In July 1987, a terrifying encounter unfolded on the outskirts of Deray Ponte Clay, France, that would challenge our understanding of the natural world. A young boy named Matthew T. was walking home along a winding dirt road near a forest when he noticed two round, blood-red eyes tracking his movements. What initially seemed like an owl revealed itself to be something far more sinister - a massive bipedal creature standing up to seven and a half feet tall that stalked him with predatory intent.

The creature's behavior exhibited disturbing intelligence, matching Matthew's pace and movements precisely. Its wolf-like head, vertical pupils, and thick drool suggested something neither fully animal nor human. After a harrowing pursuit where the entity mysteriously refused to cross onto the road, Matthew reached home safely. The next morning, military personnel with armored vehicles and heavy weaponry converged on the exact location of the sighting, suggesting official knowledge of whatever had terrorized the young boy the previous night.

Key Takeaways

A bizarre wolf-like bipedal creature stalked a young boy in rural France, demonstrating intelligent behavior and supernatural physical abilities.
The entity appeared constrained by mysterious boundaries, refusing to cross from the forest onto the road despite its evident strength.
Military forces conducted an urgent operation at the sighting location the following morning, suggesting official awareness of the creature's existence.

The Encounter in Deray Ponte Clay

First Nighttime Sighting

On July 15, 1987, a young boy named Matthew T experienced a terrifying encounter while walking home near midnight in Deray Ponte Clay, France. As he traveled along a winding dirt road bordering a forest, Matthew spotted what appeared to be two round eyes moving at his same pace. His initial assumption was that an owl was flying along the forest edge, but this theory quickly dissolved when he heard a low growl emanating from the direction of the eyes.

Upon closer inspection, Matthew made out two large, blood-red, almond-shaped orbs staring directly at him. Despite the full moon illuminating the area, he could only distinguish the creature's eyes at first. As he continued walking and observing, he gradually discerned an ill-defined head and the silhouette of a body on the opposite side of the fence.

The entity appeared to be a hairy, gray-black bipedal creature. Matthew noted that it would alternate between walking on all fours and standing on its hind legs, measuring approximately 5.5 feet tall when on four legs and a towering 7.5 feet when upright.

The Frightening Chase

When Matthew began running, the creature immediately matched his pace from its position beyond the fence. It became evident that this entity was stalking him, creating a sense of mortal danger. Matthew couldn't tear his gaze away from the creature, which likewise kept its eyes fixed on him throughout the pursuit.

In his later statement to investigator M. Jean-Marie Bagorn, Matthew described the creature's distinctive movement pattern. It would spread its hind legs to move its front limbs without jumping, a peculiar locomotion method unlike any known animal.

The creature emitted loud grunts and slow, heavy breathing that overpowered the sound of its footsteps. Curiously, whenever Matthew paused to catch his breath, the entity also stopped and ceased its grunting sounds.

Detailed Observations

During the encounter, Matthew noted several disturbing features of the mysterious being. Long threads of thick white slime or drool trickled from both sides of its mouth, suggesting it was heavily salivating.

Five separate times, Matthew halted to verify if the creature was still following him. On each occasion, the entity straightened up, demonstrating an unsettling ability to walk and run with human-like ease. Its body structure resembled a human's, but its head appeared to be a disturbing hybrid between a large wolf and a grizzly bear.

The creature's physical characteristics included:

An elongated head disproportionately bulky to its body
Visible ears
A small hairy stomach with an exposed area of pink skin
Vertical pupils resembling cat's eyes
Thick claws at the ends of its fingers
Long gray-black hairs between each finger

Final Sprint and Aftermath

When Matthew finally reached the end of the trail and began running on the road toward his visible home, the creature exhibited unusual behavior. It stood up, seized the fence, and violently shook it before tearing off a portion with remarkable ease. Fearing the creature would breach the barrier, Matthew sprinted ahead.

Surprisingly, the entity did not cross through the damaged fence but continued running alongside Matthew on the forest side. This suggested that for unknown reasons, the creature either could not or would not step onto the road surface.

Upon reaching home, Matthew slammed the door shut and, still panting with fear, explained the situation to his stepfather who was awake. Though skeptical, his stepfather—a former lieutenant in the French Foreign Legion—grabbed his shotgun and investigated outside but found nothing unusual.

The following morning around 6:30 AM, the family was awakened by the sound of submachine gun fire near their home. Looking outside, they witnessed numerous soldiers, military trucks, two armored vehicles, and snipers firing into the exact area where Matthew had seen the creature hours earlier. When the stepfather questioned a colonel about this operation with live ammunition in a non-military zone, he was sternly informed it was a "secret operation" and ordered to return home.

The Mysterious Stalker's Description

Physical Appearance

The entity encountered near the French woodland displayed distinctive characteristics that set it apart from known wildlife. Standing approximately 7.5 feet tall when upright and about 5.5 feet on all fours, this massive creature exhibited an unusual ability to alternate between bipedal and quadrupedal movement. Its body resembled a human form in structure but featured a head that combined traits of both a wolf and a grizzly bear, with an elongated shape and visible ears.

The creature's most striking features were its blood-red, almond-shaped eyes with vertical pupils similar to those of a cat. Its body was covered in gray-black hair, with particularly long strands between its fingers. The limbs ended in thick claws, and the entity had a small hairy stomach with a noticeable patch of exposed pink skin. When observed in the moonlight, threads of thick white slime dripped from both sides of its mouth, suggesting it was actively salivating.

Behavioral Traits

The unknown entity demonstrated complex and unsettling behaviors during the encounter. It methodically tracked alongside its observer, precisely matching pace whether walking or running—suggesting intelligent, purposeful stalking behavior rather than random animal movement. When the witness stopped to catch his breath, the creature would halt as well, temporarily ceasing its distinctive grunting sounds.

The entity produced a remarkably loud, slow breathing noise that overpowered the sound of its own footsteps. Its movement pattern was distinctive: when traveling on all fours, it would spread its hind legs to move the front ones without jumping. Despite showing tremendous strength by easily tearing through a fence, the creature appeared unwilling or unable to cross onto the road, suggesting some form of territorial limitation or boundary restriction.

Most notably, the creature maintained constant visual contact throughout the encounter, creating an impression of deliberate intimidation rather than simple predatory behavior. Military activity in the precise area the following morning—including armored vehicles and soldiers with sniper rifles—suggests possible official awareness of and concern about the entity's presence.

Post-Encounter Aftermath

Stepfather's Initial Response

After Matthew burst through the door, visibly shaken and out of breath, his stepfather immediately sensed something was wrong. When Matthew explained about the creature stalking him, his stepfather was skeptical. Believing the boy had merely encountered a large wolf or dog, he grabbed his shotgun and went outside to investigate. Despite searching for several minutes, he found no evidence of the creature Matthew had described and returned to the house.

Military Operation at Dawn

The next morning around 6:30 AM, Matthew's stepfather awoke to the sound of submachine gun fire near their home. Upon investigating, he discovered an extensive military presence surrounding their property. The operation included:

Numerous military trucks
Two armored vehicles
Multiple soldiers armed with sniper rifles
Personnel firing directly into the wooded area where Matthew had seen the creature

As a former lieutenant in the French Foreign Legion, Matthew's stepfather approached a colonel to question the operation. The officer tersely informed him this was a "secret operation" and ordered him to return home. The military continued their activities for approximately two hours before departing around 8:15 AM.

The timing and location of this military response—occurring in the exact spot where Matthew had encountered the unidentified creature just hours earlier—strongly suggested to both Matthew and his stepfather that the authorities had prior knowledge of the entity and were actively pursuing it.

Hypotheses and Speculations

Invisible Barriers

The creature's behavior suggests a fascinating limitation regarding its movement. Despite demonstrating remarkable strength when tearing through the fence with apparent ease, it never crossed onto the road while pursuing Matthew. This suggests some form of boundary restriction that prevented the entity from leaving its forest domain. Throughout paranormal literature, similar patterns emerge where unexplained entities seem confined by invisible boundaries such as crossroads, running water, or man-made thoroughfares. These limitations appear consistently across various cryptid encounters, raising questions about whether these beings operate under different physical laws or territorial constraints than known animals. The creature's reluctance to cross onto the road, despite its obvious interest in Matthew, represents one of the most intriguing aspects of this encounter.

Mental and Emotional Effects

The creature's behavior displayed characteristics that went beyond mere predatory stalking. Its methodical pace-matching with Matthew and the way it stopped when he stopped suggests a form of psychological engagement rather than simple hunger. The thick white drool observed dripping from its mouth could indicate either physical anticipation of a meal or, more disturbingly, some form of excitement from causing fear. Many researchers in cryptid phenomena theorize that certain unexplained entities might actually feed on emotional energy, particularly fear and terror. This encounter exhibits classic signs of what might be described as "fear harvesting" - deliberately prolonging the encounter rather than attacking immediately, maintaining eye contact, and engaging in intimidating behaviors that maximize psychological distress.

Government Awareness

The military response following Matthew's encounter raises significant questions about official knowledge of these phenomena. Key observations include:

Timing: Military forces arrived at approximately 6:30 AM, just hours after the encounter
Resources deployed: Multiple military trucks, two armored vehicles, soldiers with sniper rifles
Aggressive response: Use of submachine guns and live ammunition in a non-military zone
Secrecy: The colonel's stern insistence that this was a "secret operation"

This swift and substantial military response in the exact location where Matthew reported seeing the creature strongly suggests prior awareness of these entities. The colonel's dismissive attitude toward a former French Foreign Legion lieutenant indicates the sensitivity of the operation. The question remains whether the military was attempting to eliminate the creature for public safety or to suppress evidence of its existence. The coordinated nature of the response suggests established protocols for dealing with such entities rather than an impromptu reaction to a random sighting.

Uncovering the Mystery of the French Forest Creature

The 1987 encounter in Deray Ponte Clay, France stands as a remarkable example of cryptid phenomena. Matthew's nighttime pursuit by an unidentified bipedal creature offers several intriguing patterns seen in similar accounts. This seven-and-a-half-foot tall entity demonstrated intelligence through its stalking behavior, stopping when Matthew paused and maintaining consistent observation throughout the pursuit.

Physical characteristics of the creature included vertical-pupiled red eyes, an elongated wolf/bear-like head, gray-black hair, and clawed appendages. Its ability to shift between bipedal and quadrupedal movement suggests an adaptability that defies conventional animal classification. The white slime dripping from its mouth indicates potential predatory intent, raising questions about its dietary habits and hunting behaviors.

Most fascinating is the creature's apparent inability or unwillingness to cross onto the road. This behavioral constraint aligns with documented patterns of supernatural entities being restricted by certain boundaries. Despite demonstrating the strength to tear through fencing, the creature remained constrained to the forest side.

The military response the following morning adds another layer to this mystery. Their presence with armored vehicles, soldiers, and live ammunition in the exact location of the sighting suggests official awareness of such creatures. When questioned, the commanding officer's dismissive "secret operation" claim only strengthens the possibility of governmental knowledge about these entities.

This case raises fundamental questions about cryptid nature. Was the creature hunting Matthew for physical sustenance, or was it feeding on his fear? Did it represent a natural undiscovered species or something more paranormal? The military's rapid response indicates they considered it a significant threat or secret requiring containment.

The Deray Ponte Clay incident serves as a compelling data point in cryptid research, combining elements of predatory behavior, supernatural boundaries, and potential governmental knowledge of these mysterious beings.

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