A Police Officer's UFO Ordeal - Elmwood, Wisconsin

George Wheeler indicating the approximate position of UFO observed on Thursday evening, April 22, 1976. Picture taken May 27, 1976. (credit: APRO Bulletin)

This report has been exhaustively investigated by several individuals including Robert Pratt, who did exceptionally thorough interviews with all individuals important to the case, and Mr. Jack Bostrak, a Professor of Biology at the University of Wisconsin at River Falls.

The important elements of this case are:

(1) The primary witness reported a UFO in April 1975, thus making him a "repeater". (Some researchers, and Dr. J. Allen Hynek in particular, have reservations concerning the believability of witnesses where they claim more than one sighting. It is our contention that during heightened UFO activity in a particular area, an individual could easily have more than one sighting.) (2) The object, or the glow from it, was seen by at least two other witnesses. (3) There apparently were electro-mechanical effects on an automobile and possibly on television reception, and (4) possible animal reaction.

At about 11 p.m. on April 22, 1976, George Wheeler, a relief policeman at the town of Elmwood, population 737, located in west central Wisconsin about 60 miles east of the Mississippi River, spotted an orange glow at the top of Tuttle Hill. Mr. Wheeler is a veteran of 30 years police work in New York state and Wisconsin, and the former one-man police force in Eimwood where he now performs as reserve officer, filling in for the present chief when necessary. He was also a combat pilot in World War II.

Thinking that the glow was a large fire, he drove to the top of Tuttle Hill, but when he arrived there he found a strange glowing object which he estimated was about 500 feet distant and hovering about 100 feet off the ground. He said it was between a limestone quarry and a farmhouse in the area. Wheeler later said that there were six bluish-white lights, windows or portholes on the side and he could see shadows as if someone was moving inside of it. In the middle of the side facing him there appeared to be some kind of a panel that was open and Wheeler said that inside he could see something which was revolving slowly and had fin-like parts on it similar to a turbine.

What Wheeler interpreted to be legs on the craft were partially extended from the main body of the object and there was a long, black, hose-like appendage on the bottom. The main part of the craft was silver in color.

All the while he was observing, Mr. Wheeler remembered some advice given him by Bostrak the preceding April when he had his first experience: if he should have a similar experience in the future, he should attempt to observe as many details as possible.

When Wheeler first saw the object as he arrived at the top of the hill he radioed the sheriff's department headquarters in Ellsworth and described what he was observing. Suddenly the object started to rise straight up at extremely high speed and at this time there was a bluish flash, whereupon the squad car, the lights, and the radio went dead. Wheeler claims that he doesn't remember any more until somebody asked him if he needed any help. He thinks he recalls saying something of this nature when he radioed the sheriffs office: "My God, it's another one of these UFOs or spacecraft." He estimates that he observed the object for perhaps 45 seconds, and recalls that it made a "whooshing" sound when it left. Although the main body of the craft was silvery in color, the top of it glowed an orangish-white, and so brilliant that it was difficult for him to look at that part because it was "like looking into the sun." He could not discern whether the hose-like appendage was touching the ground because it extended down to where it was obscured by trees.

The limestone quarry where the object was hovering is an active quarry, that is, it is still being worked. In the neighborhood, the nearest farm is that of the O'Bryan family and when Bostrak interviewed Mr. O'Bryan he said that he hadn't seen anything because he was watching television, and casually noted that he recalled the time because he was watching the Perry Mason show which comes on at 11 p.m. and that several minutes after 11, his television set quit for a short time. When Bostrak visited another farm with Wheeler they learned nothing from the adults, but the 9-year-old boy said something about his sister coming home from "some doings" in town and when she came into the yard the dogs did not act normally. Always before, the dogs would run up to her and jump up for attention and petting but on that night they would not respond to her calls and merely barked for some time.

The first person to see George Wheeler after the accident was David Moots, 36, a dairy farmer at Elmwood. Moots had taken the babysitter home a few minutes before that and he had seen Wheeler's squad car parked elsewhere with lights on, etc., so when he saw the car parked on the top of the hill with the lights out and blocking that lane of the road, he decided to stop. Moots said that Wheeler was trying to get out of the car and there seemed to be something wrong with him. Knowing that Wheeler had once had a heart attack, he thought he might be having another so he stopped and asked what was wrong. Moots said that Wheeler said that he'd been hit. He responded with a question: "Hit by a car?7' Wheeler then said, "No, one of those UFOs."

Original sketch by witness George Wheeler

The object that George Wheeler saw. (credit: APRO Bulletin)

When interviewed, Moots said that he'd heard that a lot of people had seen UFOs in the area before so that was no particular surprise but the being "hit" by a UFO took him aback a bit. He said that Wheeler appeared to be dazed, and because although he did not know him well, he had had sufficient contact with him to know that he was not acting normally.

A second witness to the incident is Mrs. Miles Wergland, a housewife who lives just outside of Elmwood to the North. She claimed that at about 11 o'clock she heard the cuckoo clock strike and got up to go to the kitchen to take some medicine when she happened to glance out the kitchen window and spotted a "bright orange moon-shaped" object on the hill (Tuttle). She said she observed it for a "few minutes", then went back to bed and did not even bother to wake her husband because she said she had seen strange things in the area before and he had merely told her to go back to bed, she was seeing the moon, without ever checking for himself.

The third witness to the actual object is Paul Fredrickson, who is administrator of the Heritage of Elmwood Nursing Home in Elmwood. Mr. Fredrickson was at his home when the police chief's wife called him and asked him to go to his front porch and look out the window and see what he could see. Fredrickson did as he was asked, and saw what he later described as "an orange glow, like a half-moon, like a moon cut in half" on Tuttle Hill. He said he knew it was not a house on fire as there were no flames leaping up. He went back to the telephone and by that time his wife had gotten out of bed and the two of them went back to the window and the thing was gone. Fredrickson feels that the length of time that he spent on the telephone might have been from 3 to 5 minutes.

In the course of the investigation, Mr. Pratt found that Mr. Fredrickson had had another experience along with his son in October, 1975, at which time they were in the same general vicinity, and driving home from the Nursing Home where Mr. Fredrickson had worked overtime. His son suddenly pointed out "something" coming up over the horizon. At the time, they were on Tuttle Hill and looking eastward "right over the top of our house". Fredrickson said his first impression was that it was the full moon rising but then realized it couldn't be because the object was rising very rapidly. He stopped the car and they got out, the boy getting a better look because Mr. Fredrickson was busy with braking, turning off on to the side of the road, etc. Mr. Fredrickson described it at first as a big orange light coming toward them, but when it was overhead it looked like the bottom of a huge, gray plate which he estimated was about 100 feet across. He thinks perhaps it may have been between 500 and 1,000 feet in altitude and when it was directly overhead they could hear a roaring sound much like the roar of a waterfall. The Fredrickson boy said that the object gave off a blue and green beam from the side of it at one point, but this was while his father was engaged in stopping the car. The object faded into the distance rather quickly, they said; having originally come from the east, it disappeared into the west. Fredrickson did not make careful note of the date at the time, but feels it was around the 20th of October and that the experience took place between 10 and 10:30 p.m.

The next individual to become involved in the Wheeler incident was Police Chief Gene Helmer of Elmwood. He had been at home and monitoring the "police scanner" when he heard Wheeler say that he was watching a UFO. Helmer said Wheeler had started to describe the object but the radio went dead. The Sheriffs Department was trying to contact Wheeler by radio also, and Helmer tried to get Wheeler back, but to no avail. Helmer decided he had better go and see what was wrong when Wheeler came back on the radio momentarily and said, "Get somebody up here — I've been hit."

Helmer, who lives about a quarter of a mile from Tuttle Hill, left immediately and when he arrived at the scene, Moots was trying to soothe Mr. Wheeler. Helmer said that he had never seen a man as frightened as Wheeler was. He said further that he had worked with Wheeler under various trying conditions but had never seen him so upset. Another interesting aspect of Chief Helmer's interview was his description of the condition of the patrol car. Although they had had the car tuned up not long before the incident, it was necessary to replace all points and plugs in the car's engine. The starter is beginning to act up also, whereas they had had no problem with it prior to the incident.

Wheeler's wife arrived on the scene at about the time the Police Chief got there, as she had been listening to the police frequency on the Wheeler scanner. Wheeler was taken home and the family doctor, Frank Springer, was called. Mrs. Wheeler took her husband to Springer's home where he examined Wheeler and gave him a shot to calm him and help him sleep. After they got home, Chief Helmer arrived and questioned Wheeler for about an hour and a half. At about 1 a.m. Mrs. Wheeler called Dr. Springer and said that her husband was still quite upset and Dr. Springer instructed her to take her husband to the hospital.

Wheeler was in the hospital for three days where tests were taken but nothing could be found wrong with him. He stayed for three days, was released, but went back to the hospital for a second stay of 11 days because of headaches he was suffering, as well as nightmares.

Dr. Springer, who has been Wheeler's physician for 25 years, said that it was unusual for Wheeler to suffer headaches and the headaches he had which prompted him (the Dr.) to re-hospitalize him were continual and severe. Otherwise, however, Wheeler was rational and appeared normal.

One puzzling aspect of this case is the fact that although Wheeler recounted the entire experience to Helmer, who recorded it in writing, he could not recall any of the details of the experience later. - APRO Bulletin - April 1976

NOTE: As his health rapidly deteriorated for causes his doctors could not determine, Wheeler repeatedly told them, to their disbelief; that he was dying from the mysterious effects of internal injuries caused by alien beings. Within six months after his April encounter, Officer George Wheeler died of unknown causes. The following link describes more of the Wheeler case and other UFO sightings in Wisconsin during 1976-77 - http://wiki.razing.net/ufologie.net/htm/wheeler76.htm...Lon

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Hi...I just want to thank the faithful readers of 'Phantoms and Monsters' for your loyalty over the years. As many of you know, I do not charge for advertising and only post links / banners for people and businesses I personally deal with. I'd be thankful for any donations to help offset costs associated with producing the free daily newsletter as well as the other web sites and services I provide at no charge. If you are so inclined, you can use any donation button located on the 'Phantoms and Monsters' blog site. Again, my gratitude to you for being there...Lon

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Bigfoot Duo Reported at Nelson Lake, Wisconsin

I received this email last evening from a young man in Sawyer County, Wisconsin who claims to have witnessed two Bigfoot, an adult and juvenile, while fishing:

Sir - I am writing about a sighting I had on June 26th around 8:00 pm at Nelson Lake, Wisconsin. I was fishing from my canoe about 30 yds. from the shore near Tanning Point when I noticed a whimpering sound. It was coming from the woods at the shoreline. It sounded like a dog whining, so I stopped what I was doing to watch the woods to see if anything appeared. After a few seconds I saw a child scampering from the woods. I didn't get a very good look but the child had very thick brown hair all over it's body and was very small (human toddler size). It quickly showed itself then bolted back towards the woods.

I sat there in shock. But within seconds I heard three distinct and angry 'grunts'. I then saw a large ape-like head rise above the lower tree boughs. The eyes were barely visible but I could tell that it didn't want me there. That was enough for me so I started to paddle towards the north shore when all of a sudden I heard a loud 'plop' then 'splash' from behind the boat. I turned around in time to see another rock heading in my direction. It was many yds. from me but I got the message.

I was shaking from the time I witnessed these beasts up until a few hours later when I was in my home office pondering what I had seen. I think it may have been Bigfoot. I Googled 'Wisconsin Bigfoot' and your blog came up. Was this a Bigfoot? I'm not an outdoorsman though I enjoy canoeing and fishing. Have there been other sightings in this area? Is there a danger? I appreciate your help.

I am a state employee so I would prefer my identify remain confidential. Thank you.

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From 1/3/2008

Seeley, Wisconsin Bigfoot Buzz

According to the Sawyer County Sheriff’s Department, two deputies responded to an alleged Bigfoot, or Sasquatch, sighting on Highway 63 just south of Seeley on the evening of Jan. 3.

Since then the sighting has been the topic of conversation in that small community, with multiple reported sightings being called in to the Sawyer County Record office since.

Chief Deputy Tim Zeigle confirmed that two deputies responded to the call, only to find footprints and hair at the site. But “unless Bigfoot was wearing boots,” Zeigle laughed, “I think it’s pretty much a prank.

“A lady called in and said ‘You probably think I’m nuts, but I’m not … I have not been drinking.’ She reported seeing a Bigfoot or someone dressed in an ape suit on Highway 63 near Stark Road,” Zeigle said. “We sent a couple officers up there and what they found was a set of foot tracks going from the road to the timberline and back to the road and they also found a long, black hair.” He affirmed that there have been no sightings since then.

But the story takes a curious turn from there.

According to another reported sighting obtained by the Record, a Wausau man, who wishes to remain unnamed, and his nephew were snowmobiling on a trail just southwest of Seeley when they saw something unusual cross the trail.

“I don’t know what I saw, but my nephew and I both saw something very real,” he said. “We only saw legs from the hips down as it was caught in the headlights of our snowmobiles. It stepped out of the woods, walking upright, and stepped across the trail right in front of my nephew who was ahead of me 20-30 feet.

“The legs were long (and) covered with long dark hair,” he continued. “My first thought was it was a drunk walking through the woods after leaving the Sawmill Saloon, but that makes no sense. We were quite a ways west of the Sawmill and there is no trail or crossing anywhere near there for someone to be walking.”

After gunning their snowmobiles past, the two turned around to explore the area and find tracks. But they had not marked the spot with a landmark and were unsuccessful at finding any sign when they returned to the area.

“We saw these legs for only a very brief moment, but again, it was very real,” he added.

Following up on the sighting, a number of possible theories have been revealed.

Cindy Ferraro of the Sawmill Saloon said that one potential explanation is that something was roused when the managed portion of the Uhrenholdt Memorial Forest south of Highway OO was cleaned up a few months ago. She said a friend who lives in the Seeley Hills area has reported unusual behavior coming from her dogs lately; they seem to be agitated by something out of the ordinary.

NOTE: I believe Seeley, Wisconsin is near Nelson Lake, northeast on Rt 63. Here is a link to a previous sighting reported to the BFRO - Man recalls encounter at a cabin on Nelson Lake...Lon

The 'Place of Many Dead' - Devil's Lake, Wisconsin

Devil's Lake of Wisconsin has its share of geological oddities such as glacier scratches on unusual rock formations and petrified sand waves of an ancient sea, but it is the Amerindian mounds that are especially interesting. Three major effigy mounds are located in Devil's Lake State Park. One in the shape of a bear and another, which resembles a lynx, are at the north end of the lake. A bird-shaped mound is at the southern end. Did the moundbuilders wish to acknowledge real animals or phantom creature forms that haunted the shores of Devil's Lake?

From nearby Baraboo (three miles north of Devil's Lake), stories were circulating in the seventies of giant ghost elephants. Or were they mastodons? August Derleth, author and follower of H. P. Lovecraft, likes this area of southcentral Wisconsin because he felt it contains "Cthulhu power zones."

During the summer of 1970, campers at Devil's Lake complained of shadowy "somethings" prowling around their tents. Department of Natural Resources personnel stated that no bears are found in the area. However, Bigfoot accounts are well known from Wisconsin. Devil's Lake is also the location of an 1889 lake monster report. Additionally, the surface of the lake is broken with the ghostly wake of a phantom canoe seen in the mists of cold, still nights. The place does have an aura about it. Folklore tells of an Indian maiden and her lover leaping to their deaths. In general, the site is said to be a "place of many dead."

When the first missionaries arrived in the Devil’s Lake area they where greeted by the Nakota Tribe, who told them about a year in which the area experienced a great drought. During this drought the Nakota Tribe remained near the swiftly drying lake, not only because it was the only source of water for miles, but also because it drew animals from all over to its shores in order to drink, providing the tribe with a stable food source. As the summer drew on and the drought continued to lower the lakes levels it eventually became two lakes, separated by a shallow strip of mud which ran through the middle.

One morning the Nakota people awoke to find what they could only describe as a huge, fish like creature trapped on the strip of mud which now divided the two remaining bodies of water. The tribe described the large creature as having a long neck, small head and wide body that it thrashed and wiggled in an attempt to free its self. After several days the creature was able to free its self and slip into the deeper of the two remaining pools of lake water.

Researchers tend to vary in opinion as to what the Devil’s Lake Monster might be, some have suggested a form of giant fresh water octopus while others have looked to a more familiar face in the lake monster world, suggesting it may be a plesiosaur that found its way into the lake after the last Ice Age. Either way what ever the Devil’s Lake Monster is, or was, there has been no real sightings of the creature for some time, leaving some to speculate what ever the creature was may be long gone by now.

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ADDITIONAL HISTORY - THE DEVIL'S LAKE MONSTER

Some say that this octopus-like beast was responsible for an untold number of deaths, but the Nakota Indians tell a tale about a struggling creature which is uncannily similar to the allegedly extinct Plesiosaur.

Located in Sauk County, Wisconsin, Devil’s Lake is an eerie, mist shrouded, body of brackish water, Carved by glaciers during the last ice age, this bluff quarantined lake could generated a deep-bone chill even if it weren’t the alleged home of a pair of vicious aquatic monsters.

Originally known to the Native American Nakota Sioux’s as “M’de Wakan” — roughly translated as “Mystery” or “bad Spirit” Lake, although some insist that it simply means “sacred” — this stretch of deep, cold, salt-infested water has been known by many names over the centuries But it wasn’t until white settlers finally claimed the land in the middle of the 1800′s that the lake finally gained its current appellation: “Devil’s Lake.” It is a name, which residents claim, the lake lives up to.

One of the earliest legends involving the creature of Devil’s Lake revolves around a Native American Indian chief who assembled an expedition of young warriors to go on a late night hunting trip on the fauna fertile lands across the lake. The full moon reflected off the night blackened waters as the young men and their leader slipped the canoe the water and began their late night trek.

Suddenly, a flurry of tentacles ripped through the surf, capsizing the canoe and pulling the thrashing, terrified men beneath the brackish water. Although no one survived this ill-fated expedition, their screams alerted fellow tribesmen, who rushed onto the beach and were able to bear witness to this horrific event in grisly detail due to the moon’s lingering glow.

The surviving warriors of the tribe, in order to pay homage to their fallen brethren — as well as appease what they believed to be the demon of the lake — held a festival every year, during which gifts and animal sacrifices were thrown into water.

The tradition continues to this day, although nowadays the annual event is treated more along the lines of an annual picnic that celebrates tribal legends and traditions.

As if a colossal octopus-like beast weren’t more than enough monster for one body of water, when the first Christian missionaries arrived on the shores of Devil’s Lake they were greeted by the Nakota tribe who told them about yet another creature that was revealed in the year of the great drought.

The Natkota’s remained near the swiftly drying lake, not only because it was the only water source for miles, but also because the animals upon which they fed were forced to expose themselves in order to drink, providing the tribe with an ample — and relatively simple to hunt — food source. As the summer progressed the lake grew smaller and smaller, until it eventually became two lakes, separated only by a shallow strip of mud, which ran through the center.

One morning the Nakota’s awoke to find what they described as a huge, fish-like creature, which they referred to as “Hokuwa,” trapped on the narrow, muddy strip of exposed lake bed.

The tribe watched as the apparently amphibious animal, which they described as having a large body, long neck and small head thrashed and writhed in an effort to free itself from its drying perch for days.

The sight filled the Nakota with both awe and terror and not even the bravest warrior dared to approach the creature, which they believed it to be an Unktizina — the vile progeny of the evil spirit Unk and the lizard beast known as UNKCEGI — for fear that the spirit’s wrath would bring on even greater hardships than just the drought. Eventually the animal was able to free itself and (presumably) make its way back into the deeper portion of the lake. - americanmonsters.com

William Bosak Encounter: Alien...Bigfoot...One in the Same?

Farmer William Bosak, 68, of rural Frederic, Wisconsin (Polk County, Northwest Section), had what he termed as a hair-raising experience at 10:30 p.m. on December 2, 1974. Mr. Bosak had attended a Fanner's Co-op meeting in Frederic and was driving to his rural home southeast of Frederic when, about one mile from his farm, he spotted an object on the left side of the road ahead of him. He had been driving slowly because of patches of fog and his headlights reflected off the object so he slowed as he approached it.

"It had a curved front of glass and inside I could see a figure with its arms raised above its head," Bosak told reporters. When later interviewed by Field Investigator Everett E. Lightner, Bosak said that the newspaper account which appeared in the St. Paul Pioneer-Press was basically accurate except that the ears on the "human" he saw inside were placed higher on the head. (See drawing accompanying this article.)

The object was standing still and appeared to be between 8 and 10 feet in height. The transparent 'glass' area through which Bosak could view the occupant was bullet-shaped at the top, or tapered to a peak. He had slowed nearly to a stop when he came up to the object, but then fear took over and he stepped on the accelerator and left the object behind. He said that when he did so, the inside of his car became dark and he heard a swishing sound like branches of a tree brushing against the car.

The "human," as Bosak referred to it, had hair sticking out from the sides of its head with ears protruding out about three inches and they were shaped like a calf's ear. It had no collar or shirt with seam in front but appeared to be clothed in something tannish-brown in color and fitted (skin-tight) like a diver's suit. Both arms were extended above its head and hair stuck out from the outside of the arms. There was no beard, but there was hair or fur on the upper part of the body. The rest of it, from the* waist down, was not visible because of the fog. The object itself was not lighted, but reflected light from the headlights of Mr. Bosak's car.

Mr. Bosak returned to the location the next morning to search for any landing marks or evidence of its presence but found nothing. He said he was very frightened at the time but the look on the face of the occupant of the craft indicated that it was frightened too. Its eyes were very large and protruding.

Bosak kept the experience to himself for nearly a month, not even telling his wife and son but finally decided to divulge the incident. A later (that night) attempt to view the area where the incident had occurred from the vantage point of his house was unsuccessful due to the fog. "I was so goldarned scared I was afraid to go out at night for a few days," he told reporters later, and said he wished that he had had somebody with him in the car at the time. After reflecting on the experience for a few weeks, Bosak said that he felt he did the wrong thing by speeding away from the object and "should have stopped and tried to show it I was friendly. I wish I could meet up with it again."

Bosak, who has operated a 450-acre dairy farm east of Frederic for the past 40 years, said that prior to his frightening experience in December he had been skeptical of stories about UFOs. "And I'm sure a lot of people are going to be skeptical after hearing what happened to me. But if people don't believe me, I'll take a lie detector test to prove this isn't just something I made up."

Mr. Lightner, who investigated the case, found Bosak to be sincere and a man with a good reputation in his community. - APRO

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At about 10:30 p.m. on Dec. 2, 1974, near Frederic in Polk County, William Bosak, a 69-year-old dairy farmer, was driving home when he saw a disc-shaped craft beside the road. "I can remember it just as if it were yesterday," Bosak told me.

The lower half of the craft was shrouded in mist. It had a curved glass window, and inside the brightly lit compartment Bosak saw a creature covered with dark tan fur, except for its face and chin.

"He was looking out the window, and it was a different kind of character than you'd see on this earth," he said. "It looked a good deal like a man, but it had a different-looking face than you'd see. It had a kind of a cow-looking face."

Asked to elaborate, Bosak explained that the face had hair on its sides. The ears stuck out from the head about three inches, and the eyes were large and protruding.

The creature held its arms above its head, and its expression led Bosak to believe that it was "just as scared as I was." After about 10 seconds Bosak quickly drove away, and as he did so his car lights dimmed, the engine sounded as if it were missing, and he heard a soft "whooshing" noise.

The next day Bosak returned to the area and found a round spot, 6 feet in diameter, pressed down into the hayfield.

"There are other people that had seen something like that," said Bosak, "right in this area."

This is the best, and one of the least sensational, of the very rare sightings linking Bigfoot-like creatures with UFOs. It is also the least publicized.

"You know how the neighbors are," Bosak said. "They questioned it. The editor in town didn't believe it. You know, though, something? If you've ever thought of outer space - it's just fantastic, isn't it? A lot of people can imagine such things."

"But this is a fact." - www.w-files.com

NOTE: On December 2, 1996, exactly 22 years to the day of his encounter, William Bosak was found dead in his home.


Sources:
APRO
"Weird Wisconsin: Your Travel Guide to Wisconsin's Local Legends and Best" - Linda S. Godfrey, Mark Moran, Richard D. Hendricks, Mark Sceurman
www.w-files.com
"Backyard Bigfoot" - Lisa A. Shiel - 2006
www.ufoevidence.org
www.ufowisconsin.com

The LaCrosse, Wisconsin Man-Bat

Witness' drawing

The state of Wisconsin has become a particular area of concentration for me, thanks to Linda Godfrey's continued cryptid investigations and the submissions by the fantastic readers at 'Phantoms and Monsters'. The following accounts describe another strange creature from Wisconsin:

This encounter happened on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2006, on Briggs Road near LaCrosse, Wisconsin around 9:30 pm to a 53-year old resident who prefers to be known only by his Cherokee name, Wohali, and the man's 25-year old son. The creature they encountered was 6-7 feet tall with batlike, leathery wings with a span of 10-12 feet, long claws on it's feet and hands and a snarling expression on the face. It flew towards their windshield, stared at them and then swooped upwards into the night sky.

The creature "screamed" at them before sailing straight up into the air. Wohali stated that he did not know whether the creature had been on the road and then bounced up at them, or if it had been flying at the time it came at their car. He was sure the thing was a physical, actual creature, he said, but like nothing he had ever seen before. Their reaction? Immediate illness. In seconds, both became physically ill, and the son, who was driving, swerved and then pulled the truck over into the ditch so he could vomit. The son, who wishes his identity kept private, vomited six or seven times. Wohali retched, as well, and both remained sick for an entire week. The son was so frightened by the encounter that he refuses to discuss it. But Wohali told me he feels it's important for people to "know what is out there."

Wohali also described seeing "distended ribs, long sort of human legs with claws, huge bat-like wings with 'arms' sort of attached, I remember the teeth and the scream we heard was terrifying."

Wohali’s account and his sincerity convinced Godfrey that he had a “credible sighting” of something she has not heard described before. “He certainly has nothing to gain by making it up” — or talking about it, she said. “He believes the more he talks about it, the more power it gives the creature.”

Godfrey said she feels it is important that somebody record these experiences. The Man Bat of Briggs Road ranks right up there as far as notable weird experiences.

“I do think this sighting that Wohali had is an extremely interesting and exciting sighting,” Godfrey said. “I do think it should have some serious consideration given to it.”

There was another similar entity reported when a man and boy were searching for a lost dog. "They saw what they described as a 'lizard man' covered in brownish scales and very reptilian-looking. It did not have its mouth open or arms extended". Around the same time, a state DNR warden and separately, a group of highway workers saw what they described as a 'reptile man' on Hwy. 13 near Medford. It also possessed wings and was able to fly out of their view. The Medford spot was very near the Black River which winds up from LaCrosse!"

NOTE: since these sightings some people have suggested that this creature may have been a Mothman who appeared previous to several mysterious drownings in the LaCrosse area. You can find Linda Godfrey's website at The Beast of Bray Road and Hunting the American Werewolf Home Page...Lon

Sources:
lacrossetribune.com/couleenews/
Strange Wisconsin: More Badger State Weirdness - Linda S. Godfrey
Hidden Animals: A Field Guide to Batsquatch, Chupacabra, and Other Elusive Creatures - Michael Newton

Reader Mail: Lake Petenwell, Wisconsin Dogman, Flashing Shadow Person and Large Floating Object

LAKE PETENWELL, WISCONSIN DOGMAN?

I received the following in reference to the Dyer Lake, WI encounter:

Hi, just read your WI area story. I have a place in Adams County, Wisconsin by Lake Petenwell. It is a campsite of 5 acres. I was partying out there with 3 people around midnight two years ago. We had the stereo cranked up when something started to grunt/growl louder than the radio just out of sight behind a 35ft camper. It repeated the sounds 3 times. I was ready to run for my life! I got to the stereo and turned it off but did not hear a thing after that. I had my spotlight and could
not see or hear anything move away either. it sounded similar to an extremely loud bull snort mixed with a deep growl similar to the werewolf sound in the movies. It was so loud that even the people in the camper heard it! Just before this happened the whipperwills where going nuts.

We no longer walk alone on the trails at night, only riding golf carts or STVs on the trails after dark. Then last year we had another incident. We went out for a cart ride and heard a loud bark. I thought it was the neighbors dog...but no! It was a white wolf! It seemed aggressive with no fear and was circling the camper with 1 other dog. I have hunted at night and lived here my whole life and never heard anything like this first encounter. It has changed all of us for life! There is definitely something unexplained out there!

NOTE: I tend to agree...there is definitely something out there! Lon

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SHADOW PERSON WITH CAMERA?

Dear Lon: I read Phantoms and Monsters every day. I have something to share with you...I don’t know what this was, but perhaps someone else has had a similar experience.

It happened Friday night/early Saturday morning around 4:00am. I live in a townhouse apartment. I share a bedroom with my daughter on the second floor. Outside our room is a short hallway that leads to a bathroom. My son’s room is next to the bathroom. His room is cold, and he keeps a small space heater running during the night. If you turn on the bathroom light when the space heater is running, it blows a fuse. So during the several years we’ve been living here, I've learned go to the bathroom without turning the light on. There’s a security light outside not too far from our window, and it shines in a little light in the bathroom, enough that it’s not pitch black. That morning, I went into the bathroom and shut the door. Immediately, there was a bright flash of light, as if a camera flash went off. I was facing the mirror that hangs on almost the entire wall over the sink, and I swear, I am not making this up...when the flash went off, I saw what appeared to be a tall, thin black figure reflected in the mirror, as if it was standing behind me, and it looked as if it had something like a camera in its hand. The room went dark and I had spots in front of my eyes like you do when you get your picture taken with a camera flash. The incident only took a second or two, but I was so freaked out by seeing that shadowy figure behind me that I groped for the door handle and yanked the door open and jumped out into the hallway. My heart was pounding and my knees were shaking. I opened my son’s door and looked in; he had his heater off so I turned on the bathroom light. There was nothing in there. I used the bathroom and shut off the light, but I couldn’t go back to sleep for a long time.

The next morning, I took a tape measure in the bathroom. There is a medicine chest on the wall next to where this figure was standing. I measured, and whatever this was, it was 8 feet tall. I wasn’t dreaming...I was awake, and I definitely saw the flash and the figure standing there. Needless to say, I’ll be turning the light on at night in the bathroom from now on. Does anyone have any idea what this could have been? Do shadow people take “photos” of us? This has really creeped me out. I just keep wondering what it was, and why it was taking a photo of me. Sharon

NOTE: this is definitely a new one for me...an entity taking flash photos. Has anyone experience anything similar? Lon

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LARGE FLOATING BLACK OBJECT

I was wondering if anyone has approached you or if you have heard of a Large Floating Black Object? (looks like a person covered in black cloth but no body features just a head torso I guess).

This sounds so weird, but my co-worker saw it too. It was just floating over downtown London, Ontario by St. Joes Hospital about 2 to 2.5 years ago. I have been trying to find any information that someone else saw this but can not locate anything. Possibly I am not searching with the right criteria so it could be out there.

It was moving freely and was visible to me for over 2 hours - 6:30 am to 8:30 am -
it was a flowing form, seemed solid but it's "cloak" was like flowing fabric. It was solid black and hovered over the hospital and church in that area than floated around that area as well.

My co-worker first noticed it from his building, and I called him to ask when he was coming in as I had something to show him, but before I ended the call, he asked me if it was the floating mass over downtown. He was on the 20th floor of his building.

If you guys aren't the right people to contact or you know someone else I could email this to, I would appreciate some answers.

Thanks, Kristina

NOTE: OK folks...any clues? Lon

Chilling Cryptid Encounter - Near Dyer Lake, Wisconsin

I received this interesting correspondence from a 'Beyond the Edge' Radio listener recently:

Hello Lon,

I am writing about something that happened to me about 20 years ago.

I live in a small lake area called Bohners Lake, just outside of Burlington, Wisconsin. At the time of this tale I lived on the opposite side of the lake of where I live now about a half mile away from a boy scout camp called Camp Oh-Da-Ko-Ta. This camp encompasses 185 acres of beautiful rolling hills and woodlands on Dyer Lake.

It was a beautiful summer day and I decided to take a walk with my dogs, a Golden Retriever and English Setter. I went a different way than usual and happened upon the back trail to the camp. It was chained off, but I chanced it anyway and hopped over to check it out.

The area indicated by the witness (noise came from largest building in middle of inset)

The trail was very quiet and peaceful and we walked a while enjoying ourselves greatly. After a bit we came upon some buildings. One was a large pole barn type that had it's doors chained shut. Curiosity overtook me, as usual, and I went up and pushed on one of the large doors allowing a crack of about 6 inches. I tried peering inside and couldn't see much but a floor and empty space.

I was shocked when an earsplitting roar came out of the barn. It sounded like a scream but deep, guttural and bearlike.

Well, my dogs took off running, and I took off running after them terrified. We ran back to my house and, shaking like a leaf and out of breath, I told my (now ex) husband what had happened. He of course told me that what I had heard was a crane........ I just stared at him incredulously. I knew better, but I wasn't going to argue the point with him and just pondered on it for a bit by myself, attempting to calm down.

The day went on and nothing else was said about it until just after dark when we both heard the same scream coming from the back yard!

The house I lived in at the time had a huge back yard. At the very back we had a garden by a small wooded area, and it was from there that we heard the scream. Well, my ex grabbed his rifle, and the dogs and headed down to the garden finding nothing.

He came back to the house, eyes wide, and acknowledged that what I had heard was not a crane.

After that we went about our night talking about it, with the dogs nervously prancing about, and eventually went to bed.

Being summer, the bedroom windows were open and about 3 am, I was shocked awake when "it" was just outside the window and screamed into it. The dogs didn't even bark, they just cowered, whining.

My husband again jumped up and grabbed the rifle and went outside, without the dogs as they didn't want to have anything to do with it,to investigate...again nothing.

Well the story would end here as we didn't hear anything after that, and I was too scared to investigate the building again, but it just happened that about 3 weeks later my husband and I went away for the weekend on a camping trip and my mother, younger sister, and her two daughters spent the night at our house to watch the dogs while we were gone.

The following morning my sister was in the kitchen cooking breakfast when my niece Sandra came in. She looked at the kitchen window and noticed a long smear mark on the kitchen window.

She was about 9 at the time and looked up at my sister and said, " I know what did that." My sister looked at it and asked Sandra what she thought made it.

Sandra replied, " Ooooo, it was the Swamp Monster"... My sister chuckled and asked her why she thought that.

Now, I was always teasing the girls with stories about a swamp monster that lived out by me so they just knew that there was a creature out there. This of course was before my own experience and it wasn't cute and funny anymore.

Then she said, "I saw the Swamp Monster last night."

My sister said chuckling still, "Oooooo, what did you see?"

Sandra just looked at her and said, "I saw a huge white hairy arm and it ran it's claws across the bedroom screen." (my bedroom)

My sister said, "Wow, what did you do?"

Sandra said, "Aw, I just rolled over and went to sleep, I knew it was Aunt Tina trying to scare me."

Of course, we were camping.

So, what did she see? I haven't a clue to this day. But I wonder, were they keeping something out there, or was there something living in that barn unbeknownst to them at the camp and did it follow me home?

Last summer my brother, sister-in-law and I tried going back there, but we got stopped by the person living across the road before we could go across the chain that is still there.

One more thing about that camp. Before this situation, a group of us had gone in the front entrance to the camp by car to check out Dyer Lake that is at the center edge of the camp hoping to sneak in some late night swimming. This was of course after dark and we of course were not supposed to be there.

We arrived at the trail to the lake and got out of the car with our flashlights to walk. We tried following the trail but ended up going off somewhere along the line. We went over a hillside and there, at the bottom of the hill was a beautiful raw iron gate about 6' tall. There was a hole dug into the side of the hill, and this gate was covering the opening.

We opened the gate, and found ourselves in a 12'x12' cave of sorts. Inside were candles, a dead rooster, and a sythe. There was nothing else. No altar or other signs of occult practices, just the things we found haphazardly laying about the room. My sister's now ex-husband took the sythe (which I told him to leave there) and we left and never went back. That is until I went for my walk that summer day.

Tina Caskey

NOTE: there has been some interesting cryptid activity in the general area previously - The Bray Road Beast - Bigfoot Tracks Discovered in Farmington, Wisconsin? - Wisconsin Werewolf: Adaptation or Supernatural? - Strange Encounter in Cheboygan County, Michigan - Is The 'Dogman' Back?. Tina joined Eric and I on the 'Beyond the Edge' Radio show last evening (March 27th) and described her encounter...Lon

The Eagle River, Wisconsin Encounter: Interstellar Pancakes

Preamble: On April 18, 1961, Mr. Paul Simonton, a chicken farmer in Eagle River, Wisconsin claimed he witnessed a disc-shaped craft land vertically on his farm. A hatch opened, and when he approached he saw three human-looking 'men' inside. They asked him for some water. They appeared to be cooking pancakes on a griddle, and in exchange for the water they gave him four of the pancakes from griddle. The episode survived a rigorous assessment by the U.S. Air Force and is carried in their files as "unexplained."

Two photographs of Joe Simonton with one of the "alien pancakes". (source of first photo: Vilas County News-Review, April 27, 1961)

Incident: Wisconsin 's strangest close encounter of the third kind must surely be the incident during which Joe Simonton was given three pancakes by "Italian-looking" aliens.

A close encounter of the third kind is an actual meeting between humans and extraterrestrials, and Simonton's is easily the state's best known. Despite the unlikely manner in which the story unfolded, the episode survived a rigorous assessment by the U.S. Air Force and is carried in their files as "unexplained."

In 1961, Joe Simonton was a plumber; auctioneer and Santa Claus - annually, for the Eagle River Chamber of Commerce. He reported his age as 55 or 60, depending on the interviewer: At 11 a.m., April 18, Simonton was having a late breakfast when he heard a sound like that of a jet being throttled back, something like the sound of "knobby tires on wet pavement." He went into the yard and saw a flying saucer drop out of the sky and hover over his farm. It was silver and "brighter than chrome," 12 feet in height and 30 feet in diameter. On one edge were what appeared to be exhaust pipes, 6 or 7 inches in diameter.

The disc landed and a hatch opened. Inside were three dark-skinned aliens, each about 5 feet tall and weighing about 125 pounds. They appeared to be between 25 and 30 years old and were dressed in dark blue or black knit uniforms with turtleneck tops, and helmet-like caps. They were clean-shaven, Simonton said, and "Italian-looking."

The aliens did not speak in his presence, but they had a silvery jug with two handles, heavier than aluminum but lighter than steel, about a foot high. It seemed to be made out of the same material as the craft. Simonton said it was "a beautiful thing, a Thermos jug-like bottle quite unlike any jug I have ever seen here [on Earth]."

Through ESP or something, Simonton got the idea that the aliens wanted water. He left the visitors, filled the jug from the water pump in his basement, then returned to the craft and gave the jug back. To do this, he had to brace himself against the UFO's hull and stretch up. From the subsequent Air Force report: "Looking into the [saucer] he saw a man 'cooking' on some kind of flameless cooking appliance." The alien was preparing pancakes.

Sketch of the UFO, based on a drawing supplied by Joe Simonton. (credit: FSR)

The interior of the UFO was dull black, even the three "extremely beautiful" instrument panels, and had the appearance of wrought iron. The contrast between the dark interior and shiny exterior so fascinated Simonton that he later said that he "would love to have a room painted in the same way."

In return for the water, one of the aliens - the only one with narrow red trim on his trousers - presented Simonton with three of the pancakes, hot from the griddle. As he did so, the alien touched his own forehead, apparently a salute in thanks to Simonton for his help. Simonton saluted back. Each of the pancakes was roughly 3 inches in diameter and perforated with small holes.

The head alien then connected a line or belt to a hook in his clothing and the hatch closed. The saucer rose about 20 feet and took off to the south, at a 45-degree angle. Its wake left a blast of air that tossed the tops of nearby pine trees. The craft took only two seconds to disappear from view.

Simonton ate one of the pancakes, ostensibly in the interest of science. "It tasted like cardboard," he told the Associated Press. The other two pancakes he gave to Vilas County Judge Frank Carter, a local UFO enthusiast. Carter, who called the aliens "saucernauts" ("I prefer Italians"), said he believed Simonton's story since he could not think of any way in which the farmer might profit from a hoax. Carter's son, Colyn, today a lawyer in Eagle River, told me, "I recall as a youngster that my dad took it very seriously."

Judge Carter sent the pancakes to what was then the country's top investigative group, the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena (NICAP). They refused the opportunity to check it out. That put a damper on Judge Carter's plans; he had wanted to hold a seminar on the incident.

By this time, Simonton said, he was "irked by reporters making fun of the situation and laughing."

In response to all this, the Air Force dispatched its civilian UFO investigator, J. Allen Hynek. Hynek at the time was an astronomer at Northwestern University. He later became convinced that UFOs are real, and founded his own investigative agency, which took over NICAP's files after that group folded. Thanks to Hynek, a Northwestern University committee and the Air Force's Technical Intelligence Center analyzed one of Simonton's pancakes and found it to be made of flour, sugar and grease; it was rumored, however, that the wheat in the pancakes was of an unknown type.

The official Air Force assessment of it all: This case is unexplained. "The only serious flaw in the story is the disappearance of the craft in 'two seconds.' The rest of the story did not contain any outrages to physical concepts," reads the report. Simonton "answered questions directly, did not contradict himself, insisted on the facts being exactly as he stated and refused to accept embellishments or modifications. He stated he was sure that we wouldn't believe him but that he didn't care whether he was believed. He stated simply that this happened and that was that."

The private Air Force response was unearthed after a little detective work. It comes from a UFO handbook for Air Force personnel, written by Lloyd Mallan and issued in a popular edition by Science and Mechanics Publishing Co. In the book, Mallan refers to "J.S., a highly regarded, much respected citizen of Eagle River, Wis. -- a small rural community noted for its attractiveness to tourists."

(Unless there are more space-pancake recipients in Eagle River than otherwise reported, we can safely see through Mallan's clever attempt at disguise and positively identify "J.S." as Joe Simonton.)

One Air Force investigator, according to Mallan, said that Simonton "appeared quite sincere to me, did not appear to be the perpetrator of a hoax." But an Air Force Aeronautical Systems Division psychiatrist believed that Simonton had suffered a hallucination and subsequent delusion. The Air Technical Intelligence Center investigator said, "cases of this type could be injurious to the mental health of the individual if [he] became upset due to the experience. ...It was pointed out that experiences of this type, hallucinations followed by delusion, are not at all uncommon and especially in rural communities."

Additionally, according to Mallan, the Air Force took to heart an unsubstantiated rumor circulated by, among others, Raymond Palmer, a publisher of pulp flying-saucer and science-fiction magazines. Palmer reported to the Air Force his belief that Simonton had been hypnotized by an Eagle River real estate broker and was fed the pancake story so that he would repeat it and appear truthful. The motivation for this was economic, for the purpose of "a miniature Disneyland that is or was being built in the area."

Artist's impression of the Eagle River encounter, by Michael Buhler

To understand how incredible the rumor was, it is useful to look at the credibility of Palmer himself. One of his favorite theories was that flying saucers came from a secret hollow-Earth civilization ruled by a race called Detrimental Robots, which he abbreviated as "Deros." According to Palmer, the Deros manipulated humanity with their projected thought rays. Palmer's primary source -- actually, his only source -- was a Pennsylvania welder who drew upon "racial memory" for his accounts. (There apparently is no mention in Air Force files of the possibility that the Deros' thought-ray had been turned upon real estate agents, or Palmer, or even the Air Force, though I believe there is as much evidence for that as for an Eagle River Disneyland.)

But based on such sound "evidence," the Air Technical Intelligence Center, which headquartered Air Force UFO investigations, let the matter drop. Publicly, it was a mystery. The classified reason, revealed to Mallan, was that the Air Force would not pursue the matter "due to the possibility of causing [Simonton] embarrassment which might prove injurious to his health." This was an uncharacteristic kindness on the part of the Air Force; they regularly had been dismissing reports from pilots - even their own - as misidentifications or, worse, hallucinations. "There are sufficient psychological explanations for reports not otherwise explainable," concluded the Psychology Branch of the Air Force's Aeromedical Laboratory in 1949. Pilots, police, professors, besides regular folks -- all nuts. In the 60's, though, for a brief, shining moment, the Air Force took on a human face and it its collective tongue, bending over backwards to carry the case of a part-time Santa and full-time chicken farmer as unexplained. Some may smell a conspiracy here.

As for Simonton himself, in the end he was left with a bitter taste in his mouth, and it wasn't from the pancakes. "I haven't been able to work for three weeks," he told United Press International. "I'm going to have to start making some money." He said that the next time he saw a flying saucer he would keep it to himself.

He lied. In 1970 Simonton was visited by Lee Alexander, a UFO enthusiast active in a Detroit-based investigative group. Simonton told Alexander that he had had more visits from the aliens, but he had not told anyone because of the way his first report had been received.

And that is all we know. - "The W-Files: True Reports of Wisconsin's Unexplained Phenomena" - Jay Rath

Few mentions of "contacts" were made and the only one receiving a featured presentation was the "Pancake" case of Joe Simonton. This is because FSR regular Bernard Finch had queried Simonton by mail about his alleged meeting with three extraterrestrials in Eagle River, Wisconsin. Simonton, who always comes across as one of the open-eyed "just-plain-Joes" of all UFO history, wrote Finch a letter which then FSR printed. It's to the left. As you can read, Joe is claiming forthrightly that his experience was real and that he thinks he has good reasons to believe that these critters were ETs. He is obviously a bit miffed that the USAF took three of his four pancakes, and has been tardy about their analysis. He thinks that the pancakes were not made of Earth ingredients, although later test results disagreed with that. He is happy to "tell all" but is waiting for the Air Force to tell him it's OK to talk about the testing.

Source:
www.ufoevidence.org "The W-Files: True Reports of Wisconsin's Unexplained Phenomena" - Jay Rath
Clark, Jerome - "The UFO Encyclopedia" - 1998
ufos.about.com
Coral and Jim Lorenzen, 'Encounters with UFO Occupants', APRO - 1976
Waterufo.net
UFOCAT
www.eyepod.org
John A. Keel - "Operation Trojan Horse" - New York, NY: Putnam - 1970
www.ufowisconsin.com
www.afu.info