Class A First-hand BFRO #3653

Daytime sighting by hiker, off West Sopris Creek Road

20 February 2001 morning, about 9:30 am Basalt, Pitkin County, Colorado 1 witness

Account

The witness was hiking with dogs on a packed snow trail when other dogs began barking at something ahead. He saw a gorilla-like furry creature sitting in the shade of a pine about 50 yards away watching the dogs. After he tripped in a snow hole, the creature left over the ridge, showing only the back of its head. Deep snow prevented him from following or finding tracks.

Summary drafted by AI from the source report and checked by code before I publish it. The witness's own words remain with the publisher — read the original report .

What was reported

Every kind of observation in the account. Select one to find other encounters with it.

Sightings

Partial sighting

Described appearance

In the source's own words, field by field. Hover a field's marker to see where it was read.

Height src: 4 feet from butt to top of head when seated
Build src: muscular, very strong, ~500 lbs, thick waist, large shoulders
Hair colour src: brown with grayish sheen
Face src: large jaw, flattened nose above mouth
Eyes src: sunk back a little
Arms src: little shoulder and arm seen
Legs src: thigh seen
Gait src: on two feet
Posture src: sitting upright, lotus-like
Apparent sex src: male
Other features src: enormous head with point on top, thick neck, fur everywhere

Facts & provenance

Each value names where it came from.

Date	20 February 2001 Stated BFRO report #3653 · BFRO report, labelled fields: Year, Month, Date
Time of day	morning, about 9:30 am Stated BFRO report #3653 · BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section
Place	Basalt, Pitkin County, Colorado Stated BFRO report #3653 · BFRO report, labelled fields: State, County, Nearest Town, Location Details, Nearest Road
Map point	39.34, -107.07 (± 1000 m) Stated BFRO map layer · BFRO published map layer · read with 85% confidence BFRO map layer point for report 3653 (4 decimals, no boundary)
Account type	First-hand Stated BFRO report #3653 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witnesses	1 Derived BFRO report #3653 · BFRO report, “Other Witnesses” section · read with 60% confidence
Figures reported	1 Derived BFRO report #3653 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witness was	hiking with dogs on a trail Stated BFRO report #3653 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witness's word for it	what looked like a gorilla Stated BFRO report #3653 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Source classification	Class A Stated BFRO report #3653 · BFRO classification label

Evidence & investigation

What the source says was found or done. Claimed evidence is listed as claimed; the Anomadex has not examined it.

Follow-up

An investigator spoke with the witness who gave additional details about the sighting.

BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section

Source timeline

Every record this entry is built from, earliest known first. Records are versioned and never edited in place.

BFRO report #3653 Primary

Published 2002-01-16 Retrieved 2026-09-24 Version 1 Hash 688f180fbb2d

BFRO - Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization
BFRO map layer Reference

Retrieved 2026-09-24 Version 1 Hash cfb8a3d423b7

BFRO - Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization

The report refers to

“similar accounts dating back to the early mining days of Colorado”
Not in the Anomadex yet