An excerpt from Chapter One: Books, Movies and Ideas

How would I ever get my son interested in bigfoot, I asked myself. I really did not have anyone who could really answer this question for me. In fact, most people would think you were a bona fide nut case if you told them this was important to you. I was in uncharted territory here. It’s one of those questions that don’t pop up in the parent “how-to” books. There are all kinds of “how-to” books as you know, and I have plenty on my bookshelf, including ones explaining computers and jeeps. It was obvious that if I wanted to get my boy interested in bigfoot, I was on my own because I didn’t even have any friends at the time who were bigfooters.

How does one introduce their child and significant other to the lore of sasquatch and get them out in the field? Mates will think you are crazy, your kids will run for cover and you will end up feeling like a big idiot! Well not exactly. I will admit most families will have a hard time agreeing with dad that remote camping in the middle of nowhere sounds like a good time. The challenge is to package it in an interesting, non-threatening, fun format.

I have taken my wife and son camping many times to the Mammoth area of the Eastern Sierras. This is not an area known as a hot bed of bigfoot sightings, although there have been some reports from the campground we have stayed at over the last couple of years. The place we have stayed at is in the town of Mammoth and is a public campground run by the forest service. The spot is conveniently located within walking distance of a major hamburger franchise and local pizza parlors, so it isn’t exactly as if you are deep in the woods. This was an ideal place to introduce my son to the outdoor experience.

This campground, although located in town, is not like camping at an amusement park. It is in the forest, and bears do come through, so there is always an element of ruggedness to the experience. There are no facility hookups, but the bathrooms are nice. We started out tent camping there when Jake was small. We made the jump up to a trailer after a ferocious lightning and rainstorm one year, and have never looked back. The trailer was a nice addition to our camping gear, although many may not want to invest this much money in the camping experience. We found a good deal on a used one, and though we are one of the older trailers in the campground, all the creature comforts work fine, including the toilet and shower. So, I can say from the beginning, my son has been used to camping. That was a good thing. Campfires, hikes and traveling were already in his blood when I popped the question. “Jake, would you ever go out with dad looking for a bigfoot?”

After I explained what a bigfoot was, I got a resounding, no! I then knew I had my work cut out for me if my son was ever going to be my field partner. My first break came when Jake was in the third grade and I was helping at the book fair. My wife and I love to read, so Jake always has had carte blanche to buy whatever book caught his attention. Well, one book caught my attention that cold, blustery spring day at Howard Cattle Elementary: Sasquatch by Roland Smith. I grabbed the book and said to Jake in a hopeful tone, “Hey, Jake, can we buy this one? I’ll pay you ten dollars if you read it to me!” Jake greedily nodded his agreement. We put it in the cart to go home and I hoped we would soon be reading it by the fireplace. Between reading logs, oral reading and dangling a ten spot, we somehow managed to get the book read.

Jake showed a little interest and asked a few questions, so I felt we were on the right track. To be honest, I enjoyed the book as much, or possibly more, than Jake did. I am an unabashed bigfoot nut and will read anything credible about the big guy. This was a cute book about a teenage boy who has a father who is a bigfoot nut. The boy thinks his father is way out there with his belief about bigfoot and I thought, Gee, this is starting to sound familiar! The book takes place in Oregon and there are some interesting characters. The only reason the dad can get involved in a bigfoot project is because his wife is overseas busy with her work. The dad takes advantage of the situation to get some bigfoot people over who plan to find the beast.

I can say this book had a familiar ring as my wife is a hard working RN who is constantly running groups, giving talks, and doesn’t have a lot of time off. On the other hand, being a teacher, I have an abundance of time and desire to go out and find this creature that is revered by so many. As time went by, Jake had many questions when we talked about bigfoot, and I had to answer them and be honest. I think the hardest thing for me was to be upfront in answering the question about whether a bigfoot had ever killed people and whether people were ever scared by them. Let’s face it; bigfoot doesn’t appear to be the big friendly creature that we see in Harry and the Henderson’s.

Another good book to turn your kids on to is Sasquatch, Let the Legend Begin by Robert Leiterman. Robert is a forest ranger in Northern California and has authored three children’s bigfoot books in a series, and has also written other bigfoot books. Robert writes exciting stories and gives a lot of good firsthand information about bigfoot in his books. He says he purposely tries to put in important bigfoot information to educate the reader.

The other book Jake enjoyed browsing, after he got interested in bigfoot, was Chris Murphy’s book Meet the Sasquatch. This book, in my opinion, puts it all together so that one can get a good idea about the field in one book, as opposed to reading three or four, which most children will not do. I guess you could call Murphy’s book “Bigfoot 101.”

There are some good movies to have your kids watch before you take them out. Even though Jake and I never watched Harry and The Henderson’s, I personally think it would be an excellent teaching tool in your child’s bigfoot education. Why? Simply because it lays down some fundamental information about bigfoot. It shows in a humorous way the different factions in the bigfoot community and how people react to this creature. And, if anything, it takes some of the fear away from your child and makes them realize that going out looking for bigfoot isn’t the equivalent of signing your own death warrant.

Last summer, Jake found a bigfoot video called Bigfoot: the Unforgettable Encounter which we watched. It starred one of the boys from Home Improvement, Zachery Ty Bryan. The boy gets lost in the wilds and a bigfoot helps rescue him in spite of all the harassment it gets from the human race. The film is a little corny, but does present the creature in a positive light.

I found with Jake that it took a little of the fear factor away when I explained that the creature could be scary, if encountered under the right circumstances, but at the same time was not a man killer. I told him I would be more scared of encountering a mountain lion or a grizzly bear. I also explained that bigfoot go out of their way to avoid human contact, but appear to be curious in nature and have been known to venture close to humans on occasion. This is how many people have encounters with bigfoot, while many others simply stumble upon one in the wild or are lucky enough to see one crossing the road. In fact, bigfoot author Thomas Steenburg told me he thought your best chance of seeing a bigfoot is to get in your car and start driving, since many sightings are from the road!

It is important to present the facts in an honest, straightforward manner. If you can convince your child that an encounter will be an exciting, once in a lifetime experience, and they buy it, well, you are home free. Therefore, the best way to prime your children for the field is camping, books, movies and lots of talking! Watch the movies and read the books with your kids. They will notice your enthusiasm, and if they trust you, then you can start making travel plans.