Here is a recent investigation which came to my attention just a couple of hours after it happened.  Both witnesses were interviewed close to the location over a cell phone they had in the car with them.

Thomas Steenburg

NEAR AVOLA

B.C. FILE # 10195
LOCATION: Highway 5, 26 km s south of Avola, British Columbia.
TIME: Approx 10: 19 am.
DATE:  August 12, 2015.
REPORT BY:  Thomas Steenburg

I received a phone call,  approx 12 noon on August 12, 2015 from a woman whom just had a possible sighting and was still in a quite an exited state.  She informed me that she and her mother have been driving home from BC to their homes in Alberta.  They were approaching the small community of Avola, BC on Highway 5, when the driver, (caller’s mother; main witness) called her attention to a figure ahead crossing the road, left to right; driver side to passenger side. The caller had been in the back seat feeding her 5 month old child, and looked forward in time to see the figure leave the road and disappear down a steep roadside embankment into the thick tress between the highway and the Thompson River not far away to the south (Highway runs east west at this point).

The ladies didn’t know what to say ;or what to do? The Driver at first thought it was a man whom jumped out of an approaching car on the road ahead of the figure walking across the highway (passing car in opposite lane). But only for a moment, as the reality of what she was looking at sunk in.  The banter between the two women at this point was one of great excitement. They did turn the car around and went back to the spot where the figure disappeared over the high embankment.  The driver did a search of the roadside and did find one possible track in the area. The other woman took a few cell phone photos of the track which she later sent to me via e-mail.

The two ladies then got back in the car and traveled as far as the pull out outside of Avola, BC where the driver phoned her husband whom informed them to contact myself.  It was while there I did a quick interview from both witnesses. The two ladies requested to remain anonymous, so their identities have been withheld from this written report.

First interview

What color was it?

Dark.  As I said at first I thought it had clothes on.

You thought it had clothes on?

Yeah. When I first noticed it, I was coming around the bend, there were a couple of cars coming toward us, between us and it, I thought someone was crossing the road, at first. But as I watched it cross the yellow line and down the bank, I knew by that point it wasn’t a man.

Did it cross the highway directly, or was it at an angle?

From what I could tell it was almost a straight line. Well, a bit of an angle.

Was it hairy?

No. Well yes. The only time I could really tell was when I passed by it so quickly.

When you passed the spot, could you still see it?

It hadn’t disappeared yet, I could just see the top of the head. I am trying to get a really good look because I am thinking: Was that a person?

Do you wear corrective lenses?

No, I don’t.

Do you need them?

No. Well just a little bit for reading.

Just reading glasses?

Yeah.

May I ask your age?

I just turned 52.

Oh, you’re just a young girl, I’m 54.

Why, thank you.

You and your daughter were traveling north, heading for home, which is Wadamun, Alberta? Not sure if I pronounced that right?

Yeah. You did good.

What was your first impression when you saw it?

Well, when I first saw the oncoming cars I thought they were pulled over because it appeared to me, us, someone walking across the road behind them.

You thought the oncoming cars were parked?

At first yes, but I quickly realized they were moving towards me. There was some distance right, but I soon knew they were moving towards me in the other lane. And behind them was, what I thought was, a human being walking across the highway.  And I said to my daughter, “What the heck is he doing walking out on to the highway for!” When I realized what it might be I said out loud to her, “Here comes your critter you might want to look!” She started to play close attention, she saw it as it reached the edge of the road and she too saw it step down, she also saw the dark color, the head and shoulders, but I will let her tell you her story.

Did it stand and walk upright?

Yes! It was always upright. That’s why I thought at first it was a person.

Did it ever go down on all fours?

Never.

How tall do you think it was?

I thought it was about 6 feet.

Did it appear heavy or light?

You know at first glimpse, not so heavy, or tall, but as I got closer to it it appeared bigger.

How long did you see it for?

How long what?

How long did you see it for?

10 to 20 seconds, if that long. You know traveling at 100 kms a hour, a distance of less than a quarter of a mile.

Was there a clear area between the roadside and the tree line?

A clearing, what do you mean?

It’s not a solid line of trees right up to the edge of the road?

Oh, yes it is. Oh, yes it is.  It is very treed. You can see the river through some of the areas. And spots where it seems animals have left trails on the ground. You know if you are a man and you drop off that cliff (referring to steep embankment where subject left the road), you could get pretty hurt.

Did it see you?

Um. No. Can’t really say for sure?

Could you tell if it was male or female?

No.

I assume you didn’t hear any noise?

No.

Did you smell anything before, during or after?

Yes.

What did you smell?

STEENBURG NOTE: Witness here gives a long answer about pleasant forest odors and the smell of cinnamon she detected long after the sighting while she was searching for footprints along the road side. I am of the opinion the odors she noticed had nothing to do with what she saw.

You did check for footprints?

Yes.

Did you stop right then and there or did you return?

Probably about. Oh, I don’t know?

Where you found the possible footprint was that located right where it crossed the road, or did you find that somewhere else?

Yes, that was right there. That’s where it went in.

There is a drop off there?

Yes.

Did you report this to any one?

My husband, then you. My husband first (she phoned her husband and it was he who told her to contact myself by phone).

There is a second witness in this case?

My daughter, yeah.

You reside in Wadamun, Alberta?

Yes, that’s right.

Your daughter resides in Edmonton, Alberta?

Yes.

You were on your way home from?

My daughter’s memorial.  And a girlfriend in Kamloops.

STEENBURG NOTE: The witness lost her other daughter recently.

So, it was a long hot day in the car?

Exactly.

Now the footprint photo you sent to me, was there just one or was there other tracks?

Well, I wanted to look more over (steep embankment), but my daughter wouldn’t let me. Because it was scary, and it was quite a drop down.  She wouldn’t let me go down there.

STEENBURG NOTE: This witness would give long drawn out answers to many questions which to my mind was distracting to the subject at hand. She contacted me from the road, and was in a very exited state. Something she herself pointed out a number of times. A few days later I did call her again at her home in Alberta, where we went over many of the details again. By this time she had calmed down quite a bit. I did interview the second witness during the original phone interview.

SECOND INTERVIEW

Hello (name with held), I was just talking to your mom, Can you tell me how all this was brought to your attention that something strange was going on?

I was just sitting in the back seat, my daughter was kind of being grumpy, so I came back here to feed her.   I was just feeding her and my mom and I just drove around this bend in the road and she said, “Whats going on here.” “ Why is that person crossing the road?” There’s wildlife here so I am looking at the side ditch and not looking ahead.  I was looking at the side ditch when she said, “What is that?” Then I looked out toward the front through the passenger side of the windshield, and this tall, tall dark figure just stepped over, off the highway, and he was kind of in the ditch, like basically where I took that picture (track photo), is where I saw him, like he was standing right there, and I was like, “Holy,” as I can see that he is super tall!  Stocky, and he didn’t have a neck. He was built, he was stocky.  And he just dropped down (steep embankment), and he was just gone.

How tall do you think the subject was?

Over 6 foot for sure.

Could you tell if it was hairy?

Yeah.  It had hair.

What color was it?

Black.

Were you close enough to see any detail concerning the face?

No.

How far away was it when you saw it?

When I saw it. Maybe 30 feet.

STEENBURG NOTE: I thought 30 feet was close enough to at least see some facial details so I discussed this with her for a bit, but her explanation of short time duration and profile angle of the subject seemed reasonable explanation in my opinion.

Was it still visible when you passed the spot?

No, he wasn’t visible. He had dropped down (other witness said she could still see the top of the subjects head?).

The photos of the possible footprint are actually yours?

Yes, they are mine.

Thank you for them by the way.

No problem. I hope you can make something out of them because I have a hard time seeing it when I look at them. (LAUGHS).

When your mother was searching the area did you notice any odor at all?

No. But I stayed in the car most of the time because of my daughter was with us and I wasn’t going to leave her alone in a car along the highway.

How old is your daughter?

She’s 5 months.

She was in the back in the baby seat?

Yes.

You were feeding her?

Yes.

When you saw the subject was it crossing the road left to right or right to left?

You mean to us or the cars coming the other way?

You.

It was on kind of an angle. (It did cross left to right)

An angle? Towards you or away from you?

Towards us. But I really still couldn’t see the face? I could see the outline of it, but not any details of it. It was just so dark colored.

Could you see any skin?

No. He was just so dark. That is what caught my attention really, because every time we come to BC, I get a little upset because we don’t see much wildlife anymore, so when my mom said something I looked up and she said, “What is that!”. That is what really caught my attention was his dark features, how dark he was, and the fact he didn’t have a neck, he had a big head. He was really stocky.

STEENBURG NOTE: When I talked to the first witness, (mother) again after a few days she too remarked on the fact that the subject did not seem to have a discernible neck.

Your mother mentioned that you stopped at the ‘Welcome to Avola’ pull out.  It was before you got there this happened?

Yes, it was before the pull out.

How long before the pull out?

10 or 15 minutes, if that.

Any man-made landmarks visible at the spot?

There was an ad sign maybe 5 minutes after the spot with the words ‘HANDCRAFTER ‘ something or other written on it? It was a big sign and it had Handcrafter written on it? There were other things written underneath it but that’s what I remember. A sign for a shop on the side of the highway type thing.

STEENBURG NOTE:  At this point she asked if I wanted them to drive back to the spot in question? This interview was over the phone while they were still traveling back to Alberta some 60 minutes after it happened. Both ladies were willing to go back but I told them not to interrupt their trip. They said it would be no interruption and they would call me back later that night.  She did. She informed me that the sighting location was 41 kms up Highway 5 from the town of Clearwater. I did a Google map check and found that Clearwater was 67.1 kms south of Avola.  So, I simply subtracted 41 kms from 67.1 kms and concluded that the sighting location was 26 kms south of Avola. Give or take.

The two ladies I am convinced did encounter something odd on Highway 5, 26 kms south of Avola, BC at 10 : 19 am, August 12, 2015.  The photo included with this report does show possible characteristics of a possible footprint but not distinctly so. Now a hoax being perpetrated on the two ladies can not be ruled out but the circumstances surrounding this incident at least in my opinion make a hoax seem very unlikely. The only other possibility at least in my mind is they did indeed witness a Sasquatch crossing the road.

Thomas Steenburg