Over about the last ten years or so with the advent of the Internet and digital photography in the sasquatch community, a great number of people have attributed what are commonly called “tree breaks” and “twists” as evidence of a sasquatch passing through an area. The common description of a “break” or “twist” is generally a branch or tree that is 3 to 4 inches in diameter, or the vague “larger than what a man is capable of” according to some descriptions. Much speculation has ensued over the validity and meaning of tree breaks as either route or territory markers. The truth is no one knows for sure as to the meaning, or even the reality of such markers as it applies to sasquatch research. Outside the Internet, there is very little documentation of these breaks and twists in books, other than Native American oral tradition put to print and a few second hand stories. In this article, we will examine the possibilities of human and natural intervention as a cause for some of them.

First, we will examine the few written references to breaks and twists in books written before the advent of the Internet. One such excerpt comes to us from John Green’s Sasquatch: The Apes Among Us (Pg. 336), referencing an article that appeared in Sports Afield in 1956. The original account from the 1940s is a Native American tale of Gilyuk carrying off a man and in the process leaving his “sign” in the form of “a birch sapling about four inches through that had been twisted to shreds as a man might twist a match stick.” Other accounts in Sasquatch: The Apes Among Us appear on pages 199 and 252. These may not be the oldest written accounts, but they are the oldest I have been able to find in print.

Grover Krantz also mentions breaks in his book Bigfootprints (pgs. 137-138), via Bob Titmus, which he attributes to sasquatch activity over a period of 30 years before the writing of the book. However, it seems to have been largely ignored that Titmus also assured Krantz that he could duplicate the breaks himself with the help of one additional man. Krantz also notes a few other occurrences related to him by others, but in none of these instances was he able to investigate for himself the alleged activity.

We now turn to the discussion of breaks and twists as found on the Internet. Very few of these reports state the actual measurement tool used to verify the size of the break or height of the tree. Even those with accompanying photos normally lack any unit of measurement to verify the alleged size. One technique that could be applied in many cases but isn’t, is taking something of a known length and using it to gauge the size of the break for later reference. Items such as a cigarette pack, a key or even a lighter, where the size is of a known measurement would be useful in most cases. Fewer still have anything in the way of corroborative evidence in the form of track casts, hair samples or even sighting reports of an alleged sasquatch creature.

In the photos, links and descriptions that follow, we will examine reports of breaks and twists and possibilities of human and natural intervention as a cause for some of them in two ways. First, by showing that some similar breaks occur in places where there is no recent sasquatch activity. Second, by showing the size, diameter and methods by which it is possible for an average-sized man to twist and break trees with minimal mechanical aid. These tests are all meant to be reproducible by anyone willing to do so for themselves. Unfortunately, some of the supposed breaks featured may very well show some investigators in a bad light concerning their research.

In this first series, we will be looking at what constitutes alleged tree breaks in reports. The website references and links are provided. For some of the reports in question, very little has been done in the way of verification to determine an outside source, rather than the sasquatch as the cause. For example:

“Sunday, 25 May: Bobo reports hearing a loud snap not long after we retired for the night. John Bobo and I do a survey of our site. We find a seemingly fresh tree break near where one of the pheromone chips has gone missing. Once again, no new bear scat is found in the area.”¹

This excerpt comes from the expedition log of the team of John Freitas, Tom, Jim and Jim “Bobo” McCoy. In this description of their Memorial Day expedition, there is no size reference, no picture and very little commentary on the actual break itself other than it happened and one of the pheromone chips is missing. This can be a misleading excerpt, considering it’s featured on a website devoted to sasquatch research by people supposedly there for that specific purpose.

The second report to view with photos included comes to us from BFRO Report #4789. Despite the height and diameter estimates given by the investigator there is no scale used within the photo. It therefore must remain the opinion of the investigator and witness, as there are no factual measurements with which to compare it. Using Fig. 2 provided in the report and comparing it to the road in question by estimation would make it at best approximately 12 feet in height not the 16 that is stated. I base this on the 27-foot wide road in front of my house; however, this cannot be substantiated because I do not know if in fact the road in the picture is the same width as mine.