| Bigfoot
Encounters Is Bigfoot on Cannock Chase, Have you seen the sasquatch? By Steve Wollaston |
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March 2006 (second article below) suggests the sighting was a black panther... |
Recent investigations have been launched by paranormal investigators into the possible existence of Bigfoot on the Chase. Is it all a load of old sasquatch? Or does Bigfoot really hide out in the Staffordshire woodlands. People who have seen the beast describe him the same 'a giant, hairy creature with blazing red eyes.' Here is how we reported the story that has sent the area into a frenzy: Paranormal magazines are investigating claims - first made in The Post - that a Big Foot type creature is roaming the dense woodland of Cannock Chase. And they have gained a number of eyewitness accounts to add weight to allegations that Sasquatch - as Red Indians dubbed the creature - is alive, well...and living close to you. Respected X Files reporter Nick Redfern has monitored sightings from Castle Ring to Slitting Mill. And all of the locals who spotted the mystery beast give the same description: a giant, hairy creature with blazing red eyes. Jack Haughton sparked the Big Foot alert with a sighting in the early hours of February 18, 1995, on the Cannock-Rugeley road. Writing for Fate magazine, Mr Redfern reports: "She was suddenly forced to swerve the car and narrowly avoided collision with a large, shambling creature that stepped into the road at a distance of about 20 feet. "Considering that she was traveling at high speed, said Jackie, it was a miracle that she didn't hit it. The encounter lasted barely a few seconds, but she had caught sight of the animal and said it was man-like and tall, very hairy, with two self-illuminating, glowing red eyes. It quickly vanished into the trees." Jackie's claims gained credence when a motorist and his party recorded a sighting on a night in September, 1998. One of the party-of-four said: "It was a tall, man-like figure, sort of crouching forward. As we passed, it turned and looked straight at us. In my own words, I would describe it as around 6ft 8ins tall, very strong looking and with a darkish, blacky-brown coat. I just could not explain it and I still get goosebumps thinking about it." Alec Williams had an eight second encounter with Big Foot at Castle Ring - an ancient monument - in April, 2004. He is adamant he saw a seven-foot tall creature, with short, shiny, dark brown hair, large head and eyes that glowed bright red. Interestingly, Williams claims he saw 'what looked like a camera flash' coming from nearby woodland and heard an owl-like cry." A local wildlife expert we approached dismissed the Big Foot claims. "Maybe one of your readers has gone feral," he added. Editor's note: Anyone who can provide me with a picture of Big Foot will get a free Indian meal. * Send your snaps to: Big Foot, Chase Post, 103-106, High Green Court, Newhall St, Cannock WS11 1AB or email mike_lockley@mrn.co.uk Last week leading wildlife expert Derek Crawley, chairman of Staffordshire Mammal Group, told locals, who were convinced they had seen a Sasquatch-type creature roaming the beauty spot, they may have actually had a close encounter with a black panther. Mr Crawley said ramblers over the forestland could have spied a big cat lounging in the trees and mistakenly taken branches for arms. And this week famed XFiles reporter Nick Redfern contacted us from Texas to support the theory. The paranormal expert said he had investigated many big cat sightings over the Chase and backed-up Mr Crawley's suggestion that the 'blazing red eyes' of the creature could have been those of a big cat. He said: "There is definitely something weird going on and the theory that some of them could be big cats in trees is a genuinely interesting one. "I've investigated quite a few big cat encounters on the Chase." Nick plans to investigate the Chase throughly later this year in preparation for a book he intends to pen on the mysterious forestland. Suspicions were aroused when Mr Crawley told The Post the sightings could have been a big cat. "From the reports it would seem too big to be an escaped ape," Mr Crawley said. "A lot of people seem to be saying it has red, staring eyes. It may be a big cat in a tree. The person who saw it may have been confused and mistaken the branches for arms." Meanwhile at The Post the eye-witness reports are continuing to roll in. Possibly the most disturbing sighting of all comes from Mark Henderson. He writes: "Both my partner and I were so petrified we left the dogging spot in question and haven't returned since. "My partner simply wouldn't have that animal in our Ford Cortina. She hates beards." Editor's Note: Keep the Bigfoot pictures coming. Anyone who can provide a genuine picture of Bigfoot will get a free Indian meal. If not, we'll select the one that gives us the biggest laugh. Send your pictures to The Chase Post, 103-106, High Green Court, Newhall St, Cannock WS11 1AB or email mike_lockley@mrn.co.uk
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