STALKED BY THE BEAST OF BRAY ROAD.
AND I SLOWED DOWN.
THIS HALF-MAN, HALF-WOLF LOOKED RIGHT AT ME.
IT WAS THE SCARIEST THING I'VE EVER SEEN,
AND I FELT PURE TERROR.
FACE-TO-FACE WITH THE MICHIGAN DOGMAN.
WHEN I LOCKED EYES WITH IT, WE BOTH FROZE.
IT WAS COMING DIRECTLY AT ME, AND THAT'S WHEN I SAID,
"TIME FOR ME TO GO."
TURNED INTO A CANNIBAL BY THE RAVENOUS WENDIGO.
WHEN SOMEBODY'S POSSESSED BY THE WENDIGO,
IT'S VERY TERRIFYING, AND THEY BECOME A PREDATOR,
AND THEIR FAMILY, RELATIVES, OR FRIENDS HAVE BECOME THE PREY.
30 MILES WEST OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN,
THE TOWN OF ELKHORN SITS AMONG BROAD LAKES AND ROLLING HILLS.
ELKHORN IS A REALLY CLOSE-KNIT LITTLE TOWN.
YOU WALK IN A GROCERY STORE, AND YOU KNOW PEOPLE.
GREAT TOWN TO RAISE A FAMILY.
ROLLING FARMLAND.
WAS PREDOMINANTLY RURAL FOR A LONG TIME.
IT'S A QUIET, NICE, LITTLE COMMUNITY.
SOMETIMES A LITTLE TOO QUIET.
YOU HEAR, YOU KNOW, THE CREAKINGS OF THE NIGHT.
IT CAN BE VERY FRIGHTENING JUST BEING OUT IN THE WOODS.
I'VE LIVED HERE ALL MY LIFE, BETTER THAN 50 YEARS.
I KNOW AN AWFUL LOT OF PEOPLE.
PEOPLE WEREN'T AT ALL INTO THE PARANORMAL
UNTIL THIS THING STARTED TO CROP ITS HEAD.
IT BECAME SOMETHING THAT WAS
IN THE BACK OF PEOPLE'S MINDS ALL THE TIME.
IT'S BEEN SEEN MORE THAN 100 TIMES.
IT'S NEVER BEEN CAPTURED.
NO IRONCLAD PROOF.
BUT RUMORS PERSIST THAT A WOLFMAN BEAST STALKS
THE DARK, WOODED ROADS OF WISCONSIN.
DATING BACK TO THE 1940s, WHEN PEOPLE WENT TO THE WOODS,
SOME OF THE OLD-TIMERS REMEMBERED HEARING STORIES
OF THEM COMING BACK, SCREAMING OUT OF THE WOODS
WITH THEIR CLOTHING ALL SHREDDED BY THIS MONSTER
WITH THESE DEEP, DARK SCRATCH MARKS ON THEIR BODY...
HELP ME!
...INDICATING THAT THEY DID ENCOUNTER
SOME CREATURE OUT THERE.
IN THE LATE 1980s,
THE STORIES REACHED A NEW LEVEL OF INTENSITY.
IN AND AROUND THIS AREA OUTSIDE OF ELKHORN, WISCONSIN,
THERE WAS A FLURRY OF SIGHTINGS
OF SOME UNKNOWN, UPRIGHT, WOLFLIKE CREATURE.
THERE WAS A GREAT AMOUNT OF FEAR.
PEOPLE ARMED THEMSELVES AND STARTED TO LOCK THEIR DOORS,
WHICH IS NOT NORMAL AROUND HERE,
ESPECIALLY OUT NORTH OF ELKHORN,
WHERE THIS BEAST WAS FIRST SIGHTED.
MOST OF THE SIGHTINGS WERE CLUSTERED
ALONG A SINGLE ROADWAY.
BRAY ROAD IS A TWO-MILE STRETCH OF COUNTRY ROAD.
IT'S FULL OF FAMILY FARMS.
SOME OF THEM GO BACK GENERATIONS.
JUST OFF OF BRAY ROAD, THERE'S A LARGE WOODS,
VERY DEEP WOODS, WITH A NUMBER OF PONDS IN IT.
AND EVERY NOW AND THEN, SOMETHING EMERGES.
SOMETHING THAT ELKHORN NATIVE LORI ENDRIZZI WILL NEVER FORGET.
I NEVER THOUGHT ANYTHING LIKE THIS
WOULD EVER HAPPEN TO ME, BUT IT DID HAPPEN,
AND IT WAS ONE OF THE SCARIEST MOMENTS OF MY LIFE.
LATE ONE EVENING IN THE FALL OF 1989,
THE LOCAL BAR MANAGER WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK,
DRIVING ON BRAY ROAD.
IT WAS A VERY QUIET NIGHT.
I SAW SOMETHING ON THE ROAD.
TO LORI, IT LOOKED LIKE SOME SORT OF ANIMAL HUNCHED OVER
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD.
SHE INCHED CLOSER FOR A BETTER VIEW.
I SAW HIM KNEELING ON THE ROAD, LIKE A PERSON WOULD KNEEL.
I PUT MY HEADLIGHTS ON BRIGHT SO I COULD SEE IT.
AND THAT'S WHAT REALLY MADE ME REALIZE
IT WASN'T SOMETHING NORMAL.
AND THEN, A BLOOD-CHILLING REALIZATION.
IT WAS HOLDING THE ROADKILL LIKE IT HAD ELBOWS,
AND IT WAS KNEELING LIKE IT HAD KNEES LIKE A HUMAN BEING.
HANDS, ELBOWS, KNEES.
AND I'M LOOKING AT IT, AND I CAN'T BELIEVE
THAT I'M ACTUALLY SEEING THIS THING
THAT I'VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE.
I WAS VERY, VERY FRIGHTENED
BECAUSE I THOUGHT I WAS LOOKING AT A HALF-MAN, HALF-WOLF...
A WEREWOLF.
THE REAL TERROR CAME
WHEN THE KNEELING CREATURE TURNED AND LOCKED EYES ON LORI.
HIS EYES WERE A GLOWING YELLOW.
HIS EYES WERE ACTUALLY GLOWING.
IT WAS FRIGHTENING.
I WAS LOOKING AT THIS CREATURE, AND I FELT PURE TERROR.
THAT'S ALL I COULD FEEL.
PLEASE.
JUST AS THE BEAST HAD FRESH PREY IN ITS SIGHTS,
LORI'S CAR WOULDN'T MOVE.
MY HEART WAS POUNDING. I WAS SHAKING.
PLEASE. COME ON.
PLEASE.
WHEN HER CAR ROARED TO LIFE,
THERE WAS ONLY ONE PLACE TO GO.
I PRETTY MUCH SPED TO MY MOM'S
AND JUST GOT OUT OF THERE AS FAST AS I COULD.
THAT CREATURE WAS THE SCARIEST THING I'VE EVER SEEN.
MOM?
WHAT'S WRONG? WHAT HAPPENED?
WHEN LORI CAME INTO THE HOUSE, THERE WAS...
SHE WAS JUST FULL OF PANIC.
SHE SAID, "MOM, YOU'RE NOT GONNA BELIEVE WHAT I SAW."
SHE SAID, "I SAW A WEREWOLF.
"IT WAS KNEELING ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD.
IT HAD GLOWING EYES, AND IT WAS EATING ROADKILL."
AND I SAID, "MY GOD, LORI."
SHE COULDN'T BELIEVE IT. I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT.
WE WERE JUST BOTH IN SHOCK.
I KNOW WHAT I SAW.
SHE WAS ABSOLUTELY TERRIFIED.
I HAVE NEVER SEEN LORI THAT TERRIFIED, EVER.
AND LORI IS JUST ONE OF COUNTLESS OTHERS
THROUGH HISTORY SWEARING THEY'VE SEEN A WOLFMAN.
THE LEGEND DATES BACK TO ANCIENT TIMES.
IN NORTHERN EUROPE,
PAGAN WARRIORS DRESSED IN WOLF HIDES
TO CHANNEL THE SPIRIT OF THESE AGGRESSIVE PACK ANIMALS.
BUT BY THE LATE MIDDLE AGES, RISING PANIC OVER WITCHCRAFT
TURNED THE WOLF AND NOTIONS OF A WOLFMAN
INTO SOMETHING EVIL.
FUELING THE FEAR MAY HAVE BEEN EUROPE'S FIRST SERIAL KILLER.
IN 1589, IN BEDBURG, GERMANY, PETER STUBBE CARRIED OUT
MORE THAN A DOZEN BRUTAL MURDERS.
STUBBE MADE A GIRDLE MADE OF WOLF PELTS
THAT HE CLAIMED TRANSFORMED HIM INTO A WEREWOLF.
STUBBE WAS BURNED AT THE STAKE.
MANY WEREWOLF LEGENDS WERE COMBINED
INTO HOLLYWOOD'S CLASSIC TALE...
...THE ILL-FATED HUMAN HERO, UNDER A FULL MOON,
CURSED TO TRANSFORM INTO A SAVAGE BEAST.
ONLY THE CREATURE THAT STALKED WISCONSIN IN THE 1980s
APPEARED TO BE DIFFERENT...
LESS MAN, MORE WOLF, PUMPED WITH AGGRESSION,
AND VYING TO SURVIVE ON WILD GAME.
NO MATTER WHO MIGHT GET IN THE WAY.
I WAS JUST IN THE WRONG PLACE AT THE WRONG TIME.
I DON'T THINK IT PICKED ME OUT.
I JUST THINK IT WAS THERE, AND I WAS THERE.
IN THE BACK OF MY MIND, I'M THINKING, "WHAT IF?"
WHAT IF IT FOLLOWED HER HOME?
WHAT IF THERE'S MORE THAN ONE?
ON A FALL EVENING IN 1989 NEAR ELKHORN, WISCONSIN,
LOCAL RESIDENT LORI ENDRIZZI WAS DRIVING HOME.
HER RIDE WAS INTERRUPTED WHEN SHE SAW A STRANGE CREATURE
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD.
AND AS I SLOWED DOWN TO LOOK AT IT,
IT TURNED AROUND AND LOOKED AT ME.
STARING INTO HER HEADLIGHTS WAS A WOLFMAN,
THE LEGENDARY BEAST OF BRAY ROAD.
I DIDN'T SLEEP THAT NIGHT VERY WELL.
MOSTLY BECAUSE I WAS THINKING
ABOUT THIS CREATURE THAT I HAD SEEN.
THE DAY AFTER HER ENCOUNTER,
LORI FELT COMPELLED TO INVESTIGATE THE AREA
WHERE SHE SAW THE BEAST.
THE FEELINGS THAT I WAS FEELING WHEN I DROVE BACK
TO WHERE I INITIALLY SAW IT WAS PRETTY CREEPY.
I WAS VERY HESITANT TO DRIVE DOWN BRAY ROAD,
BUT THERE'S ALWAYS THAT FEAR THAT IT COULD BE...
IT COULD BE OUT THERE,
JUST WALKING AROUND, LOOKING FOR ROADKILL.
LOOKING TO SCARE SOMEBODY.
IT WAS ALL SO UNBELIEVABLE, LORI AND HER MOM DECIDED
TO KEEP QUIET ABOUT THE WOLFMAN ENCOUNTER.
THE STORY JUST SEEMED SO OUTLANDISH,
LIKE, WHO'S GONNA BELIEVE LORI?
I DIDN'T WANT TO HAVE A STIGMA ATTACHED TO MYSELF.
SO, REALLY, IT WAS AN EASY SECRET TO KEEP.
LIKE LORI, OTHER FOLKS IN THE AREA HAD
ENCOUNTERS THEY COULDN'T EXPLAIN.
ONE OF THE SCARIEST ENCOUNTERS NEAR BRAY ROAD HAPPENED
WHEN A ROUP OF CHILDREN WERE SLEDDING,
AND THEY WERE ON THEIR WAY HOME.
IT WAS JUST ABOUT TWILIGHT.
WHAT'S THAT?
AND THEY SAW WHAT THEY THOUGHT WAS A DOG LAPPING WATER
FROM A PARTLY THAWED POND, AND THEY WENT OVER TO PET IT.
THAT'S NO DOG.
THEY TURNED AROUND AND RAN, AND IT BEGAN TO CHASE THEM.
BUT AS USUAL, IT BROKE OFF THE CHASE.
AND ONE OF THOSE CHILDREN WAS A FRIEND OF MY SON'S.
AND HE SAID, "MOM, I KNOW HIM, AND HE'S NOT MAKING THAT UP.
HE'S STILL REALLY SCARED."
WHEN IT WAS CLEAR THAT LORI ENDRIZZI'S ENCOUNTER
WASN'T THE ONLY ONE,
LORI'S MOM ENCOURAGED HER TO GO PUBLIC ABOUT THE EVENT.
I THOUGHT IT WAS TIME THAT EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW
WHAT WAS GOING ON.
AS LORI WOULD LEARN,
THE LOCAL ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICE ALREADY HAD A FILE.
THEY STARTED COMPILING REPORTS
WHEN THEY FOUND A DOZEN OR SO ANIMALS
SUSPICIOUSLY DEAD AND DISMEMBERED.
IT WAS CRAZY. A WEREWOLF FILE?
I MEAN, I DIDN'T THINK ANYONE EVER HEARD OF THIS,
SO SOMEBODY MUST HAVE SAID SOMETHING IN THE PAST
TO HAVE A WEREWOLF FILE.
LINDA GODFREY WAS A ROOKIE REPORTER
WHEN THE STORIES BEGAN TO CIRCULATE.
PROBABLY JUST A FEW MONTHS INTO MY JOB,
AND I STARTED HEARING LOCAL RUMORS
THAT PEOPLE AROUND ELKHORN WERE SEEING
WHAT THEY WERE CALLING A WEREWOLF OUT ON BRAY ROAD,
AND I WAS EXTREMELY SKEPTICAL.
I KNOW I LAUGHED,
AND WHEN I STARTED JUST KIND OF ASKING AROUND,
I FOUND OUT THAT, YES,
PEOPLE ACTUALLY WERE TALKING ABOUT IT.
YOU KNOW, AND AT THAT POINT, I HAD TO FOLLOW UP ON IT.
ONE OF HER FIRST INTERVIEWS WAS WITH LORI ENDRIZZI.
I THOUGHT THAT LORI'S STORY WAS VERY, VERY CREDIBLE.
SHE WAS A YOUNG, SINGLE MOM AT THE TIME.
YOU KNOW, SHE WAS JUST COMING HOME FROM WORK.
AND BESIDES, SHE WAS OBVIOUSLY STILL TERRIFIED
AT THE THOUGHT OF IT.
I FELT VINDICATED.
I WASN'T THE ONLY ONE THAT SAW IT,
AND OTHER PEOPLE BECAME BRAVE ENOUGH
TO SHARE THEIR STORY, JUST LIKE I DID.
PEOPLE ALL OVER STARTED SAYING, "WE HAVE THIS CREATURE HERE."
ONE PERSON SAW IT KILLING ITS DOG.
ANOTHER... A COUPLE OF LADIES SAW A 6-FOOT TALL,
UPRIGHT CANINE WITH THEIR CAT IN ITS MOUTH.
IT REALLY STARTED TO SNOWBALL.
IT BECAME SOMETHING THAT WAS
IN THE BACK OF PEOPLE'S MINDS ALL THE TIME.
THE STORY WENT VIRAL,
AND THE CREATURE WAS DUBBED "THE BEAST OF BRAY ROAD."
IT WAS A BIG STORY. PEOPLE WERE PETRIFIED.
WHEN YOU HEAR STORIES LIKE THAT, THAT'S WHEN YOU START TO THINK,
"THIS COULD BE REAL. THIS COULD HAPPEN TO ME."
I BELIEVE IT'S NOT THE ONLY ONE OUT THERE.
I BELIEVE THERE'S A LOT OF THEM.
IT'S NOT JUST HERE. IT'S ALL OVER.
IN FACT, AFTER THE SPATE OF SIGHTINGS AROUND BRAY ROAD,
PEOPLE THROUGHOUT WISCONSIN
STARTED CLAIMING WOLFMAN ENCOUNTERS.
60 MILES NORTHEAST OF ELKHORN,
THE SMALL TOWN OF HUBERTUS, WISCONSIN,
IS ANOTHER COMMUNITY SURROUNDED BY HILLS AND FOREST...
THE PERFECT LANDSCAPE FOR A CREATURE TO HIDE.
IN 2006, LOCAL SANITATION WORKER STEVE KRUEGER
HAD A RUN-IN WITH THE WOLFMAN BEAST
THAT MADE HIM QUESTION EVERYTHING HE EVER THOUGHT
ABOUT THE SUPERNATURAL.
I NEVER BELIEVED IN MONSTERS
UNTIL I SAW THAT CREATURE AT THE BACK END OF MY TRUCK.
I THOUGHT, "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?"
WISCONSIN IS DAIRY LAND.
FOR A STATE WITH OVER A MILLION MILKING COWS,
THERE'S NO LOVE FOR A PREDATOR LIKE THE WOLF.
SINCE THE 1800s, IT'S BEEN OPEN WARFARE.
BY THE 1960s, THE WOLF WAS
OFFICIALLY EXTERMINATED FROM WISCONSIN.
SOME WONDER IF A FEW MANAGED TO LIVE ON
AND NOT ONLY SURVIVE BUT TRANSFORM,
LIKE INSECTS OR RODENTS THAT DEFY EXTERMINATION
ONLY TO COME BACK STRONGER.
IT MIGHT BE SOME KIND OF NATURAL WOLF/WOLF HYBRID
THAT HAS ADAPTED TO RUN OR WALK ON ITS HIND LEGS
WHEN IT SUITS ITS PURPOSES FOR SOME REASON.
WHATEVER THE CAUSE, BY THE 1980s,
WISCONSIN WAS IN THE MIDST OF A FLURRY OF REPORTS
ABOUT A BIZARRE WOLFMAN BEAST.
THAT PUT STEVE KRUEGER
ON THE FRONT LINES OF THE HUNTING ZONE.
AFTER COLLEGE, HE GOT A JOB WORKING SANITATION,
CLEARING WISCONSIN ROADS OF DEER AND ROADKILL.
I'VE SPENT A LOT OF TIME IN THE WOODS
AND SEEN A LOT OF CRAZY THINGS.
THIS BEATS ALL OF IT BY A LONG SHOT.
BACK IN 2006, I WAS CONTRACTED TO PICK UP
THE DEAD DEER CARCASSES ALONG THE ROADWAYS
THROUGHOUT THE STATE.
THERE'S NO PRECIPITATION.
IT WAS JUST A REALLY NICE, COOL EVENING.
I WAS DRIVING, AND I CAME ACROSS A SMALL DEER CARCASS.
IT WAS A SMALL, 80-POUND DOE, SO I THREW DOWN THE TAILGATE,
PICKED UP THE DEER, AND TOSSED IT INTO THE BACK
ON TOP OF THE ATV RAIL.
AND I POP BACK INTO MY CAB, GOT THE CLIPBOARD OUT,
AND STARTED FILLING OUT THE PAPERWORK.
WHAT HAD BEEN A QUIET NIGHT WAS ABOUT TO RECEIVE A JOLT.
AT FIRST, WHEN THE TRUCK SHOOK, I THOUGHT IT WAS THE WIND,
SO I IGNORED IT THE FIRST TIME,
STARTED FILLING OUT THE PAPERWORK AGAIN.
WHEN THE TRUCK ROCKED AGAIN, IT COULDN'T BE IGNORED.
IT REALLY FELT LIKE SOMETHING HEAVY
GOT INTO THE BACK END OF THE TRUCK.
AND THAT'S WHERE I SAW THE CREATURE.
THE WHOLE, ENTIRE CREATURE WAS ABOUT 7 FEET TALL,
LOOKED LIKE BASICALLY A LARGE WOLF HEAD
ON TOP OF A BEAR'S BODY.
THIS WAS NOT A BEAR.
THEN, IT MADE A MOVE TOWARD THE FRONT OF THE TRUCK.
IT SCARED THE DICKENS OUT OF ME.
I BECAME PANICKED,
AND I REALIZED I JUST NEEDED TO GET OUT OF THERE.
IT CAME DOWN TO A CHOICE OF FIGHT OR FLIGHT,
AND I CHOSE THE FLIGHT.
MY TRUCK WAS STILL RUNNING, SO ALL I HAD TO DO WAS
THROW IT INTO DRIVE AND HIT THE GAS.
AS I DID PULL AWAY, I HEARD A METAL CLANK HIT THE ROAD.
HE DIDN'T WAIT TO SEE WHAT IT WAS.
HE DIDN'T DARE LOOK BACK.
I GOT TO THE NEXT CROSSROAD AS FAST AS I COULD,
WHICH WAS SEVERAL MILES DOWN THE ROAD,
AND I PULLED OVER.
BOTH THE DEER AND HIS HEAVY METAL RAMP
WERE GONE.
THE ONLY THING I COULD PRESUME IS THAT THE RAMP GOT
TANGLED UP IN THE DEER'S LEGS
AS IT WAS BEING DRAGGED OFF THE BACK END OF MY TRUCK.
I NEEDED THAT RAMP TO BE ABLE TO PERFORM MY JOB.
BUT THAT MEANT GOING BACK...
BACK DOWN THE ROAD TO WHERE THE WOLFMAN MIGHT BE LURKING.
WHEN I GOT BACK TO THE SPOT, THERE WAS NOT A DEER.
THERE WAS NOT AN ATV RAMP,
AND THERE WASN'T A FURRY CREATURE
ALONGSIDE THE ROAD OR IN THE ROAD.
HOW COULD THE CREATURE MANAGE
TO CARRY OFF A CARCASS AND A HEAVY RAMP?
STEVE KRUEGER WAS BEGINNING TO CONSIDER
SUPERNATURAL EXPLANATIONS.
TO REALIZE THAT THERE WAS A CREATURE LIKE THAT OUT THERE
THAT AGGRESSIVE AND THAT WILLING TO GET CLOSE TO PEOPLE
FRIGHTENED ME.
STEVE REPORTED THE INCIDENT TO THE SHERIFF.
PATROLS DISPATCHED TO THE SITE FOUND NO CLUES
ABOUT THE MONSTER,
NO TRACE OF THE HEAVY ATV RAMP.
IT WAS EMBARRASSING AT FIRST. IT GOT WORSE THE NEXT DAY.
THE NEWS REPORTS STARTED COMING OUT,
AND IT BECAME, OVER THE NEXT WEEK,
A COMPLETE CIRCUS.
THE STORY SPREAD LIKE WILDFIRE.
IT WENT ON NATIONAL NEWS,
AND THE PEOPLE CLOSER TO HOME WHO KNOW ME KNEW
THIS WASN'T SOMETHING THAT I MADE UP.
DESPITE ANYONE ELSE'S REACTION, STEVE KNOWS WHAT HE SAW.
PEOPLE THAT DON'T BELIEVE ME, I TELL THEM TO GO POUND SAND.
I SAW WHAT I SAW.
IF THEY DON'T BELIEVE ME, IT DOES NOT BOTHER ME ONE BIT.
THE CREATURE THAT I SAW IS REAL.
IT WAS THERE. IT WAS REAL.
IT WAS A PHYSICAL SOMETHING THAT I COULD NOT RECOGNIZE
THAT TOOK THE DEER OUT OF THE BACK END OF MY TRUCK.
WISCONSIN ISN'T THE ONLY UPPER MIDWEST STATE
WHERE WOLF AND MONSTERS ARE SEEN.
AN HOUR NORTH OF DETROIT, THE QUAINT TOWN OF HOLLY HAS
LONG ATTRACTED VISITORS TO ITS CHRISTMAS-THEMED FESTIVALS.
IN RECENT YEARS, IT'S THE SURROUNDING WOODS
THAT'S ATTRACTING ATTENTION.
GROWING UP HERE IN MICHIGAN,
I HAVE HEARD MYTHOLOGICAL STORIES
ABOUT THE MAN-DOG OF HOLLY OR THE DOG-MAN OF HOLLY,
NEVER REALIZING THAT IT WOULD BE A REALITY
OR THAT IT TRULY EXISTED.
WELL, HOLLY IS, YOU KNOW, KIND OF AN ODD PLACE.
YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST ONE OF THOSE PLACES
THAT HAS A VERY REMOTE AREA TO IT,
AND, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHY
THERE ARE CREATURES LURKING OUT THERE.
WITHIN THESE WOODS, THERE ARE RUMORS ABOUT A MONSTER...
A CREATURE THAT SOMETIMES RUNS ON FOUR LEGS,
SOMETIMES STANDS ON TWO.
A BIZARRE "MANIMAL"... PART MAN, PART MUTT.
DOGMAN.
THE DOGMAN AND BEAST OF BRAY ROAD
SEEM TO BE TWO DIFFERENT CREATURES.
THE BEAST OF BRAY ROAD APPEARS MUCH BIGGER AND SEEMS TO BE
MORE OF YOUR TRADITIONAL WEREWOLF,
WHEREAS THE DOGMAN HAS
A SUPERNATURAL REPUTATION WITH IT, AS WELL,
THAT IT'S MORE OF A SPIRIT-BASED CREATURE.
THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO DO YOU HARM
OUTSIDE OF JUST CLAWING AND SLASHING AT YOU.
IT'S NOT FLESH AND BLOOD.
YOU COULDN'T KILL IT LIKE YOU COULD POSSIBLY
THE BEAST OF BRAY ROAD.
WE DO KNOW OF OVER 100 DOGMAN SIGHTINGS,
AND IT IS A WIDESPREAD PHENOMENON
NOT JUST IN MICHIGAN...
ALL ACROSS THE UNITED STATES AND, ACTUALLY,
ALL ACROSS THE WORLD.
THERE HAVE BEEN SIGHTINGS
OF DOGMAN-LIKE CREATURES IN ARGENTINA, IN FRANCE.
SO THIS IS NOT JUST AN AMERICAN PHENOMENON.
THE IDEA OF A CANINE-HUMAN HYBRID IS VERY OLD.
THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS SAW ANUBIS,
THEIR GOD OF THE UNDERWORLD, AS A JACKAL-HEADED MAN.
IN RURAL MICHIGAN, MANY HAVE HEARD THE DOGMAN LEGEND.
ONE LOCAL FELT IT BREATHING DOWN HIS NECK
AND BARELY SURVIVED TO TELL THE TALE.
MEET JEFF CORNELIUS.
HE'S A CREATURE OF THE NIGHT HIMSELF.
JEFF IS A REPO MAN WORKING THE NIGHT SHIFT,
RECLAIMING CARS FROM DEADBEAT BUYERS.
IT'S A JOB THAT CAN TAKE YOU DOWN DESOLATE BACK ROADS
WITH NO SIGN OF ANYTHING FRIENDLY FOR MILES.
I'VE ALWAYS FELT COMFORTABLE IN THE WOODS.
I'M NOT REALLY SCARED OF DRIVING ALONE AT NIGHT, YOU KNOW?
IT'S HOW I'VE ALWAYS DONE MY WORK.
JEFF'S NOT REALLY A KIND OF A SCAREDY-CAT GUY, YOU KNOW?
HE'S KIND OF A BIG, BURLY DUDE.
HE'S GONNA TAKE YOU OUT, OR HE'S GONNA DIE TRYING.
THE ONLY THING JEFF WORRIES ABOUT IS
A DELINQUENT CAR OWNER WITH A LOADED .45.
IT WAS PAST MIDNIGHT ON A COLD AUTUMN NIGHT IN 2005.
JEFF WAS ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF HOLLY, MICHIGAN,
LOOKING FOR A CADILLAC.
SOME SLACKER'S TIME HAD RUN OUT.
THERE WAS A BRIGHT MOON OUT THAT NIGHT.
YOU COULD SEE REALLY WELL.
WHERE I WAS LOOKING FOR THE VEHICLE,
IT'S VERY REMOTE.
WHEN I TURNED DOWN THE DRIVEWAY,
IT TOOK ME PROBABLY 200 TO 300 YARDS.
IT WAS A REALLY CREEPY SETTING, YOU KNOW?
IT WAS LATE AT NIGHT, YOU KNOW?
THE MOON WAS OUT, YOU KNOW, CRICKETS AND STUFF.
THE HOUSE HAD BARS ON IT, WHICH...
IT WAS JUST ODD TO ME.
IT KIND OF FREAKED ME OUT.
SO, I GOT OUT TO LOOK IN THE WINDOW.
I HAD MY FLASHLIGHT, AND I WAS LOOKING INSIDE THE BUILDING.
THEN I HEARD SOMETHING SNAP.
WHEN THE JOB SUDDENLY GOES SOUTH,
JEFF DOESN'T USUALLY PANIC.
NOT THIS TIME.
WHEN I THINK OF THAT NIGHT,
I THINK OF THE SCARIEST THING I EVER SAW.
THE MICHIGAN WOODS...
HOME TURF OF THE LEGENDARY DOGMAN.
I THINK IT ORIGINATED WITH THE FEAR OF THESE FORESTS
AS GREAT, UNKNOWN PLACES.
THE PIONEERS WOULD HEAR THESE SOUNDS
AND UNEXPLAINED NOISES AND MOVEMENT IN THE WOODS.
AND WHEN THEY CAUGHT A GLIMPSE OF THESE CREATURES,
THEY DIDN'T LOOK LIKE ANYTHING THEY HAD EVER SEEN BEFORE.
RUMORS ABOUT A GIANT MAN-DOG CONTINUE
TO CIRCULATE TO THE PRESENT DAY BECAUSE OF ENCOUNTERS LIKE
THE ONE REPO MAN JEFF CORNELIUS HAD IN 2005.
LATE ONE NIGHT, CORNELIUS WAS CONFIDENT
HE'D FINALLY LOCATED A CADILLAC ON HIS PICK-UP LIST
AT A HOUSE OUTSIDE HOLLY, MICHIGAN.
HE NEVER IMAGINED WHAT HE'D FIND THERE.
I WAS DEFINITELY SKEPTIC OF MONSTERS GROWING UP.
NEVER BELIEVED IN THEM.
THE THINGS THAT JEFF SEES AS A REPO MAN ARE
THE REAL-LIFE SCARY STUFF.
THEY'RE THE PEOPLE COMING AT YOU WITH A 2x4
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT
OR HEARING THE CLICK OF A SHOTGUN.
WHEN I GOT OUT, I'M IN THE HABIT OF LEAVING MY DOOR OPEN.
WHENEVER I CHECK FOR A REPOSSESSION,
I ALWAYS LEAVE MY DOOR OPEN JUST IN CASE.
THE HOUSE LOOKED ABANDONED,
BUT JEFF'S GUT INSTINCT TOLD HIM HE WASN'T ALONE.
WHEN I LOCKED EYES WITH IT, WE BOTH FROZE.
IT HAD EARS ON ITS HEAD, AND IT WAS STANDING ON TWO LEGS.
THE LEGS WERE BENT.
IT WAS PRETTY FORMIDABLE-LOOKING.
AND THAT'S WHEN IT GROWLED AT ME.
IT SOUNDED LIKE NOTHING I EVER HEARD BEFORE.
DEEP, YOU KNOW
IT WAS COMING AT ME.
DIRECTLY AT ME.
I JUMPED IN MY TRUCK, CLOSED THE DOOR.
I WAS SCARED.
MY HEART WAS POUNDING FOR SURE, YOU KNOW?
I JUST WANTED TO GET OUT OF THERE
BEFORE THE THING, YOU KNOW,
BUSTED THROUGH MY WINDOW OR SOMETHING.
JEFF GUNNED HIS TOW TRUCK DOWN THE DARK ROAD,
FEELING HE'D NARROWLY ESCAPED.
IF I WOULDN'T HAVE SEEN IT,
IT WOULD HAVE DEFINITELY ATTACKED ME, 100%.
WHEN JEFF CAME AND TOLD ME THAT NIGHT,
I BELIEVED WHAT HAD HAPPENED
BECAUSE I COULD SEE THAT HE WAS GENUINELY AFRAID,
THAT SOMETHING SPOOKED HIM.
SOMETHING SCARED HIM.
SINCE RADIO STATIONS IN MICHIGAN
FIRST BROADCAST NEWS OF THE DOGMAN IN THE LATE 1980s,
MORE THAN 500 ENCOUNTERS HAVE BEEN REPORTED.
AFTER HIS EXPERIENCE,
JEFF CORNELIUS DROPPED THE CADILLAC ACCOUNT.
HE NEVER WANTED TO RETURN TO THAT HOUSE AGAIN.
WHEN I'M IN THE WOODS, REPO'ING VEHICLES,
I TRY TO DEFINITELY BE A LITTLE MORE, YOU KNOW,
AWARE OF MY SURROUNDINGS
SO AS TO NOT LET ANYTHING SNEAK UP ON ME AGAIN.
I KNOW WHAT I SAW THAT NIGHT, AND WHAT I SAW WAS THE MAN-DOG.
AMERICA'S NORTH WOODS BORDER REGION.
WITHIN THIS LAND OF 10,000 LAKES AND MILES OF DENSE TIMBER,
A HIDEOUS CREATURE IS BELIEVED TO LURK.
THE NORTH WOODS IS PROBABLY
ONE OF THE LAST FRONTIERS IN AMERICA.
THERE'S STILL A LOT OF PLACES IN THIS AREA
THAT HASN'T BEEN SET FOOT BY MAN.
MONSTERS AND MYSTERIES EXIST HERE BECAUSE IT IS REMOTE.
UP IN THE NORTH WOODS, WINTERS ARE LONG.
IN TIMES OF BITING COLD AND ISOLATION,
A DEVOURING MONSTER IS BELIEVED TO COME FORTH.
IT'S TERRORIZED NATIVE PEOPLE FOR GENERATIONS.
GROWING UP, I WAS TOLD, LIKE,
"DON'T GO OUTSIDE. THE WENDIGO WILL GET YOU."
AMONG THE TRADITIONS OF THE NORTHERN ALGONQUIN TRIBES
IS THE WENDIGO,
A MONSTER THAT CAN SEIZE HOLD OF A PERSON
TO CARRY OUT ITS HUNGER FOR HUMAN FLESH.
THE WENDIGO WILL FORCE ITSELF
TO GO SOMEHOW INSIDE OF THEIR BODIES
AND TAKE OVER CONTROL OF THEIR FACULTIES
TO A POINT WHERE THEY BECOME HOMICIDAL AND CANNIBALISTIC.
ACCORDING TO THE LEGENDS,
SOMEONE INFECTED BY THE WENDIGO IS CAPABLE OF ALMOST ANYTHING.
THEY HAVE SUCH A VORACIOUS HUNGER
THAT THEY HAVE CHEWED THEIR OWN LIPS OFF.
THEY'RE GNAWING ON THEIR FINGERS.
THE MORE THAT THEY EAT,
THEIR HUNGER DOES GROW EVEN MORE INTENSE.
ONE OF THE MOST HORRIFIC CASES OF WENDIGO POSSESSION
UNFOLDED IN THE 1870s
WHEN A CREE INDIAN NAMED SWIFT RUNNER
TURNED UP IN TOWN,
CLAIMING HIS WIFE AND CHILDREN WERE MISSING.
POLICE INVESTIGATORS SUSPECTED FOUL PLAY.
WHEN THEY WALKED TO HIS CAMPSITE,
THEY WERE HORRIFIED BY WHAT THEY SAW.
AND IT DIDN'T TAKE THEM VERY LONG TO DISCOVER
THERE WAS SOMETHING MORE SINISTER TO THIS STORY.
FOR CENTURIES,
THE LEGEND OF THE CANNIBALISTIC WENDIGO HAS HAUNTED
PARTS OF AMERICA'S NORTHERN BORDER.
NO ONE IS SAFE IN ITS PATH.
THE WENDIGO IS THE PREDATOR OF HUMANITY.
IT STALKS HUMAN BEINGS RELENTLESSLY,
BUT IT ALSO HAS THE CAPACITY TO PREY UPON SOMEONE
WITHIN THEIR MIND.
ONCE THE WENDIGO TAKES HOLD,
YOU ARE A STARVING, SAVAGE BEAST WITH AN INSATIABLE HUNGER.
THE LEGEND OF THE WENDIGO ORIGINATED IN NORTH AMERICA
WITH THE NATIVE AMERICANS.
REPORTS OF IT GO BACK
TO THE VERY EARLY HISTORICAL RECORDS,
PROBABLY IN THE 1500s.
MANY NATIVE AMERICANS FEAR EVEN TALKING ABOUT THIS WENDIGO.
AND EVEN THE MENTION OF THE NAME WILL LET THE WENDIGO FIND OUT
WHERE YOU ARE,
AND IT WILL OPEN YOU UP TO BE POSSESSED BY THIS WENDIGO.
THE MOST FAMOUS CASE OF A WENDIGO POSSESSION
TOOK PLACE IN 1879.
IN THE DEEP WOODS OUTSIDE OF EDMONTON, ALBERTA,
SWIFT RUNNER, A CREE INDIAN, WAS A TRAPPER AND A GUIDE.
HE HAD LEFT TOWN THE PREVIOUS AUTUMN
WITH HIS WIFE, SIX CHILDREN, AND HIS MOTHER.
BUT WHEN SWIFT RUNNER RETURNED IN SPRING, HE WAS ALONE.
SWIFT RUNNER CAME INTO A NEARBY VILLAGE,
TELLING THIS HEARTBREAKING TALE...
I HAD TO WATCH THEM STARVE TO DEATH.
...OF HIS FAMILY BEING KILLED BY STARVATION,
AND THAT HE WAS THE ONLY SURVIVOR.
MY WHOLE FAMILY, GONE.
IT WASN'T HARD TO UNDERSTAND A FAMILY FALLING VICTIM
TO A BRUTAL WINTER,
YET SOMETHING WAS SUSPICIOUS ABOUT SWIFT RUNNER.
HE WAS A STRAPPING MAN,
AND HE CAME INTO TOWN WEIGHING OVER 200 POUNDS.
IT DIDN'T LOOK LIKE SOMEBODY WHO HAD JUST WEATHERED
A TERRIBLE WINTER.
HE WASN'T MALNOURISHED.
DIDN'T LOOK LIKE HE WAS STARVING.
HE LOOKED HEALTHIER THAN EVER.
AFTER A FEW NIGHTS, IT BECAME CLEAR
THAT SOMETHING WAS WRONG.
HE STARTED HAVING NIGHT TERRORS, SCREAMING IN HIS SLEEP.
I AM THE WENDIGO!
VILLAGERS ALERTED THE POLICE.
SWIFT RUNNER ACTUALLY GUIDED THEM
BACK TO HIS WINTER CABIN.
WHEN THEY GOT THERE,
THAT'S WHEN THEY SAW THE TRUE HORROR.
HUMAN SKULLS WERE SCATTERED AROUND.
MANY BONES, SOME OF WHICH HAD BEEN SNAPPED IN HALF,
AND THE MARROW INSIDE HAD BEEN DRAINED.
THEY HAD NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE IT.
SWIFT RUNNER HAD KILLED HIS ENTIRE FAMILY,
SHOOTING THEM, HITTING THEM WITH AN AX,
STRANGLING, AND THEN EATING MOST OF THEIR BODIES.
RIGHT UP UNTIL THE MOMENT THE NOOSE WAS ON HIS NECK,
SWIFT RUNNER SWORE THE EVIL SPIRIT OF THE WENDIGO
HAD POSSESSED HIM
AND TWISTED HIM INTO A CANNIBAL KILLER.
WHEN HE WAS ON THE GALLOWS, SWIFT RUNNER HIMSELF SAID,
"I AM NO LONGER A MAN."
IN THE UNFORGIVING NORTH WOODS,
HUNGER AND HORROR GO HAND-IN-HAND.
THE WENDIGO CAN TURN HIMSELF INTO ANYTHING...
LOOK LIKE SOMEBODY LIKE YOU KNOW.
HE IS A SPIRIT, AND HE'S A MAN.
IN 2008, SOME BELIEVE A WENDIGO CAME TO LIFE
ON AN ORDINARY BUS WITH HORRIFIC RESULTS.
A YOUNG MAN WAS GETTING SETTLED FOR A LONG BUS RIDE HOME.
LITTLE DID HE KNOW IT WOULD BE THE LAST RIDE OF HIS LIFE.
NO! NO!
THE WITNESSES HAD NEVER ENCOUNTERED
ANYTHING LIKE THIS IN THEIR LIFE.
IT LOOKED LIKE HE WAS A MAN THAT WAS POSSESSED
BY SOME TYPE OF SPIRIT
AND LED MANY TO BELIEVE HE MIGHT HAVE BEEN THE WENDIGO.
THE WENDIGO APPEARS IN THE LEGENDS
OF MANY NORTH AMERICAN TRIBES AS A GIANT, FROZEN MONSTER
SO GAUNT, IT'S ALMOST SKELETAL,
SO HUNGRY, IT'S BITTEN OFF CHUNKS
OF ITS OWN FLESH.
THE WENDIGO IS A HIDEOUS MONSTER
REPORTED TO BE SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 8 AND 15 FEET TALL,
WHITE SKIN, WHITE-FURRED.
IT WILL HAVE THESE LARGE ANTLERS AND HORNS
GROWING OUT OF ITS HEAD.
TRULY A HORRIFYING CREATURE.
EVEN TODAY, THERE'S A BELIEF
THAT A WENDIGO CAN SHOW UP ANYTIME, ANYWHERE.
250 MILES NORTH OF FARGO, NORTH DAKOTA,
ONE MIGHT HAVE APPEARED ON AN ORDINARY BUS.
JULY 30, 2008,
A GREYHOUND BUS WAS EN ROUTE TO WINNIPEG
WITH 36 PASSENGERS ABOARD.
ONE OF THEM, A YOUNG MAN ON HIS WAY HOME,
WAS JUST FALLING ASLEEP.
IT WAS SOME TIME LATER THAT ANOTHER MAN GOT ON THE BUS
WITH A DUFFEL BAG AND BLACK SUNGLASSES.
HIS NAME WAS VINCENT LI.
HE CAME ONTO THE BUS AND SEATED HIMSELF AT THE BACK.
THE BUS DROVE ON FOR ANOTHER HOUR.
THEN, SOMETHING MONSTROUS OVERTOOK LI.
A RAVENOUS FORCE WAS GAINING STRENGTH,
AND IT'S UNLEASHED ON THE SLEEPING YOUNG MAN
SEATED NEXT TO LI.
AAH!
THIS MAN, OF COURSE, WAKES UP AND STARTS SCRAMBLING,
TRYING TO FIGHT OFF MR. LI,
AND THE ENTIRE TIME, HE'S SCREAMING,
AND THIS BLOODCURDLING SCREAM
ALERTS THE REST OF THE PASSENGERS
OF WHAT'S GOING ON.
AND THEY LOOK OVER AND ARE HORRIFIED TO SEE
THIS MAN BEING KILLED RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEIR EYES.
THE BUS IMMEDIATELY PULLED TO A STOP.
PASSENGERS FLED OUTSIDE.
AND THEN THE INCONCEIVABLE HAPPENED.
HE SEVERS HIS HEAD RIGHT OFF OF HIS BODY,
AND HE'S VERY, VERY CALMLY WALKING UP AND DOWN
THE AISLE OF THE BUS, BRANDISHING THIS HEAD.
AND HE HOLDS IT OUT LIKE A TROPHY,
SHOWING THE OTHER PASSENGERS.
AND IT WASN'T THE BRUTAL ATTACK
THAT CARRIED WHISPERS OF WENDIGO.
IT WAS WHAT CAME NEXT.
EYEWITNESSES SAID THAT HE WAS
ACTUALLY TAKING PIECES AND EATING THEM.
IT BORE THE SIGNS OF WENDIGO,
A MONSTER IN ITS MOST BRUTAL FORM.
THE FACT THAT HE WAS EATING THEM LED MANY TO BELIEVE
HE MIGHT HAVE BEEN THE WENDIGO,
THAT HE WAS POSSESSED BY SOME TYPE OF SPIRIT.
HE WASN'T ANGRY. HE WASN'T PROVOKED.
IT WAS AS COOL AND AS CALM
AS HE WAS JUST TAKING A WALK ON THE BEACH.
IT SEEMED TO BE TOTALLY UNEXPLAINABLE.
BUT YET, AT THE SAME TIME,
IT WAS OCCURRING RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEIR EYES.
THE POLICE MANAGED TO MAKE THE CAPTURE AND ARREST.
WAS VINCENT LI MERELY INSANE?
GIVEN THE HISTORY OF CANNIBALISTIC KILLINGS
IN THE NORTH WOODS,
SOME SUGGEST THIS WAS AN EVIL FORCE AT WORK.
ANCIENT CASES, LIKE SWIFT RUNNER
AND THE HEARTBREAKING FATE OF HIS FAMILY,
OR MODERN ONES, LIKE A CANNIBALISTIC KILLING
ON A GREYHOUND BUS, DEFY NORMAL LOGIC.
IS A MONSTER LIKE THE WENDIGO THE EXPLANATION?
THEY BECOME A PREDATOR OF HUMANITY.
AND THE HUMAN BEINGS THAT THEY SEE AROUND THEM...
USUALLY THEIR FAMILY, RELATIVES, OR FRIENDS...
HAVE BECOME THE PREY.
I BELIEVE THAT WENDIGO STILL EXISTS BECAUSE HE IS A SPIRIT.
IT'S ALWAYS GONNA BE AROUND.
FOR GENERATIONS, LEGENDS OF MONSTERS HAVE
CIRCULATED AROUND THE UPPER MIDWEST.
MANY DISMISS THEM AS JUST STORIES.
THOSE CHILDHOOD STORIES THAT MY GRANDMOTHER TOLD ME,
I HAVEN'T GROWN ANY LESS AFRAID OF THEM.
FOR THOSE WHO'VE ENCOUNTERED THESE MONSTERS FIRSTHAND,
THE STORIES ARE AS REAL AS LIFE AND DEATH.
WHEN I LOOK INTO THE WOODS NOW,
THERE'S ALWAYS THAT FEAR THAT IT COULD BE...
IT COULD BE OUT THERE.
WHETHER YOU BELIEVE THAT THE BEAST OF BRAY ROAD,
THE MICHIGAN DOGMAN,
AND OTHER UNKNOWN, UPRIGHT CANINES ARE
REAL CREATURES OR NOT,
THEY'RE STILL FASCINATING BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE SEEING THEM.
THEY'RE HAVING INTERACTIONS.
WE DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS.
IT'S A MYSTERY.