory necropsy, said DNR Deputy Spokesman Robert Manwell in a phone interview. He sent me a copy of the lab’s report, which said the wound was not consistent with an animal attack at all.

    The official description: “The distance from the soles of the front feet to the midpoint of the wound
    is four feet (120 cm). The laceration is consistent with that produced by a sharp linear or curvilinear metal edge, entering the ventral aspect of the neck with considerable force at an angle. The wound is consistent with a single, large laceration. The cause of death is exsanguination.”

    It sounds to me as if some warped human tried to cut off the poor horse’s head with a big knife or sword, failed, and then the animal bled to death. Why? In October, 2007, someone beheaded a juvenile alpaca on a farm near Delavan for no apparent reason. Until the culprits are caught, it is only possible to speculate about such brutal acts. And there should have been boot or shoe prints in the snow.

    I should mention that the tan quarterhorse weighed over 1,000 pounds and should not have been an easy target.

    Still a mystery, still very sad!

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Jan 7, 2011 Deerfield Alleged Cougar Horse Kill Similar to 1972 Slashing with Hairy Hominoid Sighting 

            Paulette Stelpflug, co-owner of Freedom Stables in the town of Deerfield in eastern Dane County, Wisconsin, experienced a sad and shocking holiday week when a stable worker found a seven-year old tan quarter horse dead with its neck torn out on December 29. Something powerful enough to take out the carotid and jugular with one “swipe” was the culprit, according to veterinarian Rene Reynolds. He added that the cut was too deep for the horse to have accidentally cut itself on something, and that no structure or machinery that could have caused such an accident was found in the vicinity.       
 
 There were, however, some good-sized animal tracks nearby in the snow. Stelpflug said they included “pokey marks” made by claws, according to a series of nbc15.com articles by reporter Zac Schultz. She believed they were cougar tracks, not an unreasonable assumption given the fact there have been confirmed cougars in southeastern Wisconsin in the past several years.           
 
 There are several potential problems with the cougar theory, however. For one thing, cougars nearly always walk with claws retracted, although claw marks could possibly show up in a track made just as the big cat was about to pounce. DNR wardens examined the entire property the following day and said the only tracks were “dog” tracks, perhaps due to that very reason. No measurements of the tracks were given by the owner or DNR.

            DNR official Greg Matthews also said the attack was uncharacteristic of a cougar because no other marks were found on the horse, and no part of the horse was dragged             It didn’t have to be a cougar; there are other large predators around. Black bears and timber wolves might make occasional forays into this part of the state, but a bear would have left distinct footprints. Wolves normally hunt large animals in packs, but do leave large, dog-like prints. A huge, feral dog would best fit the tracks. But none of these possible culprits seems to fit the facts of this case very exactly.

            All of this reminded me of an incident in 1972 about two miles from Jefferson, Wisconsin, and only about fifteen miles east of Deerfield Township. In this instance, a horse received a thirty-inch slash in its neck and survived. But according to a DNR official I interviewed about 20 years later that had been on the scene, the horse owner saw an unknown, upright, hairy hominoid on her property immediately before the attack. The former warden, David Gjetson, told me she seemed very credible and sincere.

            The woman first called him to report that she had seen a large, upright “apelike”

illustration by Nate Godfrey - hominoid bringing down a deer

creature walking in her farmyard. He investigated the site but found nothing. Two weeks later, the creature returned and boldly walked up on her front porch and rattled the front door of her house. It left deep scratches in the siding seven feet off the ground. It then walked to the woman’s horse shed, and the woman heard her horse whinny in fear. The creature then crossed the farmyard and trampled her vegetable garden where it left foot-long tracks (no description of their appearance was given). When the woman finally dared run outside to check on her horse, she found it had a deep, 30-inch gash on its neck.

            Gjetson said he remembered the incident very well, and that he had been able to provide no official explanation for the attack, and could not explain what the woman saw.

            These are not the only strange creature sightings recorded in the vicinity. Jefferson is also the site of the former St. Coletta Institute where in 1936, night watchman Mark Schackelman encountered a tall, unknown hominoid with long claws digging in an ancient burial mound. The beast produced a polysyllabic utterance that sounded like “Gadarrah” to the man. Gadara is a region of old Judea where the New Testament says Jesus cast spirits out of two demon-possessed men (Matthew 8).

            Moreover, in my latest book on the topic, The Michigan Dogman, Werewolves and Other Unknown Canines Across the USA, 
 

I listed a total of about a dozen separate sightings of Bigfoot-like (as opposed to dogman-like) creatures that have occurred mostly within a corridor that runs from southwestern Jefferson County south into the western side of Walworth County and extends westward into northeastern Rock County. These incidents began with the 1936 St. Coletta sighting and span the decades until the most recent — which occurred at about 4 p.m. on July 15, 2010 just east of Fort Atkinson in 2010.



     The entire region is filled with lakes, marshes and rivers and lies at the southwestern tip of the Kettle Moraine State Forest, Southern Unit. A few miles north of Jefferson and about 15 miles northeast of Deerfield is the restored ancient Mississippian village now known as Aztalan State Park with many ancient mounds, some of them flat pyramids. Nearby Rock Lake, Lake Ripley and Red Cedar Lake have all been rumored to harbor lake monsters, and a lane east of Jefferson called Paradise Road is a local spook lane where a large, winged humanoid was spotted in 2005.

            In fact, my 2006 book Hunting the American Werewolf calls out a 13-square-mile area I dubbed the Jefferson Square of Weirdness because of these anomalies and more, concentrated in such a small area. Deerfield Township lies just west of my imagined square.  It includes several small lakes and marshes which are present in a high percentage of anomalous creatures – but of course also provide hunting habitat for other predators.

            I do NOT mean to imply that I think Bigfoot attacked Stelpflug’s horse. Bigfoot would, after all, have left those famed, ginormous tracks. Something canine seems more likely, although it would need to be a very large canine. The snow-prints from whatever it was have already disappeared due to a few days of unseasonal high temperatures, but I am hoping someone took pictures.

            In the meantime, I am waiting for that necropsy.

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Crypto-Blue Persuasion

December 12, 2010 by Linda Godfrey

Although I try to be a fairly serious researcher most of the time, around Christmas the sightings slow down and — for the sake of a holiday card design — my creature thoughts turn fanciful.

This year my inspiration came from the chorus of a 1969 Tommy James and the Shondells song, Crystal Blue Persuasion. The chorus words, “There’ll be peace and good, and brotherhood,” were sticking with me like an earworm, so I decided to pass them on. Here is the resulting artwork, starring my two fave cryptids.

copyright 2010 Linda S. Godfrey

In case you are too young to know the song, check out the video on YouTube

I did have one second thought about featuring the song. Many tunes of the late 60s had something — ok, a lot — to do with altered states of mind and to be honest, I had no idea whether this one did or not and I didn’t want to be pushing LSD on my Christmas card. I was pleasantly surprised when I found the answer in this interview with Tommy James at SongFacts http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=1884

It turned out to be appropriate, indeed. The funny thing is that my creature-mapping indicates more and more that most Bigfoot and Dogman sightings occur in specific, separate territories within given hotspot habitats, which should make them rather bitter enemies. But in the spirit of the season, I prefer to think of them in temporary truce mode. It works better for a card than trying to portray a crypto-turf war, anyway. Sets a better example for humans, too.

Season’s blessings!

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