In Search of the Alabama Bigfoot
Hawk and his pet Wolf
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Hawk Spearman believes in Bigfoot. And if you sit down and talk with him
for a minute or two, you'll believe in Bigfoot too.
Hawk lives in the small town of Ashville Alabama and from a cramped trailer
he heads up an organization known as the "Southeastern Bigfoot Research
Organization" The group has an 800 number that takes calls from all across
the country on possible Bigfoot sightings. Hawk acts as the head of a
clearinghouse for the information which he publishes on his website and
through an e-mail newsletter. If a sighting is close by and sounds
particularly interesting Hawk will come out to personally see what's
stalking through your woods. He's gotten close to Bigfoot on two occasions.
The first one was the sighting that changed his life and lead him to found
the Organization. He described to me a chilling encounter in which he
walked up on a group of the creatures and got so close he could tell that
they weren't "men in costumes cause I could see their muscles flex." There
muscles were flexing because one was raising a huge rock over his head. The
rock landed at Hawk's feet and that was enough to send Hawk running in the
opposite direction.
But don't think that Yeti are vicious killers who attack humans at the
slightest provocation. Hawk says that they are "very mild mannered and
won't pose a threat unless you are perceived as threatening." Hawk thinks
that he unknowingly came to close to the surprised Yeti family and they
thought he was going to attack. That was the reason for the thrown
projectile and the need for a hasty retreat.
Hawk's second encounter with a Bigfoot was much less frightening. He was
out in his yard with a video camera when he spied something tall staring at
him through the woods. He zoomed in with the camera and for 10 seconds or
so caught the image of what looks like an apelike face staring back at him.
You can see the eyes on the face blink once or twice on the video before
looking away.
That second sighting was when he lived in Ohio and Hawk believed the area
around his old home was a hotbed of activity. There were occasional scrapes
and knocks on the exterior walls of his trailer and Bigfoot bait cages he
put out over night were disturbed with the food removed. At one such bait
trap Hawk recovered a sample of hair that doesn't resemble any known animal
hair. He's certain that the hair came from a Yeti.
I wanted to get the feel of going on a Bigfoot hunt so Hawk took me out for
a short romp through a section of woods near his home that dogs are afraid
of going into. Hawk says, "loud screams and hollers have come from the
woods at night and there's been reports of something on 4 legs that jumps up
and runs on two." Although Hawk thinks that it might be a bear, he's not
above ruling out that it could be something a little more mysterious. As we
walk thru the thick woods, made wet by recent rain, Hawk tells me how you
know if there's a Bigfoot around.
"If you're ever out in the woods and get a feeling that you're being
watched, or that you have an ungodly sense that you are being followed then
it's a good bet that something else is out there."
Hawk leads me deeper into the woods
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Hawk investigates some mysterious crap
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I don't feel like I'm being watched but that's probably because I'm too busy
looking out for snakes and trying not to fall down. As Hawk glides through
the tangled trees and vines (he's part American Indian) I trudge along
behind him, poking myself on briars and trying to stay in an upright
position. Finally when I think Hawk is going to take me out so far in the
woods that I'll never find my way back, he stops. There's a swamp ahead and
although the prospect of a romp in the muck doesn't seem to bother Hawk I
get the feeling that he's taking it a little easy on the tenderfoot. I
silently thank him for it. On the way back Hawk spots some feces left by an
unknown animal. Hawk inspects it, noting the digested grain and thinks it
might be from a horse but he's unsure how a horse could get this far back
into the woods. Finally he marks it up as just another mystery of the woods
and leads me back to civilization.
Bigfoot feces?
As I leave, Hawk's in the backyard, playing with his pet wolf. I wave
goodbye, thankful I came thru the day without getting snake bit and having a
healthier respect for a man who's willing to risk life and limb to go out
looking for the mysterious creature. I hope Hawk is able to find
irrefutable proof of Bigfoot's existence one day and stun the world. Until
that day's he bound and determined to keep looking.
Hawk Spearman and The Southeastern Bigfoot Research Organization can be
reached at hawk2000@alltel.net Bigfoot sightings can be phoned in by
calling toll free 1-888-304-8260. All personal information is kept
confidential.
sources
Interview with Hawk and Karen Spearman
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