Swamp Outdoorsman Recounts Multiple Encounters with 12-Foot Hairy Creature

Now this is the kind of story that gives you chills. A Louisiana swamp legend opening up about not one, not two, but multiple encounters with something tall, dark, and hairy lurking deep in the bayou — and the wildest part? A military helicopter showed up to check on it too. Shelby Stanga, the grizzled loggers folks know from the History Channel's "Ax Men," sat down to share what he's experienced over the years in the Louisiana swamps, and honestly, it's one of those accounts that sticks with you. The way he tells it, his first run-in happened when he was just 13 years old. He and a buddy were hunting deer, crossed a canal, shined a light up into the trees, and saw something that made both of them freeze — a figure roughly 12 feet tall, covered in hair, with slanted eyes. His friend's hair literally stood up on end. They both bolted back across the canal. But it didn't stop there. Years later, Shelby brought his cousin Timmy Joe back to the same area. This time, the encounter got even more intense. Shelby had a 20-gauge shotgun pointed at the creature, his cousin screaming "Shoot him! Shoot him!" But the thing — this is the part that gets me — turned its head, looked directly at Shelby, and shook its head. Twice. Almost like it was communicating. Shelby describes seeing black skin, a wide nose hole, and long hair. He couldn't pull the trigger. The witness in the back of the boat later confirmed he saw "a great big monkey shaking his head." And then there's the daytime sighting that takes this whole thing to another level. Shelby was about 110 yards out, saw the figure standing and holding onto a tree, at least 12 feet tall. Just as he was processing what he was seeing, a military-style helicopter came right over the spot. Shelby describes a large pipe-like apparatus extending from the helicopter with some kind of round device on the end, and men inside pointing equipment downward — directly at the creature. The helicopter hovered, did its thing for a few seconds, then flew off. When Shelby looked back, the figure was gone. The theories Shelby floats are fascinating. He mentions the possibility of government experiments, even suggesting that Germany or Russia may have been involved in trying to create some kind of warfare creature — inseminating apes with human sperm to make a hybrid. He also entertains the idea that it might not even be from this planet. And honestly, when you factor in the helicopter, the lack of any bodies or remains ever being found, and the way these beings seem to vanish before anyone can document them properly, it makes you think. What really stands out about Shelby's account is the respect he has for whatever is out there. He doesn't want anyone capturing or caging it. He talks about finding long black hair and scratch marks high up in trees — places where no ordinary animal would be. He's been sleeping in trees 80 to 90 feet off the ground his whole life, and he's seen the evidence firsthand. There's also a second person in the video who backs up Shelby's credibility, saying that anytime Shelby told him something wild, it turned out to be true. This person even wonders if it could be some kind of alien mothering situation, and notes that there's never been a body, never been bones — these beings are too smart and too fast to be caught. For anyone who's spent time researching Sasquatch encounters, swamp sightings are a whole category of their own. The Louisiana bayou, with its dense canopy, flooded cypress trees, and remote stretches that are nearly impossible to access, creates the perfect hiding ground for a tall, elusive hominid. Reports from the South often describe slightly different features than the Pacific Northwest variety — sometimes more ape-like, sometimes with behaviors that suggest incredible intelligence, like the head-shaking moment Shelby describes. This video is absolutely worth the watch. Shelby's storytelling style is raw, unfiltered, and you can tell he's not making this up for attention. The man lives in the swamp. He doesn't need the spotlight. Check it out and see what you think.