Class A First-hand BFRO #36246

Hiker has daylight sighting near Olive Branch

10 October 2011 10 a.m. morning Olive Branch, Alexander County, Illinois 1 witness

Account

The witness reported walking back along a trail after making calls with no response when he found a very large footprint and a scat pile containing vegetation and shell fragments. Moments later he saw a very tall, heavily built, dark brownish creature about 70-80 feet away that had been digging at a ground hornet nest. The creature then ran rapidly down one ridge and up another at a speed the witness felt could not be matched, and disappeared. The witness then collected his things and left for his car.

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

Physical traces

Context & caveats

Described appearance

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

Height src
seven to seven and a half feet tall
Build src
unbelievably broad, thick and dense chest
Hair colour src
dark brownish with a really bright red tint
Gait src
ran very fast
Other features src
muscles moving visible

Facts & provenance

Each value names where it came from.

Date
10 October 2011
Stated BFRO report #36246 · BFRO report, labelled fields: Year, Month, Date
Time of day
10 a.m. morning
Stated BFRO report #36246 · BFRO report, “Time And Conditions” section
Place
Olive Branch, Alexander County, Illinois
Stated BFRO report #36246 · BFRO report, labelled fields: State, County, Nearest Town, Nearest Road
Map point
37.18, -89.37 (± 1239 m)
Stated BFRO map layer · BFRO published map layer · read with 85% confidence
BFRO map layer point for report 36246 with published boundary
Account type
First-hand
Stated BFRO report #36246 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witnesses
1
Derived BFRO report #36246 · BFRO report, “Other Witnesses” section
Figures reported
1
Derived BFRO report #36246 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witness was
walking back from a campsite after doing tree knocks and whoops
Stated BFRO report #36246 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witness's word for it
he
Stated BFRO report #36246 · BFRO report, “Observed” section · read with 80% confidence
Source classification
Class A
Stated BFRO report #36246 · 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
Stan Courtney (BFRO)
Tracks

very large footprint found on trail

Measurements: 19 inches long, 7 1/4 inches wide at ball, 5 1/2 inches wide at heel

BFRO report, “Observed” section
Scat

large pile of feces containing mostly vegetable matter with crayfish shells and freshwater mollusk shells

BFRO report, “Observed” section
Photograph

picture of dug-up ground hornet nest

BFRO report, “Observed” section
Structure

dug-up ground hornet nest hole

Measurements: four feet wide and two feet deep

BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section
Measurement

An investigator met the witness, walked the sighting area, camped overnight nearby, and made additional trips, measuring a dug hole.

BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section
Follow-up

An investigator met the witness, walked the sighting area, camped overnight nearby, and made additional trips, measuring a dug hole.

BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section
Follow-up

An investigator called a state entomologist about ground hornets, who said hornets do not make or store honey.

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. Published 2012-08-14 Retrieved 2026-09-25 Version 1 1 image at source Hash 27cea1ed6546
    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

  • “Southern Illinois Giant”
    Not in the Anomadex yet