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@Huntster Yes, I am. It's an actual prop from "Star Trek Beyond", the most recent Trek movie. My son and I were at the studio last week visiting while we were in LA for the weekend. I worked there for 8 years, and my former boss made a VIP tour for us NorthWind made a joke about Star Trek red shirts, and I posted this. Not a red shirt, but whatevs.

Almost every place around us has forest cover, game animals and water, so that's almost a given here in Oregon, so we don't have to worry much about that. When we are out and about, we look for things that look "wrong" for the environment. We look for large game trails, odd stick things that are out of place, etc. We also trust our guts - if it feels creepy or like you're being watched, that is a good sign. Places that raise the hair on the back of your neck are good stuff. We do not necessarily rule out things that stand out close to human habitations or towns - we just examine them more closely and judge whether or not it's more likely to be human. It seems to be true that they do and can exist alongside us, especially if it's a travel route. If we were camping overnight, we go to 1) areas where others have had experiences, and 2) where we have had our own things happen. In summer, I'd look more closely at the north side of a mountain, or a shadowed valley because it will be cooler. In winter, the opposite. In summer, I assume they are generally higher up and further in the mountains and it has certainly been our experience that they are lower down in the winter, avoiding the deep snows in the Cascades and visiting the river/lake areas - hence the prevalence of our footprint discoveries in the muddy areas in winter. We also explore places that have traditional names that may have been given to the area for a reason - aka any place with "Skookum" or "Devil" etc.

I agree, moved it for entertainment purposes.

Thanks for the comments guys. Yeah, this probably will always be one for the "inconclusive" pile. I have no first-hand information about the exact location or how old the photos are. I assume the sneaker print overlay was done by the person inadvertently stepping on it before noticing the more distinct print. I've seen black bear direct-register tracks (fore and back foot overlap)that mimic that shape, but typically if you look close you can see the outline of the hind foot. The soil medium here does not appear to allow for that level of detail. Should I hear of any other "interesting" activity from this area, I'll be sure to post it. THAT would make the analysis of these tracks all the more plausible as BF related.

The areas I go to are ones that I've heard first or second-hand accounts of a sighting or encounter in the past. That tells me that at least there has been activity there at some point. The most important feature for me are ponds. Not one but several in the general area. I'm looking for ones that are remote and access is difficult to physically get to. You mentioned several...maybe a long hike up a mountain, a swamp as a barrier to access, or a dense forest with lots of blow down, and hopefully no trail to the location. Most people stay on trails so having to bushwhack creates an environment that will keep most from coming near or through. After that, I'm looking for access to an elevation change from a pond as it offers a safe retreat or spot to view me without it being seen. Nowadays, there is access to an almost unlimited number of maps. You can do a lot of legwork at home with CalTopo and Google Earth. Triangulate sighting locations to see if you can figure out why they are producing results. Good old-fashioned gumshoeing. With that said, perhaps a sasquatch prefers a more populated area, such as designated camping spots, where it can reliably find humans to do its own investigation. I happen to think if I can get as far away from others as possible, and make myself known through some type of sound, that I'm a more likely target for it to pursue. Fewer humans to account for, safer environment, and terrain that allows for access to easy escape routes for them.