I'd like to share stories from the readers here, and some of my own as well. Please feel free to e-mail them in for consideration. Serious submissions will recieve serious consideration.
Keep checking back at this site as I share stories and more about Maine's legends and monsters, including Bigfoot, and the elusive Black Cat, who has been increasingly seen in our wilderness.....
Mysterious
Here in
Just as a point of reference here, I do not believe in ghosts and goblins. I do believe that there are things that go bump in the night, but I do not believe them to be somebody’s dead relative. So no, I do not buy into any of the nut job theories surrounding mysterious beasts. Shape shifting makes a good fairy tale, but that’s all it is, a tale. But I also do believe that while truth is always the truth, and cannot change, a lie, no matter how it is changed, always contains a kernel of truth.
For somebody to see something, there must be something to see. Whatever that is that was seen can be changed as the story grows into a legend, but something has to be seen for the story to begin. Many people have seen what they believe to be mysterious black cats in
Bigfoot is another cryptic creature from
These stories come from long before the
This website will detail and share information that I have found or that has been submitted to me on the Maine Bigfoot, as well as other mysterious animals that may well exist here in the great state of
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The following is a story that was published during the early 1800s, and is claimed to have occurred in the year of 1807. The author had gone on to write and publish frequently about his experiences in the Maine woods of the early 19th century, and has shared a few other tales concerning this being that seems to be of a Bigfoot nature. I won’t divulge his name or the source here, but if you are astute enough you’ll be able to dig the story up on your own. This story will be shared in full in the book Track of the Indian Devil.
To give you a geographical summary, Chesuncook is a lake in northern
It should be noted here that even in recent times, there have been encounters in the area, mostly in the
During the winter of '07, the headquarters and general depot of our lumbering gangs was at the head of the Chesuncook, a long narrowish lake to the northwest of Katahdin. The logs went down this lake with the spring freshets, into the west branch of the Penobscot. And during the frozen season it offered an easy open thoroughfare up into the forest. From this point the various " camps " within a radius of twenty and twenty-five miles took their provisions. One of the most distant of these had been established at the head of the Caucomgomac, a smaller lake, some twenty miles to the northward. And during the month of February, a " row in camp," from the incompetency of the " boss," had made it necessary to pay off and discharge a part of the band; and I was sent up from Bangor for that purpose, having for guide and escort (I was but seventeen then) an old hunter named Hughy Clives.
The trip up to the " Head of the Chesuncook" occupied u week; and after resting a day at the supply camp, we started on for the camp on the Cuucomgomac.
The trail ran through an almost unbroken wilderness ; and the snow lay from four to five feet deep. But on our snowshoes we didn't mind the depth; the main thing was to keep out of the brush. And hence it seemed a great relief to come out just as the sun was setting, upon the foot of the Caucomgomac, stretching away, in a broad frozen plain, ten mile» to the northward.
As the camp was no more than a mile in from the " head,"
"Think you can hold out, youngster?" said the old fellow, looking round to me with a hard grin. " How's your wind? Think you can straddle the lake? Or will you have to dig a hole in the snow here, and burrow like a rabbit? Nice chance there under those little hemlocks."
I still preferred going on to burrowing. We struck out upon the lake, and had soon left its black spruce-lined shore a mile to the rearward.
Meanwhile the twilight had deepened. The sky was clear, and in the west deep red ; but that startling phenomenon peculiar to frozen waters, and said to indicate a storm, the moaning and groaning of the air beneath the ice, began with frightful distinctness. Never had I heard such sounds before. It seemed as if a thousand demons In agony were gurgling and drowning beneath us. Now a wild sigh would struggle up from the depths and echo to a distant moan, when, anon, a deep fearful groan would sweep along, making the thick ice shiver and vibrate like a drumhead.
But
"Strange though," muttered
Strange indeed. Unpromising, too. 1 had quite a large sum in currency about me, for the payment of the gang. The circumstance of being followed In the dark was not pleasant. But then, we were two to his one; someone out like ourselves, perhaps. " Somebody out hunting, I suppose," said I.
"Possible," said
"At any rate he means to come tip with us," said I; for although we were now walking quite rapidly, the distance between us was visibly lessening.
"That's plain enough." replied Hughy; " and to tell the truth, youngster," looking uneasily at me, " on your account I should like to know what's wanted before he comes much nearer."
"You'll have to find out in a hurry, then," said I, with another glance behind. " He's coming up at a great rate, surely."
"Hallo! Hallo there!" shouted Hughy, cracking his rille. The stranger was now no more than a hundred yards distant; but for all reply (that we heard), raised his arms and brandished them wildly about his head. "Who are you? What do you want?" shouted
"Well, by
"Perhaps he did," said
"Humph! perhaps!" But he don't act right, and I've a mind to let a ball fly after him."
" Set Vete on him," suggested
But Vête, a fine dare-devil of a hound, only winced and stuck the closer, almost tripping us up in his efforts to keep near.
It grew darker momentarily; and as nothing could be got out of the stranger, at this distance, save those Inexplicable gestures, and since, to tell the truth, we didn't care about going back to cultivate his acquaintance, we at length started on again.
"Can't make him out at all," muttered
And for a while we fancied he had gone back; but л moment later discerned him flitting along after us, sometimes coming up within fifty yards, then halting till invisible in the darkness.
Several miles were thus passed over. What with the sighing and gurgling under the ice, and that mysterious object flitting along behind us, the situation was a rather singular one, to say the least.
Presently the moon began to shine up over the forest-clad mountains to the cast- ward; and a little broad bright disk peered tip over the distant ridge. Things were thus revealed in a much clearer light. In the darkness our pursuer had at times assumed gigantic proportions. It now seemed the figure of a medium-sized man.
"But he's bare-headed," said I, as this fact became apparent in the moonlight.
" No gun, either," said Ilughy. "And that must be a mighty snug-fitting suit of clothes he's got on. Hallo! Hallo there you man in tights! What's wanted?"
Thus called to, the curious object halted, gestured as before, then dropping on all fours, ran off to the left of us, coursing along with amazing swiftness, and describing a broad semicircle, came around to a point directly in front of us, some fifty rods ahead. We stood still in our amazement.
Arriving at this point the creature began to dig in the snow, throwing it up in silvery wreaths, and in a few moments had buried Itself from our view, save a black crest peeping up over the edge of the drift.
" Good heavens" I at length ejaculated. "What running! That was never a man!"
" No, that was never a man," repeated Hughv.
" But what is it?" cried
"You saw it run?" said Hughy, interrogatively.
"Saw it run! I guess I saw it run! I never saw anything run like it ! Must have been a spook."
"And you saw it beckon and make signs?" continued Hughy, reflectively.
" Of course I did—a dozen times. What in the world are you driving at?"
" Well, youngster," the old man went on, “ that's an Indian Devil. This is the third one I've seen ; or the third time I've seen it; for maybe it's the same one. The last time was eight years ago, down on the
"But what's to be done?" said
" Fire at it! No, not for the world."
" Wont it meddle with us?"
"Not if we let it alone, and go on about our business."
" But it has got square in our path."
" We must go round it, then.."
''Isn't that being a little cowardly?"
" Young man, you don't know what you're talking about."
In short,
To be playing at such a game of bopeep, on a wintry lake, after being on my feet all day, was anything but amusing to me. And not having the fear of Pomoola sufficiently before my eyes, perhaps, I should certainly have risked a shot at him. Indeed, I'm of the opinion that a well-directed rifle-ball would not only have cleared up the " Indian Devil " mystery then and there, but would have added a new and important specimen to some zoological collection. It was undoubtedly a beast, " wild man," or something like that. The track (for it did leave a track) was that of a large longish foot, pressed down deeply into the snow. But to have fired at it would have been doing violence to Hughy's prejudices. We again " made our manners to the devil " by sheering round his hole, and repeated the same program twice more before reaching the head of the lake. After entering the woods again, we caught several glimpses of it dodging among the trees ; but lost sight of it for good about half a mile below the camp.
And thus ended my adventure with an "Indian Devil." I know I did see something queer. And I respectfully add this to a legion of very similar stories which one may hear any evening at a logging camp.
~~~~~~~~~~~