Lon Strickler's Blog, page 492

Giant Bird Sightings in Puerto Rico, Massachusetts & Michigan

“You know that Indian folklore in part tells the truth. I'll explain. Back in 2001-December to be exact, I went on a cruise to the Caribbean. It was a Royal Caribbean cruise. On our third or fourth day, we landed on Puerto Rico. One hour into port, a group of ten of us got a tour guide for just about an hour. Well, the tour guide was explaining spots of interest in the island, but since it was like a rainy-overcast day, he said that it wouldn't be possible to visit those sites. He took us to the beach in San Juan. We all got out, the sun was out just for like 20 minutes. I was married to my ex-wife at the time and I was taking pictures of her just a couple feet from our tour bus. Well, I saw the clouds coming in, the cloud was shaped almost like an arrow, at the tip of the arrow were two giant birds. They both had white rings on their necks, one was way larger, the other one was about the size of a Cessna propeller air-plane. I yelled to the tour guide to look up at the cloud, and repeated to all the members to look up, but by that time, the two giant birds went straight up higher than the clouds. Then the rain came down and we quickly went into the bus. Nobody believed me. I took pictures of the cloud. I still have them, but the birds weren't in the view. Indian legend says these birds bring rain clouds to villages that are in need of rain for planting their harvest. In a way the Indians were right." - Manuel Ponce

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“In approximately summer, 1975, I saw a shadow on a 100 foot granite viaduct, looked up and saw this ENORMOUS bird! I waited for my dad to come home from work. At dinner he was quiet, I said, 'Dad, I saw something strange today.' He replied, 'You saw a thunderbird, so did I.' He drove cab in town in Boston, but we lived in the burbs. We both saw same thing, same day, 25+ miles apart. Crazy right? Except we're of indigenous ancestry and of the Thunderbird clan. These are spiritual creatures.” - tripleyoker

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“I saw a Thunderbird in about the spring of 1975, in Muskegon, Michigan. I was plinking at stuff with my new BB gun and I saw a sparrow. I shot at it and right next to it a GIANT Bird took off! I was about 10 years old and can tell you this thing scared me so bad I ran. I was about 15 or 20 feet away from it and can guarantee that the wingspan had to be 25 to 30 feet long with at least a 3 foot width. I thought the wing closest to me was going to hit me. It was a Thunderbird for sure.” - Bruce Cook

The Future of the 'Phantoms & Monsters' Daily Email Newsletter - UPDATED

Hey folks, I would like your thoughts on the use of a paid membership platform for 'Phantoms & Monsters' newsletter. If I eventually decide to implement a plan, what would be a reasonable fee?

That being stated, I need to figure how much advertising and donation revenue will be lost in the process. I have always said that the newsletter would be free, but it's getting to a breaking point compared to the amount of time and effort involved. Advertising fees and overall donations have dropped dramatically.

I'm just putting it out there for a serious discussion. You can go to my Facebook page in order to discuss this issue. Lon

UPDATE: I have been thinking about a few options, but none satisfy my original intent of writing the blog and providing a free newsletter. Times have changed, but I'm hoping that I can rely on advertising and donations going forward. I have been lucky to have some very generous readers and fans...and I feel obligated to them to maintain the status quo for as long as possible.





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Russian Boy Encounters a 'Leshy'

I recently came across the following interesting account:

I live in Russia. The official religion is now Christian, but earlier there was Yazichestvo or Slavic Paganism. In that religion there a lot of Gods. Usually they have one property or work. Also, there are a lot of other creatures, such as Леший (Leshiy), “Les” means forest, “hiy” means “live in here”.

When I was young, in the summer I lived in my grandparent's summer house located in countryside surrounded by pine forest, about 100 km from Moscow. I was about 13 when that happened. It was a really boring summer. I had nothing to do, so I decided to make contact with some creatures of Yazichestvo. I had that book, where main Gods and creatures were listed, plus I had Internet. So I did some research and found out that Leshiy was the best choice, because there are a lot of old forest near me.

Some words about Leshiy. He is protector of the forest. He lives in here like some kind of politician and rules the forest. He can change form, make himself invisible and turn into old man with white greenish beard. He can be evil and good, depends on people, how they treat forest and how they act. Also, he likes presents and treats, such as tobacco, rye bread and candy.

So I took candy, walked into forest, found some cut tree, placed candy on it and said loudly something like “Леший, Леший, я принёс тебе гостинцев, возьми их.”, that translates like “Leshiy, Leshiy, I brought to you some treats, take them”.

I stay there for a little trying to hear something, but instead I spotted some movement in corner of my eye. I saw darkish translucent figure to the left of me, about 50 cm tall, that was running behind me. While it was running it was growing taller and taller. I almost sh*t myself, started running out of the forest, while that figure ran over to the place when I placed candy. Few seconds later, I heard explosion. Very loud! It was a tree, that he probably fell to the ground. I stopped near the exit from the forest and stared toward that fallen tree. It falls exactly at that place when I was standing. I ran out of the forest to my house, locked the door and never went to that forest again.

I have few questions about that situation:

- Does somebody know what was that creature is? There are some analogies outside Western Europe.

- What did I do wrong so it got mad at me and tried to kill me? Even though they like treats and I was doing everything to please him.

- Maybe someone had similar experience? I’d love to hear your story. - Pixe1one

NOTE: In the west, these beings are known as 'Leshy.' Supposedly, it is a male woodland spirit in Slavic mythology who protects wild animals and forests. You can read more at LESHY – Slavic Demon And A Caring Spirit Of The Forest. Lon

Slavic Witchcraft: Old World Conjuring Spells and Folklore [image error]

Ask Baba Yaga: Otherworldly Advice for Everyday Troubles [image error]

Russian Fairy Tales (The Pantheon Fairy Tale and Folklore Library) [image error]

Slavonic Fairy Tales [image error]

Myths and Folk-tales of the Russians, Western Slavs, and Magyars [image error]

Lon's Suggested Reading List - Books & Films / DVDs

Subscribe to the Phantoms & Monsters / Arcane Radio YouTube channel





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Two Bigfoot Bodies Found Near Bishop, California

"In the late 70s we had a trailer out in the desert of Bishop, California. We were riding our motorcycles and found two dead gorillas, one little one and a big one. The little one was on the big one like it was being carried. We told the rangers the next day. We direct him to the bodies and he call more rangers. They took them away. He told us that they were from some private animal side show that gotten loose. As I got older, I realized what gorillas look like up close from zoos. These were not gorillas. It was way too human-like. The little one had less hair than the big one and the head was not the same shape as a gorilla. It looked like a little human kid. It was weird to see this and not know about Bigfoot back. Then it was not so public." - Fender Veal

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5 Gigantic UFOs Over Port Philip Bay

“You're not alone. Many of us have seen them. That is why there is no need for me to see 'evidence' as the fact is already proven to myself. In the late 70s over Port Philip Bay (Australia) there were five huge disks over the water (by huge I mean absolutely massive like the size of several football fields, though children have an inclination to remember things bigger than they are because the child is also small). My father took a photo of them with his Polaroid instant camera but the photos would not turn out. I still see them in my mind as vividly as a Youtube image on my screen. They were beautiful looking things reflecting the vivid colours of the sunset on their silver surfaces. The government is up there monitoring UFOs using the X37B (Google that little secret operation) UFOs such as the Black Knight and the Black Knight is even featured on their badges and emblems.” - easemailbox

The Future of the 'Phantoms & Monsters' Daily Email Newsletter

Hey folks, I would like your thoughts on the use of a paid membership platform for 'Phantoms & Monsters' newsletter. If I eventually decide to implement a plan, what would be a reasonable fee?

That being stated, I need to figure how much advertising and donation revenue will be lost in the process. I have always said that the newsletter would be free, but it's getting to a breaking point compared to the amount of time and effort involved. Advertising fees and overall donations have dropped dramatically.

I'm just putting it out there for a serious discussion. You can go to my Facebook page in order to discuss this issue. Lon




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'I Was Blinded By A Gnome'

I recently received a document that was prefaced with the following statement:

Hello Lon,

I am attaching a seven page article (with images) of an encounter I had with a “gnome” here in my property in Carlsbad CA on July 16, 2017. The encounter left me blind on my remaining good left eye.

One of the items of proof that I can provide (if requested) is an evaluation done of my eyes by (redacted names of optometrists) here in Carlsbad CA. The evaluation was done on July 20, 2017, four days after my encounter with the gnome.

Lon, I am guessing that by now you can probably determine, within seconds or minutes, whether someone’s story sounds true or not. I can assure you that what I describe in the article is true. Let me know if you need more info.

Warm regards,

AG

I have contacted AG and will provide any further information if provided. Here is the statement"

The story you are about to read is absolutely true, but I need to preface it with the following three points:

One, I was already visually impaired in both eyes from myopia and macular degeneration. My good remaining left eye--prior to the event I am about to describe, was corrected with glasses to 20/20 allowing me to drive legally. After the event I estimate that my vision deteriorated to between 20/100 to 20/150 although it has improved substantially since then.

Two, I never actually saw the creature that blinded me, but for the reasons elucidated I have inferred that it is within the category of gnome.

Three, as of December 11, 2018, I have determined that the gnome is still active in our yard here in Carlsbad CA!

In late May / early June 2017 I was doing my regular walk around the perimeter of our house looking for ants. In closely checking the ground outside the crawl-in space on the garage side of the house, I encountered a mysterious perfectly round hole approximately 1 ¾ inches in diameter with no nicks around its edges (see figure 1). But what most struck me was the absence of any buildup of dirt around the hole. I was familiar with holes made by gophers and squirrels and they always had a mound of dirt around them unless it was an old hole.


And it was not until several months later, while walking in a field full of gopher holes, that I realized how unusual it was to find perfectly circular holes, with the only semblance of a perfectly circular hole being a hole that was full of nicks around its edges.

I then forgot about the hole until mid July when, while checking the same area again, I realized that there was an ant nest(s) under the black polyethylene sheet that was covered by gravel. This was immediately adjacent to the mysterious hole.

On the Sunday of July 16, 2017, after removing the gravel, I pulled back the sheeting to expose the ant nest(s), and this time upon re-examining the hole I was struck with yet another anomaly - the hole was bi-tunneled with both tunnels running diametrically opposite each other at an 180 degree angle! (see figure 2)


I then began pulling at roots that had grown underneath the sheeting, with one of the roots reaching all the way over to the right-side tunnel and effectively collapsing part of it. I then dumped the first of two large pots of boiling water over the ant’s nesting area partially flooding the mysterious hole.

Then, as I piled the roots into a bucket, something unexpected happened — a bee appeared! At first I thought the bee had been attracted by the scent of the roots since it hovered above them.

The unexpected behavior of the bee then turned into astonishment when it followed me to the green dumpster cart on the other side of the yard! Although I thought the bee’s behavior was highly unusual and somewhat alarming, this was only a prologue to what was about to happen!

After dumping the roots into the green cart the bee then switched its attention to me! It would repeatedly, incessantly, sweep vertically in front of me from head to toe. It was obvious the bee was attempting to communicate something (this is the second communication I have received from a bee).

I remember standing outside the sliding screen door and telling my father, “Look at this bee”. And, for the next 45 minutes or so, as I prepared the second bucket of boiling water, the bee would sweep in on me as soon as I stepped outside the door.

The behavior of the bee then reached an incredibly alarming crescendo as I stood ready to pour the second bucket of water over the ant nest(s). The bee was now sweeping vertically in front of me with an increased sense of urgency and speed, tapping me on my forehead, chin, and abdomen. I was truly alarmed thinking the bee was about to sting me...and, indeed, when I felt its stinger on my upper abdomen I instinctively reacted by killing it with my gloved hand! It was a horrendous feeling; I felt as if I had committed sacrilege since I viewed bees so positively, so helpful to humanity. And, of course, I had learned to have a healthy respect for them having been stung several times throughout my life.

I felt an eerie sense of gloom and foreboding; SOMETHING WAS TERRIBLY WRONG! What in the world was the bee trying to convey to me?

Like an automaton I then went ahead and mindlessly poured the second bucket of boiling water not imagining the consequences of what I was doing and of what was about to happen!

And, the following morning when I opened my eyes, my good remaining left eye had a blurred blind spot in its center field of vision--AND I UNDERSTOOD AT THAT INSTANT THE MESSAGE OF THE BEE! I realized at that instant that that mysterious perfectly circular hole had NOT been made by a gopher, squirrel, rat, or any known animal. Fortunately, I am well versed in the paranormal and suspected that the hole had been made by what is commonly referred to as an Elemental, Fairy, Nature Spirit, and or, a Diminutive Humanoid.

However, I did not immediately know exactly what kind of creature I was dealing with. In thinking of the different mythical human-like creatures I had read and heard about—the word “gnome” kept resonating over and over in my mind. I remembered the strange case reported on Coast To Coast AM (C2C) on September 6, 2017 of a “Little Man Gnome” caught twice stealing fruit from an orchard in Florida. This occurred around 1947, and although the woman involved in the case had long died, one of the sheriffs involved was still alive. The little hairy, bearded gnome was described as being “no larger than a water bottle!”

Then I thought of the Garden Gnome statuette created by the German Phillip Griebel in the 1800’s based on local myths. What was the basis of these myths?

And finally, I remembered the mystic Rudolf Steiner describing gnomes as “creatures that make tunnels inside of the earth”. This described exactly what I found—a tunnel system...a tunnel system that continues to be excavated even as I write this letter!

Four days after the event, on July 20, 2017, without an appointment, I frantically rushed into the office of (redacted names of optometrists) for an valuation of my eyes and based on the results recommended that I not drive. I continued to drive with great apprehension relying solely on my peripheral vision.

One of my greatest worries since the event has been that I would fail my scheduled June 2018 DMV required optometrist’s vision test, and that my driver’s license would be suspended. I thought that I was required to have at least 20/20 vision in one eye (with corrective lenses) in order to be able to pass, and yet, Dr (redacted) gave me a pass with 20/50, although he did suggest that I not drive at night.

Two months later I was given permission at the DMV office, with a 20/70 score, to proceed with the driving test, which I also passed!

It has been one surprise after another, with the latest being a pronounced improvement in vision beginning in the first days of November 2018.

I hold absolutely no grudge towards the gnome; after all, it did try to warn me! There was a time in the distant past when a human could have deciphered the message of the bee. But now, after thousands of years of social conditioning, it is highly unlikely that any modern socialized human could have deciphered the message of the bee.

There are several questions I have:

1. What does the gnome look like?
2. How aware is it of us? Since remote sensing is a universal trait of living things, I cannot imagine it not knowing a lot about us. Is it able to monitor our activities inside and outside the house?
3. Why did it choose such a potentially dangerous location to construct its hole? The ability to anticipate events is also universal. Why did it not anticipate that its tunnel would become flooded?

I believe that part of the answer to my last question is that certain events are meant to happen as they will. How many times have we heard abductees be told by their alien abductors that “it has to happen this way”.

If we live in a multiple timeline universe with multiple timelines converging and creating the realities and events we experience—it seems clear this event was meant to happen to me! And while I believe there are several reasons for this, I will not list them here for the sake of brevity.

There is one interesting side note. Since realizing long ago that fairy-type creatures were real, I have been absolutely fascinated with learning as much as I can about them. My fascination was such that in 2003 I bought the book, 'The Elves of Lily Hill Farm' by Penny Kelly, which I partly read, and which is supposedly based on a true story (note that I rarely buy books).

There was a time when a story such as mine would have been viewed with skepticism, however, with the discovery of Homo Floresiensis in 2003 in Indonesia, the idea of hominoids of very short stature has become more acceptable. But even without this discovery, just the widespread historical and modern belief in diminutive human-like creatures throughout the world is enough proof for me to consider their possible existence.

Further proof is provided by the photographs of Samantha Ritchie of planetsasquatch.wordpress.com. Perhaps for the first time ever, images of very diminutive humanoids—three to four inches tall, have been captured on film!

I also need to mention a replay of a C2C Sept 13, 2002 Art Bell interview with the witch Evelyn Paglini, where Paglini stated that certain entities have the ability to harm us by taking advantage of pre-existing conditions. This is exactly what happened to me.

This last point highlights how much we humans have learned about these creatures through thousands and thousands of years of interacting with them. It also highlights what a truly amazing living universe we live in. A universe that is more complex, more evolved, and more inter-dimensional, than we can imagine.

There is a belief among shamans that if you acknowledge nature, that nature will reciprocate and acknowledge you in one way or another. This acknowledgment of nature began in our household with the practice of leaving food and water out for wild animals. We did not always know what animals would be attracted, but — living in a multi-dimensional reality, I suspected from the beginning that creatures from other dimensions might also be attracted.

Also, knowing that we live in a symbiotic relationship with nature, it occurred to me that attracting animals like birds, cats, coyotes, raccoons, opossums, skunks—and even rats, might also attract the inter-dimensional entities that had developed symbiotic relationships with them.

I remembered a woman who could perceive angels commenting that when large numbers of birds move together, that there is often an angel moving along with them. So, when rabbits began to increasingly appear in our yard two years ago, I wondered if something analogous might also be happening; that is, could something be attaching themselves to rabbits?

My suspicion was partly confirmed by the mysterious disappearance of the egg that I would leave nightly inside the dirty swimming pool water specifically for the raccoons. I had learned to determine whether the egg had been consumed by a raccoon or crow by the trail left on the murky water due to the animal’s movements, and also by observing the composition of the broken egg shell. Around two years ago I began to notice that the entire egg would disappear without any trace of any kind!

This recent encounter with a gnome is now my second encounter with an elemental on this property, with the first encounter, on Nov 25, 2012, being so subtle that I suspect most people would not have realized they had encountered an elemental.

My encounter with the gnome is the culmination of increasingly bizarre supernatural events that have occurred on this property now for the past eight years. And I believe these events will continue since a path of least resistance has been established.

Afterthoughts

I have not addressed the following points of interest in my desire to keep this article brief:

1. The gnome’s ability to make a perfectly circular hole without leaving a trace of dirt buildup around it (this, I believe, is related to its inter-dimensionality and to its access to unknown forms of technology...its clear from the literature that it has potential access to technology).

2. Why was I not blinded immediately after the incident? (this shows that there may be an observer effect at play here. The various converging timelines could not converge and create a new reality until after I was asleep and no longer observing this reality. Concurrently, being asleep also left me more vulnerable to its effects).

3. What other abilities do gnomes have besides the ability to conjure the assistance of bees and create effects remotely? (It's clear from the literature that they have a vast range of “supernatural” powers). - AG

NOTE: First of all, I feel that AG sincerely believes that he was blinded by a Gnome or other being. I have seen and read enough anecdotal evidence that suggests that these small beings do exist in some capacity, be it an indigenous or supernatural entity. That being stated, I have forwarded this account to other researchers, who are more well-versed in this phenomenon, for their assessment. Lon

The Brimstone Deceit: An In-Depth Examination of Supernatural Scents, Otherworldly Odors, and Monstrous Miasmas [image error]

Thieves in the Night: A Brief History of Supernatural Child Abductions [image error]

Fairy Magic: All about fairies and how to bring their magic into your life [image error]

The Land of Stone Flowers: A Fairy Guide to the Mythical Human Being [image error]

The Djinn Connection: The Hidden Links Between Djinn, Shadow People, ETs, Nephilim, Archons, Reptilians and Other Entities

Lon's Suggested Reading List - Books & Films / DVDs

Subscribe to the Phantoms & Monsters / Arcane Radio YouTube channel





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Bizarre Humanoid Encounters

“Something happened ten years ago (2005) that I've never told anyone. I was about 15 or 16 back then and had never heard of Slender Man or Mothman or anything like that. I was walking down to the beach from on top of the hill I lived on to meet my buddies to get into mischief. I remember it was a very foggy night and around 2:00 AM in the morning. I was coming down a long street with street lamps at every intersection, when I noticed about 3 or 4 blocks down, there was something standing in the intersection. It was tall. Very tall, and skinny, and I can't remember seeing any clothes on it but it wasn't naked. It was silvery, I guess, and was standing dead still under the streetlamp staring straight up at it. It didn't seem to notice me at all, it just stared at the light. Then I noticed its legs. You know how an Ostrich leg looks? Bent backwards at the knee? That's how its legs were. I remember feeling an immediate sense of doom and I remember being so startled that I cut the entire 4 blocks just so I wouldn't have to get close to it. It never saw me that I know of. It just stared up into the light. I never spoke of this to anyone until now. Has anyone ever seen anything like this?” - Diego

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“I was awoken out of my sleep to something standing at my bedside just watching me. I saw it for about two seconds then it was gone. It fits the same bill as this thing (the Mothman). It did not make a sound. It did not smell. It did nothing to me. I don't know how long it was there watching me sleep. I'm in Spokane, Washington. I have not seen it again but who's to say its not there while I sleep. I had a hard time sleeping afterward. For about three weeks I slept with my knife set sharpener. I was not frightened. I was more mad at being watched while I slept like you might be mad if a peeping tom was looking into your window. What I saw was about 6 foot 4, skinny, a brownish color and it had a skinny face. I could not make out what color its eyes were. It seemed like it had wings but I cant be sure of that. Whoever I tell this to blows it off like I am crazy but this has never happened to me before. I could see thinking I was crazy if I had other symptoms like seeing other stuff or hearing chatter that is not there. A month later I am still shaken and have a hard time sleeping.” - Tad Casper (discussing something that happened to him in his house in Spokane, Washington in 2015

'Tree-Knocking' Bigfoot Encounter

I was walking in a steep creek with my dog looking for arrowheads. This was in south-central Iowa. This is the type of creek where the banks are so tall and steep it is difficult to get in and out of, and once you are in there your vision is limited on the sides because you cannot see over the banks. It's some pretty remote country and privately owned.

After walking for awhile I hear what sounds like someone chopping a tree down with an axe (tree knocking sounds). I remember thinking clearly that it made zero sense because of where the sounds were coming from was in a very isolated and deep part of the woods and there was no reason for anyone to be back there chopping down a tree. If someone needed wood there were thousands of other trees that were more accessible and no one uses axes anymore. This is hardwood country, chainsaws are the norm. I ignored it and kept walking down the creek bed. Then after a few minutes I heard it again. Still didn't think much of it but I took my walking stick and whacked it against a tree 5 times in response to the tree knocks I heard coming from up the hillside. Mostly just to mess with whomever was up there.

It wasn't long before there was another 5 tree knocks in response to me, but this time much closer. I started to get a little nervous but wasn't going to let my imagination get the best of me. I have watched too many bigfoot shows and know they are said to do tree knocks as a form of communication. I kept going but was much more alert and had this eerie feeling starting to sink in like I was being watched.

Out of nowhere my dog, who normally stays pretty close to me, put his nose into the air and then took off in a mad dash in the general direction the knocks had been coming from. He scrambled up the bank like a mountain goat and was gone, chasing whatever was up there. Not sure how long, maybe 10-15 seconds my dog (who isn't afraid of much) came tearing ass back down the bank with his tail tucked between his legs and up and out the other side of the creek in an attempt to put as much distance between himself and whatever he encountered. That was all it took for me. I clawed my way out of the creek in the same direction my dog was retreating and probably set a new land speed record for the 400 meter forest dash. I never did see anything, but I didn't turn around either. I didn't want to see or waste the time looking behind me once I was out of the creek and on level ground. Still makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up to think about it. - FB

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Shapeshifter in Nashville

“My wife works at a prestigious dentistry here in Nashville, Tennessee. They take NFL guys, musicians, and even one of my favorite authors. Anyway, she was checking out one of her clients and she introduced her husband to my wife and his eyes went to slits, and she even said that he was talking to her telepathically. I know how that sounds, but my wife wasn't even into all this stuff at the time. She's also the most honest person I know. Anyway, it turns out his profession was inventing military weapons I think with DARPA but I'm not sure about that part but that's what got me investigating all this stuff back in 2014.” - Rico Kohler

Lancashire 'Hellhound?'

“Some years ago, in 2015, I was talking to an old school friend's mother. They were farmers in the town of Kirkham, Lancashire. She told me a story of the time she saw a strange animal at the bottom of one of her fields. In the summertime, every evening, she would walk the fields with her black Labrador. At the time, her son had put out a couple of garden chairs under a tree for her to sit on. These were placed in the last field she used to walk in. The dog would sniff and run around as they do. She would sit and enjoy the evening sunshine.

One evening, she had her usual walk with her dog, she got to the last field and sat down for a rest and enjoying the view. Then at the very bottom of the field which backs onto the railway lines, she saw a large animal. I asked her what it looked like. She described seeing a large dark brown or black animal about the size of a bull, but it looked more like a dog. It was walking on all fours from right to left, keeping very close to the fence which separated her land and the railway cutting. She is not sure if it was on her side of the fence or the railway side. I asked her if it was a wild boar or a deer or just a large dog. The answer was a definite no, this lady had been around animals and farmyard stock all her life, and I am pretty sure she knows what she’ saw, and it was none of the animals I mentioned.” - Leon Howarth

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Missing Time at Abandoned Campgrounds

“I was driving through the mountains between British Columbia and Alberta in Canada. My fiance and I pulled over at an abandoned camping grounds. We lost a few hours and we know we didn't fall asleep! We seen odd bright lights through a few trees. We remember seeing it arriving and it only made a kind of quiet humming noise. I can't recall what happened in those few hours. I just remember coming to and feeling oddly sickly scared and we sped out of there so fast and we didn't pull over again until we got out of the mountains and to our destination in Alberta. Then we got a few hours of sleep. - Santana Bergen- Carbone

Massive Birds in California: Natural or Something Else?

“I saw a bird in California on the western slope of the southern Sierra foothills that was so huge that my brain could not even register what I was looking at. The first few moments that I looked at it, my brain was trying to register it as a guy in a condor suit, or some kind of man made device that looked like a giant condor, but it wouldn't hold in my mind because it was up in the air hovering in place in the wind while batting its massive wings. So its body was a little bigger than the average sized man. I ended up thinking of it as a condor and just thought they must be bigger than I thought. That bird was huge enough that it could probably fly way up in the air and glide from the mountains where I was straight over to the pacific coast and channel islands in no time, and I think that's what it did because I don't know what it could possibly eat except dead whales, sharks, dolphins, sea lions etc., but the area I saw it in was full of open range cattle which die on the range all the time, and it was a place that blew forty mile an hour winds every day for the bird to ride on.” - Stuart Johnson

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“One summer vacation, when I was a kid in the sixties, my dad took the whole family on a camping trip on the nether side of Folsom Lake, in California (east of Sacramento). And, on a hike by myself one day, I saw a bird perched on a tree trunk. Not on a branch or a twig: the trunk. Because it was fully five feet long from the tip of his tail feathers to the top of his head. And it looked like a brownish grey hawk or eagle, or something like that. Not buzzardly or vulturish or condorlike. But five feet long. I didn't ever get to see the wingspan. I just watched it for a while and didn't actually feel much like stirring it up just to see it fly. I just hiked back to the camp, eventually, and never even mentioned it to my parents. Because I was nine or ten or something, and there was no way they were ever going to believe me, anyway, so.” - Dwylbtzle Dwylbtzle

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“I went in my backyard in Squirrel Valley, California. There was no light and the sound of it was as big as these Thunderbirds are described. I never saw a damn thing but the sound of its wings was unquestionably bigger than me and I was in 7th grade. We had all gravel in my backyard and I was just laying on my back trying so hard to see anything in the black night. It stayed there for a good couple minutes and it flew off and I was so mad, I couldn't see a thing. I didn't even care to tell anyone. Every flap of his wings was impossible to believe. I guess I doubted myself and I thought I'd hear an eagle or something later in life that would explain that night but I don't think I ever will." - Gary York

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“I remember the summer the Silverado Canyons in California caught fire. There was the freakiest large bird. It had huge crawls, a sharp beak that would put fear in any animal 150 lbs or less. I wouldn't turn my back on that bird. It was hunting to eat. It ended up looking at my pitbulls to maybe attack one. It was just sitting on the fence daring one of my pits to attack it. My pits were smart enough not to separate until I threw something at it to make leave. It didn't leave far either. It wanted one of my pits. My pits have killed other animals in the backyard too. But this bird was a monster to my pits.” - BBB