The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word cryptid as “An animal whose existence or survival is disputed or unsubstantiated, such as the yeti.” For the following witnesses to living cryptids, there is no dispute. In this series of National Cryptid Society’s case files, you will read what the witnesses have experienced in their own words.
Keep an open mind when reading these accounts, and also remember one’s perception and memory of an event can be influenced by the emotions felt at the time of the occurrence. The contributors to this series of articles are doing the best they can to recount what are in some cases very shocking and traumatic experiences.
If you have a personal cryptid sighting story you would like to tell us, please visit our “Make A Report” page on this site.
NCS Case File #53: Unidentified animal slams into car in Pahrump, NV.
Location: Pahrump, NV. On Flamingo Road, between Warren and Corbin St. Sparsely populated area near BLM
Date sighting occurred: 10/1/17 approximately 1:30 am
“I was leaving [a location in Pahrump] off Warren St. It was sometime around 1am, I headed South on Warren St.; about a quarter mile down I make a left hand turn heading East onto Flamingo Rd.
About half way to the stop sign at Corbin St. going no faster than 30/35 mph something the size of a very large dog, covered in what appeared to be black fur from what I could see from my bright headlights and the light of the moon.
It came from the side which was open field and plunged/rammed the driver’s side door of my car near the front tire under my side mirror.”
“My window was down about 2 or 3 inches and my doors were locked. My moon roof was slightly open. I was so scared my legs were shaking and I reacted by rolling up my windows, running the stop sign which I was slowing down for and flying around inside my car thumping into the inside windows was two huge moths; one directly in front of me.
I was too scared to even reach for my phone next to me in the seat inside my purse. I drove at least 3 blocks before I could actually catch my breath and roll the passenger window down about half way to free these moths that ended up in my car after this thing plunged into my door. I ran two more stop signs until I reached highway 372 heading east back toward my residence.
I didn’t turn on my radio, did not call anyone. I decided to share what happened with a store clerk, my friend whom I was visiting and my Dad. Oddly they all have peculiar recollections of something strange they’ve encountered in the desert night.
I recently went back to this area about two hours ago and recorded my surroundings, concerned about what may have happened. In the dirt there are what appear to be not footprints but cuffs in the dirt, almost like gofer holes that are not holes. Similar to hooves I suppose. I have the video, it’s just me during the day recording but I go along to show you how these marks in the dirt that stop abruptly about 6 yards at the most.
Thanks for your time.”
NCS Notes:
-I contacted the witness last night and asked some follow-up questions and received additional information about the encounter:
-About the native wildlife in the area, the witness stated there are the normal domesticated animals (goats, horses, pigs etc) in addition to coyotes, fox, jackrabbits, mountain lions, bobcats, feral hogs and possibly wolves.
-There was no damage to the driver’s side of the witnesses’ car, however there was an area of dust that seemed to be a brush mark as if something swiped it. This was surprising to the witness because of the impact the animal made with the side of the car.
-The witness is familiar with the area and the outskirts thereof, having lived there since 2002.
-The witness stated they had witnessed some unusual aerial phenomena in the skies at night over the area but did not go into detail (it was more in passing).
-Additional witness statement:
“1st, I didn’t see it’s eyes, didn’t notice any unusual scent inside or outside my car as I didn’t hang around very long to check. I didn’t hear anything except the loud and vibrating thump on my driver side door. I didn’t have any music playing.My eyes had approximately 10 minutes to adjust to the night darkness prior to the incident, which wasn’t very dark considering the street was more than 50% illuminated by the light of the moon and very few clouds.Also, as I mentioned before, I was driving with my bright headlights on going about 30/35 mph.As unrealistic as this sounds it’s almost as if this thing dove into my door or flew because I would’ve seen it charging in my main area of vision or peripheral vision as where it happened was open field on both sides of my vehicle.I only saw it when it collided with my door. Just below the side window seal and side view mirror it could’ve been on all fours.Whatever it was it seemed bulky, heavy maybe muscular and completely black in color with its head and shoulders at about my window seal.I immediately rolled my window the rest of the way. Looked in my side mirror and rear view, I seen absolutely nothing left behind as I downshifted from 3rd to 2nd gear and ran the first stop sign at Corbin and Flamingo. That’s when I noticed two moths bumping into my windshield from the inside trying to escape.The size of the moth directly in front of my steering wheel was similar in size and appearance as what’s known as a (Achemon sphinx moth) pretty big to me, I have small hands and I probably could’ve cuffed it in my hand.I drive a golden Nissan Altima, a fast little car with a manual transmission. Honestly I didn’t waste anytime getting the hell outta there. I couldn’t even talk I was speechless.When I returned hours later in the daylight in that video I sent you, I was surprised not to find any feathers from nearby big black ravens that inhabit the area, no paw prints, blood. No nothing except those odd cuff/hoof prints which were located on my passenger side and doesn’t make sense to me.”
-The witness stated they went back to the exact area and saw no prints coming from the direction from where the animal struck the vehicle, but there were prints on the opposite side of the road that (as stated in the above report) stop abruptly about 6 yards out from the road. Additional details provided in the video below:
Further Discussion:
NCS Public Group Member Jody McLee:
- I don’t think those are tracks they are more like postholes, in that area they would remain long after the post was removed. Thought I saw a deer track, but it was too fresh to be relevant. As open as the area is I vote for normal local animal. No dent in car, probably a large dog that’s allowed out that likes to chase tires. They can make one hello of a thud if they hit the car. My vote – NOT CRYPTID.
- Just watched it again, definitely postholes probably from mailboxes, Big dog hiding under bush charges after tire and mistimes it hitting the car. Dogs that do this are amazingly resilient and shake off “thuds” easily. Grandparents had a pack that would chase cars, seen it happen many times.
- When the dogs chased the cars they did it right next to the car, they would chase us when we’d leave and someone had to signal when they backed off because we couldn’t see them. There are breeds large enough to come up to the window. I doubt she was paying attention to the mirrors before the bump. The dogs always came from the rear and would “disappear” when they were tired of the chase. All a dog had to do in this instance would be to lay down by one of the bushes.
As for the possibility of post holes for mailboxes, seen plenty & looks like holes in video. Plus the “tracks” did not show a gait. One set of holes reminded me of a long setup that held multiple mailboxes. A heavy dog running could punch through the crust similar to the deer track I sent (still clearly a Deer track). The video didn’t show the tracks moving away from the road, so they could have stopped when it went back on the road.
NCS: Founder Jesse Durdel:
- Like many sightings and cryptid encounters there is very little evidence to corroborate a witness account other than their memory. In looking at the bigger picture it is evident that perhaps there is no or will be no physical evidence of this encounter.
- To that end I will rely on the statements of the witness to form an opinion, but that’s all I have… my opinion.
- However, this report interests me because it is not the first report we have received about an unidentified animal that seemed to disappear after the encounter.
- According the the witness in NCS Case File #13, their cryptid encounter happened in Pahrump, around the same time of the early morning, left a hoof-like print and managed to disappear from view, and when the tracks were followed they abruptly stopped.
- So, even though I thought at first it sounded like a normal “dog hits car” story, but the coincidence of these two occurrences happening in Pahrump and being so similar (with the exception of the description of the animals) gives me pause and I think there may be something going on around the outskirts of that little town in Nevada.
- The moths appearing in the car right after the impact is just weird. I have no explanation for it.
- I don’t believe that the prints and marks found on the ground during the daytime video have any bearing on the encounter itself, and may not be associated with it at all. If so, then that would be one less detail that this encounter shares with the previous encounter as described above.
- However the video does show a good layout of the area where it happened as well as the ground conditions.
- This animal should have been seen prior to the impact and after with the landscape being illuminated by the moon. I also saw very few places for the animal to hide before or after the encounter (at least on the stretch or road shown).
- I’m not going to vote on whether or not this encounter was with a cryptid animal, because even from the witness statements, it could go either way.
- Note to self: What is wandering around Pahrump in the wee hours of the morning?
Author and Investigator Linda Godfrey:
- Interesting, I wonder if she has tried calling local game wardens to see if anything similar has been reported by anyone else?
- With the hooves, it reminds me of an out-of-place bighorn sheep seen around Elkhorn a few years ago (Wisconsin). The local DNR agent denied it until he saw it too. It was very dumb about staying away from cars and finally got hit by one and killed. No one ever found where it came from.
- Not that this incident was also a bighorn, but just that there may be something else out of place that is similarly unfamiliar with speeding cars.
First Responders, Police, Firefighters, EMT’s, Nurses, Educators and Education Staff
First Responders, Police, Firefighters, EMT’s, Nurses, Educators and Education Staff
Visit our YouTube Channel and Subscribe!
Monsters In Print: A Collection Of Curious Creatures Known Mostly From Newspapers
This collection of over 170+ articles, direct from newspapers of the 1800s and 1900s, brings some of the most bizarre, amazing, and incredible stories of true monster encounters out of the past and into your hands! Presented with zero spin or bias, this book delivers just the facts and allows you, the reader, to decide for yourself if the stories within actually happened or not.
From the funny to the frightening, the sincere to the weird, there is something for everyone within these pages!
The National Cryptid Society 
The video is kind of blurry but it looks like hoof prints from a horse as well as the scat from the other side of the road. Lots of Mustangs in Nevada and lots of accidents with them. I am not saying that she hit a horse just what I am seeing in those tracks shown.
LikeLike