Imagine, if you will, a creature that roams the dark forests of Arizona, with eyes that glow red like hot embers and a scent that could curdle milk. This is the Mogollon Monster, a beast that has been sighted by many over the years, and whose legend has grown with each passing generation.

Some say the Mogollon Monster is a large, bipedal creature, standing over 7 feet tall, with long black or reddish-brown hair covering its body. Others claim that its chest, face, hands, and feet are bare. Anecdotal reports suggest the creature is territorial and sometimes violent, with an omnivorous diet that includes deer and other wildlife.

It’s said to leave behind footprints measuring over 22 inches, build nests out of pine needles, twigs, and leaves, and mimic the sounds of birds, coyotes, and other animals.

But perhaps the most terrifying aspect of the Mogollon Monster is its blood-curdling scream, which has been described as sounding like a woman in great distress. Those who have encountered the creature speak of an eerie silence that descends upon the forest just before an encounter, as if the very woods are holding their breath in anticipation.

Some dismiss the Mogollon Monster as a figment of the imagination, but others claim to have seen it with their own eyes.

The oldest known sighting was reported in 1903 by I.W. Stevens, who encountered a creature near the Grand Canyon that he described as having “long white hair and matted beard that reached to his knees” and “claws at least two inches long”. Don Davis, a cryptozoologist, reported seeing a massive creature during a Boy Scout trip in the mid-1940s, while Marjorie Grimes, a resident of Whiteriver, Arizona, claims to have seen the creature multiple times between 1982 and 2004.

Despite these sightings, the scientific community remains skeptical. Professor emeritus of biology, Stan Lindstedt, dismisses the idea of a large humanoid creature hiding in the vast forests of Arizona, calling it “mythology that can certainly make our culture interesting, but has nothing to do with science.” Nevertheless, the legend of the Mogollon Monster lives on, inspiring tales of horror and folklore for generations to come.