Those who know me personally know that I'm a huge Bigfoot fan. My infatuation with this hairy bipedal creature began when my Dad and I went to see, The Legend of Boggy Creek, (follow the link to see the trailer), back in the early ‘70’s. A cheesy movie by today’s standards, but to an impressionable seven year old boy, it was an edge of the seat nail-biter. One scene in particular caused me more than a few sleepless nights though. Let’s just say I didn’t want to sleep next to my bedroom window for weeks. If you’ve seen the movie, I’m sure you’ll recall the terrifying “arm through the window” scene. Nevertheless, and in spite of my trauma, I needed to know more. I read everything I could on the subject, and soaked it up like a sponge. Little did I know it would become a lifelong fascination.

Whether the creature exits or not doesn't really matter to me. I'm just completely enamored with the folklore. The idea of something that large and imposing possibly running around the countryside, really, really intrigues me. That's why when I had the opportunity to visit the Bigfoot Capitol of the World on a scheduled trip to Oregon, I jumped at the chance.

It was several years ago that I made the trip to Willow Creek. To some, a tiny dot on the map in northern California, with a population of 1,513 souls as of 2019. This little town sits right in the heart of Bigfoot country, a mere 30 miles or so from where the famous Patterson-Gimlin sighting was filmed in 1967.

Surrounded by the ruggedness of the Six Rivers National Forest, this picturesque mountain community offers many outdoor pleasures including: fishing, river rafting, kayaking, and hiking. Several quaint shops are also available to those passing through, along the Trinity River National Scenic Highway 299. My sights though, were set on visiting the local Bigfoot Museum.

The modest museum contained an assortment of plaster casts, pictures, newspaper clippings, and various other research documents associated with Humboldt and Trinity counties. Additionally, there were interesting artifacts originating from various indigenous peoples in the area displayed as well.

As I had hoped, the museum had a gift shop with various nick-knacks and all manner of Bigfoot related souvenirs; some which made their way back home with me! After touring the exhibit, I had a great time chatting with the curator, but was floored when he asked If I wanted the GPS coordinates to the actual location of the Patterson sighting. He said, "You can even go camping there." What?! Needless to say, I was ecstatic!

For a brief moment, my thoughts flashed back to 1979... it was 8th grade (yes, I'm old), and the school year was coming to a close. My two best buds and I, together since first grade, were getting ready to go our separate ways and were reminiscing about our past adventures. We all had an affinity for Bigfoot and so vowed that when we graduated high school, we would meet up again to make the trip to Northern California and hunt the elusive creature. Unfortunately, that trip never took place. But now, finding myself standing in the heart of all things Bigfoot, I felt that same excitement and sense of adventure from my youth. I guess it's true what they say, some men never really grow up. LOL! Funny thing is, I've never really forgotten about that moment. Anytime I watch a documentary, or read something Bigfoot related, I always recall that moment. It's incredible what the mind will latch onto. Sometimes I can't remember what happened five minutes ago, but this moment in time, this romantic memory from over forty years ago has relentlessly followed me through life. Maybe some things are just suppose to happen. You know, meant to be...

As I mentioned, that was several years ago. I still haven't taken that trip and I'm not sure why I thought about this today. I do know that I have to start making plans to see this dream camping trip from my adolescence come true. Not because I have to, but because I never stopped believing I could.

Wonder if I can still find my two buds again?

-Thanks for allowing me to indulge in a trip down memory lane. Let me also encourage you to never stop believing. If you have any lifelong dreams you've been putting off, don't! Seize the day and go make it happ'n Cap'n!

*P.S. - I would like to highly recommend the fiction book, “Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre”, by American author Max Brooks. I must’ve read this book in a couple of days. I just couldn’t put it down. It read more like an actual real account of a modern incident than fiction. One to check out for sure!

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Joey Rivers

Don’t Stop Believing

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In Pursuit of Adventure