by Scott Harper
Say anything
regarding Sasquatch in the state of California, and most people automatically
leap to the world-famous film footage recorded by Roger Patterson, in the company
of his friend Bob Gimlin. That recording was made in 1967, at Bluff Creek,
which is roughly 40 miles south of the state border with Oregon. The film is
952-frames-long. Frame #352 of Patterson's footage is probably the most
recognized image of a Sasquatch in the world. It's the famous shot of the
creature, looking back over her shoulder as she walked away from the two men.
California has a
very long history of sightings—and other encounters—of Sasquatch reaching back
well before Roger Patterson recorded the aforementioned historic film, however.
Going back to
1769, Spanish priests were warned by local native tribes, upon founding a
mission in San Diego, of foul-smelling "hairy devils". These
creatures were said to live in the forests nearby.
Around 1876, a Sasquatch
caught the blame for a series of murders at a water stop on a stage coach line.
During a stop for water, one stage coach passenger who had gotten off the coach
for a drink reported seeing a large hairy creature watching him from the cover
of some brush. Not long after, several people in the immediate area were found
dead, having been beaten, or strangled to death. In 1888 two hunters went out
looking for the creature. They planned to shoot it, thus ending the string of
murders in the area. They also planned to take the body to San Diego, to put it
on display. They claimed to have succeeded in killing it, but the body vanished
before arrival in San Diego.
November 10, 1870
saw the publication of an article in the "Titusville Morning Herald"
called "The Wild Man of California". The piece covered the sighting by
a hunter who, upon returning to his camp after a day in the forest, discovered
a Sasquatch in his camp. He hung back, watching as the creature proceeded to
scatter ashes from the campfire, and generally explore the campsite. As the
creature—presumably male—left the camp, it was joined by another that the
witness classified as female. The pair wandered quietly away together.
The newspaper
"Del Norte Record", from Crescent City, printed a report in 1886
concerning a sighting by several men. The men claimed to have spotted a
7-foot-tall "wild man" near the town of Happy Camp, which is about 60
miles north of Willow Creek. One of the men had a gun, but refused to shoot at
the creature, claiming that it looked "too human".
In 1939 a gold
prospector claimed to have had an encounter with "upright walking
apes" at his camp in the Borrego Sink area. He credited his campfire with
keeping the creatures from attacking him during the night. He reported that
they seemed to be afraid of the flames.
August of 1944
saw a report from Siskiyou County—the county in which my family, and I live—what
seems to be a family of three sasquatch, describing what appears to be a male,
a female, and a juvenile spotted together. The sighting occurred near Yreka.
Upon realizing they had been seen, the trio of creatures immediately walked
into denser woods, and out of sight.
The summer of
1950 brought in a report from San Bernardino County. The witness heard
whistling, and "chomping noises". Upon moving to investigate the
sounds, a "hairy, man-like creature", which was said to be very
muscular, was seen. The creature simply walked away upon being spotted. The
witness left, but returned to the site later, and discovered very large
footprints.
About the same
time of year, in Ventura County, a young runaway girl was on horseback when she
spotted three young Sasquatch. She estimated the oldest of the trio, a female,
to be a teenager. The other two were smaller, and younger. When first seen, the
creatures were drinking from a steam. Upon realizing they had been spotted, the
oldest one took the smaller ones by the hand, and led them away from the scene,
into denser trees, and better cover. The witness commented that none of the
three seemed frightened of her, only cautious.
In the autumn of
1955, a Boy Scout, who was camping with a group, got up during the early
morning hours to use the latrine. He heard tree limbs breaking. Upon turning
his flashlight beam in the direction of the disturbance, he spotted a tall,
shaggy creature with eyes that glowed orange. The Sasquatch was swaying from
side-to-side, watching the boy. Frightened, he ran back to his tent, shouting,
and made no further attempt to see the creature again. On a side note, such
side-to-side swaying, or rocking motions are very commonly reported behavior of
Sasquatch.
In the autumn of
1956 a teenager witnessed a tall "ape-like creature" walking along
the top of a ridge. The creature was about 40 yards from where the teen sat.
In the summer of
1957, three children claimed a sighting of a Sasquatch near Eureka, California.
Two construction
workers reported a sighting of a Sasquatch about 45 miles northeast of Eureka,
California in 1958. 16-inch footprints had previously been reported in the same
region.
California
remains a hotspot for Sasquatch sightings right up to today. Many new sightings
are officially reported each year. No one knows just how many sightings
actually take place, though, as a large number of them go unreported. People
who are afraid of being laughed at, losing prestige at their jobs, or other
negative backlash often keep completely quiet about their sightings for years
after it occurs. Some researchers have speculated that up to two or three times
as many sightings take place as are actually reported in some official
capacity.
About the Author
Scott Harper is the bestselling, award-winning author of more than 30 published short stories, and several novels. Harper grew up in Ohio, and graduated from Marysville High School in 1993, and began screenwriting in 2007, after the publication of several short stories and novels. He has worked on projects for James Tucker Productions, and 11th Dimension Films. He is currently involved with several projects, covering literature, film, and comic books. He was also a contributing writer for "Nuclear Winter Entertainment" for several months before that site shut down. Scott is very happily married to bestselling paranormal author Desirée Lee. Together, they have a wonderful little girl, and are working jointly on several projects. Those projects include multiple books, as well as the hit webcomic "MoonWraith."
More information about his work can be found on his website: www.scottharper.net
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