The Tall Ones of Armstrong County, Pennsylvania

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.

The Tall Ones of Armstrong County, Pennsylvania

Location: Freeport, Pennsylvania

Date: 2013

Submitted by: Dakota

“I was 18 and visiting home from college. It was hunting season, and my family and dad’s friends were going to do a deer drive, so everyone else spread out through the woods and found a place to wait for deer to come through. I was down over the mountain from my house, in the flat area near Buffalo Creek. While I had experienced several unexplained things before, I didn’t expect anything but normal wildlife while I was hunting. So I was just waiting for deer to be driven toward me.

At some point, maybe 30-40 minutes into the hunt, I heard running on the hillside behind me to the left. I turned around and got ready, expecting a deer or two to come into range. I was shocked though, when three humanoid figures appeared and dashed across the steep hillside, up and out of view. These figures were tall, maybe 12-14 feet in height, if I had to guess, and they were incredibly thin and pitch black in color.

I didn’t notice any facial features, but they may have been a little too far to see any details. The way they ran was so incredibly smooth and fast, especially considering the steep and rocky terrain. I knew instantly that these weren’t anything known to science, but they also seemed very different from the “shadow men” that people always talk about.

I didn’t feel any malicious intent from them, but then again, I’m not sure they even noticed me. Haven’t seen them since, but I’m sure they’re still around. I’m always encountering weird shit in Western PA.”

Submitted by Dakota Apr 16, 2020, 3:10 PM