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Geographical Index > United States > Maryland > Anne Arundel County > Report # 12601
 
Report # 12601  (Class B)
Submitted by witness on Sunday, September 18, 2005.
Bow hunter hears vocalizations, smells foul odor

YEAR: 2005

SEASON: Fall

MONTH: September

DATE: 17th

STATE: Maryland

COUNTY: Anne Arundel County

LOCATION DETAILS: Incident occured in Churchton, Maryland on Shady Side Road between Shady Side Road and West River in the West River swamp bottoms. Hardwood forest with chokecherry and underbrush thickets. Some old growth trees exist but mainly medium growth scattered with pines and red oak. Swamp vegitation and gallberry trees are abundant. Area condusive to wildlife habitation and wildlife is abundant. Deer, turkey, owls, foxes, woodland game birds like dove have been spotted in the area. Rails,coots, snipe and waterfowl found closer to West River area along with raccoon tracks and large preditor cat paw prints have been sighted.

NEAREST TOWN: Churchton, Maryland

NEAREST ROAD: Shady Side Road

OBSERVED: I was bowhunting for deer yesterday (September 17th, 2005) in the swamp bottoms of West River in Churcton, Maryland when I heard what I can only describe as jibberish hollering coming from behind the deer blind that I was in at about 100 yards or so. It moved east to west hollering jibberish and moving closer and closer to where I was. I unzipped the back of the deer blind to try and see with my field glasses what was making all that noise and scaring the deer away. I saw nothing. The sound was getting closer and I began to feel nervous even though I had permission to hunt there. Thats when the smell of damp musty roadkill mixed with dirty diapers hit me. I had to exit the deer blind for fresh air and an overwhelming sense of fear gripped me. It was more of a safety issue that made me exit the deer blind and nock an arrow in my bow and leave the area as fast as I could before I came in contact with whatever was making the noise. I was unnerved by the aggresive tone in the jibberish and hollering.
The fact that it was close by and I could not see it coupled with the smell and the tone of its voice, made me realize that I had best leave the area, and quickly.
As I exited the woods, I walked briskly towards my vehicle and was approximately twenty five yards from my truck when I heard more loud jibberish coming paralell from me about twenty yards in the woods. Whatever it was was following me and that unnerved me even more and I headed straight for my truck with my bow fully drawn and ready to fire at whatever was stalking me. Again, I saw nothing. No movement in the woods and I made my way to my truck and released my draw without shooting my arrow. I put my bow in the back seat of my Suburban and cranked up my truck and left immediately. I have never felt that way in the woods in my entire life. I have hunted bear, wild pig and deer all of my life and never have I ever felt the need to flee the woods. Until now.

ALSO NOTICED: The loud jibberish hollering at the top of its lungs and the smell of wet musty roadkill with dirty diaper that caused me to gag for air.

OTHER WITNESSES: Hunting alone during hot muggy beginning of bow deer seaon in mid September.

OTHER STORIES: Not until I came across this site. My wife is from this area and suggested that I might have encountered a bigfoot. I looked up bigfoot on the computer and found this site and so here I am relating my encounter with whomever cares to read about it. A couple of buddies that I told about this yesterday thought I was pulling their leg. I know what I experienced and it was real.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: around 4pm slight rain. HOT and muggy

ENVIRONMENT: The edge of pine forest and river swamp bottom land.


Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Bill Scott:

The witness provided the following information when I visited the site:

The witness and his wife heard a gibberish scream while hunting in the same area the previous morning (September 16). Both of them were a bit unnerved but they dismissed the noise because it didn't continue.

Sometime during the mid-morning, a deer came into the witness' sights and he was able to get a decent shot at its shoulder. According to the witness, he knew the shot wasn't perfect, but it would eventually be fatal.

The witness waited 45 minutes to an hour for the deer to die and then began tracking it to recover the body. He and his wife followed the blood trail for a distance and found the feathered half of the shaft. They followed the deer’s trail a bit further and found the half with the arrow head. The deer’s trail ended at two large pools of blood. The witness and his wife, along with a friend who came by later in the day, searched for five or six hours and were not able to locate the deer. The witness stated he had never lost an animal in that way and was puzzled.

The area where the witness had his encounter has a history of bigfoot sightings, dating back to the fifties. Locals called it the "Chalk Point Monster" after a point of land that stretches into the West River, near the Chesapeake Bay. Activity appears to have died down in recent years, probably due to development, but it is possible that there may be some infrequent activity today. There is still a large amount of forest and farmland, along with abundant food sources.


About BFRO Investigator Bill Scott:

Bill Scott works as a small business manager near Washington, DC. He has extensive knowledge of the State and National parks in the Mid-Atlantic area.

Bill has participated in the following expeditions: Washington (Oly Pen -1), West Virginia.