Stretching south of New Orleans for many tens of kilometers, the Manchak swamps are not a pleasant place. Hundreds of alligators living here will gladly meet a wandering guest, and the meeting for a person will hardly be pleasant.
In addition to reptiles, ghosts, werewolves and a strange creature for which they have not even come up with a name roam the swamps. A few locals call him the Honey Island Monster or simply the Swamp Monster.
Two extreme friends
It is believed that the first human encounter with the Swamp Monster took place in 1963. The lucky ones were Harlan Ford and his friend Billy Mills.
Harlan worked as a dispatcher in New Orleans. He loved aviation and bought himself a sports plane that he loved to fly over the Louisiana swamps. During one of his flights, he noticed an abandoned camp on one of the islands. Ford loved adventure and decided to visit the island. Harlan lured his friend Billy Mills on a tour. Armed with hunting rifles (we'll shoot ducks at the same time), the friends hit the road.
The scrub-covered Louisiana swamps with rotten woods promised Harlan and Billy a huge dose of adrenaline. The island they were interested in was called Medov. Once upon a time, bees were indeed found here, and lovers of wild honey repeatedly made forays to the island. The bees disappeared long ago, the name remains.
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Meeting at the camp
Not without difficulty they reached the island. Found an abandoned camp.
Wandering between the dilapidated barracks, they almost face to face collided with a terrible creature. It stood with its back to them on all fours. Billy shouted: "What is this ?!" The creature turned around, got up on its hind legs and stared at the people.
“He was at least 7 feet tall (over 2 m), strong build, covered in dark gray hair. And big amber eyes that give you goosebumps! I saw him with my own eyes and I don’t care if you believe me or not,”- this is how Ford told about his meeting with the Swamp Monster.
As if enjoying the fright of people, the monster disappeared into the thickets. Clutching their guns, the friends rushed in the footsteps of the beast (excitement, excitement!), But they failed to overtake him. Back from the campaign, Ford and Mills told everyone about their meeting with a terrible creature, but, of course, no one believed them. They were openly laughed at.
Second meeting
In 1974, the friends ended up in these places again. Ford and Mills went out on a duck hunt. It is not known what and how much they shot, but on one of the islands they found the carcass of a wild boar they had just killed. Blood spurted from the torn throat. Near the carcass, the friends saw footprints familiar to them.
Having decided that meeting with the beast was of no use to them, the friends hastened to leave the island as soon as possible. However, at home, remembering the ridicule that they had to endure 10 years ago, they decided to put the skeptics to shame and returned with a special solution, so that if not to shoot the animal, then at least to bring casts of its paws.
But friends were declared fraudsters, and the beast that left traces was declared an alligator.
Then Ford took the casts to the Louisiana State Wildlife Committee, whose experts delivered their verdict: these are not alligator paw prints. This creature is unknown to them at all. Scientists have determined the approximate weight of the monster at about 400 pounds (180 kg)
Swamp Monster Hunt
Harlan literally "got sick" with the monster and exits to the area of the Louisiana swamps followed one after another. According to him, he repeatedly saw him and even brought a film from one expedition on which he captured the beast.
Harlan Ford assured that the prints found were different from alligator paw prints. Experts have proven him right.
As it turns out, Ford wasn't the only one to see the Swamp Monster. A huge monkey-like creature has been seen many times. And everyone who met him noted the huge disproportionately huge amber eyes, and their paralyzing gaze.
Ford met with trapper Ted Williams, who lived in the Louisiana swamps for most of his life, who claimed to have also seen the Swamp Monster several times and from a very short distance.
They planned a joint expedition, but the trapper disappeared during one of his walks. The marshes have pulled another victim into their depths.
Strange monster
Harlan died in 1980, without catching the monster, but collecting many casts from its tracks. What surprises all researchers is that the monster has webbing between the toes.
Does the monster live in the water? The set aside of the fourth toe suggests that the animal can grab and cling with its paw.
A monster climbing trees? Only the monster from the Honey Island can answer all these questions.
Klim Podkova, specially for the site "Paranormal News"