Next morning after breakfast and breaking camp Jake and I headed over to the museum in hopes of being early arrivers and snagging a good parking spot. We got front row parking and ensconced ourselves at a nice little table in the tree-shaded patio at the side of the museum. The museum is not very large but every inch of wall inside and out is covered with pictures and plaster casts. One can easily get a quick history lesson on bigfoot if they are uneducated concerning these matters. The barbeques were in full production by 11:30 a.m. Saturday and just about everyone had a Sierra Nevada or import in their hand as friends, guests and visitors kept arriving. The weather was beautiful that day as burgers and hot dogs were devoured along with bigfoot stories galore. The axe grinding that could have taken place that day was replaced instead by vibrant conversation and numerous photo opportunities. Various Felton and Santa Cruz locals also dropped by to see what was going on and check out if there was free food.

One interesting side story from Saturday’s open house: A young enthusiastic bigfooter came in with fresh casts and a lap top computer with pictures from his recent jaunt to northern California. The young man was enthusiastic and excited about his find and put on a presentation in front of Dr. J and other interested onlookers. The young man was asking Dr. J to take the casts back to his lab to research them. Dr. J thanked the young man and declined. Of course, the young man wouldn’t take no for an answer. What resulted was a good example of good manners on Dr. J’s part and someone who just doesn’t pick up social cues on the other. In the end, the young man sadly left with his two large foot casts in tow.

A little more about Mike Rugg and his fine little bigfoot museum in Felton: His red wooden structure is located on Highway 9 about six miles east of Santa Cruz. Mike is a short man with white hair and a beard. He wears a hat like the band Seals and Crofts wore back in the early 70’s. Amazingly it doesn’t look out of style on him. Personality wise, he is a quiet man but ready to engage you in conversation and very knowledgeable about bigfoot and what’s going on locally in the Santa Cruz corridor. Mike was the silent presence throughout the weekend as he made sure the food was being served, the cash register was clinging and everyone was comfortable and having fun. He gets a 10 from me for putting together a memorable time for all.

Even though from what I understand, the open house was only supposed to go to 1:00 p.m., it stretched well into four o’clock. Jake and I had hoped to visit the Brookdale Lodge if we had the time and finding out from Mello that it was only five miles down the road, we decided it was a must on our itinerary. We said our goodbyes and headed to our campsite to chill for a little and then have a very early dinner. The evening in Santa Cruz was to begin with Tom Y. singing one of his bigfoot songs and then Mike R. would give an introduction and then yield the podium to Dr. Meldrum. Jake and I figured we could sneak in a dinner at the haunted restaurant and still get to the evening’s entertainment on time.

We drove to our campsite to change and go swimming, but Jake saw some kids playing basketball so I stayed at the camper, opened a beer and read some more of Dr. Meldrum’s book. Jake returned an hour later, sweaty and proud about his mastery over the younger kids in the hoops game. We put on some nicer clothes and headed over to the Brookdale Lodge. It was about 5:15 p.m. and there weren’t too many cars in the parking lot. We pulled in and had to weave our way around the band that was loading in for their gig that night. They were appropriately named the ‘Dead Guise.’