Volusia County, Florida 1976

My encounter occurred at approximately 2:00 a.m. in July of 1976 while driving on Taylor Road, in Port Orange, Florida (just south of Daytona Beach).  At that time, this area was quite rural and Taylor Road was only two lanes.  The only major building on that road then, other than a few private homes, was my high school, Spruce Creek, which had opened the previous year.  Today, I believe Taylor Road is a 6-lane roadway and quite congested, and the area is far from rural any more.

Shortly after turning onto to Taylor Road from Tomoka Farms Road (I think) the headlights of the car I was riding in lit up a figure on the side of the roadway which caught my eye.  We were traveling quite slowly at the time and from the moment I first spotted the figure my eyes didn't leave it.

The closer we got to the figure, the slower we went. After realizing it was not a person, I had trouble comprehending exactly what I was seeing, but what I did see was a creature squatted on the side of the road, just at the edge of the roadway. 

It was squatted and picking something from the ground and placed what it was picking in its other hand folded up against its body.  From time to time it would taste or smell what it was picking.  When the creature realized we were closely approaching it lifted its head and looked directly at me.  Our eyes locked and didn't break until we decided to “move it” and get out of there. 

The creature didn't look angry or frightened; it looked more quizzical than anything else. It didn't attempt to move, walk or run away. I would estimate that if standing the creature would have stood approximately 7 to 7 ½ feet tall and weighed between 400 and 500 pounds, although all of its hair may have made it look heavier than it was.  It was covered with long, somewhat wavy and matted, Irish-setter red-colored hair.  The hair on its chest wasn't as thick and long as on the rest of its body.  Hair covered the face, but the hair on the face was short.  No hair covered the palms of the hands.  It had fingers and from what I could see toes as well. The head was round and the top of the head had long hair like on other parts of the body. 

After realizing what we were looking at, we quickly drove away, I think more confused than anything else.  I am certain this couldn't have been a person.  It was too real, and too large.

After getting home, I thought about calling somebody, but was afraid if I reported it, someone might hurt or kill whatever it was.  I'm not sure anyway if anybody that I told believed me anyway.  I have never forgotten one thing about this experience and my memory of the creature is vivid in my mind as if it happened yesterday. 

Coincidentally, the property where I saw what I'm sure was a Skunk Ape, was a place where my best friend and I regularly road horses, but we never saw anything before or after this sighting out of the ordinary.  I spoke to the man who owned the property and the only odd thing he could report was that he had a terrible time that summer with something or someone stealing his vegetables from his garden.

So…. that's my story!  I would be very curious to know anything you might have regarding the other Volusia County, Florida sighting, or any other Volusia County sightings you know of.  I have read the one from St John's County/St Augustine and the description in that sighting seems very similar to mine.  The one you have listed for Orange County is similar in description, except female.

Thank you very much.  I have only recently reported my sighting because before I wasn't aware of a place where I could report it. 

Shortly after this happened, I wrote a letter to a place called “The Bigfoot Tracking Station” in Washington State and gave them an account, but I never heard anything from them.

Sincerely
Martha Cowell
Calloway Franklin, North Carolina

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