A Maryland mother vividly describes her harrowing encounter with a cryptid canine in Rocks State Park in Harford County while visiting with her young sons.
"On Monday, October 18, 2021, at mid-day, I took my 7 and 2 1/2-year-old sons to Rocks State Park which is 1.5 miles up the road from my house. We were in the Hidden Valley Area. The park is small. 4 parking spots and a 1/2 mile trail that follows a creek. The trail ends at a fork in the creek with a beachhead about 20 feet long. 6 people would be a crowd.
Both of my sons are familiar with this park as it is in a rotation of 3 parks we choose from to go on a little hike once a week. The trail is moderate with some inclines, natural obstacles, and occasional narrowing due to lack of maintenance. My eldest son is comfortable being 30-50 feet ahead of me while I pace my youngest. Nothing is out of the ordinary. Just a normal hike
My eldest reaches the beach head 15-20 seconds before us. We approach the creek beach and my youngest is on my left starting to mess with rocks and throwing them in the creek. My oldest is 10-15 feet to my right messing around throwing rocks in the water. I bend down to cuff my pant leg and hear a blood-curdling scream from my oldest. I look up at him and he is screaming falling backwards feverishly kicking his legs. I follow his line of sight across the creek. Perched on a large flat rock is an animal I could not understand. It was no more than 20-25 feet away and its dimensions seemed so large It looked as if it could leap the creek in one stride. A barrel chest with clearly defined pectoral muscles shoulders and biceps is no different than a man just a lot larger. Bulging eyes and a stubby snout like a hyena. It looked as if It was in a sprinters starting position not an animal on all fours. Its thighs and hind end were noticeably large. The mass of this animal was unnatural. The ears faced foreword with hair tufts on the side and tops of the head. The face was looked as if it was on high alert. Similar to when your dog has quick head movements because you're getting ready to throw a ball.
It kept switching between my son screaming falling backward into the trail running away and me screaming and picking up my other son. As I am frantically trying to get between it and my 1st son. It almost looks as if it was in the lunging position. That or backing up. My perspective was head-on before turning into the trail. I get to him and we are out of direct sight. I yell at son #1 to run. The weirdest thing would happen. The 7-year-old would start sprinting and crying and after 30 feet he would turn around almost in a complete daze not understanding what was happening, then I would have to yell at him again to run. He would run, cry stop, dazed. This happened 3 times. I still don’t understand how shock or fear could do that. The animal did not follow us down the trail.
The thoughts going through my head I wouldn’t wish on my enemies. It was the only time in my life when I knew I could not protect my children. The buck knife on my hip was no better than a pillow. The moment I told my 7-year-old he might have to take his younger brother's hand and get back to the car as fast as you could. This has left a scar deeper in my mind than this unexplainable animal.
Even though there was no mistaking what I witnessed, it doesn’t matter. Trying to explain this to anyone is pointless. I like to think I am considerably self-aware. I cannot understand why my mind is forcing itself to debunk what I saw. I was undoubtedly afraid but my focus was crystal clear. Kids, safe, at all costs. I was laser-focused on my surroundings and what was in it. None of my emotions distorted my vision or made me misinterpret my surroundings." A
Dogman: Michigan, Wisconsin, West Virginia
American Monsters: A History of Monster Lore, Legends, and Sightings in America
Real Wolfmen: True Encounters in Modern America
Mysteries & Lore of Western Maryland: Snallygasters, Dogmen, and other Mountain Tales (American Legends)
HAVE A COMMENT? GO TO OUR SUBREDDIT AND POST YOUR THOUGHTS
.jpg)
Your financial support of Phantoms & Monsters and our other pursuits is much appreciated. Please click the banner above. Thanks.
.jpg)
