Strangest Bigfoot/UFO Encounter EVER...

I read about this case in Stan Gordon's latest book. I've read and heard of combination Bigfoot/UFO encounters before. Granted, I take some "atypical" BF/monster sightings with a grain of salt. This one, however, was investigated by a respected researcher and his team, and the witnesses included a state trooper. Some of the phenomena was recorded on two seperate tape recorders the investigators had with them.
Here's a great synopsis of the account posted on the UFO Mystic site.
Pennsylvania Bigfoot/UFO Encounter
That account reminded me of something I read years ago about Native Americans and creatures they called "Crazy Bears" which came to Earth in small "moons". I can't remember my original source, but here's an account I found online:


The many popular Native American legends of wise visitors from the sky could be the legacy of early California encounters. One of the first UFO-Bigfoot accounts occurred in 1888, and comes from the journal of a cattleman who had wintered with a tribe of Native Americans in northern California. During his stay, he saw a member of the tribe carrying a platter of raw meat into the forest. He followed the Indian to a nearby cave. Upon entering, he was amazed to see the Indian feeding the meat to a large, hairy man-like creature. The creature was totally covered with thick hair, except for its palms. Also, the creature had no neck, but ws much larger than a man. The Indian tribe called him "Crazy Bear" and explained that he had come to the earth in a "small moon" which carried two other similar creatures. Inside the "small moon" were several other entities who were human-looking, only very short and they wore shiny, silver clothes. After disgorging the three creatures, the object took off into space. The Indians told the cattleman that similar incidents had happened throughout the years, but only rarely.

Source
Book
UFOs Over California: A True History of Extraterrestrial Encounters in the Golden State (Paperback)
by Preston Dennett (2004)

That's what's so frustrating about trying to figure this stuff out. IS Bigfoot nothing more than an ape species that has eluded detection? Or is there more to the story? This is why I'm convinced that there's an "Intelligence" behind these phenomena. I have no idea what its purpose or motivation might be, but it seems to persist in throwing a monkey wrench into our thoughts and theories. It teases us, it "feeds" us just enough to keep us guessing. Maybe someday we'll be able to understand the game, and then, maybe, we can get the jump on it.

Couple Of Quickies:

No, not THAT kind!
Remember the Huntsville Marriott Bigfoot encounter? I've just started reading Jessica Penot's "Haunted North Alabama, (hey Jess, they've got it at Sam's Club!). Remember how I said the Marriott is right in the midst of the Space And Rocket Center and Space Camp complex? And how the land around it abuts the Redstone Arsenal and NASA properties? Well, in the chapter in her book dealing with paranormal activity at Space Camp, Jessica revealed a little tidbit of which I was unaware. It seems that the Arsenal property contains a Paleo-Indian burial site. (gee, Jessica, you coulda told me about this lol!) Ancient burial sites and Indian mounds have a long association with various monster sightings. From Bigfoot to the Dogman/Werewolf creatures to Phantom Black Dogs and a host of others. Is there a connection? I can't say, but it was intersting to learn about that.
And while we're on the subject, the complex is smack dab between two highway exits. Linda Godfrey and other researchers have noted that there are creature sightings that seem to center around highway exits and interchanges. And anyone who's researched the folklore will know that the "crossroads" has a long tradition of being a spot to rendezvous with weirdness.
I also received an email this week from a reader who said they have an encounter to share. Hey, I'm all ears! Don't tease me like that! Hope to hear back from you! :)

Valentine's Day Gift Ideas (with STYLE!)

It's an old tradition, flowers and plants make nice Valentine's Day gifts. But, what if you're a Monster Hunter, whose tastes run to the more unique members of the plant kingdom? Here's some of my favorite freaky flora...

Colocasia Gigantea Thailand Giant strain: this is NOT your momma's Elephant Ear. None of those wimpy little 5-6' stalks here! Can you say B-I-G?

Really handy for fanning away that Summer heat! Note the SUV in the background!

Holy Rhubarb, Batman!
Elephant Ears not wild enough for you? (even if it IS giant economy size?) How about thrilling the one you love by giving them Gunnera? No, it's not a social disease, it's Gunnera manicata, a giant rhubarb! Sometimes called "Dinosaur Food". Just imagine lying beneath the shade of one of those eight-foot wide leaves, or seeking shelter from a sudden shower...




Amazing aroids:
Need something a little more colorful? Something that says "Roses? We don't need no steenking roses!"? Here's a couple of flowery freaks that NO one would mistake for an FTD bouquet! Oh, and speaking of bouquets, both of these alien-looking flowers feature an aroma that can best be described as "carrion-esque." Plainly speaking, they exude an odor that strongly resembles dead meat. These plants only flower for a short time (mercifully, I guess!), so, in order to attract flies to spread pollen, they really do smell like decaying flesh. Nicknames for these plants include "Voodoo Lily", "Stink Lily", "Carrion Flower"... get the picture yet? Oh, and guys, if you give your lady love one of these and she appreciates it enough to keep it in the house, she must REALLY love you!
First up, Dracunculus vulgaris (cool name, huh?) aka Dragon Lily:




How about that color scheme?
But of course, sometimes too much is never enough, go big or go home, if you're gonna be a bear be a grizzly is the order of the day. If you want the ultimate in weirdo, unearthly,"statement" plants, here's my favorite piece of garden party overkill! Ladies and gentlemen, the biggest inflourescence in the world, the mighty Amorphophallus titanum! (ANOTHER cool name! Them botanists got some sense of humor!)



Of course, a box-o-chocolates is also nice, I guess...

Less-Than-Famous Phenomena

If you read this blog, odds are you're familiar with the typical manifestations of Heavy Weirdness. Stuff like UFOs, Bigfoot and other monsters/cryptids, strange things falling out of the sky or turning up in archeaological digs. But, the more I read and study this stuff, the more I find other phenomena that are a bit different from the more well-known strange events. I thought I'd bring up a few I've run across. Some of these I thought were unique the first time I read about them, but then I found similar events recounted elsewhere.

"Mini-UFOs"

I first read about these in "Hunt For The Skinwalker". There may be other accounts, but I'd never heard of any. If you read the book, you'll remember the account of the small, glowing red ball(s) that flew around the cattle herd causing a stampede, paniced one of the rancher's horses, and pursued the observers. I remembered this when I read in "Silent Invasion" about a plum-sized green ball that flew about a group of parked cars in Pennsylvania, even going inside the ones that had open windows. So where's a skeet shooter when you need one?

"Disappearing Bigfoot"

Okay, there are more than a few accounts of this, but they aren't usually mentioned by the flesh-n-blood cryptozoology community. There are cases of BF disappearing either before the eyes of the observer or eluding searchers when there was nowhere for it to go. In "Silent Invasion", some witnesses reported BF sightings in which the creature was only visible from the waist up, and I've read accounts in which only a pair of glowing eyes was visible. (even when observed through Gen3 Night Vision Devices). There are also reports of Bigfoot being shot at close range and disappearing in a bright flash of light. The witnesses then heard the sound of something running accompanied by heavy breathing.

"Predator Camoflage"

Another popular account from Skinwalker Ranch was the team's encounter with an invisible being. The witness stated that the being itself was invisible, but there was some sort of outline, sort of a blurry area in the field of vision. Again, I thought this was another "One-Timer" as far as such things go. BUT, in Linda Godfrey's latest book "The Michigan Dogman", she relates an encounter in which a hunter encountered a creature that "was something out of a Predator movie". The witness could see a translucent form. "it looked like a hole in the woods... It was like one of those badges that show two different things if you look at them from different angles; one angle was forest, theother was this hole." Note that this encounter took place in 1977, ten years before "Predator" was released. The creature DID leave evidence of its presence in the form of trampled-down grass, and the hunter reported that it made sounds when it moved.
And yeah, he did shoot at it. It's only response was to move as if surprised, otherwise it was apparently unaffected.

"Aerial Phenomena"

Skinwalker Ranch is famous for it's "portal", an aerial phenomenon which appears to be literally a hole in the sky. The opening is only visible from a certain angle and a certain times.
In "Silent Ivasion", Stan Gordon reports that during their time there, there were frequent flashes in the sky that couldn't be attributed to lightening. There is also a UFO report that had a strange twist: "As the four of them watched, there were five sudden brilliant flashes of light about one second apart... that lit the sky like a welder's arc. Each flash came down as a ring oflight that circled the entire section of the sky''' With each flash, the ring section became larger, and became a deeper blood red.... The sky suddenly became full of small, bright silver lights that came toward the larger object which was now solid red in color. As these smaller silver lights approached the larger object, they appeared to change to red. The sight gave the observers the impression of bees going into a hive."
I wonder if the bright flashes of light signalled the opening of a portal? The witnesses said the circlular flashes formed a "tube". And what about the tiny silver lights? Well, I've got to look that up, but I read a VERY similar account from Washington State that took place in an area of Bigfoot activity.
All I can say right now is "Hmmmm..."

Miss A Day, Miss A Lot...

You know how it is, you hit the 'net every day, check out your favorite sites and blogs, and nothing really catches your interest. Soon it gets kinda boring, so you "lay off" a while. Inevitably, this results in your missing something. :)
Well, just in case y'all don't follow the same blogs as I do, here's some nifty stuff:
Werewolves Of Georgia Again?
Over at his newly-named Canis Sapiens Blog, "KCreekBeast" seems to be experiencing a return of the "Beast Of Kellogg Creek". Strange sounds, a sighting, and something walking around on the roof! All I gotta say is, "Good huntin', Wolfboy! Wish I could be there!"

Mothman: He's Baaaaack! (maybe!)

Meanwhile, over at Phantoms And Monsters, Regan Lee details some accounts of a new rash of sightings of a Mothman type entity. Is MM back? Should we prepare for another disaster? (I mean aside from the freaky weather, bird, fish, and animal die-offs...).

REDFERRRRRNNNN!! :D

I like Nick Redfern, really I do. The problem is we think too much alike. Whenever I discuss him, I've gotten into the habit of repeating his last name in a tone of mock hatred. Like Professor Farnsworth on Futurama does whenever he sees his "rival" Professor Wernstrom. ("WERRRRNNNSSTROMM!").
Call it a Fortean Synchronicity, a coincidence, or a blatant case of stealing my thunder, but Nick has posted a review of Stan Gordon's new book "Silent Invasion: The Pennsylvania UFO-Bigfoot Casebook". Oh well, he's got a much larger audience than I do, and the more people who read the book, the better. You can read Nick's review at his Something In The Woods blog. As for me, I'll be posting some of my own thoughts on some of the cases discussed in the book here.
That's just the nature of the Monster Hunting/Heavy Weirdness biz. Sometimes you've got a long dry spell, sometimes there's more strangeness than you can keep up with.
Wonder if we're on the verge of another flap or "window/portal" event? Guess we'll all just have to hang on and see what comes next...

Windows Of Weirdness? Portals Of Paranormality? Gateways Of Great-Googly-Moogly's?

Point Pleasant area of West Virginia: November 12, 1966, to December 1967. The famous Mothman episode. Sightings of a strange flying creature with hugeglowing red eyes. UFOs, Men In Black, weird alien beings, poltergeist-like activity, and assorted Heavy Weirdness centered on a geographical area. The numerous phenomena peaked for 13 months, ceasing (or most certainly drastically curtailing) following the collapse of the Silver Bridge. Detailed in John Keel's classic "The Mothman Prophecies".

"Skinwalker Ranch", Utah: A history of UFOs, cattle mutilations, teleportations, poltergeist actitvity, sightings of strange creatures a plethora of other phenomena. Following the purchase of the ranch by NIDS (National Institute of Discovery Science) the phenomena kept up for a year or so, but has (reportedly) seriously cutrailed. (though the area and Utah in general remains a UFO/cattle mute hotspot). Detailed in the book "Hunt For The Skinwalker."

Of course there have been other areas of ongoing strange activity. The Bridgewater Triangle, the Troup-Heard Corridor, various sites in the desert Southwest to the mountains and forests of the PNW.

Now there's another place and time to add to the list. Stan Gordon's new book "Silent Invasion: The Pennsylvania Bigfoot-UFO Casebook" lists reports of Bigfoot and UFO sightings in Pennsylvania occurring from the Fall of 1973 to early 1974. In addition to Bigfoot and UFOs, there are reports of Thunderbirds, intercepted mail and disrupted communications among investigators, strange three-toed footprints, and an aerial phenomenon that brought to mind both the Skinwalker Ranch and a little-known Bigfoot incident.
I'll be going into detail on some of these events in future posts since some of them are truly "things that make you go wtf?" And discussing the similarities of the events from these differing locations.
But what really puzzles me is: Whattup with the timing? Sure, we can compare geography, geology, and histories of these areas. But I can't help but wonder if something about the time periods is some kind of factor. Why do these events seem to build, reach a climax, and then peter out? (Oh, stop it!)
I really believe their is some kind of Intelligence behind these things, and I admit I'm stymied as to it's motives or purpose.