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Payson, Gila County, Arizona
January 2001

I don't know how to say this but my fiancé encountered something unexplained late last night crossing a 2-lane road in the vicinity of Payson, Arizona (I note there was an encounter somewhere in the area with a different appearing beast on your website).

All I have to go on now are the details he provided from a payphone while en route to his construction site further south of Payson, AZ.

Here's all I know: it was late, travel on the road very light, many inches of snow on the ground along the road but the road was clear except for occasional icy patches. Mark said he was driving slowly and attentively since he was running through little patches of ground fog. He suddenly saw a large figure loping across the road in front of him, bipedal with darkish long fur. I asked him if he saw a face but he didn't. Of course we have black bear in the area but he was adamant that it wasn't a bear.

Mark has a degree in geology, armchair biologist, is an avid outdoorsman, spending up to weeks at a time in very remote country often alone, and has never seen anything like this before.

We are both intrigued; I am also a biologist.

Names and email address withheld. Sighting verified by Bobbie Short Monday, January 15, 2001 3:32 PM