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The first official NESRA expedition of 2009 took place the first weekend in May. This time around we had chosen the central region of the Adirondack Park of upstate NY as our target research area.

May 1st

As usual I was up very early Friday morning preparing for the long drive upstate. I finished packing some last minute items and double checked all my gear while waiting for my good friend and fellow researcher John Campbell to arrive. Once John arrived he and I carried my gear out to his van and crammed it in the back beside all his gear. The van now packed, John and I hit the road to begin our long drive north. Leaving Long Island we took I-495 west into NYC then turned north heading for the Adirondacks.

We met Chris, Dave and Kevin at our predetermined meeting location which was about a 30 minute drive from the expedition area at 11 AM. Another team member Bill did not meet us at this location but would be joining us at base camp sometime Saturday afternoon. John and I both grabbed a quick bite to eat as we talked with the rest of the guys about our plans for the weekend. When we were all ready we once again got on the road at 11:45 AM driving towards our final weekend destination.

We arrived at our base camp location around 12:15 PM and began to set up camp. Once our tents were up and our gear unpacked we made plans to scout the surrounding area. We broke up into two teams and headed out searching for physical evidence as well as also looking for good locations to set up our night time observation posts. John and I hiked into the area south of camp while Chris, Dave and Kevin all headed north.

We spent several hours exploring the surrounding area before meeting back at base camp in the late afternoon. John and I didn’t find anything of interest south of camp or even a location we thought would make a good spot for an observation post. Chris, Dave and Kevin had better luck and found a good location for our night time observation posts along a ridge line north of camp.

Back at camp we made our plans for the night, got our surveillance gear ready and cooked dinner. After dinner we cleaned up, got our gear ready to go and divided up into two teams. Chris and Dave were designated Team A, Kevin and I were Team B. John stayed back at base camp in order to watch over the camp, man the camp radio and take notes on our night time activities and radio communications. This was the first time John was manning base camp. Usually the job of base camp commander falls to Chuck, our resident chef, Adirondack guide, all around outdoorsman and expedition scribe. Chuck couldn’t join us this time so John stepped up to take his place at camp and did a great job taking expedition notes and manning the camp radio.

Our gear ready to go, we shouldered our packs, grabbed our chairs and hiked out of camp heading north towards the ridge line at 8:05 PM. To get to the ridge we had to cross several small streams/creeks and navigate through the forest in the dark of night using our head lamps to guide us. We reached the ridge and began our climb to the top. Kevin and I headed west down the ridge line once we reached the top to set up our observation post. Chris and Dave went to the east end of the ridge and set up their OP about 100 – 125 yards from our own.

Once Kevin and I were at our chosen OP location I radioed John at base camp to let him know we were in position at 8:29 PM. Team A called us to let us know they were now in position at 8:46 PM. I then reported to John that both teams were in position and set up at 8:48 PM.

At 8:53 PM Team A radioed Kevin and I to ask if we had just tried a wood knock. We replied we hadn’t and asked what they had heard. Team A reported they heard what could have possibly been two soft, weak sounding knocks as if they were made on a rotted tree.

9:10 PM John in camp called both teams to let us know he had just heard a sound in the distance that sounded like either a motor bike or possibly a chain saw.

9:14 PM I radioed camp to ask John if there are vehicles driving past our camp as I can see what I thought were headlights in the distance on the road through the trees. John acknowledged I had indeed seen headlights and replied a truck drove past camp.

I decided to try some vocalizations and called both Team B and base camp at approx 9:28 PM to tell them that I would be doing 2 whoop calls. At 9:30 PM I did two loud whoop calls. Both Team A and John in camp acknowledged they heard two whoops. We listened for any possible return calls but heard nothing.

At 9:38 PM I radioed Team A to tell them Kevin and I had heard movement in the valley below and to the left of our OP. Dave replied that Chris had been walking around looking for a stick to use for wood knocking.

9:39 PM Chris made two wood knocks. We again listened for any possible response but heard nothing.

I decided to try another vocalization and told Team A and camp at 10:15 PM that I would be doing a long, low pitched howl this time. At 10:16 PM John called me to tell me he had heard my howl clearly at base camp.

10:23 PM I advised Team A that I had heard a faint sound from the west but that I wasn’t sure what it was. Being that I had just heard something, Team A decided to try some more wood knocks hoping to get a response. They told Kevin and I they would be doing 2 more wood knocks.

At 10:44 PM Team A did two wood knocks but again we hear no direct response to the knocks.

The wind had started to pick up over the last hour or so and by this time the sky was cloudy and it looked like it was going to rain. Team A called us at 11:00 PM to say that they were packing up to go back to camp since we hadn’t really had any definite activity and now it looked like rain was coming. I acknowledged that rain was likely soon and that it seemed quiet as far as signs of activity so we would be packing up as well.

At 11:05 PM I radioed John to tell him both teams were packing up and would be heading in since we had no activity and it looked like it was about to rain. The two teams met up and began the short hike back to camp.

We walked up the hill returning to base camp at 11:27 PM just as the rain started to fall. We got back just in time too. Not long after we had returned the skies opened up and a steady heavy rain came down. It rained heavily a good portion of the night but the sun returned by Saturday morning.

May 2nd

Saturday afternoon Chris, Kevin, Dave, John and I all decided to hike in to a remote pond located several miles from our base camp. We were going to the pond to search for any possible tracks that we thought might be found in the mud around the edge of the pond. There are no trails to this pond so we followed a stream for a while to get us relatively close then turned and hiked directly into the forest guided only by GPS and compass. As we bush whacked our way through the forest we kept our eyes open looking for any other possible signs of physical evidence we might find on our hike in to the pond.

The hike was rough going as we had to climb and descend many hills and ridges while beating our own path through the forest. It was several hours before we finally arrived at our target destination and the remote pond came into view. When we reached the one end of the pond we split up our five member team into two teams. Chris and Dave searched one side of the pond while Kevin, John and I searched the other.

Unfortunately once we began searching around the perimeter of the pond we were all disappointed to find that there was absolutely no mud around the edge of this pond what so ever. The grass just grew directly right out into the water with no mud in sight so there would be no hope of finding any tracks at the waters edge. After searching in vain we then took a short rest break before we started the exhausting hike back out of the area.

As we hiked out we received a radio call from fellow NESRA researcher Bill who had just arrived at base camp. He asked us for directions to where we were located so he could come out to meet us. We told Bill to stay put as we were almost out of the forest and would be joining him back at camp soon. A short time later Chris, Kevin, Dave, John and I returned to camp to find Bill there waiting for us. We all exchanged greetings and then told Bill that our exhausting, tough afternoon hike in search of tracks that in the end had been a wasted effort.

Back at camp we all relaxed for a while before getting ready for dinner. We ate an early dinner and talked with Bill about what we had done Friday night and what our strategy would be for Saturday night. After eating we checked our gear in preparation for our night time surveillance ops. Then we split up into two teams again with Kevin and I staying together as Team B while Bill replaced Dave and joined Chris in Team A. On this night Dave had decided to stay back in camp to help John monitor the radio traffic and take notes on our activities.

At 6:30 PM Chris, Bill, Kevin and I headed out for our surveillance area leaving Dave and John in base camp. It took almost an hour for both teams to reach their individual OP’s and be fully set up for the night. This time Kevin and I decided to set up on a plateau just south and towards the east end of the ridge. Team A set up on top of the ridge as they had done Friday night.

I radioed base camp at 7:23 PM to report Kevin and I (Team B) were in position and set up. A few minutes later at 7:27 PM Team A (Chris and Bill) reported they were also now in position and set up.

Being mindful of the heavy rain we experienced the night before, Chris checked the weather on his Garmin Rino 530 and reported rain was again in the area at 7:46 PM. We just hoped the rain would stay away for a while to give us some time to conduct our surveillance.

At 8:10 PM Team A reported their audio gear was up and recording and that they were now going “silent” at their OP which meant that they were going to sit as quietly as possible to listen with only minimal radio communications as needed.

About 20 minutes later Kevin and I heard a “snorting sound” down by the stream closest to our location. The noise repeated several times then stopped. It sounded to me like it was most likely a deer snort and I reported hearing the sounds at 8:33 PM.

A few minutes later at 8:39 PM I called Team A to ask if they wanted to try any wood knocks or vocalizations in an attempt to get a reply. They replied they would do 3 wood knocks. Two minutes later at 8:41 PM Team A did 3 wood knocks. Both teams then sat in silence and listened for a reply but none was heard.

With no apparent response to our wood knocks, Kevin decided to try using his electronic game caller to see if he could cause some type of reply or action. At 9:14 PM he advised Team A that he would be trying the game caller in the next 30 seconds. Kevin played his game caller then we sat quietly for a while listening but heard nothing.

Team A called Kevin and I at 9:31 PM and asked us to try a wood knock or vocalization. I decide to try a whoop and after a 30 second warning to Team A I did my whoop at 9:34 PM.

Team A called us back at 9:40 PM and asked me to do another whoop because they thought they heard a growl sound after my first whoop. After telling them I would do two more whoops I did a double whoop at 9:43 PM. We heard no answer to my whoop calls.

After about 15 minutes of sitting quietly with nothing heard I radioed Team A at 10 PM and asked them if they had heard anymore possible growling. Chris replied that they hadn’t heard anymore growling and that they now thought the growling sound was most likely just the wind whistling over a rock overhang near their OP. I suggested that they try some more wood knocks at 10:10 or 10:15 PM.

Team A did 4 wood knocks at 10:10 PM. We listened but heard no reply. After waiting a while I called Team A at 10:35 PM to ask if they have heard anything at their OP but got no reply. About ten minutes later at 10:43 PM we got a short reply from Team A but their radio cut out in mid sentence. I tried calling them back but could not reach them. John tried calling Team A from base camp and also got no reply.

At 10:45 PM Team A tried to answer our radio calls but their transmissions were completely garbled. I called John at camp and told him that if we haven’t heard from Team A by 11 PM I would go to their OP location and check on their status in person.

Just before I was going to hike out to Team A’s location, Kevin and I saw headlamps moving around on the high ridge where Team A was set up. Kevin and I decided to pack up our gear and head over to where we see Team A moving around. Just as we got ready to hike out of our OP we noticed Team A’s headlamps appeared to be moving down the ridge towards our OP position.

By 11:17 PM Team A had joined us and we then found out that both of their radios weren’t working properly. Chris’s radio had stopped working and Bill’s radio was transmitting in what sounded like the Klingon language from the TV series Star Trek. With no working radio for Team A and with both of our OP positions now fully compromised we all decided to head back to camp.

Both teams hiked back to base camp together. Bill tried to figure out what was wrong with his radio and eventually figured out that it was some how set to a scrambled frequency. Unless all of our radios were set to the same scrambled channel it was impossible to understand and communicate with Bill since his radio was set on scramble.

May 3rd

Sunday morning John and I both got up about 8 AM to find the rest of the team already up and beginning to pack up their gear. John made some coffee and we had a quick breakfast before we also started to pack up our gear. We hadn’t heard or seen anything unusual the entire weekend at this location. Once we had finished packing up and said our goodbyes to our fellow researchers, John and I decided to drive to another nearby pond to have one last look around in the area. We spent about an hour at this pond but found nothing except for a nice view. At that point we decided to head for home so we drove out of the expedition area heading for the interstate and the long drive south back to Long Island.

Below are some of the pictures I took during this expedition.

A view of the river we followed into the forest on our Saturday hike into the remote pond

My friend John on a rock beside the river further upstream

A shot of me climbing over a tree as we hiked in towards the remote pond

One of the many hills we climbed on our exhausting Saturday hike

Chris climbs over a tree blocking our path on the way to the pond

John is right behind him

A view of the pond after we finally reached it only to find no mud anywhere and the grass growing right into the water

A different view of the river on our hike back out of the forest

A typical small Adirondack stream

A group shot back at base camp - from lower left to lower right are: Bill, Mike, Kevin, Chris and Dave

Another group shot to include John who took the first one: John, Mike, Kevin, Chris and Dave

The other pond John and I checked out before we left the area Sunday afternoon

Hello everyone and Good Labor Day to all of you! In order for me to adequately continue in my North Florida River Swamp investigations for my "hairy friends" down here, I must first establish a camp HQ. Since I have been accepted into the USFS Host Camper Program late last month, a volunteer spot that allows me to set up a camper trailer in a designated Federal campground, I have been making ready our small trailer for this task. The first order of business was to replace the worn out tires and repack the bearings on the old camper trailer before it could travel to my house for a complete refit. With that accomplished last weekend, we towed the Phonex camper trailer to my house yesterday where it is resting in my yard now. The real work now begins as there are a great number of things that need to be repaired, replaced, and cleaned up in order for the camper to be ready for it's final journey into the campground (hopefully within the next two weeks). I will be sharing this camp spot with another couple from Ohio who come down every year and stay through the winter until late spring.

I'm not going to bore you with all the bloody details of trailer repairs, but, rather, tell you what I am planning to do once the camper is set in place down in the NF/WMA campsite. Once I have moved into the neighborhood, I need to establish if my "friends" are still in the area. Of course, I must do this (and all other BF things) very quietly so as not to disturb the balance with the USFS or my Ohio neighbors. Until I get to know my trailer neighbors in camp, I cannot risk them having knowledge of what my real intentions are in this spot! Anyway, once I establish that the "Locals" are in the area, I can begin with my planned methods of attracting them into a closer cohabitation with me. My activity calendar is set up such that I have several methodologies in my favor to accomplish this mission. A boat survey of the river area is one of the things that must be done right away. Then, a swamp survey shall be undertaken to try and find the source of their existence in this area. Finally, a forest service road survey will be taken to ascertain any activity in the surrounding NF and WMA locations.

My group has selected seven areas to be studied during this initial phase of operations. Several of these areas are very close to the established camp site. Two of these areas are defined as "Wilderness" by the USFS within the boundaries of this vast 650,000-acre WMA! Unless our survey data dictates otherwise, the vast majority of my time will be spent searching the river and swamp areas, near the campsite, where past evidence has shown that these beings are active during the fall and winter months. One recent measure that we have undertaken is to do an area check using Google Earth to find any well worn trails made by these Big Guys that approach the campground. My mentor has already taken that first step for me and advised me that there are several huge trails observed coming out of the forest into the campground and going back into the swamp! A ground search shall be undertaken as soon as possible to find this sighted "nature" trail and gather any evidence possible once the campsite has been secured. A river research project is being planned for the end of this month, after the camper is in place, to follow up on our investigation from the March adventure written about earlier. Forest Service road surveys will begin next week with the designated "Wilderness Area" first on the list. This area is surrounded by roadway access and must be driven around in it's entirity to check for signs of "wildlife".

Once all the preliminary processes of investigations have been completed, I shall make ready to follow up on all evidence collected that would lead to the habitation with any of these beings. As soon as "contact" has been made with any of these creatures, I will notify NESRA and extend an open invitation to any full member wishing to plan a visit down here with me! As I proceed through the various stages of development with this research endeavor, I shall keep all informed through this blog and on line with the forum, as I deem appropriate.

Well it's August already and I've been neglecting my blog for months now. I should have posted 3 months ago when we held our spring '09 expedition on the first weekend of May. I should have written my report on that expedition and posted it much sooner but I didn't. I did start my report and had every intention of finishing it and getting it posted here but we all know how even with "the best of intentions" things don't always go according to plan. Well in any event, as I said I am working on the report from our spring expedition and will get it posted, eventually.

Speaking of expeditions, we just recently returned from another one in the Adirondack Park. So now I have a second report to write for this latest expedition even though I still have yet to post the first one, yikes! I guess I better get busy then.

I’ll give a really brief description of the first few hours of our latest field research trip here. There won’t be very many specific details related here now, though I will post a much more inclusive full expedition report eventually. The reason I’m posting this now instead of waiting to post my full report later on is simple. The NESRA team was lucky enough to get some very interesting audio clips recorded during this expedition and we wanted to get these audio clips out there for everyone to hear as soon as possible. So that’s why I’m not waiting until my report is ready to post these clips because otherwise you would all be waiting quite a while being that I still have to finish the first report I’m still working on.

Okay so here is a brief description of the first few hours of our most recent expedition and of the events that led up to the recording of some very interesting sounds at our base camp location.

The weekend of 7/31/09 – 8/02/09 the NESRA team was on expedition again in one of our favorite research areas in the Adirondack Park of upstate NY. The first afternoon of the first day I was at our chosen base camp location alone for several hours until the next member of our team arrived. The small clearing was choked with high grass and weeds and was much smaller than it had been the last time we had been at this location. I drove my truck back a forth through the clearing trying to flatten as much of center of the clearing as possible to make room for the other vehicles and our tents. After doing this I parked my truck then got my Zoom H2 recorder and some of my other gear ready.

Fellow NESRA researcher Bill was not scheduled to arrive for at least another 60 – 90 minutes so I found myself alone with some time to kill. I decided to do a quick recon of the immediate area around our base camp and also to try some wood knocks since it was so quiet in the forest, except for the sounds of the rain that is, with nobody else there.

I hiked around for about an hour or so just to see what I could see. I figured it was better than just waiting there at camp for Bill to show up. At least this way I had something to do for a while. As I scouted the surrounding area, I had my recorder running the entire time. I narrated everything I was doing as I did it and described everything I was seeing as well to create a complete audio record of my first hour in the forest. I found a small unusual rock pile not far from camp, a game trail that seemed to have seen some recent use and a flattened down spot in the high grass where a large animal (probably a deer) had obviously bedded down. I didn’t find much else of interest on this initial short hike but it’s not really what I found but more what I heard that is important to note.

I kept checking my watch and when it was close to the time that Bill was scheduled to join me I headed back towards the clearing. Near the end of my hike when I was close to our camp location I decided to try some wood knocks just to see if I would get any type of a response. I really wasn’t expecting a response but thought it was worth trying anyway. “Hey, you never know…” as the saying goes, right?

So I did a few wood knocks on a good sized downed limb just off the trail. Then I hiked the short distance back to the base camp and did a few more knocks about 8 minutes later. Well almost exactly 2 minutes after the last wood knocks I did and approx 10 minutes after the first knocks I certainly got a response, and what a response it was!!!

All of a sudden from behind me came these sounds which I heard even over the fairly loud background noise of the falling rain on the hood of my rain gear! What I heard was the sounds of 3 quick “bangs” (which I believe are most likely wood knocks) followed immediately by a single “heavy crash” sound (that I’m not sure about but I’m leaning towards it being a tree falling or possibly being pushed over or a large heavy object being thrown down). I had my recorder on and was able to document these sounds over the background noise of the rainfall. I remained quiet for some time after recording the sounds I had just heard in case there were more. But those would be the only unusual sounds I would hear for the rest of the day.

After waiting around a while I decided I wasn’t going to hear anything more so I got back in my truck to get out of the rain for a while. I was really hungry by this point so I figured it was time for some lunch. I ate my lunch and just when I had finished eating I heard the sound of a vehicle approaching.

Bill drove up in his truck as I got out of my truck to greet him. He had arrived quite a bit later than he had originally planned. Dave was the next member of the NESRA team to show up and he arrived shortly after Bill did that afternoon. Later that evening we were joined by fellow field researcher Chuck.

Once I returned from the expedition, I listened to my audio clips and edited them down a bit. Then I sent the shortened audio files to Bill who uploaded them to the Soundcloud.com website he likes to use to host his recorded audio clips. So follow the links after each brief description over to Soundcloud to listen to these sounds and see what you think of them.

This first clip is the full 2:18 real time clip which I edited down from the original length recording to isolate the last wood knocks I did in base camp followed by the response I received about 2 minutes later. Because this is a real time clip, there is approx 2 minutes of near silence as I’m waiting to hear if there was any reply. There are of course some noises like the sound of the falling rain, a few handling noises of my fingers on the exterior of the recorder and me moving around a bit but that’s it until the response occurs at the end of the clip.
NESRA Expedition 7-31-09 - 8-2-09 1 edit 3 wood knocks and crash real time 2 18 clip 7 WAV by imonacan

The second clip is a very short clip which I edited down from the first real time 2:18 recording to only 6 seconds to isolate just the four sounds of the “bangs” and “heavy crash”.
NESRA Expedition 7-31-09 - 8-2-09 1 edit 3 wood knocks and crash WAV clip by imonacan

The third clip is an enhanced version of the second short 6 second clip that fellow NESRA researcher Chris Bartow modified using Steinberg Wavelab software to remove most of the background noise of the rain. Though much of the rain noise has been removed, the “bangs” and “heavy crash” sounds themselves have taken on artificially created tones. As a result of removing the background rainfall noise, these tones are significantly deeper sounding than the actual tones I recorded but it does make it easier to hear the four sounds more clearly.
Chris B Enhanced 3 wood knocks and crash 6 sec clip 7 b WAV by imonacan

So what do you think made these sounds?

These are some highlights of the recorded audio from Warren Co., NY in the eastern Adirondack Park. These clips , or parts of them, were aired on Mike and Bob's Bigfoot Quest blogtalk radio show on 8/11/09. These links will take you to the Soundcloud.com website, where all the recordings were uploaded, to give anyone interested, a better chance to hear them again. An explanation of each clip can be read, and I suggest using some good headphones, and as much volume as you can comfortably stand, to hear all the details in the audio.

Mike was the first to arrive at the site of the basecamp on Friday 7/31. He walked around to survey the situation of the heavily overgrown site, and did a narration on his Samson Zoom H2 recorder. He decided to do some knocks on a rock that he tested for the best sound carry, and made this interesting recording clipped from the longer one:
NESRA Expedition 7-31-09 - 8-2-09 1 edit 3 wood knocks and crash real time 2 18 clip 7 WAV by imonacan

There was certainly a reply to Mike's rock knocks, less than 2 minutes after. To just hear the reply, here is a much shortened clip:
NESRA Expedition 7-31-09 - 8-2-09 1 edit 3 wood knocks and crash WAV clip by imonacan

An enhanced version of the reply, of this same shortened clip, can also be heard. Chris used Steinberg Wavelab editing software, to remove much of the background noise, to better hear these sounds of interest:
Chris B Enhanced 3 wood knocks and crash 6 sec clip 7 b WAV by imonacan

Late Friday, we walked down the muddy road into camp, and placed my H2 recorder in a selected tree crotch, a little ways off the road, and left the recorder running for an overnight surveillance. The three of us turned in a little after midnight. After the expedition, I reviewed the 7 plus hours from Friday PM to Saturday AM, and clipped out some of what I thought, were interesting sounds, and sent the clips to Mike, to also review. The recorder was set at medium gain with the full recording level, and on the surround sound setting. This clip was probably the most interesting, and came over an hour and a half into the recording:
OVRNGHT 8-1 pt1 clipE by imonacan

Something of reasonable size steps and approaches the tree and recorder, and scratches at what I believe is the fake fur windscreen, that protects the built in mics on the recorder. More crunching steps are heard, and then , more scratching. Fainter scratches are heard for a while, and also what sounds like it could possibly be a faint inhale, and a bit louder...exhale. A single sound that clearly sounds like a tongue click, can also be heard. I would suggest listening to this clip a few times over , to pick out these sounds. This clip was amplified, and run through an EQ curve to lessen some of the higher end hiss in the recording. No other editing, or noise reduction, was done to this, or any clips that follow.

Things go quiet for almost a half hour, and then pick up again in this clip, that I estimate is from around 2AM Saturday:
OVRNGHT 8-1 pt1 clipF by imonacan

What is interesting, is that nothing is heard walking away (from the previous "clip e"), and the crunching movements and scratching starts up again. A little breeze also seems to pick up, with the sounds of the dropping water from the foliage that also can be heard. Things again go quiet, accept for the dripping moisture. About 20 minutes later, several sounds can be heard, that sound like mic taps, like the recorder possibly being touched or poked at:
OVRNGHT 8-1 pt1 clipG by imonacan

The Saturday PM - Sunday AM recording from our night operations, was also interesting. Again, all recordings were made with the Zoom H2 recorder, that I located on a rock, about 20 yards west of our higher position, on the west end of the ridge. Again, the recorder was set at medium gain, full recording level, and the surround sound setting...in the hopes to capture our conversations, and any interesting sounds or movements during the night ops. After Mike did his 2nd set of wood knocks, and it seemed to initiate some movement that we were periodically hearing down below in the ravine to our south and west. Several hollow sounds that I described as a "clickity - clack" , can also be heard in the clip, that came from in between our position, and camp. This could possibly be the beak snapping sound of a Barred Owl, that had sounded off, around an hour before. Chuck had also heard a hollow sound from the basecamp, that he noted and described. Whether or not we heard the same sound...is still out for question. The conversation between Dave and myself, and our 2 teams radio conversation with the basecamp, can also be heard :
NGHTOPPS 8-1 pt1 clipA by imonacan

Later, Mike did his famous Yeti howl, that initiated more movements from the ravine. Our conversation and radio conversations can again be heard:
NGHTOPPS 8-1 pt2 clipC by imonacan

It is hard to hear the full effect of the movements down in the ravine in these recordings. This movement seemed to follow a similar pattern during the night opps, and move from south to west, and at times toward the basecamp. What amazed me about the "crunching" movements, was the fact that it would stop dead, and then start up in another location in the ravine. It was hard to imagine something moving in between these locations, without making a sound. This lead us to believe, it was possible that more than one source was responsible for these movements. Unfortunately, no visual conformation was had, to see what was making any of these sounds. A tremendously loud "thud" that happened Sunday AM in the area near the pond, was heard by three of us, but unfortunately... not recorded. This sounded as if something very heavy (piece of log, or a large rock) was slammed on the ground. This, and the other sound incidents that took place during the course of the expedition, made for an interesting experience. Give these clips another listen, and enjoy...and you be the judge.

Bill R.

Since October, 2008, I have been doing some carefully chosen searches for the south Georgia and north Florida "Skunk Apes" up here in the regional river and swampland areas near my home town of Tallahassee. I want to specifically talk about some of my expeditions into a local river swamp area that is found inside the massive WMA and National Forest. This area runs along a major river basin as it comes out of a local lake. The river runs down through the national forest and into the Gulf of Mexico.

"Skunk Apes", as they have been historically known, have been seen and reported to exist in this area for centuries. Local legends, handed down through the ages from Native Americans and Pioneer people of the region, tell of numerous encounters with these "swamp devils", "skunk creatures", "swamp boogers", etc. Now here I am trying to find the elusive, secretive, quietly existing southern Sasquatch amid upteen thousands of acres of forests, swamps, and many, many miles of roadways, both paves and unpaved. The task is interesting in that one has to be constantly aware of numerous dangers - not from the Skunk Ape creatures - but from all the other local "nasties" living out in this wilderness. Added to this task is the ever possible unpleasantries of becoming injured or lost as I seek the evidence needed to prove a modern family of Bigfoots are here, now. If you don't think you can get lost messing around in the swamps, just read my blog story about loosing it in south Georgia!

I am out here conducting my own research, investigations, and expeditions mostly alone. What I wouldn't give for a couple of trusted NESRA people out here with me running around and having so much fun. Up until this summer, I have been doing all these things under the guise of hunting and fishing! As of now I'm out of hunting season, so I'll continue the research under the heading of fishing. I am not one of these investigators who like to write about their expeditions in the form of a police reports. Unfortunately, local horrific rains caused the river system to flood out of their banks and prevented me from accessing all my research areas early in the spring. It is likely that the Swamp People reestablished new habitat on higher ground and I cannot find any evidence so far to justify launching any more expeditions until they give me some signs.

In the meantime, I have been busy reading reference materials in the form of new books and maintaining contact with my mentors in an effort to learn more about how to approach these beings. There are no shortcuts to a continued relationship with any of these Shadow People. Learning what must be done to show respect for their way of life, their surroundings, their personal space, and methodologies of appropriate contact details have become my prime directive! In effect, I had to back up a few steps in order to create the correct mannerisms of approach in order for them to trust me when I do reestablish contact again (sometime soon I hope) with the Swamp Folks. One major benifit about living in Florida is that the temperatures remain elivated, not crashing into the freezing degrees such as the north, east, or western regions. It may be too rainy here sometimes, but the weather is always unpredictable no matter where you live and choose to research these people. My point being that these "Swamp People" stay active all year long.

Blog revised 7/30/09.

Before the BFRO report was initiated about my California BF sighting, before I joined NESRA, before the account of my last "flash sighting" on that river island in Georgia, I had a most humbling experience that set me to thinking about just how easy it is to become lost in a swamp. Oh, I used to think I was such the woodsman. Yeah, I've been lost before and found my way out dozens of times. Sure, right, but never like this. Funny things go through your mind during a time when you suddenly realize you are completely LOST and cannot find your way out of a situation.

Actually, it was quite an unassuming day. My oldest son, Bobby, and I had launched our 16-foot Ghoenoe boat at the last landing way up on Lake Seminole, Georgia, and had motored out into the river headed upstream for a hog and deer hunting expedition at the crack of daylight. High hopes fed currents of conceited successes in our minds as we traveled rapidly up the river to a secret spot located inside a small creek mouth where we could hide the boat from the prying eyes of other hunters. Bobby had already killed several hogs and a deer out of this cherish spot and I just knew my attempts to finally kill a nice eating hog would be no problem today.

The weather had turned out to be rather pleasant as a morning cold snap sent the temperatures plunging down into the mid-thirties with a good batch of overhead clouds moving in that seemed to set us into a good mood. As we parked the boat inside this little creek and prepared to split up for a mornings hunt, Bobby slung his backpack on, grabbed the rifle, and headed out into the swamp to his left. I sat in the boat for a few minutes waiting for him to disappear into the swampy mess of vegetation. After about 10 minutes, I eased out of the boat and stood on the banks of this small creek contemplating my next move.

My clothing for the day consisted of some BDU camo pants, a camo tee-shirt, a long sleeve BDU shirt, and a hunter orange vest that fit over the top of it. My headgear was a camo BDU floppy hat, a pair of 8" hiking boots, and a pair of cotton socks. In the left rear pocket of my pants I always carry a red hankerchef and a small folding knife; in my right rear pocket I carry a camo hunting wallet with licenses, ID, and a dollar bill; in my right front pocket I carry some loose change, and in my left front pocket I carry a pocket watch on a chain attached to my black 2" belt that fits around my waist. Also, I wear glasses.

It was then that I made one of the most simple, stupid mistakes of my entire hunting career. I walked away from the boat up into the dry creek bed without my backpack. I had only the small .32 caliber Winchester carbine, a .44 caliber S&W handgun, part of a pack of cigarettes (I actually smoked back in those days), a lighter, and a pocket compass with me. "I'll just go up this little creek a few hundred yards and check for sign", I recall telling myself. Oops!

Here is what I was missing within my backpack: A 5-watt radio with communication to my son; an emergency space blanket packet; some basic survival fishing items (10#-test monofilament line, small & medium sized hooks, a few small bobbers, some split shot, a couple of small sized egg-sinkers, and a pair of pliers; a USMC Kabar knife; a container full of waterproof matches & some instant fire starter kindling; a complete MRE; a small canteen of water; a rain poncho; spare ammo for the carbine and pistol; a GPS unit; an extra pair of socks; and, a long sleeve camo tee shirt.

After I walked up the small dry creek bed away from the boat, I crossed over into the swamp for about 100-yards following a fresh hog track hoping to come upon this wandering rooter. It was not to be. Soon after following the hog track, I sat down next to a big oak tree and smoked a phewy cigarette. When I stood up again, I removed the compass from my shirt pocket and took a look at the northern needle direction while I held the carbine close across my chest. I knew from before leaving the boat, that the landing was due west, so I figured I would just amble along back in that direction to the little dry creek bed and follow it to the boat. Oh, Oh, Reggie headed out in the wrong direction.

Big dummy Reggie placed the carbine across my chest and put the compass near it to obtain a directional reading. The metal in the carbine skewered the true direction, causing me to wander off in a north-easterly direction, instead of back in the western direction where the boat was located. OUCH! So, away north and east I went, plodding along still hunting, thinking I was tracking back to the river. I was following some fresh hog tracks that led away from the dry creek bed and I allowed that to occupy my mind instead of payingattention to the direction I was traveling.

About 30-minutes into the hunting episode, it began to dawn on my dim, dinosouric mind, that I was NOT going to the river where the boat was located. So, I did the "smart thing" and continued on hunting for another hour only to find out I was really LOST. When the startling thought finally enterred my mind that I was good and lost, I sat down by a big oak tree and smoked a few cigarettes trying to figure a way out of my predicament. Admitting that one is lost is the first step towards resolving the crises. Being lost in miles of dim, damp swampland is not a good thing.

First order of business was to remain calm. People who panic and start racing around mindlessly usually tire themselves out both mentally and physically. I had one major medical problem that might spell the difference to my survival. I am a Type 2 Diabetic. That meant I take medication, twice a day, to keep the blood sugars at bay, and I had only taken the morning dose. Then, I had a major physical problem. In my late 50's (then), I was not in the best of shape to play survivalist amongst the changing envirenments that Mother Nature throws at you! And, let's not forget that Mr. Brainy Smerf here had forgotten to bring along his backpack. Yep, I really screwed up this time.

I had made a monumentous mistake with compass directions, I stood up and shot a true compass reading well away from anything metal, like the ding-dong carbine! I estimated that the river lay west of where I was at this time, but I was not completely convinced about where I was, either. Having wandered around mindlessly for the past hour, I actually didn't know where the hell I was, except I was in a hell of a fix right now. I decided to follow an old rule for getting lost = fire my weapon three times and await a response.

So, I pulled out the .44 revolver and fired it three times. No response. In another minute, I fired the revolver three more times. No response. Well, other than hurting my ears and wasting six precious rounds of ammo, I had not resolved a darn thing, other than running off any game animals around me for hundreds of yards! Then, I prayed. Somebody must have heard my pitiful plea because about five minutes right after the prayer session I heard the faint sound of an outboard motor way down to the south of my current position. Ah, now I knew where the river was, and knowing where the true postion of where the river was meant I would eventually get rescued. This was the first big break that I was to recieve in an otherwise receedingly downward spiral of bad circumstances.

I gathered myself together and started off in a southwestern direction in hopes of bisecting the river at some point. It was early afternoon now. Then, it started to rain. Oh joys, and it was a good soaking rain, too. Luckily, it was not a cold, soaking rain. But, this rain did spell trouble for me when it came time to find some dry fire making materials if I had to spend the night in the swamp. As I trudged along in the rain, I looked up to see a big buck standing amid a clump of palmetto bushes about 50-yards away from me. Slowly I raised the carbine to my shoulder, pulled back the hammer, and sighted in on his front shoulder. To shoot or not to shoot?

I did not shoot the buck! Why? Because I was lost, not quite sure where I was in reference to the river, and I had no time to be cleaning a deer right now. My time would be better spent finding the river and, then, locating a high point on a river bluff to overlook a large section of the river for any boat traffic. I had concluded that my best opportunity to be rescued was to prepare a camp to spend the night, if necessary, until I could be found! Of course, I had to find the river first. As I struggled along, resting many times in order to preserve energy, I suddenly became very thirsty. Okay, now what. My canteen was in my backpack at the boat, God knows whre, so what to do.

I solved the being thirsty problem in a unique way - one born out of both despiration and inginuity. As I forgot to tell you earlier, I had fired the .32 carbine three times, in addition to the .44 magnum pistol, in an effort to become located. So, I had three .32 caliber empty cartridges that I saved for whatever reason now became apparent. It had started to rain, not a heavy down pour, but a "soaking" rain. The rain continued for about an hour and completely wet the trees and the ground cover (including the potential fire making wood sources). Suddenly it dawned on my dim mind that I could take the empty cartridge shell, stick it under a big leaf from a tree, and collect enough water to drink and quinch my thirst!

Then, in the distance, down towards my left, I heard the sound of a boat motor going down the river. Yipee, now I knew exactly where the river was and realized that upon finding the river, I could then locate the high ground, and wait for rescue! What a lucky break. I carefully walked to the river, crossed a dry creek bed, and rested upon a hig bluff overlooking the river itself. This is where I would make my stand until found by the certain to be launched rescue efforts. Besides, my plan also included the fact that IF a boat came up or down the river, I would cut loose with a few shots from the pistol and someone would rescue me at that time. Well, it didn't happen that way, but the thought of such kept my hopes up. And, a lost puke like me., that has hope, will stay alive until found - sometime or other!

My next matter of survival became finding a food source (because the shell cartridge, filled with leaf run off water, took care of the most basic need). And, making a fire in case I had to spend the night. First, I dug around my immediate area and found enough dry moss, leaves, and small twigs under the wet ground, to get a fire started before dark (which was rapidly approaching - about an hour away). Next, I found some huge bug larvae inside a rotten log that I knew from USMC survival school would sustain me until a more delicious meal could be acquired. But, I'de hold off on eating the larvae until the last moment! Near dark I was just building the fire (actually considering eating the larvae) and started to light it with my cigarette lighter when I heard the distinct sound of an emergency siren located back behind me away from the river.

Man, that was music to my ears. I fired off three shots with the .32 carbine (the hell with the pistol as the carbine sounds carry a lot further). Right away a man shouted out "hello" about 100-yards away (I'm glad I aimed the gun up in the air). I almost said, "yes Lord"! No, I really said something like "over here"...with a few unmentionable cuss words in there, I'm sure. The man told me to come on over to him as we were going to go out the way behind him to the road. Oh, that is going to make me mad...the road was actually only 1/2-mile away on private property.

I greeted the gentleman (I wanted to kiss him but I didn't...I would had if it been a woman) and we walked out to his truck about half-a-mile out of the dismal swamp! He told me that the boat I had heard earlier in the day had been my son, Bobby, who realized "Pops was lost" when he came back to the boat and found all my gear there and no me! Of course, he never heard any of the shots (nor did I hear any of his shots that he fired before he left in the boat to initiate a rescue)...go figure. Bobby had called in everyone but the Marines, including the helo and the dog squad, sheriff, and the Highway Patrol. As I'm riding down the road going to the landing, I see all these rescue people and started waving at them like the lost idiot that I was. Boy did I feel like a Pinhead!

Back at the landing, there were both my sons, a dozen boats, with fish & game and other law enforcement rescue people, rescue dogs, and the helo on the way. You know I went around and greeted everybody to tell them how much I appreciated them coming out to rescue my sorry ass! Life lesson number whatever: Get a grip, take your stuff with you from now on, or stay home (catch up on my fishing?)!
Revised 7/30/09.

In the course of my quest to find the southern Skunk Ape this winter, I decided to take a few days off and detour away from my secret river island searches. In effect, I wanted to do some deer hunting with my oldest son, Bobby, and my very close friend, Gene. Funny things can happen to those of us that get too close to nature.

The following events occurred on Monday, December 15, 2008 at approximately 3:00 PM along a waterway in Southern Georgia.

Report Filed By: NESRA Field Investigator & Researcher, Reggie Roddenberry

Environmental Description and Weather Conditions at the Time of Incident:
Partly cloudy skies and the air temperature in mid 70’s during the afternoon made for some semi-humid conditions. The wind was mostly out of the east at around 5-10 mph. The encounter occurred while investigating an island on a large freshwater waterway.

This is a small island, about ½-mile in length, by ¼ mile in width. It is situated in the middle of a river that flows into a lake. The ground conditions on the island were extremely damp from recent rains and covered in wet leaves and pine straw.

The island is partially forested in large pine trees with many large oak trees bearing several species of acorns. There are many varieties of deciduous “scrub brush” growth amid some tangled masses of vines along with plenty of thick underbrush vegetation.

This island is surrounded on the north side by a large bayou (bay area) with huge amounts of cattails and marsh grasses growing along the parameter that separates it from the mainland. There is also a huge amount of water plant growth mixed in with the cattail vegetation.

The area along the south side of the island has hardwoods extending down to the waterline in most places, with smaller amounts of cattail growth, that separates it from the other mainland. The river flow is extremely high at this time with great masses of floating trees and other brush/plant life flowing downstream towards towards the lake.

Noteworthy Information:
My partner and I beached the boat on the south river side of the island approximately 2:30 p.m. He immediately went into the island’s interior following a northerly course while I remained at the boat to allow him time to safely leave the area. I shouldered my backpack, activated the GPS, loaded my rifle, and started still hunting in a westerly direction away from the boat (and my partner).

As I traveled along the shoreline, I began turning inland towards a northern direction. Approximately 300-yards from the boat, at about 2:55 p.m., I heard a loud crash to the left of me located 100-yards from my position near the shore of the island. At the time, I thought nothing about this guessing it to be a falling tree limb.

The Encounter:
At 3:00 p.m., as I quietly entered a clearing amid a large stand of pine trees, with some big oak trees and lots of vegetation, I spied movement: Something was standing beside a big pine tree about 50-yards away.

A “creature” quickly went from a standing position, beside the pine tree, into a four-legged stance, and rapidly fled along a thick screen of brush going to my left. I noted an orange/brown colored furry animal estimated at 150-pounds bounding away from me in the manner of how I have observed apes to run – this was no deer or hog! The being disappeared from my view in less than 3-seconds! I made note of the being looking at me as it rapidly ran away inside the brush line.

My best description of its facial features would be to say that it appeared to have two, large, rounded eyes with a flat looking, dark orange colored face – no long, protruding nose seen which eliminates it being a deer or a bear! Unfortunately, a better observation of this creature could not be ascertained because of the thick brush screening its features and the intense speed at which this animal disappeared from my view. In affect, the body was a blur of brown-orange, longhaired flowing motion.

Post Sighting Details:
I have seen numerous deer, hogs, bears, cats, dogs and multitudes of other large animals, wild and domestic, run in my life. No animal I have ever witnessed has disappeared at such a rapid pace as this creature. As soon as I approached the pine tree where the creature ran from me, I detected a slight “skunk-like” odor in the air. This smell then rapidly dissipated as the wind blew away the odors. It was only then that I actually realized that the creature I had observed was possibly a small “Skunk Ape”.

I spent the next two hours in a natural sheltered blind observing the area. First, I spent a couple of minutes on hands and knees searching the immediate area for any possible physical evidence, such as tracks, scat, or hair. I found no physical evidence. Then, I spent a few minutes placing several “cover and attractant” scent wafers around me. Finally, I set up a “natural blind” using tree branches and folage at the exact location where the creature fled from me. I constantly scanned all the trees and the surrounding bushes in the area with my binoculars looking for nesting sites or possible creatures peering at me. Nothing more was seen of any questionable creature nor any unusual sounds heard. There were plenty of bird and squirrel noises, but no other sounds detected.

As the daylight faded around 5:15 p.m., I collected my scent wafers, packed up the gear, and left the area quietly to rejoin my hunting partner at the boat.

Post Script Information:
I have not said anything to my hunting partner about this encounter because I have serious doubts that he believes in the existence of these creatures. Further investigation of this area is pending. I have planned another hunting trip onto this island and will cautiously research the area for more evidence of any questionable creatures as soon as a trip can be undertaken. The photographs that were taken by me are pending developement and I intend to post some of these when they are ready.

Future Plans:
This is the second time in my life that I have had an encounter. The last time, 44 years ago, as a teenager, with a gun in my hand (again), the creature was in slow motion. It really didn’t see me until I alerted it to my presence. This time, apparently, the creature was forewarned, and it saw me first.

I am overwhelmed with caution at the extreme speed that these beings can run away to or from us. This evidence gives me serious pause to consider future encounter potentials. I really should be careful when approaching an identified area of habitation (hot zone) – like this island’s interior. I don’t ever want to have to use a gun to defend myself against one of these animals. So, I have decided that, if I feel threatened, in any way, I WILL leave the area rapidly in order to avoid a confrontation. I remain undeterred in my quest to find more of these creatures will go forward. I want to record as much evidence – pictures, physical findings, sound recordings, anything that the scientific world will acknowledge – without sacrificing my life or that of a creature.

As long as I can stay within their realm without provocation, I shall gather as much evidence for future data as possible based upon physical, time, and weather constraints. As an update from this report, I have had to retreat from this area until next fall. Major rain storms have flooded the river system and wiped away all evidence of their existence. This expedition has been shelved until the fall of this year when I can hopefully reestablsih contact with some of these Swamp People. I have no doubt that they remain in the area, probably on higher ground, but until the river system flood waters recede, I cannot even begin to think about going near any of those islands! Revised 5/30/09.

On November 16th and again on November 23rd, my friend John Campbell and I traveled to Dutchess County upstate NY. We were there following up on an encounter report from last year which occurred at a lake along the Appalachian Trail in this area.

On Saturday November 1st, 2008, fellow NESRA investigator Kevin Humphrey and I traveled to Hartford County in northern Connecticut near the Massachusetts border. We were scouting out an area there Kevin has been researching. He has heard some distant and questionable/possible wood knocks there in the past, so this was the reason for our trip.