Ghastly Encounter Near Shreveport
Part I
The Shreveport “Legend of Boggy Creek” & “The Creature at Black Lake”
By Doc Vega
(Copyright 2016, Doc Vega – All RightsReserved)
<Edited by Robert D. Morningstar)
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In one of the most strange transformations on any US Interstate in which a land of light descends into a shadowy trail of darkness is the transition of the Texas roadway into Louisiana via I-30. In the 1970’s and 80’s the east bound interstate that runs through Shreveport linked into an ominous route known as LA 1. Reputedly one of the most dangerous stretches of road in the United States. With a canopy of trees overhead much of the time, steep shoulders that led to sudden drop offs or drainage culverts thanks to the swamps that lie on the outer perimeter of the highway much of the time, LA 1 is indeed a step back in time and off the beaten path.
On a Trip to Nowhere
In conjunction with this treacherous roadway that leads into more than just backwoods, lowlands, and shabby towns that time has passed by is a legend that many would swear by as being more than the just the trick of imagination or wives tale. A persistent occurrence of sightings and disturbing encounters still defy the world of supposed scientific enlightenment here in a land that was once owned by the French under Napoleon’s rule. Here where the term “Parish” is used rather than county and laws dating back to the occupation of the French still exist, a shadow of mystery still hovers in the depth of the backroads and bottom lands that we know as Louisiana.
The Visitation
In the early 1960’s came a report that is not entirely uncommon in the lonely backwoods of Louisiana. Where the bayous harbor alligators, cottonmouths, and nutrias another entity lurks according to the accounts of petrified witnesses. A loosely constructed community of rural homes on the edge of Shreveport and at the foot of the dense Louisiana wilderness sitting miles from the interstate where two families made their home. Little could they have predicted the tense moments of fear that would ignite the adrenaline within their blood as the unknown came to call.
Nightfall
The time is around 9 in the evening. Two young women and their nephew await the arrival of their husbands who have been out running errands. Dinner has been ready as they anxiously await the arrival of the two young men. It seems unnervingly quiet that somber evening as the darkness seems to draw an ominous blanket over the house and surrounding countryside. As often is the case in the dense backwoods of the Louisiana landscape what seems green, lush, and restful during daylight becomes foreboding in the blackness of the unwelcome night.
The Intruder
The sound of creaking on the porch, the kind that comes from the heavy weight of an intruder catches the attention of the two women. They quickly motion silence to one another as they listen just to make sure. Slow but unmistakable footfalls on the outer porch wooden planks elicit gasps from the women. The nephew, who is around 18 years old creeps to the kitchen to grab a knife from the drawer when the door knob is tried. Luckily it has been locked. The two young ladies stare in horror watching as the old brass door handle is rattled by an unknown hand!
Slow foot-steps lead to another door off to the left of the front entry that goes to a bedroom and again the door handle is tried. Frozen in fear no one can bring themselves to peer through a curtain or venetian blind as time freezes into a nightmarish eternity of breathless moments.
Shattered
Unable to control his bodily functions, the young man hurries to the bathroom to relieve himself. He makes the mistake of flicking on the light. Seated on the toilet he is unaware of what is to come next. The smothering silence is broken when a huge furry arm bursts through the bathroom window shattering the glass. A deafening roar like some kind of animal cannot smother the cries of the young man who stumbles and falls flat on his face with his pants down around his ankles. The two women try and grab their nephew and drag him out of the bathroom, but the guy is quickly descending into shock frightened out of his mind!
Help Comes
In the midst of this chaos headlights flash onto the front of the house and the arrival of a station wagon driven by the two husbands lurches to a halt on the driveway. The women quickly burst through the front door not only to tell the men what happened but to warn them of the ominous presence that is now somewhere on the property. Meanwhile the nephew is practically in seizures now from the terrible surprise that has assaulted his senses! The two men use a flashlight to peer into the darkness before running over to a neighbor’s house to borrow a high powered hunting rifle.
Fighting Back
Quickly loading the gun and scrambling back to their house, one of them catches a glimpse of a large two legged figure on the outer edges of the yard. He uses the flashlight as a spotter for the rifleman who aims and fires. The silence of the night is once again disrupted by the crackle of gunfire. Again and again the two men attempt to shoot down or wound the mysterious intruder who moves so quickly they reportedly can’t even wing their prey or are they the true prey themselves? Being experienced riflemen who have often hunted in the gloom of the Louisiana thicket both men are amazed at the agility and speed of their target. It’s not an animal as the flashlight reveals someone or something on two feet, covered in hair, and being extremely elusive.
The Escape
The women urge the men to get their nephew into the car and head for the hospital. The family quickly loads up into the station wagon and head pedal to the floor into the night leaving their home behind on their way to medical help for the stricken young man in the throes of shock as they speed into Shreveport. This dramatic confrontation is confirmed by news reports, hospital records, and a sheriff’s investigation. Was this some case of a prank, mistaken identity, or the unwelcome visitation of an unknown primate that many believe is similar to Sasquatch and has been sighted many times in the Louisiana swamps and backwoods?
History of Terror
During the early 1970’s two movies exploited this sudden newsworthy phenomenon of reports surfacing from Fouke, Arkansas near the northeastern borders of Texas and Louisiana in Miller County. Although the first media attention came in 1971 leading to a couple of memorable films that were in the theaters of the time “Legend of Boggy Creek” and “Creature of Black Lake” both roughly based upon true events, many encounters had been reported among the locals for years.
Wide Stretch of Sightings
Upon studying the microfilmed records of newspaper articles from Arkansas to eastern Oklahoma from Texas to Louisiana, for decades the stories of frightening encounters with monsters in the dark, lovers being terrorized in the night while parked in their cars, and disturbance calls being answered by local police, it is quite evident that something is afoot. There are several organizations run by private individuals are now conducting investigations and collecting evidence. From southeast Texas to the Pacific Northwest to the Everglades of Florida these woodsmen and enthusiasts have been trying to piece together just who or what is behind these sightings.
Part II will illuminate further the enduring mystery
Doc Vega
October 4th, 2016
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