Class A First-hand BFRO #1061

June 1984 Manatee County FL Late evening sighting by 9 yr/old camper off Little Manatee River in Ruskin

6 June 1984 about 2 or 3 a.m. Ruskin, Hillsborough County, Florida 1 witness

Account

The witness was camping by a river when a foul odor woke him in the middle of the night. He turned on a flashlight and heard something moving through nearby palms. He briefly saw the upper back and head of a large dark-haired animal as it ran away.

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

Other senses

Described appearance

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

Height src
about 6'5"
Build src
large
Hair colour src
dark brown or black
Arms src
hung unusually low, almost to the knees
Gait src
running
Other features src
had no ears

Facts & provenance

Each value names where it came from.

Date
6 June 1984
Stated BFRO report #1061 · BFRO report, labelled fields: Year, Month, Date
Time of day
about 2 or 3 a.m.
Stated BFRO report #1061 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Place
Ruskin, Hillsborough County, Florida
Stated BFRO report #1061 · BFRO report, labelled fields: State, County, Nearest Town, Location Details, Nearest Road
Map point
27.71, -82.45 (± 1492 m)
Stated BFRO map layer · BFRO published map layer · read with 85% confidence
BFRO map layer point for report 1061 with published boundary
Account type
First-hand
Stated BFRO report #1061 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witnesses
1
Derived BFRO report #1061 · BFRO report, “Other Witnesses” section
Figures reported
1
Stated BFRO report #1061 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witness was
camping overnight by a river
Stated BFRO report #1061 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witness's word for it
a large animal
Stated BFRO report #1061 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Source classification
Class A
Stated BFRO report #1061 · 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
Linda Jacobson (BFRO)
Follow-up

An investigator interviewed the witness by email and recorded added details about odor, appearance, and sounds.

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 2001-01-02 Retrieved 2026-09-25 Version 1 Hash 16485dd42b5d
    BFRO - Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization
  2. BFRO map layer Reference
    Retrieved 2026-09-24 Version 1 Hash cfb8a3d423b7
    BFRO - Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization