Investigator Surrounded by Dogman Pack in Michigan's Hiawatha Forest

Posted Saturday, August 08, 2026

By Squatchable.com staff

Came across a video recently that genuinely gave me chills. A researcher who runs the YouTube channel "Small park. Big Sasquatch. Adventures & Discovery" posted footage from a solo trip into Michigan's Hiawatha National Forest, and the encounters described are the kind that make you pause whatever you're doing and pay attention. The video documents a journey into one of the most cryptid-rich regions in the entire Midwest. Hiawatha National Forest sprawls across nearly a million acres in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, a landscape that's been a magnet for Sasquatch and Dogman sightings for generations. The terrain is dense, ancient, and remote, exactly the kind of environment where the unknown tends to stay unknown. The researcher describes crossing the Mackinac Bridge, that iconic five-mile span connecting Michigan's two peninsulas, as a kind of threshold moment. There's something about the Upper Peninsula that does that to people. The isolation, the vast stretches of unbroken forest, the sense that you're entering a place where the normal rules don't quite apply. Many researchers and witnesses have described that same feeling crossing into the UP. It's like the land itself is testing you before it decides what to show you. Once deep in the forest, things escalated quickly. The researcher claims to have spotted a Sasquatch standing motionless in the undergrowth, watching from the brush with unmistakable head and shoulders visible. They got it on camera. But that's only the opening act of what this video describes. What happened next is what makes this footage stand out from the countless other field reports out there. Multiple black figures, described as Dogman, began moving through the trees on both sides of the researcher. Not random forest sounds. Coordinated. Deliberate. Flanking movement, keeping pace, keeping distance. The researcher describes realizing they were completely surrounded, yet felt no fear because they chose to show respect, and the creatures responded in kind. The researcher mentions being a "Sasquatch magnet" their whole life, which suggests a long history of encounters leading up to this moment. They emphasize that these beings read your energy, that they know fear, and they know respect. It's a perspective shared by many longtime witnesses in the Sasquatch research community. The idea that these creatures respond to intention rather than aggression has been echoed by hunters, hikers, and researchers for decades. Hiawatha National Forest has long been considered prime territory for encounters. The combination of dense canopy, remote backcountry, and proximity to the Great Lakes creates an environment where sightings have been reported consistently over the years. Dogman, in particular, has a strong presence in Michigan folklore, with countless witness accounts describing bipedal canine figures moving through the woods with unsettling intelligence. Many researchers consider the UP one of the strongest zones in the country for both Sasquatch and Dogman activity, and the two are often reported in the same regions. The footage and the detailed firsthand account make this a must-watch for anyone following Sasquatch research, Dogman investigations, or Midwest cryptid activity. The researcher promises more is coming, teasing that what happened in Hiawatha is only the beginning of what they captured in those ancient Michigan woods. Definitely worth checking out the full video for the complete account.