Searching for Sasquatch on Halloween

Statue of Sasquatch in Troy, NC

On Halloween does the story of Sasquatch spook you? You decide if it’s the truth or a legend, but either way you will be curious and want to know more. Regardless, the story is told and retold in central North Carolina, particularly on hiking adventures and camping trips with people of all ages.

Where to Look for Sasquatch

Ground zero for finding Sasquatch is Montgomery County. More sightings of this mysterious, mythical creature have occurred here than many of us want to count. However, a group — known as the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization — does just that, and a scientific pursuit — known as cryptozoology (a serious inquiry for believers) — documents these experiences. (The nickname “Bigfoot” incidentally comes from footprints reportedly up to 24 inches in length.)

The Uwharrie National Forest is just the ideal location that Sasquatch would want to call home. (Confusing Uwharrie with U. R. Harry is a diversionary tactic by skeptics to poke fun at believers convinced that Sasquatch is real.)

With abundant game animals such as deer, turkey, rabbit, and squirrel in the forest, Sasquatch has many choices for a meal when taking a break from snacking on the abundant fish. After such a rich diet, Sasquatch can obviously travel quite a distance before returning home.

Reporting When You Find Sasquatch

If you should see Sasquatch, make sure you use the handy form on the BFRO’s website to report when your experience. (The form is easy to find online — just search for “BFRO report form” — filing a report adds you to the list of contributors. I always have a form ready just in case.) Because Montgomery has the overwhelming number of the 94 sightings of Sasquatch in North Carolina (as recorded by BFRO), this county is the obvious place to begin a search.

If you’re curious, the most promising way to find Sasquatch is to venture into the Uwharrie. When you do, the best advice is to remain calm. A police warning in 2017 advised, “Please do not shoot at him/her.” (However, this public safety advisory was intended to avoid harming “a fun-loving and well-intentioned person wearing a gorilla costume.” Obviously, some officers aren’t convinced about the seriousness of such sightings.)

Believing That Sasquatch Is More Than a Legend

That Sasquatch is more than a legend is confirmed by how seriously many people believe this story. A fall festival in honor of the creature is held at Deep River Park, a 40-acre park near the community of Cumnock in northern Lee County. For look-alikes, contests are held for the hairiest man, best beard and, of course, the biggest foot. The park’s association believes so much in the sightings that it quotes Sasquatch, “Believe in yourself, even if no one else will.” Even the Lee County Co-op Extension Center last year held a series of lectures about this truly awesome creature.

Sponsoring an aerobic search, the town of Troy has held Chasing Bigfoot, a five-kilometer trail run in a nature preserve. Although the run was successful, no credible sightings were reported. Troy has also included Sasquatch in the logo for TroyFest, its annual summer festival.

The network Animal Planet even sent a crew to Montgomery County to film part of its series “Finding Bigfoot.” Perhaps it was influenced by the Class A sightings (the most reliable category) from there since 1990. Souvenirs abound along NC 24/27 in the area of the forest for explorers and researchers looking for Sasquatch and needing to take home something tangible.

Camping outfitters and outposts have statues, t-shirts as well as bumper stickers that help in telling the story if the pictures taken aren’t in focus. With such credible evidence, is it surprising that only 16 percent of Americans believe that Sasquatch exists?

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Note: The post is based on my article about Sasquatch published in the November 2019 issue of OutreachNC Magazine.

Uwharrie National Forest

Want to pan for gold? Panning seems like such an archaic, futile exercise. But at one time the Uwharrie Mountains were a destination for gold hunters.

Do adventure seekers there today still search for gold while they are enjoying other outdoor activities? “Yes, they do, but I don’t know how successful they are,” says Terry Savery, recreation program manager at Uwharrie National Forest, land initially purchased in 1931 by the Federal Government to protect and preserve mixed woodlands of oak and pine.

Searching for gold in N.C. led to
America's first gold rush.

Gold was first found in North Carolina in 1799 only about 30 miles west of the forest. Word that gold was in “them thar hills” spread like wildfire and led to America’s first gold rush, mostly forgotten in the books of history and overshadowed by the great California gold rush of 1849. However, the chance to strike it rich in the Uwharrie Mountains brought countless prospectors and miners who searched the hills and panned the streams for the sparkling metal.

The priceless search for adventure in the Uwharrie still brings in steady streams of outdoor enthusiasts. More popular than gold panning today are camping, picnicking, hiking, hunting, mountain biking, horseback riding, kayaking, boating and fishing.

The forest gets its name from the Uwharrie Mountains, considered to be the oldest mountains in North America. Formed about 500 million years ago with peaks as high as 20,000 feet, what had been a coastal mountain range now sits more than 150 miles from the coast and lies obviously in the Piedmont region because a gravitational shift pushed today’s coastal plain above sea level. The high points of the mountains now are only a fraction of their once magnificent heights, reduced by gradual erosion to just over 1,100 feet.

Bald eagles are often spotted
in the Badin Lake area.

With its mix of hardwood and pine woodlands, the forest is home for at least 60 reptile and amphibian species and for most of the 60 mammal species that live in North Carolina. From 55 bird points in the forest, approximately 85 bird species have been observed recently. Bald eagles are regular visitors, although no active nests are known. Savery confirms that bald eagles have been spotted in the forest’s Badin Lake area.

A special area is the Birkhead Mountain Wilderness, which was established in 1984 on the northern end of the Uwharrie Mountains. Because motor vehicles, motorboats and motorized equipment are prohibited in federal wilderness areas, the Birkhead offers astonishing opportunities for solitude with nature. Even travel by bicycle and on horse is prohibited. All trails in the wilderness are designated hiking trails.

Named for the Birkhead family who moved in around 1850 and eventually owned almost 3,000 acres, the wilderness still shows clues of early Indians and settlers who occupied the area many years earlier. The Birkhead Mountain Trail traverses the wilderness from north to south for more than four miles. Along the route are remnants of old homesteads and farms, old roads, gold mining operations and evidence of timber harvesting.

The Uwharrie National Forest protects and
preserves mixed woodlands of pine and oak.

The Uwharrie is the habitat of 66 freshwater fish species. In addition to game birds, game animals that call the forest home include white-tailed deer, wild turkey, quail, bobcat, opossum, rabbit and gray squirrel. The forest is heavily hunted and has the highest use per acre of any N.C. Wildlife Resource Commission game land.

The Uwharrie is a top tourist destination for good reason. With its enticing road and trail system, abundant lake and river frontage, and moderate slopes and elevations, it’s the perfect place for outdoor enthusiasts to enjoy nature.

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Note: This post appeared originally as a longer article in the August 2015 issue of OutreachNC, a monthly magazine distributed in 10 counties of central North Carolina. Click here to see the article as it appeared in print.