That's a big foot, but is it Bigfoot?

GEORGE HILDEBRAND - Elbert Lowman of George Hildebrand said he discovered a large footprint in the middle of a tractor path on land that his brother owns near George Hildebrand Elementary School off N.C. 18.

Is it Bigfoot's?

The June 6 discovery in southeastern Burke County comes on the heels of a possible Bigfoot sighting in nearby Casar in Cleveland County.

The footprint Lowman discovered measured 8 inches across from toe to toe and 15.25 inches long, he said.

Timothy Peeler of Casar made waves in the news earlier this week when he claimed to see on June 5 the man-beast in the South Mountain area. Casar is about 16 miles from George Hildebrand.

Lowman said he was accompanying a boy from the neighborhood to identify raccoon tracks when he noticed the larger-than-normal footprint.

"Oh my gosh, what in the world is this," Lowman remembered thinking. "I ain't seen nothing like this."

Lowman said he usually rides his son's four-wheeler on the tractor path and probably would never have noticed the footprint.

"It was made like a human foot, but it was so much bigger," Lowman said. "It even had the arch, and the toenails were up in the mud.

"As far as what made it, I don't know. It was no animal track ... Something huge made it."

Lowman said the neighborhood boy "took off flying" so he went back and told his wife about the footprint. They covered it with a tin tub so Lowman could show it to others.

Lowman and his brother contacted Rex Allen Theater Presents, a local television show that highlights events in the area and a team went out to look into the footprint.

Rex Lail, the show's cameraman, said the show wanted to find out if the footprint was real or not, so they headed to the site.

Lail said the team captured video footage of the footprint on June 9 and within 12 hours had made a plaster cast of the footprint.

Lowman said the process of making the plaster cast destroyed the footprint, although a few of the toe prints are still visible.

Lail said the footprint was perpendicular to the 10-foot wide pathway, and whatever made it only left one footprint.

And his first impression of the footprint?

"Somebody's done a good job faking this footprint," Lail said.

The men invited North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission District 8 Biologist Daniel Ray to come inspect the footprint. He did and told Lail he was "perplexed" and did not know what made it, Lail said. Ray was not available for comment.

"The more we try to disprove it, the more we find," Lail said. Then the news came out about the sighting in Casar and the men decided to come forward with their evidence.

Joe Hartman, an associate of Lail's, said there isn't evidence either way to clearly indicate if the footprint is real or a hoax.

Lail said, "I still ain't convinced it's not a fake."

Lowman said, "I don't see why it'd be fake. I don't know why if it was fake if anybody would go to that much trouble."

Lail said the plaster cast would be on display beginning Saturday at Bows and Ballistics, 8360 Old N.C. 10.

The show will feature their video footage during their timeslot 9 p.m. July 6 on WHKY-TV.