Ten years later, revisiting the first story on Weird Fresno

Ten years ago today I started something new. At that time Facebook wasn't the juggernaut it is today and Twitter was just taking off. Myspace still reined the interwebs and it seemed everyone and their mother had a blog, and Fresno was no exception. Inspired by the numerous blogs that were popping up I decided to create one about one of my biggest passions. The paranormal.

I didn't really know how to write then (some say I still don't) nor did I know how to research and my main source of any legend was the internet. Still I had something no one else did and little did I know how big it would get. So in honor of ten years of crazy weird things I wanted to revisit my first story. The Watts Valley Wolf Ape.

Before I get into the main sighting, and were the creature got it's name, a brief history of the legend of the creature is in order.

There are legends of the creature coming over the Bearing Straight when the first Native Americans migrated to this land and even coexisted with them and cave drawings that were found depicted a strange creature with long grey hair with an ape like face and human-like hands and feet. It also seemed to be always sick looking, coughing and foaming at the mouth for some reason. Legend calls it the Devil Ape or Devil Fang but with the last recorded sighting it started being called the Watts Valley Wolf Ape, named after where it was seen.

The first known sighting in the twentieth century was by the legendary photographer Ansel Adams. He was visiting Yosemite and while camping a pack of the creatures came upon his tent. Alone and terrified he stayed until they finally went away. 

Another, more terrifying story involves a lone creature entering a single room school house in the southern part of the valley (rumored to be near Hanford) and began harassing the students and teacher. To protect themselves the students piled up their desks and climbed to the safety of the rafters. The teacher was able to lock themselves safely in a nearby closet. Apparently the creature had smelled the children's lunches and tore through the desks to get them. When it finally had it's fill, it left. 

One of my favorite stories tells the tale of a local preacher that shot one of the creatures some time in the 1950's claiming it to be a "pet of Satan". He hung it up on the church walls. For several weeks it hung until the smell became too much. The preacher was able to sell it to a traveling circus. Here's the creepy part. With the money he made he went up to San Francisco dreaming of starting his own church up there. Sadly his dreams were not meant to be and he was murdered soon after arriving. His body was so badly disfigured that it took months to identify him. People whispered he was cursed for killing the creature.

Not much more was seen of the creature. A long haired creature was seen at Bass Lake in the 1990's. This could have been a bigfoot sighting (which is no less incredible) but the creature was said to walk on all fours, which was one of it's main characteristics. 



So I have to say that I heard this story on the radio (RIP KRZR 103.7) and was unable to find out who the witness was. I was able to write down most of the story and reconstruct it. I fixed the structure of the story so it reads better but it still is the same.


The most recent and detailed story was recanted on a local Fresno radio station. There were two witnesses, a man and his uncle, who were hunting for garnets near Watts Valley Cemetery when a strange looking creature came out of the bushes. The creature was described as six foot long, grey mangy hair and dog like with a face like a baboon and with eyes that were flat on its face like a human’s. It opened its mouth but only a moan escaped and then made a strange sound like a cough. Both witnesses began to run from the creature as it began to chase after them. For some reason the man threw his lunch at the creature but this only stopped it momentarily. It continued to chase them over the hills and the two witnesses jumped over fence after fence and ran through pastures trying to escape the creature. Cows fled as it chased the two men. Finally they found themselves in the Watts Valley Cemetery and hid behind several tombstones, hoping to lose the beast. Unfortunately it caught their scent and started to come towards them when, in a moment of genius, the uncle threw some cinnamon flavored chewing gum near the beast hoping the scent would distract it. It worked and the beast was momentarily occupied. Soon after that a caretaker for the small cemetery arrived and offered to give the two men a ride back to their car several miles away. All three watched the strange creature for a few more minutes in the safety of the caretaker’s truck before it went away.



The question remains, even after ten years, is what was this? Crazed dog, bigfoot, werewolf, or some freak genetic experiment run amok have all been theorized. I wish I knew. If the story is true then whatever they saw was terrifying. But I have to ask this: why haven't there been any more sightings since? If the history of the creature has even a kernel of truth to it you think there would have been more sighting since. I've never been to Watts Valley, though I do know the area. Part of me wants to take a trip up there one weekend and visit. I just have to make sure I bring some cinnamon gum to protect myself.


So that was my first story, pretty much how I originally told it. Just fixed up the grammar and structure a bit to let it read better. I can't believe I've been doing this for ten years now. I've wrote about everything from crazy things at Lost Lake, giant catfish at Millerton, UFO sightings all over Fresno, to ghosts haunting some of Fresno's most historic locations. Not sure what the next ten years will be but I can't wait to see what it will be. Thank you to everyone who has read one of my stories over the years. It truly means a lot.

Does the ghost of a murdered girl haunt an oak tree near Sanger?

A reader shared this with me last week about a weird encounter that happened to his cousin outside of Sanger late one night. This is what he sent me:

"Alright so here's a true story that happened to my cousin. He's about 14 years older than me, I'm 35. This happened to him in the early 90's. He was going to college and was working graveyard part time at one of those convenient gas stations that's open 24 hours. He lives in Parlier but he used to work that job in Sanger. This happened one night in the winter. He got off around 1 in the morning and he would take Newmark to get from Sanger to Parlier. He was driving and it was foggy so he was going slow. He was going down Newmark when he sees what looks like a young girl walking down the side of the road. My cousin is genuinely a good guy, a good Samaritan type. He pulls over and lowers the window and asks "hey did you need a ride" the girl keeps walking and doesn't even turn around. He tries one last time, and he asks again "are you okay, do you need a ride." He said he turned the light on in his car for whatever reason, but after he asked that 2nd time, she poked her head in the car and repeated verbatim what he asked her. He said she had the ugliest face ever, like someone over did it or got crazy with black make up. After she spoke she started laughing and he said that laugh sent shivers down his spine. He freaked out and sped off. He said after that he NEVER took Newmark to get home when he was getting off late." 

Creepy story to say the least and it reminds me of the stories I've heard that happened on Channel Road. Talking to the person some more they told me of a local Sanger story of a young girl that was supposedly raped and killed by an oak tree on Newmark and Central and haunts the road where she was killed. He thinks this is what his cousin saw driving on Newmark late that one night.

The oak tree in question. Just south of Newmark and Central.

Looking at a map I saw this was very close to Snake Road. I'm still researching this story, but if it's true could this be the actual origin for the Snake Road ghost? Granted they are very different stories, but is it more than just coincidence that two haunts are near each other? I've already been on record saying that I think the Snake Road story is nothing more than a retelling of La Llorona. But I've witnessed weird things on that road and know others who have as well. Could the things I and others have witnessed actually be this poor woman haunting the area and people used her story to spin a cautionary tale for Snake Road? Or is Sanger cursed with two ghosts that both share tragic, but different tales?

Murdered prostitute said to haunt old Sanger bar where she was killed

On May 16, 1993 one of the worst massacres in the history of Fresno County occurred on the outskirts of the town of Sanger at a little bar called Carrillo's Club. It was after 2:00 am and the bar had just closed when two men armed with semi-automatic weapons entered the bar and opened fire on. When it was over a total of seven people were dead including the owner, his mother, his half-brother, a friend, and three employees. For years the murders remained unsolved until an inmate that was already serving time for another murder in Fresno County, a Johnnie Malarkey, admitted the being one of the two gunmen (the other, a Allen Helfin, committed suicide in 1998). Upon his admission the case was closed and he is currently serving several life imprisonments for the crimes he committed.

The murders aren't the only sordid history that Carrillo's Club was a part of. For years the place was rumored to be a hub for drug trafficking and prostitution and was well known for being a scene of rapes, stabbings, and numerous shootings. Given the fact that it was on the outskirts of Sanger it fell into a grey area of jurisdiction between the city and Fresno County as to who had authority over it. The murders were the finally grisly act in a place steeped in a history or illicit activity.

Even though the bar is no longer around, it seems one of its former patrons ghostly form has been seen near the old location. Many witnesses have seen the ghost of a young woman walking down the road in the direction of Fresno. She's usually only seen for an instant before she disappears. Interesting enough it's thought she isn't one of the victims from the 1993 shootings, but was a prostitute that was murdered there years ago. For whatever reason she continues to walk down the road, perhaps still trying to get home.

Is the old Sanger High School haunted by a pair of star crossed lovers?

Apparently schools are a popular haunting spot for star crossed lovers. There's a story that the old Sanger High School (now the Washington Academic Middle School) has a pair of ghosts that haunt its theater area. Sometime in the 1990's there was a young couple madly in love like only teenagers could be. The girl's parents were very strict and she hid the fact that she had a boyfriend from them for several months as she knew they would not have approved. One day her mother finally found about the boyfriend and demanded the daughter break up with him immediately and never see him again. Defying her mother and apparently taking inspiration from Romeo and Juliet, she met her boyfriend at the high school and both committed suicide in the theater by hanging themselves.

Why they chose the theater to take their lives is never said. Perhaps it was their favorite place to spend time, or maybe they met there and it held a special place in their heart. What is known is that both ghosts have been seen in the theater since their deaths. The girl is usually seen on the second floor near the area where the balcony used to be located. A more gruesome vision of her has also been seen hanging from a rope in front of the stage. As for her boyfriend, he is usually seen near the main entrance to the theater. No one knows why he is seen here, some think he may be waiting for his love for some unknown reason.

Now whether this story has any merit to it or not is hard to say. Someone e-mailed me the story, saying they had heard it when they went to the old high school. I did the obligatory internet searches, but it's not like Google is going to find me a website with this story on it (well I guess it will now once their bots scan this page). Hopefully someone reading this will know something and it will be able to add to the story. Still an interesting story and adds yet another legend to the area.

Small cemetery north of Sanger said to be haunted

The Del Rey Cemetery, just north of Sanger

Photo courtesy of Google Maps/Streetview.

There have been stories for years that the Del Rey Cemetery, a small rural cemetery located just north of Sanger, is haunted.

Witnesses have reported seeing a strange glow emanating from one of the tombstones late at night. Others have reported seeing shadowy figures darting among the trees and others have even said they heard disembodied voices whispering. Others claim they would hear strange moaning sounds with no visible source. Several paranormal investigators have investigated the cemetery and have claimed to measure cold spots and record high EMF readings.

Now normally I'm not one to believe every cemetery has paranormal activity, but I've heard these stories from several different sources and it makes me wonder if there is any truth behind it. True, with the advent of the internet age it's a lot easier for a story to spread and grow. But I heard this story when I first started researching paranormal spots in the valley and the internet wasn't as prolific as it is now. So is there any truth to the stories here or is it just another urban legend? Hard to say really, but it's yet another little piece of the strange in the Central Valley that most people probably aren't aware of.

Return to Snake Road

Last Saturday night I was bored and itching to do a bit of ghost hunting so I decided I'd take a drive to Channel, or Snake Road, in Sanger (which is in the eastern part of Fresno County) as it had been a couple of years since I had been there and I wanted to shoot some video for the website. Now normally I wouldn't advise anyone to go alone, so I let a few people know where I was at in case something happened.

For those who don't know the legend, basically it says that a woman and her two children were driving down the very windy road (this is where it gets the nickname Snake Road) and she took a turn too fast and drove off into the river. She was unable to get out of the car and drowned there. Her two children were able to get out, but they drowned downstream. Supposedly the mother wanders up and down the road at night looking for her two children. I did a more lengthy post here, explaining how I felt it was more urban legend than anything else. Still I wanted to check it out.

I left the apartment with both cameras fully charged. But when I got there, my video camera was nearly drained and had maybe four minutes left on it. I have no idea what caused this, but I have been on investigations before where electronic's would suffer battery drain similar to this when there was paranormal activity around.

Still I was able to shoot this bit of video. I apologize for the first part as it's pitch black, even with the night vision turned on. I decided to leave it in as you can hear the confusion in my voice regarding the battery drain. The latter part is me driving down the road as I wanted to show how windy it actually was.

I don't know what caused the battery drain. I did check my camera the next day after recharging it and there were no problems (even used it that night with no problems). Maybe the charge didn't take for some reason. Or maybe there was something out there that didn't want me filming. I think a second trip may be warranted in the near future.

Ghost of little boy haunts Sanger residence

Is one of these houses on Acacia Drive in Sanger haunted by the

ghost of a little boy killed years ago?

In the small town of Sanger, located in Fresno County, there is a legend of a small boy's ghost that has been around for several decades. The stories goes that sometime in the mid 1900's, a young orphan boy was caught trying to steal a freshly baked pie that was cooling on a window sill of a local farmer's house. When the boy ran off with the pie, the farmer chased after him. The boy was finally caught on what is now Acacia Drive and was shot and killed while begging for his life.

Over the years people have reported seeing a young boy in one of the residences on Acacia Drive (for privacy I'm not going to reveal the address) begging for his life. Food missing from the refrigator have also been reported. Apparently this story is rather common in Sanger. A very good friend of mine used to work for the Sanger police department and was telling me a few of the local ghost stories (one he told me scared the hell out of me, but I'll save that for another day). He starts to tell me about the ghost of a little boy who keeps stealing food from these people's refrigator of someone that he knows. I ask him if the house is on Acacia Drive and he looks at me suprised and says yes. I told him about the story that's been around for years and was suprised that there may be a kernel of truth to it.

I asked my friend if it would be possible to meet with the people who live at the house to see what is going on. Unfortunately I never did get the chance to go there as he switched jobs soon after. But I still think about the ghost of that poor little boy still stealing food all these years later, and apparently he has never learned his lesson.

The Legend of Snake Road

Located in eastern Fresno County is the small farming community of Sanger. South of this small town is a street called Channel Road. Due to it's windy nature it has been nicknamed "Snake Road".

Legend has it that one night a woman was driving down Snake Road with her two young daughters, when she took one of the many curves of the road too fast and drove off the road and wound up crashing her car into the nearby Kings River. Unfortunately she was unable to unbuckle her seat belt and drowned at the site of the accident. Her children were able get free of the car, but the drowned a mile downstream. There have been reports of a woman crying and dressed in white walking down the windy road calling out to her lost children and if anyone approaches her she asks them if they have seen her children.

I had first heard of this story back in 2000, so one night several friends and I went to investigate the road for ourselves. Upon arriving at the road, we found it's nickname held true as the road was curved so much that the fastest we could go at a safe speed was 25 mph. We drove the road twice, hoping we would get lucky and actually see the woman, but we didn't see anything. Not sure what to do next, we decided to investigate a wooded part of the road at one of the curves hoping this could have been the location of the accident.

We entered the wooded area armed with flashlights, cameras, a camcorder, and an EMF detector. For those who don't know an EMF meter detects changes in the electromagnetic field. There is a theory that ghosts can effect this field in some manner and the detector can show this. We were about twenty feet from the road, completely surrounded by trees when we started hearing footsteps behind us. They would follow us as we were walking but stop when we did. We called out to see if anyone was there, but got no answer. We continued to walk and the footsteps would continue. At this point we saw a strange light flashing in the distance and the EMF meter went off, signaling something was disrupting the magnetic field. We started snapping pictures, but all we got were the typical dust orbs.

At this point we weren't sure who or what was following us. We had come across a sign that said "Y2K Trail" with an arrow pointing towards an opening. So we weren't sure if it was some survivalist nut following us or the lady in white. We felt it was best we get out of there and proceeded to go back to our car. And to cap off a strange night, right at that moment a car sped by us at a fast pace and nearly drove off the road. Needless to say we got the hell out of there.

For several years I believed the story of Snake Road. That was until I came across a piece of Mexican folklore about a lady in white, or La Llorana. The story of her is similar to the one I heard about Snake Road. But this time the woman drowns her children and then distraught drowns herself. She can be seen walking the area where she drowned her children, crying and searching for her children. If anyone approaches the woman she proceeds to drown them as well.

Apparently this story is common throughout the southwest of America and even the Fresno area has another story similar to the Snake Road one. This time it's located on the San Joaquin River on the near the bridge for Hwy. 99. So now we have the same ghost haunting two locations. From what I read about La Llorona is that people would tell the story to prevent their children from going near bodies of water, presumably to keep them from entering the water and drowning.

But what was the strange light I saw that night? And what about the footsteps that were following us? Was it nothing more than some survivalist following us? Or was this story of the lady in white actually true? I may never know.