Bigfoot is Real…

…or could be. Bigfoot is the most realistic mythical creature, so why haven’t we found one? A new premise holds the key.

We need a body. Most courts accept circumstantial evidence to prove murder, but we need to prove that our subject is alive, in hiding. To test that hypothesis — “Bigfoot is real” — we must lose our myth-bias and approach it scientifically. Is it possible for a large creature to hide from us? Are there similar creatures known in nature? Could the habitat support a viable modern population? Most important, if the answer to these questions is yes, how can we test, or find, Bigfoot?

The “Independence Day” video, author unknown, tracks a mother rescuing her cub before running away. Some of the most convincing footage of the human-ness of Bigfoot.

In Hiding

Guam. 1972. Jesus Duenas and Manuel De Gracia made their way up the Talofofo river, harvesting shrimp traps, their backs to the jungle. Behind the sounds of the swirling water, they heard the rustle of foxtail grass. Turning, rifles up, they were too late. It attacked, raining blow after blow. Bruised and battered, Jesus and Manuel managed to overpower the outnumbered attacker and march it to the local police. After some bewilderment, the police determined the assailant as one Shoichi Yokoi, the last Japanese holdout from World War II.