The Ridge Road Monster

Whatever the thing before him was, it was now clear it was not a man. It was nude and its gray skin seemed stretched over a tall skeleton. It was more than seven feet tall and its arms swung down almost to its knees. But what terrified John was the beast's head. It looked like gray skin over a skull and nothing more.

From Monsters of Pennsylvania, by Patty A. Wilson


Image source.

This is a pretty interesting book. What I really dig is the fact that the author includes tales which are quite bizarre and not the traditional Bigfoot lore that I was expecting. Stories about UFOs sighted moments before (or during) large hairy hominid sightings, about Sasquatches seen carrying glowing orbs, and creatures who, upon being seen or even shot, wink out of existence. Fascinating stuff. And I give credit to the people who tell of those experiences. It must be bad enough trying to get family and friends to believe you've seen Bigfoot, but to add "and he was carrying something in his hand..." Well, that must be a deal breaker. I would edit out that part of the experience. And I wonder if people have in fact kept certain details like that out of their reported sightings.

The passage above goes on to say:
...the beast turned away from John and stepped off the path into one of the many sinkholes that dotted the area and stood still. It raised its head as if to look at the sky and gave out a long, mournful wail. Then the beast started to sink into the hole as if being lowered somehow. The entire time it gave out strange, hollow cries.

Imagine seeing that. Then imagine trying to tell someone about it.