‘Australia’s Bigfoot’ watched over the small town of Kilcoy for decades. Then one day, it disappeared

The small town of Kilcoy is not the site of the first, or even the most recent, “Yowie” sighting. And hunters of Australia’s version of Bigfoot are no more likely to see it there than anywhere else in the country’s vast, rugged bushland.

Yet, for decades, a vacant-eyed replica of a towering, hairy beast has stared into the distance from a plinth in the center of town.

It’s a monument to an astonishing encounter almost 45 years ago, one that Tony Solano says he’ll never forget.

“To this day, I am still convinced. Take it to my grave,” said Solano, who hasn’t spoken in any detail about what happened for 20 years.