Hello everyone, let’s dive into an extraordinary tale that blends military grit with a hunt for the unknown. Meet Kelly Stolp, a 45-year-old US Army veteran and electrician from Montana who’s been on a quest to uncover the mysteries of Sasquatch. This journey began four summers ago with a bone-chilling encounter in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest in Washington.
It was July 2020 when Stolp, along with his two sons, nephew, fiancée, and old Army buddy Mike Palagi, experienced what he now calls the “founding incident.” They were camping along an abandoned forest road when, around 3 a.m., Stolp was jolted awake by an unearthly, elevated scream. It was a sound he described as “like a washboard, a brat-tat-tat, but so guttural.” Adding to the terror, he heard a heavy-footed creature running past their campsite.
Despite grabbing his shotgun and alerting his campmates, who were too groggy from finishing a bottle of Pendleton whisky, Stolp found nothing when he ventured outside. The fear was palpable, but it wasn’t until the following night that the encounter repeated itself, further solidifying Stolp’s resolve to investigate.
On the second night, the same eerie scream echoed through the forest, waking Stolp and some of his fellow campers. Palagi, now sober, heard the elevated croak and remarked, “It seemed to be elevated, not on a ground level.” His fiancée, Olivia Corbin, added, “It sounded like it ran right past our heads. Very heavy footed. We could feel the ground move as it was running past the tent.”
Stolp and Palagi, armed with courage and curiosity, scoured the dark forest but found nothing. The thumping sounds, unmistakably from something on two legs, left them baffled and frightened. The creature vanished as mysteriously as it had appeared.
Stolp kept this terrifying experience to himself, sharing it only with close friends and family, fearing ridicule. Among those he confided in was Tanner Hoskins, 31, who was eager to uncover the truth behind the mysterious events. In August 2020, Stolp and Hoskins returned to the site but found no signs of the elusive Sasquatch.
Unwavering in their quest, Hoskins launched a website, the Pacific Northwest Bigfoot Search, to collect similar experiences. Reports started pouring in almost immediately. A sheriff’s deputy described hearing the same brat-tat-tat sound near Saddle Mountain in northwest Oregon, while another camper spotted a hairy, two-footed creature near Vernonia. The website quickly amassed over 100 reports of strange sightings and sounds.
For Stolp, these encounters reignited a sense of wonder and mystery. “It brought magic back into my life in a way,” he said. “Mystery came back, because it didn’t exist before that. It’s like being a kid again.”
Washington leads the nation in Bigfoot sightings with 713 reported encounters, followed by California and Florida. Stolp’s journey from soldier to Sasquatch hunter is a testament to his unyielding spirit and curiosity. His story reminds us that even in the age of technology, the world still holds mysteries waiting to be explored.
Until next time, keep your eyes open and your sense of wonder alive. Who knows what you might discover?