Missouri BFRO Investigator Shares Mysterious Group Sit Encounter on Podcast

There's something about a firsthand account from a BFRO investigator that just hits differently. When the person telling the story has actually been out in the woods, sat in the dark, and experienced something they can't explain, it carries weight that secondhand reports just don't have. That's exactly what makes this episode of The Cryptid Profiler worth your time. Host Dano sits down with Maryanne Zabel, a BFRO investigator out of Missouri, and the conversation gets into some genuinely fascinating territory. Before diving into the meat of her story, they chat about the brutal winter weather hitting the Midwest at the time, which actually leads to an interesting tangent about what Sasquatch might be doing during extreme cold. Maryanne makes a solid point, if deer and other wildlife hunker down during severe weather, why wouldn't something more intelligent do the same? Caves, abandoned structures, natural shelter, it all tracks with how these creatures are believed to operate during harsh conditions. But the real gem of this episode is Maryanne's origin story and her first BFRO expedition back in 2019. She's been fascinated with cryptids since childhood, spending summers in the library reading about Bigfoot and Loch Ness Monster when other kids were reading, well, normal stuff. A co-worker eventually tipped her off to BFRO's presence in Missouri, and she jumped in with both feet. Her husband's reaction when she announced they were going Bigfoot hunting? Priceless. The kids thought she'd lost her mind. But she went anyway, and what happened on that first night out is the kind of story that keeps people coming back to this subject. Here's where it gets really good. Maryanne describes being part of a group of ten people sitting in a circle in the woods, just listening. The lead investigator had taken the newbies to a spot with a history of activity. Everyone's settling in, staying quiet, doing what you do on these expeditions. Then someone starts counting heads. Ten people in the circle. But the count comes back as eleven. The discussion cuts off right at that moment, which is honestly frustrating because you want to hear what happened next. Did anyone move? Did anyone speak up? Did the group just sit there frozen? These are the kinds of details that make or break a story like this, and Maryanne, as a trained investigator, would have been paying attention to every single one of them. What I love about accounts like this is the simplicity of it. No fancy equipment, no elaborate setup. Just people in the woods, paying attention, and something showing up that doesn't belong there. The "phantom eleventh person" is a recurring theme in Sasquatch reports, and when it comes from someone with field experience and investigative training, it adds another layer to the phenomenon. If you're into expedition stories, investigator perspectives, or just enjoy hearing how people get pulled into this world, this episode is a solid listen. Maryanne comes across as genuine, grounded, and clearly passionate about the subject. And that moment in the woods? That's the kind of thing that turns casual curiosity into a lifelong pursuit. Worth checking out.