For my final post, I decided to write about something that I think relates a lot to the myths and stories we’ve discussed in class, and something that I personally find very interesting, and that is the legend of Bigfoot. Bigfoot, Sasquatch, Yeti, Skunk Ape, or whatever other name it goes by has been a tall tale that has gripped people’s fascinations for generations, similar to that of the witch. Almost every region of the world has a similar story of a giant ape-like creature that walks on two legs and has managed to elude humanity for as long as history can tell. Bigfoot has sprung an entire industry around it’s mysticism, with books, movies, museums, TV shows, and an entire community of bigfoot hunters just to name a few. As a kid, one of my favorite shows was Finding Bigfoot, on Animal Planet, where a group of four “squatchers” traveled around the world listening to first-hand accounts of bigfoot encounters and then conducting nighttime investigations in the woods to find this creature. In fact, in the show we learn of an organization called the Bigfoot Research Organization (BFRO), which has thousands of members across the world. Looking back on it, it was purely entertainment value, but nonetheless, the legend gripped me. I have actually been to the self-proclaimed “world’s largest Bigfoot museum” in the Blue Ridge Mountains, and I must say people do truly believe and dedicate their lives to finding Sasquatch.
Below is a trail camera shot of a supposed juvenile Bigfoot. No evidence has been presented to debunk it.
The legend of Sasquatch started to grip the nation in 1967 where two wildlife filmmakers, Roger Patterson and Bob Gimlin, filmed perhaps the most iconic video of a supposed Bigfoot in Willow Creek, California. The footage shows a massive ape-like being walking at a breakneck pace with a stride that few humans can replicate and arms longer than anything known. The creature then turns to look directly at the camera, revealing a pair of breasts, indicate it was a female. It then takes off into the woods. The footage was shocking to the nation and sprung an entire industry around the creature. Hundreds of different attempts have been made to debunk the film as a man wearing a very intricate suit, but people still choose to believe it is real. Since then, thousands upon thousands of people have come forward with footage, photos, and eye-witness accounts of the creature. Despite all of this, the legend of Sasquatch dates back centuries. Native Americans all have tales of a man-ape who lives in the woods. Differing tribes depicted this creature as a scary force of nature, while others viewed it as a wise protector of the forest. In Tibet and Nepal, the tale of the Yeti is guarded my monks who worship the creature and view it as the guardian of the Himalayas. In Indonesia, the Orang Pendek is a demigod who walks the forest and is a man-ape who plays in its jungle home. In Australia, the Yowie roams the outback and has preyed upon livestock for centuries. The list goes on. Since the Bigfoot boom in the 60s, the tale of Bigfoot didn’t just create an industry of squatchers who seriously camp for weeks, mimic the rumored calls of the beast, and set up intricate systems of traps and cameras to prove its existence, but it also created a community of scientists who aim to discover if there is any truth to this creature. Many cases of Bigfoot sightings are easily written off as hoaxes and sometimes video evidence is easily debunked. However, there are cases where common sense cannot solve the mystery. There are multiple theories in the scientific community on whether or not this creature is true. The most popular, obviously, is that the creature is simply a legend and any sightings are hoaxes. This would make sense too largely because of the obviously claim that if it was real, why have we not found a dead body of a Bigfoot across its massive range. The only explanation as to why we haven’t is that Bigfoot actually bury its dead, and this behavior is not uncommon in mammals, with elephants and other apes having been observed doing this. Another theory is that Bigfoot is a descendent of the giant ape from the Ice Age called Gigantopithecus. This creature lived in Southeast Asia, which would explain the legends in Australia, Indonesia, and the Himalayas. Fossil evidence indicates that it moved like a gorilla on all fours and feasted on mammals and fruits. The theory is that like ancient hominids, this massive ape traveled across the Bering Land Bridge to make home in North America and since evolved into Bigfoot. Scientists do note that it is highly unlikely that an animal of its size would be unable to develop a bipedal walk in the time between its extinction and now. The last theory, and one I find most interesting, is the theory that Bigfoot is not a massive ape, but rather an ancient hominid species who has been cut off from society. This theory is certainly interesting and there is solid evidence behind it. In Central Asia, there have been true, documented cases of “wild people” being found and exhibiting ape-like behavior. Testing has been done on these people and they have found strong traces of Neanderthal DNA, which is supposedly extinct. Whatever the theory may be, Bigfoot certainly has fascinated me and the excitement of now knowing the truth is something that will interest people for generations. If people truly didn’t care, then why does there exists literal laws in most West Coast states against the poaching of Bigfoots (true fact). Witches, Bigfoot, vampires, werewolves, and the like will always be a mainstay in society. They provide a necessary fear of the unknown and provide explanations of the inexplicable. Whatever the truth may be, these legends are worthy of study, not just to see if they are true, but rather how they affect society. That is one of the things this class has taught me: explore the unknown because you never know what you may find.
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