i09's 5 Strangest Sasquatch Theories

We love i09.com. They appeal to our inner geek and have done great things for digital art. With that said, we have a couple of issues with a recent article from i09.com.

One, we don't like the dismissive tone regarding Bigfoot. Second, while there is some good research and citing done for this article, there are some other great theories that we believe should have made their list.Descendant of Cain, Government grizzly/Human hybrid experiments. Heck some are even saying Bigfoot doesn't even mean Bigfoot anymore.

Below are all five theories provided by i09.com

There may not be actual giant bipedal humanoids wandering the wilderness, but that hasn't stopped Bigfoot fanatics from coming up with some seriously weird theories explaining all those footprints and blurry videos.

While Bigfoot seems like a North American phenomenon, there are tales of giant wildmen around the world, from the Tibetan Yeti to the Australian Yowie and Siberia's Chunchunya. Could these creatures really be endemic worldwide? Or is there some deep part of the human psyche that peers into the wilderness and sees not something alien, but rather a horrifying reflection of what we could have been (and might still be) without the thin veneer of "civilization" we've wrapped ourselves in?

Or maybe we're actually seeing invisible, telepathic, hypnotic otherdimensional aliens.

Here are the five weirdest theories of what's really going on when people report a Bigfoot sighting.

Theory One: Bigfoot represents a lost species of hominid.
On the surface, this theory doesn't seem that crazy. The deep forests and remote mountains of the world could hide a few evolutionary offshoots. It's a lot harder to hide a sustainable population, though. Within a single habitat, any population below about 500 would be considered severely endangered. While it is technically possible such populations of large primates could exist in several places throughout North America and have escaped detection (no confirmed carcasses, bones, scat, or abandoned nests), it is incredibly unlikely. And trying to explain away the scientific implausibility of this theory gives rise to the increasingly arcane theories that follow.

Theory Two: Bigfoot is a Native American nature spirit.
I know it's culturally insensitive to include this on a list of "bizarre" theories, but cloaking an idea in religion or tradition doesn't make it any less ridiculous. In an early issue of the Bigfoot newsletter The Track Record, Gayle Highpine surveyed the various attitudes of North American tribes toward Bigfoot. Lakota, Dakota and Ojibway consider him a spirit guide and harbinger who brings "signs or messages that there is a need to change, a need to cleanse." One Dakota tribe member told a local newspaper, "They exist in another dimension from us, but can appear in this dimension whenever they have a reason to."

Highpine also alludes to a common Bigfoot theme – psychic powers:

The existence of Bigfoot is taken for granted throughout Native North America, and so are his powerful psychic abilities. [Native elders] say that Bigfoot knows when humans are searching for him and that he chooses when and to whom to make an appearance, and that his psychic powers account for his ability to elude the white man's efforts to capture him or hunt him down.
In the 2002 documentary Bigfootville, Native Americans in Oklahoma claimed that Bigfoot could be standing right in front of you, but he could make you not see him with his "magic hypnosis powers."

Theory Three: Bigfoot is an alien creature.
At some point, researchers started noticing that Bigfoot sightings often seemed to be accompanied by strange lights in the sky. The conclusion: Bigfoot is so hard to find because he arrives on his spaceship, makes some footprints, then flies back home. There's more to it than just a vague statistical connection, though. Sometimes Bigfoot seems to be under the control of some other species of alien. In a 1997 interview with Big Foot Encounters, researcher Peter Gutilla related the following story about a rural Seattle man's experience:

Under hypnosis he told of watching two UFOnauts descend from beneath a huge hovering disk-shaped UFO and walk casually into the woods followed by a tall, hair-covered ape-like creature that seemed subservient to them. For weeks preceding the experience the witness said he was often roused at night by a loud whirring noise that originated in the sky above trees near his home. Neighbors also heard the sound which was recorded on tape, and in one of the recordings a high-pitched wailing cry can be heard behind the drone of the sound-maker.

Theory Four: Bigfoot is an invisible psychic monster from another dimension.
Some Bigfoot sightings have been accompanied not by lights in the sky, but rather weird flashes of light in the woods. Also, sometimes his massive footprints just end, as if he was walking along and just disappeared. Some people even claim to have seen a Bigfoot vanish into thin air. Therefore, he must be warping in and out of our dimension.

John Cotton, vice president of the Canadian Society of Questers, in a 1997 news article in Utah's Deseret News, described Bigfoot as a "hairy angel" who comes to our dimension to impart some kind of vital knowledge to shamans. The subject of the article was a man named Ron Mower, who claimed to have seen otherdimensional Bigfoot nine times. He warned that there were good and evil Bigfoots, but they are helpfully color-coded – the bad ones have red eyes. Mower also believed that Bigfoot had teleported himself to Mower's home to stalk him there.

It gets better though. So much better. A story posted to Cryptomundo in 2007 made astonishing claims about government research on otherdimensional Bigfoot. You should really go read the whole post, but in summary: In the 60s and 70s, Livermore Labs and UC Berkeley captured a pair of Bigfoots, but they escaped through the 4th dimension and wandered the lab for weeks invisibly, scaring the secretaries, who were the only ones who could detect them on account of their natural female sensitivity to the electromagnetic clouds produced by the entities. Finally, the government took all the research notes and is suppressing all Bigfoot information and research. The kicker? Stephen Hawking was there, and we could prove all of this if only anyone had the balls to ask him about it.



Theory Five: Bigfoot is human...with really nice hair.
This theory relates to one specific Bigfoot sighting, the famous Patterson film (above). I'll admit, even in the face of (contested) declarations that it was a hoax, it's hard to watch that film and not feel a shred of doubt. You can convince yourself that it isn't just a guy in a costume if you watch it enough times. What else could it be? Well, if you look closely, you can see that the creature in the film has breasts. It also has a prominent sagittal crest on its head, which gives it a somewhat coneheaded appearance. The problem is that sagittal crests generally appear on males in large primates, while large, furry, pendulous breasts suggest the creature is female. How to sort out this apparent inconsistency?

Close analysis of still frames has revealed (to some people) that the bulge on top of the head isn't a sagittal crest at all. It's a beehive hairdo.

While this seems ludicrous, it does perhaps lead to a more plausible theory, at least in regard to this one sighting. Could it be a human woman born with several congenital disorders? Hypertrichosis, gigantism, perhaps a bone growth disorder? In a rural area, she might have been abandoned at a young age, yet somehow managed to survive as a feral child. It's a bizarre and incredibly unlikely series of events.

I guess Bigfoot really must be an invisible psychic 4D shaman, after all.

SOURCES

Arave, Lynn. "Utah man says he's seen Bigfoot 9 times since '68." Deseret News, June 7, 1997.

Highpine, Gayle. "Attitudes Toward Bigfoot in Many North American Cultures." The Track Record.

"An Interview with Peter Gutilla." bigfootencounters.com.

"Invisible Bigfoot?" cryptomundo.com.

"The Patterson-Gimlin Film Footage and links to the film's Stabilization & Enhancements and GPS Co-Ordinates For the PG-Film Site." bigfootencounters.com.

OTHERS THAT SHOULD HAVE MADE THE LIST
Bigfoot descendant of Cain
Bigfoot is an Alien Chimera Grizzly/Human Hybrid
Demon Debate on NatGeo
Bigfoot is not even Bigfoot

EXTERNAL LINKS
i09.com's original Article

Interview: A man who would kill Bigfoot

J Anderson is free-lance writer for Associated Content who plans on going on a BFRO Expedition soon. Recently he has been in contact with individuals who would favor killing Bigfoot in the name of science.

He writes an interview with one of the individuals with the pseudonym "Dave".

We have a short teaser of the interview below.

Bigfoot: Would You Shoot One?

Published September 10, 2010 by:J. Andersen

I'm excited about an upcoming Bigfoot expedition I will be attending soon with the BFRO in the northern region of the U.S. I always enjoy doing actual field research in addition to blogging about Bigfoot. What I'm also curious about is an invitation I recently received from a Bigfoot researcher who wants to shoot a Bigfoot in the name of science. And he's invited me to tag along. Is this guy crazy?

You might be surprised to know that a small minority of Bigfoot researchers carry out the same fantasy as this man (let's call him "Dave") and they believe the only way to prove Bigfoots exists is to shoot one. I personally don't believe that killing something is the best way to prove it's living, and most fans from www.facebook.com/findbigfoot and other Bigfoot sites would probably agree.

I've also been contacted in the last few months by a man from New York who is willing to hire retired military commandos to go into the field to capture or kill a Bigfoot. It beginning to feel like a techno-thriller Vince Flynn novel or maybe something from the late Michael Crichton (think Jurassic Park)...

It begins by asking the field research habits of Dave field research methods, but then gets into the ethics of killing Bigfoot:

....J. Andersen: Why do you hunt Bigfoot?

Dave: To prove that he/she exists I'm gonna try my hardest not to kill it if I can capture or immobilize it alive I would rather do it that way, but if I have to kill it then so be it. I will do it that way, Ican't say until that day comes.

J. Andersen: How do you plan on doing it?

Dave: The same way any other animal is hunted with a gun, proper camouflage and LUCK.

J. Andersen: Are you concerned with the Ethics of shooting a bigfoot?

Dave: Yes and No, there's no law against hunting Bigfoot where I'm from. Most people hate me for what I'm doing and that's fine but the only way to prove 100% that it exists is by capturing one dead or alive.

J. Andersen: What motivates you to shoot/capture a Bigfoot?

The thrill of being in its element, the thrill of being in his territory, the thrill of the hunt and to prove to the world that Bigfoot exists...

What Dave describes here is a real, growing frustration among Bigfoot researchers. Why can't we capture this thing on good video? With all of our modern technology and the hundreds of thousands of dollars of gear that the Bigfoot community owns, how do Bigfoots continue to avoid camera and thermal imaging? I can't answer that question...

Ho do long-term field researchers feel about the kill no kill debate?

Some serious researchers have been in the camp of killing a Sasquatch. Dr. Grover Krantz and John Green have been known advocates for killing one. On the other hand, more recent voices like Dr Jeff Meldrum, a protege of sorts of Krantz have distanced themselves from the idea of killing. Included in this alternate camp is Loren Coleman, in an 2006 article for Cryptomundo he gave a rational case for the captivity:

The first large unknown hairy hominoid captured will live its life in captivity, no doubt, and there it may be examined internally. MRIs, CAT scans, EKGs, and a whole battery of medical and other procedures may be used to examine it.

It is doubtful the first one will be returned to the wild, so, of course, it will die someday within the reach of future scientific examinations. Then it will be dissected, just as newly discovered animals, including various kinds of humans, have been for further study. But in the meantime, why not study the living animal’s captive and adaptive behaviors?

The days of Queen Victoria, when only killing an animal would establish it was real and not folklore, are, indeed, long gone. --Loren Coleman 2/6/2006

In case you were wondering, we do not think killing Bigfoot is necessary, and we aren't that frustrated that we don't have proof yet. There's enough unsorted data out there, that is still being dissected, to build a better physical and behavioral model of Bigfoot. As we build a better model and share information with each other, we will all eventually have the proof we pursue.


EXTERNAL LINKS
The full Interview with Dave
Bigfoot Civil Rights
Cryptomundo: To Kill or Not to Kill Bigfoot
Bigfoot Encounters: To Kill or Film

Bigfoot in Fresno County

This article is almost 2 years old, but seem to be floating around the blogasphere of late. While keeping our finger on the pulse of bigfootery, we decided to repost this article containing references to Meldrum, and Rugg.

4/25/2008 Fresno, CA (KFSN) -- Whether you want to believe it or not, there are a lot of people in Central California who think they've had a brush with a Bigfoot, or Sasquatch.

Many won't talk about it for fear of being ridiculed. But others are convinced they are real, and think science is about to prove they really do exist.

Lurking in the forests of the high Sierra are people, like Bill Compton. A cell phone salesman during the week, he spends many weekends in search of the elusive Bigfoot. He says," I truly believe there is a bi-pedal primate roaming the terrain. I've seen too many footprints, seen beasts walk away from me on two legs that look like giant, hairy animals."

Bill and his partners regularly search an area in the Sequoia National Forest in Southeastern Fresno County. Bills tells us," In that area we've had a lot of activity, that's why we constantly go back to it." Local hunters and hikers have reported Bigfoot like sightings, along with what they think are the sounds and smells of the creature on the website of the Bigfoot Field Research Organization. 17 alleged Bigfoot encounters are listed in Fresno County. Web sites like this are full of pictures, videos and supposed eyewitness accounts.

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Such stories are no surprise to the Native American tribes living in the Sierra. To them Bigfoot was just like the bear, mountain lions, wolves and coyotes. Ron Goode of the North Fork band of Mono Indians tells us, "We have an understanding that Bigfoot was here, is here. That he once he existed. The Mono's have two names for him. One that was in the mountains, Kooseekoosnow, and then one for the foothills is Kakownow, Kakownah." Goode says he hasn't seen a Bigfoot, but thinks he smelled one. "It had kind of followed me along and really scared the heck out of me because I was running for a little bit and I could smell this thing and it smelled terrible."
Another encounter near North Fork involved not smell, but sound. Susan Larson, an accountant believes she heard a Bigfoot outside her window one night. She says, "The scream was so scary, that you would no way in your right mind go out that door and go looking for it, and it's a shame I didn't have the guts."

Susan says she didn't know she'd heard a Bigfoot, until listening to a recording on a Bigfoot web site. Listening to the sound, "Ooooappp....ooooapp..." She tells us, "That's exactly what I heard."

She later took pictures of footprints she thinks could belong to Bigfoot, or maybe a bear. Casts of footprints, along with pictures, videos and other Bigfoot evidence is on display for all to see at the Bigfoot Discovery Museum near Santa Cruz. Museum owner and curator Michael Rugg says, "We are trying to come up with definitive proof that there are Bigfoot out there."

Rugg has wanted to prove Bigfoot lives ever since he saw one as a kid, while camping with his parents along a creek in Humboldt County. He recalled the incident. "Stepped out on a sandbar and there was a great big hairy man standing there looking at me and I looked at him and he looked down at me." The creature ran off when Rugg's parents called out to him. Rugg says he didn't realize he'd seen a Bigfoot until years later. After retiring as a graphic artist he opened the museum to help further Bigfoot research.

One of the few academically credentialed scientists who will acknowledge the possibility Bigfoot exists is Jeff Meldrum. A biology professor at Idaho State University in Pocatello. His book, "Sasquatch, Legend Meets Science," has been cited in some of the most recent documentaries on Bigfoot. He believes he has almost found a scientific basis for the legendary creature from a site in Ontario, Canada. Meldrum says,"We collected tissue, the remains of blood as well as muscle tissue as well as some hairs." Meldrum explains the creature stepped on a board with screws in it, leaving the flesh behind, giving researchers a sample from which to obtain DNA for testing. He says a preliminary test indicated a feature in a strand of DNA that appeared to put the creature somewhere between a human and chimpanzee.

Meldrum admits much more DNA testing is needed, but, says he thinks there's something out there. He says," Based on all the evidence I have seen it suggests this is an unrecognized species of great ape."

That however, is not a conclusion shared by most of the scientific community. Stephen Lewis is a professor of Earth Sciences at California State University Fresno. A Geologist he teaches a course on popular myths masquerading as science. He puts Bigfoot in the same category as UFO's and Power Crystals. He says, "This whole Bigfoot topic is what can be classified as pseudo science." He adds," There's really no credible evidence that's ever been turned up that a giant six hundred pound hairy, hominid creature, man-like except bigger, inhabits the Pacific Northwest, or Fresno County or anywhere else. There's just no evidence of that."

Many Bigfoot believers say "what more could you need?" They believe the evidence, from Indian legends to eyewitness accounts, along with film and videos is already overwhelming. But even those on Bigfoot's trail, like Bill Compton of Fresno, admit the absolute proof they need may be very hard to come by. He says, "We go to investigate and can't find anything. Very mysterious, it drives us nuts. " But he says, "I truly believe we have them in the Central Valley. Bigfoot's, and it will come out, someday."

The obvious question is, "Why can't anyone seem to find a real Bigfoot, dead or alive?"

The Native Americans believe the creatures live and die hidden underground, in tunnels and caves that run for hundreds of miles through the Sierra, and only come out to feed now and then. Others believe they're just too smart to be discovered. With the sensory skills of wild animals, and near human intelligence, they are presumably, incredibly elusive.

It will take actually finding one to convince skeptics they exist, but as long as there's no way to prove they don't exist, some people will keep looking for and believing in Bigfoot.