"SCARY SASQUATCH STORIES": THE "CUTHAND CRITTER"

In the southern part of Red River County, there is a rather large creek which winds throughout the county and eventually flows into the Sulphur River. The creek is called "CUTHAND CREEK".

During the early 1960's and throughout the early 1970's; I'm told there were stories circulating throughout the southeastern part of the county about the "WILDMAN" haunting the bottoms along cuthand Creek.

Few people living outside the rual areas gave little credance to the stories then, and even less now. The stories told were the stuff of "urban legends".

Those living and working the farms and ranches inside the "critters" domain simply accepted its existence and kept their family pets close to the house after dark, and a rifle or shotgun handy.

During the mid-1980's, while working as a mechanic in our family auto repair business; I began hearing stories about a large, hair covered creature who resembled a huge gorilla; which would ocassionaly be seen walking across pastures near Cuthand Creek.
[in each instance, the sun was setting and darkness was about to begin.]

Most of the stories I heard came from farmers and ranchers who would be out checking and feeding their cattle and horses. It seems this "critter" [as the farmers refered to it] sometimes killed their new born calves, hogs, sheep, dogs, coyotes, etc.

[WITHOUT EXCEPTION; EACH WITNESS, WHICH I HEARD TELL THEIR STORIES TO MY FATHER, UNCLE, AND ANYONE WHO HAPPENED TO BE IN THE GARAGE, SAID THE CREATURE WAS NOT A BEAR AND WALKED ON ITS HIND LEGS LIKE A MAN.]

I left the family business in the early 1990's to pursue a career in "corrections" [TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE] and simply forgot the stories.

[THAT WAS UNTIL RECENTLY...]

Recently TBRI member Keith Burns and myself have been hearing stories of a "Bigfoot" being spotted near Cuthand Creek.
One young man even came to my home and asked me how you went about "hunting" one of these creatures.
[It was my understanding that this young man and a few of his associates had decided to go into the bottoms and "monster hunt" after they all got off work that night.]

I asked the young "monster hunter" if he'd ever seen a Bigfoot? Or, had heard any of their vocalizations, etc.

[He informed me he and his friends had watched "THE LEGEND OF BOGGY CREEK" about a million times and knew all about Bigfoot.
He had heard the Boggy Creek monster's scream enough times on tv to know what they sounded like!]

[ouch! reality check!]

Still i suggested the young man and his friends might have better results if they simply found a place along the banks of the creek, built themselves a fire and sat quietly and listened to the sounds of the night.

[Hey, I figured if they'd seen "THE LEGEND OF BOGGY CREEK" as many times as they claimed; they'd have no problem with the "CUTHAND CRITTER".]

I also suggested they carry a tape recorder and IF they heard something they couldn't identify, or just sounded odd that they should record the sound/vocalization.

[Now]I don't know if these intrepid "monster hunters" took my advise, or if they even went looking for the creature which had been spotted.
I do know that a week ago Lorrie...her eldest daughter Candy and myself were driving those back roads along and near the area where the creature has been seen, and we found a fairly large footprint of a five toed individual. Near the print we found a limb approximately six-seven feet above the ground which had been broken and twisted.

[This was near a private lake owned by stockholders in the area].

Is there a "CUTHAND CRITTER" prowling the southern part of Red River County? According to the stories; there was many years ago.
Is it prowling the creek bottoms and back roads of this area again?
THERE'S NOT A DOUBT IN MY MIND.

You see, because of what I think I know about these creatures, they don't migrate in the same sense as we generally think of migration. No, they stay fairly close to their home range, and in my opinion, the CUTHAND CRITTER has always been in the Cuthand/Sulphur bottoms.

Take care.
David Holley
Forum Owner

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DATE: 11/07/01

TIME: 11:00PM

For those unfamilar with Northeast Texas, I encourage you [if interested] to obtain a Texas Gazetter, turn to grid #38 and 49 and find Cuthand Creek, Kickapoo Creek, Langford Creek, etc.
[Trace their southern course and you'll find most feeding into Cuthand Creek which then feeds Sulphur River.]

Now, if you've done your preliminary topographical map work you'll find an area southeast of Clarksville, Texas, where several of these creeks converge in a relatively small area. This is where TBRI is concentrating its search for the creature I've named "THE CUTHAND CRITTER".

At approximately 2300hrs. [11:00PM] my friend and companion Lorrie began driving down the dark, uninviting backroads around the area of Cuthand Creek and Kickapoo creek.
We drove slowly with our windows down.

We passed only a few homes, but those we passed had both porch lights and a "yard light" on. Most of the "yard" or "security" lights were located near barns, carports, etc.
Silently I asked myself why farmers/ranchers, etc. who went to bed fairly early would have all their outside lights on after 11:00pm.

[The former correctional officer in me whispered one word...security]

As we passed the last of the homes we began playing a "loop" of "alledged" Bigfoot vocalizations over the Jeeps stero system. We'd pause every little bit , let the "loop" play and turn the tape off.

[NOTHING!]

We decided to drive to one of the bridges spanning Cuthand Creek. There we stopped the Jeep and played the tape again.

Again our results were unrewarded.

We sat in the darkness of the Jeep and tried to disguise our disappointment. As we began to leave the bridge area, Lorrie commented about how quiet it was along her side of the bridge. Even the cattle in the pastrures were quiet.
That's when it hit me! On Lorrie's side of the Jeep, everything WAS quiet and still. There were no sounds of the crickets, frogs etc. {My side of the bridge was active. They may not have been real loud, but the crickets, etc. were making a noise}.

In the distance we heard what at first sounded like three loud shots from a gun.
"Somebody"s shooting", Lorrie remarked.

Again three loud blasts.
No, I said, listen. That's NOT gunshots.
[What the blasts were I explained to her was someone, or something using a large, heavy limb to strike a tree, or a downed logged.]

I played the tape once again. The noise from the bottoms stopped.

We turned the tape off. Moving farthger away from our position we could hear "something" moving through the brush downstream AWAY from us.

As "whatever" moved back farther into the bottoms, the night sounds on Lorries side of the bridge returned.

DID WE MAKE CONTACT WITH THE "CUTHAND CRITTER"?

I don't know, and I won't say we did. I do know something wasn't quite right out on that bridge last night.

Until we get a visual, or record a vocalization, etc. The events of 11/07/01 are still and will be UNCONFIRMED.

However, we fairly certain that unless some "Bubba Redneck" is prowling the creeks far into the night poaching deer and other game, then something else is.

We'll continue to monitor the area determined to document the creatures presence here

THE PURSUIT OF "THE CUTHAND CRITTER"...PART 2
November 13 2001 at 12:14 PM David Holley

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I've seen Bigfoot on at least four occassions where there was no doubt as to what I was observing.
I've been close to a few I could hear and knew were "stalking"/following me [as I was in an area of good activity], while I was searching for fresh sign.

Recently rumors and UNCONFIRMED reports began reaching me of a large [7-8 ft.], hairy bi-pedal creature haunting an area of southern Red River County near and around the Cuthand Creek area.
The creature(s), whom I dubbed "The Cuthand Critter", has been observed off and on for decades.

[Of course there isn't simply one creature...these creatures are never alone. WHERE THERE IS ONE, YOU'LL FIND ITS MATE OR ITS "SIBLINGS".]
Even those who know anything about the "FOUKE MONSTER" know that according to "Smokey" Crabtree [in his self published book "SMOKEY AND THE FOUKE MONSTER" knows that according to Mr. Crabtree, the creature which left its 3 toed tracks in Willie Smith's bean field was FEMALE. {chapter 15. Pgs. 93-94, paragraph #3}
"I think whatever it is, it's a female, on account of the high instep and the foot is long and narrow."]

[TBRI won't re-print the entire narrative, but recommends those interested contact Mr. Crabtree through his website and order a copy of the book. For those who have watched the cult film "THE LEGEND OF BOGGY CREEK", simply reading the book will be interesting and informative.]

...also simple common sense tells us that unless these creatures have unusually long lifespans, there's not much way the "CUTHAND CRITTER" of the 1960's is the same as the one being observedat this time.
[I may be proven in error on this age factor, but my instincts and the knowledge I've aquired over the years in searching/investigating these creatures tells me there is more than one animal involved.]

For several nights my friend Lorrie and I have been driving the back roads in an attempt to view or hear one of the creatures.
[It's conjecture on my part, but I "THINK" we've been close to one of the animals. If the "limb'tree" banging is a reliable/reasonable means of determination]

I'D LOVE TO HEAR ITS VOCALIZATION.

On November 10, 2001, just about an hour before sundown, Lorrie and I drove to the bridge where we heard the wood being beaten against wood.
We parked the Jeep and climbed down the embankment. Time to walk the creek banks.

We didn't have to walk far. There along the edge of the water we found a single footprint. I took my tape out and measured the print.
It measured 16 inches long, 7 inches at the ball of the foot, and 4 inches across the heel. The track [as best we could determine] was 5 toed.

Darkness had begun to fall, and since we had no light with us, we felt it prudent to leave before we lost all our sunlight.

Now i know what a few may be thinking. That the "Cuthand Critter" investigation is simply a serielized story for the TBRI's "SCARY SASQUATCH STORIES" page. There's no proof it even exists.

Others may say I'm seeing "Bigfoot" every time I go out; and laugh about it.

None of it matters. Currently I'm able to be in the field more often now, and the area of investigation is less than 20 miles from my home in Clarksville.

Note...in none of the posts concerning the creature(s) have I claimed to have actually seen one, or have heard it's vocalization. ONLY A SINGLE TRACK.

My investigation of this particular animal is genuine. If I find my facts in error; I'LL RETRACT THE CLAIMS.

However...there is another Texas based Bigfoot researcg group who has a website which features a map of Teaxs. This map is divided into different "grids" which shows the amount of BF activity here in the Lone Star State. The grid which indicates the MOST Bigfoot activity in Texas, includes EAST/NORTHEAST TEXAS.

As I've stated before. You either believe my reports, or you don't. The creature is real, the evidence is real.
What anyone believes about my claims, my research or the information I'm contributing is entirely up to the individual.

I may not know what EVERYONE in the Bigfoot community is doing, but I know what TBRI and David Holley is doing.

Take care

THE PURSUIT OF THE "CUTHAND CRITTER" PART 3
November 14 2001 at 11:33 AM David Holley
Forum Owner

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"What if these things don't appreciate being called in? What if one of these "screams" isn't territorial, but a mating call?" Lorrie asked as I explained to her what we'd be trying to do thursday or friday night.

"If one of the screams you've got recorded does happen to be a mating call, and one of these things comes in response; isn't it going to be awfully disappointed not finding an available male or female waiting for them?"

You know, that's something I've never considered. What "IF" one of the vocalizations which alledgedly belong to Bigfoot is a mating call?

[Sometimes it takes someone "new" to the field to ask the right questions...]

WHAT IF....

I'm not sure anyone has put this idea into print. If they have, I've simply missed it in reading.

Regardless whether or not the "Critter" would/will openly respond is what SHOULD be asked.

Sometime this weekend, we've decided to set up an overnight camp within yards of the bridge where we've found the single footprint.
We're going to walk the creek bank a few hours BEFORE sunset, planting various "scents" in an attempt to get one of these creatures to come near enough to our camp to get a photograph or a vocal recording.

WE WILL BE ARMED. {I guess this is where I begin recieving unsolicated e-mail and rude postings which I of course will delete}.
[THIS IS ALSO DEER SEASON. ALL ANY GAME WARDEN IS GOING TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT IS WHETHER OR NOT WE'VE GOT A STATE HUNTING LICENSE, AND WHETHER OR NOT WE HAVE A DEER TAGGED AND RECORDED PROPERLY.
FOR TBRI THIS IS THE BEST OF TIMES TO BE IN THE FIELD ARMED.]

Okay, here's what we've got so far:

[1]] We've heard wood being beaten against wood
[2] We've found a single 5-toed footprint near the waters edge of the creek.
[3] A lot of UNCONFIRMED reports that at least one "critter" has been seen.

What we'll be doing this weekend is simple enough:

[1] A few hours before sunset we'll walk "X" amount of yards both upstream and downstream and plant various "scents" along the creek bed.
[2] These will consist of both womens perfume, mens aftershave, and a few commerical game scents.
[3] We will begin playing our recorded vocalizations

WE WILL ALLOW SUFFICENT TIME FOR THE SCENTS AND THE VOCALIZATIONS TO PRODUCE ANY RESULTS.

IF [and this is the key word] one of the creatures responds, TBRI will be ready to record, film/photograph or "harvest" it.

That's the game plan.

Take care

THE "CUTHAND CRITTER"

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