Bigfoot is among the unexplained mysteries in the American world. Although historical records have documented the existence of Bigfoot for several years, every person has an opinion on its existence. Bigfoot’s existence has brought more scepticism and laughter for more than fifty years. Researchers have realized that almost 70 per cent of Bigfoot evidence results from misidentification (Townsend). Scientists identify Bigfoot as a hoax rather than a living creature. Therefore, based on the history and evidence of Bigfoot, its existence is not real.
Indigenous Traditions and Early Sightings
The history of Bigfoot is traced back to early Indian tribes as well as the indigenous population. Tribes such as the Spokane, Hopi, and Seeahtik, among other tribes from Canada, all had stories about a hairy creature. This creature had the same characteristics as those of a Bigfoot in the present period. This creature was not mistaken for other animals, such as a wolf, bear, or deer, since they have different stories about these animals (Townsend). These tribes also have some paintings that look like huge hairy men resembling apes. For instance, the first Bigfoot was sighted in Colombia in 1772 by a Spanish explorer exploring Canada. The term Bigfoot became common in the year 1958 after Jerry Crew’s picture appeared in a newspaper.
The Growth of the Sasquatch Legend
J.W. Burns contributed to a legends section in a newspaper that popularized the Bigfoot legend, which originated in the early 1920s and is also referred to as Sasquatch. However, the Bigfoot legend extended to every part of the United States after Gerald Crew claimed to have found Bigfoot’s large footprints at a construction site (Townsend). In history, stories of giants and ape-like creatures have existed in many parts of the universe. Nevertheless, all of the stories end up as myths or hoaxes that show that Bigfoot does not exist.
The Absence of Reliable Evidence
There are many pieces of evidence supporting Bigfoot’s non-existence. The greatest is the fact that there is no quality evidence of its existence despite the many years that have passed. Throughout history, there have been pieces of evidence such as blurred images, fake footsteps, few recordings, footprints, and few eyewitnesses. This cannot be classified as hard evidence that can support Bigfoot’s existence in the world but rather as evidence of a hoax (Townsend).
Why Photographs Remain Inconclusive
Pictures are unreliable evidence for this Bigfoot mystery. There are many Bigfoot pictures in the world. However, most of them are unreliable evidence of Bigfoot. For instance, according to Benjamin Radford in Discovery News: “These photographs show something that is probably alive, it’s probably dark, it’s not a cat, and it’s not a camel. It could be a Bigfoot, or it would be a deer, or it could be a guy in a suit”. “Ultimately”, he sums up, “it’s a two-dimensional image. It’s a pixel”. Most of the available pictures are taken from a distance, creating doubt about the reality of its existence because there is no reason that pictures should always be taken from a distance (Townsend).
The Patterson-Gimlin Film and Claims of a Hoax
Video evidence is another form of evidence that is largely recognized and highly controversial. Many videos exist that show Bigfoot, and some are more famous in North America. One of these videos is called the Patterson-Gimlin Film. For example, Roger Patterson exposed a Bigfoot-like hoax in a film. The film shows an ape-like, giant creature walking in the forest in a more vivid way and being identified as a Bigfoot, though it remains grainy in this video. Radford says, “The chances of this film being real is still questionable. However, the reality has been shown that it was a hoax, after about forty years, because the thing called a Bigfoot was a real man in a costume”.
Other Contested Bigfoot Videos
Another video is the Memorial Day Bigfoot, which was shot in 1996 at Chopaka Lake in Washington. Loir Pate filmed it when he was on a fishing trip. This film showed Bigfoot running through the hill and vanishing behind the slopes, then appearing again before vanishing into the trees (Nickell). Paul Freeman’s video is another studied and viewed video. Freeman was a crypto-zoologist and Bigfoot hunter (Nickell). He said that he found Bigfoot tracks having dermal ridges. In the video, he showed Bigfoot walking among trees in a forest. However, these videos raise doubts because the information given about them contradicts itself, and some of them are blurred to the extent that it is hard to believe that the figure is a Bigfoot.
Missing Bodies, Bones, and Valid DNA
Additionally, hard evidence such as bodies and bones is not available. Remains of bones and bodies are some of the most reliable evidence of the existence of Bigfoot. The evidence that has been claimed to have been found includes blood and hair samples. Radford, in Discovery News, says, “These available samples have most often turned out to be from different sources. For instance, the blood can be blood for transmission, or the hair is “Bigfoot hair” turns out to be the hair from a cow, elk or even a bear”. Therefore, he concludes by saying that the hair cannot be a reliable sample for a DNA test to confirm the existence of Bigfoot; thus, there is no hard evidence. The availability of evidence such as bones and body remains would provide better evidence than hair and blood (Nickell).
Why the Bigfoot Claim Remains a Hoax
In conclusion, in spite of some evidence of Bigfoot, its existence is still questionable. The existence of Bigfoot lacks hard evidence (Nickell). The videos, footprints, pictures, eyewitnesses, and blood and hair samples are not convincing evidence. There is little evidence, and other evidence does not give clear information about Bigfoot. Since Bigfoot has existed only in tribal stories, its existence is not real; it is a hoax (Nickell).
Work Cited
Nickell, Joe. “The Bigfoot Obsession.” Quality, vol. 41, no. 4, 2017, pp. 62–64.
Townsend, Mitchel. Is Bigfoot Real? Emerging Scientific Evidence. 2016.
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