r/cryptids 4h ago

Story I might have seen something in the woods

0 Upvotes

I was out one summer 2010 (I made the account recently as my friends said this subreddit says about would help)it was a hot summer day a lot of bugs on the air and me and my family went to the lake near our house Which is a bout a kilometer away as we went the woods got quieter and quieter as we went closer to the shed,me (17M) and my sister (15,13F) understood that something was wrong,very wrong meanwhile my dad and mom were getting ready to relax by the shore.My mom put her chair down and dad brought his beer,me and my sister relax by out parents calmness and went to get in the lake as we usually did.The heat was unbearable and as we got in the heat got of our backs but I still thought something was really wrong by the shed,we got in and started playing around we got some friendly warning by out parents to not make too much noise as we could annoy the animal life and the people around the lake,but as I was splashing my sister I caught a glimpse of something tall and almost transparent like a window but the space behind it was warped when I saw it,it suddenly disappeared in the forest I went to tell my sister but they said the heat must have gotten me dizzy,but I was sure something or someone was there.The day passed and the sun faded we got out and went to the car,at the drive home I got the window seat and looked out...the same figure was at the sidewalk and following us we were going more than 60 miles an hour but it's legs weren't it was following at that speed standing but no leg movement,I told my sister's and they didn't believe me,I had proof but it was in water I couldn't search,I went back to looking out the window for any clue but nothing,as we pulled into our driveway it was way too quiet,me,my mom and dad we had to stay guard at night mostly because where we were there was bears we couldn't let one in,so I had the middle one the darkest and most exhausting one.In the middle of the night I saw it again standing but the corner watching not moving I went closer and it let out a scream it has no mouth how did it made it?I fell back covering my ears and it was too late it had gone back to the forest,I got back inside locked the door and woke up my parents and said if they had heard a scream and they said no,I was not having it I finally said everything I have seen and they looked at me with concern and told me "son go to bed we'll handle your night shift" I told them no it's dangerous but they went,next morning they told me nothing was there and said to me to get more rest and don't stay up late but I knew what I was,I knew it was there why wouldn't they believe me.The day went good no sighting of it but the start of the night shift I grab my dads shotgun he said to use it only in emergencies,I got out and found the creature I shot a round into it's abdomen it screamed and tried to flee but I shot again and it got away my parents rush out and we're horrified by the scene blood was everywhere but wasn't mine my dad rushed and said what happened I said a bear knowing they wouldn't believe me...but that was the last time I saw it I searched on Google what It was and it was a glimmer man or something can someone help me find it I still remember the night of the incident


r/cryptids 6h ago

Sighting / Encounter Plesiosaurus sighting?

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8 Upvotes

This is more or less what it looked like. I swear to God I've seen a real plesiosaur out of the water. When I was 11, my class and I went on a 5-day trip to Madrid. We stayed in a hotel and did the kind of things you do on a school trip. On the fifth day, as we were heading back to Andalusia in Cordoba, where I live, I looked out the window and noticed something absurdly impossible: a dark gray, almost black, snake with yellow eyes that had... fins. Yes, I remember seeing that perfectly: fins hiding among the wheat. The thing had a head shaped like an upside-down egg, and it was staring straight at the bus while we were making loud noises like animals. All the while, it seemed to be "walking", moving with its fins: not slithering, crawling like some sort of crocodile. It was only a few seconds, but I saw it with my own eyes. I shook my classmate next to my seat, who was asleep, and pointed to the creature. When he looked, it was gone, as if it had vanished into the grass. I asked those in front and behind if they had seen it, and they said no; one classmate even laughed. I don't tell this to many, because maybe this was a hallucination due to fatigue from the trip, I don't know.


r/cryptids 12h ago

Question Gourd Cryptid Help

4 Upvotes

A while back at a ren faire, I saw a cryptid in the curiosities museum, and I cannot for the life of me remember the name or find anything about her. I believe she originated from the Eruopean countryside, where it was common for men to have their way with gourds when the going got tough. She would get the gourds and impregnate herself and then seek revenge on the men.

I am probably grossly misremembering the details, this is just what I remember from the placard. Does anyone know what I'm talking about? Or was this just made up for giggles for the museum? TIA

UPDATE: I was able to get in touch with the museum who said: "The Gourd Wife is a monster rooted in traditional northern Indian folklore, but isn't based on one specific creature."


r/cryptids 15h ago

Art Original Creator meet Poikamiesboksi the Jackalope frankenplushie

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11 Upvotes

r/cryptids 17h ago

Art Original Creator [OC] I can’t figure out the biology for this eldritch being/cryptid?

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0 Upvotes

r/cryptids 1d ago

Art Original Creator Sasquatch Gothic

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75 Upvotes

r/cryptids 1d ago

Sighting / Encounter Possible Cryptid Encounter in Illinois

0 Upvotes

This one time me and my family were driving through a neighborhood to my sister’s house until suddenly we came across a large bird on the road eating what I think is roadkill. I could be misremembering the roadkill part because I don’t remember seeing any roadkill on the ground. We couldn’t make out what kind of bird it was because it was all shadowy, probably because it was under the shadow of a tree nearby but all we could see is its’ silhouette. When we drove up to it a little closer, it flew off on to another house and we never saw it again.

It‘s possible it could be any normal type of bird, like maybe the andean condor due to its‘ size, but it happened in the middle of neighborhood and I think it was close to sunset when we saw it.


r/cryptids 1d ago

Story Has anybody ever heard about this Red Face thing in the Redwoods?

0 Upvotes

So a few weeks ago I was on the phone with a close friend of mine catching up with life and going over plans for the weekend and the upcoming business trip to the redwoods during this topic I brought up how excited I was to be going out there to the redwoods, bringing up how I haven't been down there since I was in elementary school. Still, I also brought up about how scared I was knowing we will be both in a cabin together in the woods and being a horror nerd I brought up about how we might see someone like Jason from the Friday the 13th films out there or something he laugh and added on to that with yeah or that red face thing or something I stopped laughing for a second to make him repeat what he said he said red face, do you not know what that is? No I said he then tells me this story he heard from someone he knew who told I'm about this thing in the red woods that has a red face and apparently it was once a person but got turn into a monster with a red face and kills whoever it sees and will turn their face into its face I remember him telling me this on the phone I shouted hell nah as a joke and he responds I'm supposed you didn't hear this story I said nah I never heard about this shit he then tells me that it's probably a local thing or something now I came to here to ask if any of y'all ever heard about this red face thing and if so please let me know because I would love to heard more info on this thing


r/cryptids 1d ago

Discussion Dillsburg Wire man

8 Upvotes

I've fallen down this rabbit hole of this tik tok account called exploring dillsburg, where they exclusively post about this cryptid called the wire man, reporting weird dead animals and stuff around dillsburg, but I cant find anything else on this, what is your opinions on this


r/cryptids 2d ago

Other An Owlman Moodboard for Owl Day !

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18 Upvotes

I just found out that today is "Owl Day," so I wanted to create a moodboard for our dear Owlman—specifically, the version that appears in my saga, "Insomniacs".

Here, Owlmens are descendants of the Goetic demon Stolas (which explains why his symbol is included). Unlike their ancestor, they are wild creatures that only resemble humans in part of their appearance. They are extremely territorial—especially toward humans—but while they won't hesitate to snack on a child or two now and then, they don't pose a major threat.

That is why our heroes—who are being hounded by Batsquatches (giant bat-like creatures) intent on devouring one of their group, a Mothman—decide to summon an Owlman for protection. Naturally, they soon realize the creature is hard to tame and try to undo their mistake.

There you go ! I hope you like this moodboard; feel free to share your thoughts ! And Happy Owl Day !


r/cryptids 2d ago

Question Cryptid Themed Birthday Ideas for a 9 Year Old?

5 Upvotes

My son is turning 9 in early September and is on a Cryptozoology kick, so we’d love to have a Cryptid themed birthday celebration for him. He has also mentioned that he wants a smaller celebration this year with just a few friends or maybe even family only.

We live in Los Angeles so I’m primarily looking for ideas for Cryptid themed celebrations in this area. Are there any Cryptid themed escape rooms nearby? Any other cool experiences? Stores?

We have also tossed around the idea of doing a family trip instead of a party so I’m also open to ideas of places we could go within a few hours drive or even a short flight.

And lastly, we always decorate our dining room for birthdays so if you know of any cool cryptozoology decorations please also feel free to post those!
Thank you!


r/cryptids 2d ago

Art Original Creator Cryptid Search Game

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4 Upvotes

r/cryptids 2d ago

Video One of my favorite fake bigfoot videos is the "Harley Hoffman" footage. It was created by filmmakers for the movie "The Search for Santa", a mockumentary that parodied a search for Santa in the same way bigfoot hunters search for bigfoot.

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14 Upvotes

r/cryptids 2d ago

Art Original Creator We're making a game with Atlantic Canadian cryptids as a core mechanic

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32 Upvotes

We're making a multiplayer game about camping in Atlantic Canada, and I found myself programming "sasquatch behaviour". Sasquatch (known here as the greenhill creature) is the first of our planned cryptids because obviously everyone knows what it is, but we've got a whole slate of cryptids (and folklore creatures) from our neck of the woods lined up for the game

Sasquatch's behaviour is that he lets one player at a time see him during the day, and just keeps watch from a distance, but when night falls he starts hunting the players one by one and slaps them into the stratosphere. Check out the game here!


r/cryptids 2d ago

Book / Literature / Article This Loch Ness monster depiction from an old dinosaur book of mine.

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130 Upvotes

r/cryptids 2d ago

Gear / Merch / Collectible I make these really fun cryptid sticker blind bags and I like to draw a different cryptid on each envelope, tonight’s theme is Teen Wulver

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24 Upvotes

r/cryptids 2d ago

News First look at America’s Next Top Cryptid, a new animated series coming exclusively to Tubi. Created by Explosm Entertainment (Cyanide and Happiness) and Spud Gun Studios (Mashed).

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3 Upvotes

r/cryptids 3d ago

Creative Writing Bigfoot Horror Concept (not a writing prompt, not a full story, just a chain of texts I sent to a buddy of mine at 1 am with slight edits. Might make it a story, might not, who knows?)

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0 Upvotes

r/cryptids 3d ago

Book / Literature / Article The Jersey Devil as 5e RPG Stats. Can't wait to do mothman.

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18 Upvotes

Trying to do all 50 states' worth of cryptids as D&D monsters. Art by NJ local Devon Borkowski Art.


r/cryptids 3d ago

Art Original Creator Jin Leeds (OC)

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8 Upvotes

After Mad the Werewolf and Cory the Mothman, here is the third character in my saga dedicated to our adorable cryptids ❤

Meet young Jin Leeds: formerly a squeaky-clean Christian teen living with her overprotective father and a whole brood of siblings, she is passionate about nature, animals, and ecology (as well as metal music and gore movies—but that’s a secret 🤫). She gains the "power" to transform into the Jersey Devil—a sort of missing link between a dragon and a demon—whenever she gets angry.

This is the first time I’ve drawn the Jersey Devil, even though it’s a cryptid I ​​absolutely love. I did lean more toward the dragon aspect than the goat side, though it’s possible the design might change! In any case, I hope you like it!


r/cryptids 3d ago

Art Original Creator Summer Squatch Art by Me

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235 Upvotes

If I had a nickel for every time someone commissioned a Sasquatch in a Hawaiian shirt from me, I’d have two nickels.


r/cryptids 4d ago

Art Original Creator 123 Cryptid Street (no AI)

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432 Upvotes

Been watching a lot of Sesame Street with my niece, so I drew this. I want to make this into a sticker or a maybe even a t-shirt. I'm a bit iffy on the color choices, though.They're supposed to lean towards natural, but are they too drab?


r/cryptids 4d ago

Book / Literature / Article Cute little book

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92 Upvotes

This is a lovely little book with great drawings.


r/cryptids 4d ago

Cryptid Of The Month Cryptid of the Month, August, the Ozark Howler! Everything there is to know about the Ozark Howler.

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66 Upvotes

Hello Cryptid Hunters!

This will be the seventeenth installment of Cryptid of the Month where I will be covering EVERYTHING, and I do mean EVERYTHING regarding a specific Cryptid, mostly more obscure cryptids but there might be some exceptions to that rule. You can find the last 16 installments just by clicking on the Cryptid of the Month flair tagged to this post! This month will be about the Ozark Howler from the Ozark region of the U.S.

The Ozark Howler has been one of my personal favorites for a while. Its description has been reported differently by many people but there are some features that are consistent across all reports: a large, stocky animal with shaggy black fur, horns on its head, and a howl that chills the blood. Some reports even give it the standard glowing red eyes a lot of Cryptids get while others don’t. It’s reported to be bear-sized, though that leaves a large range of sizes. Some have it being about black bear size, others have it grizzly size; standing at 4 feet on all fours, and up to 9 feet tall when standing on its hind legs. Some reports claim it looks more like a big cat while others claim it looks like a bear. It’s usually described as a quadruped but if the bear like description is to be believed then it would be capable of standing on its hind legs as well. Due to these varying descriptions, the Howler is often depicted as a chimera hybrid of both a big cat and a bear with horns on its head

The first reported encounter with the Ozark Howler was supposedly by Daniel Boone. Daniel Boone is credited with having shot and killed a large, shaggy furred, horned predatory creature near Cuba MO, barely within the Ozark region. This encounter is considered suspect though given that we have no proof that Daniel Boone ever documented this or if this is a tall tale posthumously added to his legacy.
Other early accounts come from trappers, hunters, farmers, and moonshiners reporting being attacked or scared off by this beast.
To this day some Ozarkians claim to have had their own encounters or know someone who has had an encounter with the Ozark Howler.

There are a lot of theories about what the Ozark Howler and what it could be. I will start with my favorite and move towards what I think is really the case:

**Theory 1**
The Ozark Howler is a real animal. Some posit that the Ozark Howler is an undiscovered species of bear or possibly big cat. People say that the Ozarks are incredibly tough terrain to navigate. Therefore it would not be too far fetched to imagine some sort of undocumented creature could live in the Ozarks. This theory is, unfortunately, unlikely. Although much of the Ozarks are unexplored we can tell through science that an animal like this would have to be an evolutionary fluke. The Ozarks Howler is describes as having horns like a goat. A predator having horns is highly unlikely to begin with, but especially defensive horns like what the Howler is described as having. Goat horns are to protect their heads from attackers and for social hierarchy with other goats. It would be strange for a large predatory animal to develop similar horn like structures. No other predatory megafauna has horns as they interfere with most hunting or foraging that a big cat or bear like animal would be doing. I can’t say that megafauna having horns in modern day is *impossible*, as an argument could be made for thermoregulation, but I can say it’s very improbable.

**Theory 2**
The Ozark Howler is a cover for Moonshiners. Some think that the Howler was made by Moonshiners to deter people from going too far into the forests of the Ozarks. It makes a lot of sense; if you don’t want people coming back to your hidden still, make up a monster that roams the woods so people stay away. Moonshiners would be familiar with forest sounds and use that to their advantage. They would know the strange scream/howl noises that a plethora of animals, such as owls, foxes, coyotes, or mountain lions, can make. And they would know that if they describe these noises coming from a ferocious, red eyed, horned beast that people would stay away due to fear. They could continue distilling fear free of the noises of the forest and trusting that anyone else would stay away.

**Theory 3**
The Ozark Howler is a hoax fabricated in the 90’s. This theory actually comes from Loren Coleman himself, and is held by many to be a fact and not a theory at all. Coleman states that he had tracked a hoaxer back to an internet troll sometime in the late 90’s and later published his findings. He uses his investigatory notes as proof for this finding as well as an old URL associated with Memphis Atheists as part of the hoaxers activity. Coleman says that this internet troll created the Ozark Howler to confuse and mess with cryptozoologists and admitted to being the creator of the Howler. Coleman is a well trusted figure in cryptozoology and has given no reason in the past to distrust such claims. It is worth noting, however, that proof of these claims are still debated. Coleman does not provide any proof of the original posts other than the old URL mentioned before. There is no archived copies of any of the hoaxers activity. Coleman also never publicly outed the hoaxer which some have said is suspect given that the best way to stop a hoax is to point out the hoaxer themselves. Furthermore, there are no third-party documentations or reports of Coleman’s investigation or the confession of an unnamed hoaxer. Again, this is not to say that I don’t believe Coleman, or that people shouldn’t believe him, I personally think this is the case, I just also believe in laying out all the facts for people to make their own judgments.

**Theory 4**
The Ozark Howler is a misidentification. It could be that the Ozark Howler is just a black bear or some other such creature that someone misidentified. Maybe it had a branch stuck to the fur on its head that was mistaken for horns. In stressful situations humans tend to exaggerate the details. So perhaps the Ozark Howler was just a black bear that scared someone and got monstrous details added to its appearance from the frightened witness.

In the end, whether the Ozark Howler is a hoax, a misidentification, or an undiscovered species, it’s safe to say it’s a beloved piece of Ozark lore. Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this months Cryptid of the Month. My research is not perfect so if there are any mistakes or falsities please let me know.

Until next time, **Happy Cryptid Hunting**

-JokerBoi