New to the forum, but not to the subject. My mother and I used to live in a rural part of east-central Illinois in the small town of Indianola in Vermilion County. In the summer of 1995 I was between college semesters and staying with her to save some money. Her husband, my stepfather, was in Ohio so most yard work, maintenance duties was my responsibility to "earn my keep" while staying at home rent-free. We were set about 2 miles outside of town in a small ranch house positioned against woodland and farmland on all sides. If anyone is familiar with this part of the state, it is not uncommon to have a considerable distance between neighbors (I now live just outside of NYC, and that fact seems almost unbelievable in my new, congested environs). We were about one mile and a half to two miles set back from the main road leading into town and had to pass a small cemetery at the bottom of the hill, coming or going. A lot of "good ole boys" find the hill a fun place to hot rod and the like so my mother and I were always quick to slow down on the descent and look for cars (although there were rarely any there). I was mowing the lawn when my mother came in, shaken and related the following experience to me.

She had been coming home in her car (an '87 Iroc-Z Camaro) and had proceeded to slow down at the top of the hill when she noticed a dark shape at the bottom in the middle of the road. As she neared it she initially thought it was a man in a black coat until the shape unfurled what she described to me as wings and took off with an audible wooshing sound. She said the height of the creature was taller than that of an average man and that the wingspan was tremendous. I'm not doing the story justice as she can relate it much better. I had the opportunity to interview my mother and I have posted the audio of the account at the following url: http://www.disclose.tv/action/music/76/Par...ng_in_Illinois/

Has anyone else had a similar experience? If so I would love to talk to them and possible record their story. It's rare (I have found) for a sighting to involve the creature at a close proximity and even manage to witness it take off, so this interested me greatly.

I saw one many years ago, and the sighting has compelled my interest in cryptids. I was a kid, 10-12 years old. It was a gigantic bird, far too large to be anything I can imagine. It was black, sitting low in a tree. As our group of boys walked toward it, from probably a quarter-mile away, it flew off. It was black, and just gigantic. As large as a Piper Cub. I've tried for years to explain it to myself.

Oh I don't know. But i've heard a story about how soneone shot down a really huge bird.
6 people holding hands were its wingspan.

Incredible!

In all the time I've known you, you've been skeptic, yet you caught glimpse of a specimen of one of the least likely cryptids? I would love to hear more about this.

Also; aren't thunderbirds reptillian?

Please do post back with as much imformation as possible, I believe that Giant Thunder birds are very plauseable.

I grew up in a village of 450, 100 miles west of Omaha. Life as a kid was pretty idyllic, and our little town had a river, two creeks, and numerous ponds surrounding it. One summer day, I was with maybe three other kids, walking out to a creek with fishing poles across our shoulders. I was probably 10 years old. As we walked a gravel road toward the creek, we became aware of this extremely large bird sitting in a tree, ahead of us, which was in a shelterbelt (a line of trees). The bird was just too large, and so it caught our attention. I don't recall any fears or nervousness. We were in a group, it was broad daylight, and the thought never entered my mind.

We walked on until we were probably a quarter-mile distant. The bird flew off to the north. It was black, I don't remember any other distinguishing markings. It was simply gigantic. I truly can't explain, but it was the size of a small airplane. It seems to me it would have been larger than even a condor. This was upon the great plains of Nebraska, the nearest mountains hundreds of miles distance. Condors need mountains, they rely on thermal updrafts from them.

Take it for what it's worth, my story is true and yet I have no explanation for it. Thanks for your interest.

My Dad was telling me about this picture, that had a thunderbird in it, and I found it online.
Here it is:



If anyone knows about some others please post them!

Civil War Dinos

I found this video on youtube you can see the thunderbird's picture clearly on 58 or 59 seconds.

look up (Halo2mc) Paranormal- He is the one who made this video with a number of paranormal items.

Peace,
Justice

Wow.
I had no idea. Thanks for telling me.
Well, are there any REAL photos of the "Thunderbird"?

Okay, that video had to go and scare the crap out of me. I hate pictures of aliens and ghosts. The shark picture was insanely cool, though I'm pretty sure that's a fake, but I stopped at the one where the guy was in the plane and the glowing eyed dude was behind him. The red creature walking in the woods scared me, too. This is why I only hang out on the cryptid forum. I can handle any cryptid, but one talk about ghosts and aliens and you have me screaming.


As for thunderbirds, I can honestly say that I love the idea! They (and the dogmen of michigan) have to be some of my favorite cryptids. I'm going to ask my brother if he's ever seen something like that - he goes to college in Illinoise.

Aliens are so cool though

Here's a good picture but supposedly it's fake:

When the aliens come down and they decide to dissect you, let's see how cool you think they are! Really though, that video is going to make me afraid to go to sleep tonight. That's how easily I get scared by ghosts and alien pictures. Show me a picture of a blood-sucking cryptid who is spilling someone's guts all over the place and it's been proven to exist, I won't even flinch.


Cool picture, though. I'm pretty sure it's been proven to be a fake, but it's pretty awesome anyhow.

Actually that would be pretty cool I would enjoy every minute of it

But yea it sucks that the picture is fake, it would be awesome if it was real.

Really? I'm sure it would be so much fun to have little green men with huge eyes and strange necks prodding you and taking out your internal organs. Sounds like a blast - where can I sign up? Maybe, if I'm good, they might even push me out the airlock!

Yes fun stuff, oh and don't forget about the anal probing, and random metal objects logged into your boddy, fun fun fun!

I'm sure that there is a very large line comprised of America's best and brightest politicians forming as we speak just for the above. Of course they might just be taking notes.

I have heard multiple people relate a story about a thunderbird photo they remember seeing in a book that was published circa 1950. However, I have not been able to track it down. Any one have any clues to its existence?

This is an oft cited photo that evidently no one has been able to locate. Most likely an urban legend, although Snopes makes no reference.

Many claim to have seen the photo, even to have come into posession of it but it doesn't seem to have ever existed.

looks like a gigantic piece of ply wood painted black.

Yea you can easily tell it's fake when you look at it.

You n0obs ready for some major pwnage? (I promise I will never say that again)

The skeleton of said bird was found and this picture does in fact show a reconstruction of the animal.

See, now that's what I was waiting for!

Huh?

Well then I guess I was wrong, but from the angle it just looks like a flat piece of cardboard shaped like a big bird.

that's picture of Argentavis magnificens the biggest flying bird ever discovered

Amazing animal