The Online Alaska
Pioneer Press
Pioneer Press
Tales From the Trail
Sasquatch
By Jonathan Durr
Every time I get to the point where I tell myself that the concept of Sasquatch is
ridiculous, I stumble onto another story or another piece of scientific data. Something
like the discovery of footsteps with dermal ridges, clearly visible.
I’ve been a Sasquatch junkie since I was a kid living at Lake Iliamna. The people
who lived around the lake not only believed in the Sasquatch—they believed that its
existence was simply a fact! Years after I lived there I got wind of the story of a man I
knew as a boy actually shooting at a Sasquatch that was threatening his home.
I know what you’re thinking: maybe it was a bear, or maybe the inventor of this
crazy tale was drunk. The problem with pursuing this reasoning is that the shooter is a
lifelong resident of the area and well respected.
I once got a Sasquatch yarn from another lifelong wilderness dweller and felt I had to
ask the question, “Are you sure it wasn’t a bear?” My friend gave me an incredulous
look and responded, “Jon, I think I know a bear when I see one and this was no bear!”
If you’re interested in the Iliamna account, see Alaska Magazine, June, 1995.
Then there is the work of the late Dr. Grover S. Krantz (1931-2002). Dr. Krantz
was a much respected physical anthropologist then he got the Sasquatch bug. In
anthropological circles, during the ’80s and ’90s, there was a lot of head shaking
regarding why Dr. Krantz would jeopardize a fine career with all his cockamamie
Sasquatch theories. However, more and more he is viewed as a pioneer whose work
opened a virtual Pandora’s Box of possibilities.
Most of all, I cannot ignore the fact that Sasquatch is endemic in all Native American
mythology.
Then there are all the first-hand accounts of backwoodsmen. The description found
in the journals of Lewis and Clark and . . . well, I could go on and on but you get the
idea.
Maybe it’s the anthropologist in me (i.e., Grover Krantz). Maybe I’m a romanticist
and simply want to believe I live in a world where there is still the possibility of mystery.
If you’re curious, read Sasquatch: Legend Mets Science by Jeff Meldrum.
Sasquatch
By Jonathan Durr
Every time I get to the point where I tell myself that the concept of Sasquatch is
ridiculous, I stumble onto another story or another piece of scientific data. Something
like the discovery of footsteps with dermal ridges, clearly visible.
I’ve been a Sasquatch junkie since I was a kid living at Lake Iliamna. The people
who lived around the lake not only believed in the Sasquatch—they believed that its
existence was simply a fact! Years after I lived there I got wind of the story of a man I
knew as a boy actually shooting at a Sasquatch that was threatening his home.
I know what you’re thinking: maybe it was a bear, or maybe the inventor of this
crazy tale was drunk. The problem with pursuing this reasoning is that the shooter is a
lifelong resident of the area and well respected.
I once got a Sasquatch yarn from another lifelong wilderness dweller and felt I had to
ask the question, “Are you sure it wasn’t a bear?” My friend gave me an incredulous
look and responded, “Jon, I think I know a bear when I see one and this was no bear!”
If you’re interested in the Iliamna account, see Alaska Magazine, June, 1995.
Then there is the work of the late Dr. Grover S. Krantz (1931-2002). Dr. Krantz
was a much respected physical anthropologist then he got the Sasquatch bug. In
anthropological circles, during the ’80s and ’90s, there was a lot of head shaking
regarding why Dr. Krantz would jeopardize a fine career with all his cockamamie
Sasquatch theories. However, more and more he is viewed as a pioneer whose work
opened a virtual Pandora’s Box of possibilities.
Most of all, I cannot ignore the fact that Sasquatch is endemic in all Native American
mythology.
Then there are all the first-hand accounts of backwoodsmen. The description found
in the journals of Lewis and Clark and . . . well, I could go on and on but you get the
idea.
Maybe it’s the anthropologist in me (i.e., Grover Krantz). Maybe I’m a romanticist
and simply want to believe I live in a world where there is still the possibility of mystery.
If you’re curious, read Sasquatch: Legend Mets Science by Jeff Meldrum.
The home base for your Alaskan Adventure in the heart of Talkeetna. 907-733-8500 E-mail us here P.O Box 353, Talkeetna, AK 99676 |
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