Anomadex
Class A First-hand BFRO #26888

Man recalls his encounter after riding his dirt bike as a young man near Bradford

September 1973 afternoon around 4:00 Bradford, McKean County, Pennsylvania 1 witness

Account

The witness stopped while riding to pick berries near a pipeline clearing and noticed what appeared to be a bear digging behind a fallen log. After watching for several minutes, the animal stood upright, stared at the witness, then walked smoothly across rough ground into the woods. The witness ran to the bike, briefly returned to the area, then left without looking for 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

Sounds

Vocalization

Described appearance

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

Height src
at least 7 feet tall
Build src
massive shoulders, very muscular neck, broad chest, relatively slim waist
Hair colour src
dark brown with reddish highlights, like black bear fur
Hair length src
longish on shoulders and head
Face src
hair-covered, looked almost human, more human than ape
Arms src
long, hung to knees, swung when walking
Gait src
smooth, graceful walk with little to no bobbing
Posture src
upright standing
Apparent sex src
very masculine in proportions
Other features src
rounded head like human, not conical, ears not visible, no obvious genitals

Facts & provenance

Each value names where it came from.

Date
September 1973
Stated BFRO report #26888 · BFRO report, labelled fields: Year, Month
Time of day
afternoon around 4:00
Stated BFRO report #26888 · BFRO report, “Time And Conditions” section
Place
Bradford, McKean County, Pennsylvania
Stated BFRO report #26888 · BFRO report, labelled fields: State, County, Nearest Town, Location Details, Nearest Road
Map point
41.97, -78.67 (± 1000 m)
Stated BFRO map layer · BFRO published map layer · read with 85% confidence
BFRO map layer point for report 26888 (5 decimals, no boundary)
Account type
First-hand
Stated BFRO report #26888 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witnesses
1
Stated BFRO report #26888 · BFRO report, “Other Witnesses” section
Figures reported
1
Derived BFRO report #26888 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witness was
riding dirt bike and picking blackberries
Stated BFRO report #26888 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witness's word for it
the Bigfoot
Stated BFRO report #26888 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Source classification
Class A
Stated BFRO report #26888 · 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.

Investigated by
Cathy Betz (BFRO)
Follow-up

An investigator spoke with the witness by phone and corresponded by email for details.

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.

  1. BFRO report #26888 Primary
    Published 2009-11-12 Retrieved 2026-09-25 Version 1 Hash ab424f1c0db1
    BFRO - Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization
  2. BFRO map layer Reference
    Retrieved 2026-09-24 Version 1 Hash cfb8a3d423b7
    BFRO - Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization

The report refers to