Episode 2 - Portlock Alaska: Killer Bigfoot

Portlock is an abandoned town in Port Chatham Bay on the Southern end of the Kenai Peninsula inSouth central Alaska. It was named after British Royal Navy Captain Nathanial Portlock who landed therein 1787.The Aleut people had inhabited the area for centuries, and it’s known for its abundant salmon runs andmineral resources including gold, chromium and copper.A cannery was established around 1900 to take advantage of the fisheries. Also mining operations wereestablished in the area. As well as a US post office which was opened in 1921.The first recorded reports of strange occurrences started in 1905. It was reported that all of the canneryworkers left their jobs due to something mysterious that was “bothering” the camp. The canneryworkers returned the next season, but unexplained events were continually reported.In the 1920s, a man by the name of Albert Petka supposedly scared off a hairy creature with his dogs,but not before receiving a fatal blow to the chest. According to the stories, Petka survived to explainwhat happened, but died of his wounds soon after. There are also reports of prospectors and huntersgoing missing frequently to the point that it became commonplace. Their bodies were allegedly found ina creek as if their limbs had been ripped apart. In 1931, a logger named Andrew Kamluk was out working when someone or something hit him over thehead with a huge piece of logging equipment. Something that was too large for a man to lift. His bodywas found 10 feet from the piece of equipment, so it made no sense that he could have slipped and hithis own head on it.One group hunting a moose reported finding giant footprints also stalking the same animal. They arrivedat the site of a bloody battle and no moose was found. Only torn branches, blood, and footprints over18 inches long headed from that spot up into the foggy mountains.A local man named Tom Larsen went to chop wood for fish traps and saw something large and hairy onthe beach. He ran home to get his rifle and when he returned it was still there but now he could see itwas standing on two legs and just staring at him. Tom retreated and never explained why he didn’t fireon it.The local native population referred to the creature as Nantinaq. Which in their Alutiiq language meanshalf man, half beast.Other villagers spoke of a woman in a long black dress with a pale face who would appear from thecliffs. She would moan and scream, then disappear back into the cliff face.Bodies that were recovered, having washed down the rivers into the lagoon, had strange wounds nobear could make. The loss of these lives took a toll on the small community and fear set in. Peoplestarted to leave. With unexplained disappearances and murders, no one felt they could take a chanceand continue to live here.The residents took off en masse in 1949, abandoning their houses, the chromium mine, the cannery, andthe school house to return to nearby Port Graham and Nanwelak.Only the postmaster remained. After a year alone, the post office closed in 1950 and the last resident ofPortlock left town. Even the postmaster couldn’t continue on in this town. After over 50 years ofhauntings, murders, and disappearances the townspeople gave in and left.People continued to return over the years for hunting expeditions. In 1968, a goat hunter reportedbeing chased by a creature while hunting in the area. In 1973, three hunters took shelter in Portlockduring a three day storm and claimed that each night something on two legs was walking around theretent. In 1990, an Anchorage paramedic was called to aid a 70 year old native man and former Portlockresident who had suffered a heart attack. While treating the...