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I don't have a smartphone; I think it would be harder to use this format on a phone. Does anyone even learn to type anymore? I agree, oldies like us used to like to have discussions at length, for days or more. I mostly blame social media, which has damaged attention spans and increased sources of information. Another reason could be progression of knowledge; people learn answers to personal questions and move on.

I love to see how my (admittedly very incomplete) data for just over 1200 reported encounters in the mid-Atlantic to northeastern United States and eastern Canada lines up with other data. I have more reports for this area than the than the BFRO because I've included historical encounters, encounters reported in books, and encounters from numerous other websites which are not (publicly) reflected in the BFRO website. I don't know if they privately incorporate these reports, but if they are a data-based research organization, it would make sense to use all the data available. 2. Other Notable States: * Pennsylvania 130 reports (BFRO) 368 reports (Trogluddite's data) * New York: 121 reports (BFRO) 262 reports * Maine: Not in Top 10 92 reports Temporal Trends 1. Seasonal Distribution: Summer accounts for approximately 34% of sightings, making it the peak season. I have 30% of sightings in the summer Fall follows with around 27% of sightings. And 30% of sightings in the fall Winter and spring have fewer reports, possibly due to reduced human outdoor activity. Winter has 17% and spring has 14% of all encounters. I would say that its likely that both Bigfoot and humans reduce their outdoor activity in the winter. That spring is the lowest % of sightings surprises me given that humans likely want to get outside again. However, Bigfoot may be even more secretive than usual IF that's when their offspring are born. The missing 9% of encounters are due to the fact that many so-called research groups and/or online reports lack basic facts. 2. Yearly Trends: TrogGPT is much less smarter than ChatGPT, so I'll just note some highlights * One can find 86 descriptions of what could be encounters with Bigfoot before 1900 in the limited geographical area I focus on * Not unexpectedly, there are less than 100 reports of "escaped gorillas" or wild men from 1900 to 1950 * The decade with the most reported encounters (not necessarily reported contemporaneously with the encounter) was the 2000s with 344 Lunar Cycle Correlation I find this data very difficult to trust. For example, some data sets use a default date, such as the first of the month, if no specific date is given. In other cases, witnesses have forgotten when exactly an encounter occurred; while some can describe the situation accurately, many can't. Additionally, weather conditions, terrain, and the local environment all help determine actual moonlight one can see, so a witness's statement that "there was very little moonlight" doesn't necessarily tell us what the lunar cycle information accurately. Out of just over 1200 reports, a concrete date was only reported in (or could be extracted from) 328 reports and of these only 183 occurred between dusk and dawn. (There is a reason I include lunar cycle data for daytime encounters if a concrete date is available.) * 41% of nighttime encounters occur when lunar illumination is less than 25% (i.e., first and last six days of a lunar cycle) * 23% of nighttime encounters occur during the peak of lunar illumination (i.e., before and after the full moon) I won't keep going. What I find interesting is that different datasets relying on different encounter reports still produce relatively consistent results. NorCal, I salute you for finding an innovative way to crack data - it would be interesting if this could be applied to the SSR. I also curse you (jokingly) for reminding us that computers are on their way to making us all a Captain Dunsel.

This caught my attention, since my topic post w/ graph showed an observable downward trend. Looking back on my data, code, and graph, I discovered I had mistook the date field as the submission date, when in fact what the Kaggle author called 'timestamp' is actually the reported sighting date. I should have caught this. The submission date is not available in the dataset I had used. The trends that AI pulled from Reddit are based on what the Redditor called an updated dataset relative to the one I used. This updated version has a submission date and a messy sighting year field (e.g., 2022, 2014-ish, 2001-2002, 1987 and 1994, 2011, etc.). The updated version also cuts off at 2021. There are other differences between the datasets, but here's what I found in terms of AI's response: Yes, there was a spike in 2012, though these were largely Class B sightings. My guess is that this comes from heightened awareness from Finding Bigfoot, which premiered in 2011. The downward trend resumed its course after the spike in 2012. Yes, there was an upward trend but it reversed around 2005. Here's my updated graph with correct labeling (LEFT) and a graph I created from the 'updated' data linked by the Redditor (RIGHT). Note that i had fewer records to graph (on the left), as I removed any records missing a date/year value (due to the witness unable to recall the encounter date). The graph on the right, since it's using the actual submission date (rather than the encounter date), had far fewer missing values (roughly 1000 more records to graph). BFRO launched in mid-late 1990s, and this is reflected in the near-zero submissions prior to then (righthand graph).

I asked ChatGPT to evaluate the BFRO sightings database. Here is what I learned: 📍 Geographic Hotspots 1. Washington State Leads in Sightings: Washington has the highest number of reported sightings, with 726 entries, accounting for approximately 12% of all reports in the BFRO database. Peregrine Chai 2. Other Notable States: California: 463 reports Florida: 344 reports Ohio: 327 reports Illinois: 304 reports Oregon: 261 reports Texas: 259 reports Michigan: 226 reports Pennsylvania: 130 reports Colorado: 131 reports New York: 121 reports Georgia: 145 reports 3. Regional Patterns: The Pacific Northwest (Washington, Oregon, Northern California) is a significant hotspot, likely due to its dense forests and mountainous terrain. The Great Lakes region (Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio) shows a higher percentage of visual sightings, with creatures seen in 38% of reports compared to the national average of 28%. Mid-Atlantic states (New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland) have a higher incidence of auditory reports, with creature sounds appearing in 31% of reports versus the national average of 23%. Peregrine Chai+1Axios+1 🕒 Temporal Trends 1. Seasonal Distribution: Summer accounts for approximately 34% of sightings, making it the peak season. Fall follows with around 27% of sightings. Winter and spring have fewer reports, possibly due to reduced human outdoor activity. Reddit 2. Yearly Trends: 2012 recorded the highest number of sightings, with 191 reports. There is an observable upward trend in reported sightings over the years, which could be attributed to increased public interest and awareness. Reddit 🌕 Lunar Cycle Correlation Reports decrease significantly during the full moon and new moon phases. Environmental noises (e.g., wood knocking, rock clacking) peak around the waxing gibbous phase, just before the full moon. Reports where a creature is both seen and heard peak just after the full moon during the waning gibbous phase. Peregrine Chai+1BFRO+1 🧍‍♂️ Witness Demographics and Activities Many sightings involve individuals engaged in outdoor activities such as hunting, fishing, camping, or hiking. Reports often come from individuals familiar with local wildlife, enhancing the credibility of their accounts. Encounters frequently occur in remote or less-traveled areas, reducing the likelihood of misidentifying known animals. 🐾 Behavioral Patterns and Physical Descriptions 1. Common Behaviors: Vocalizations: Screams, whoops, and howls are frequently reported, especially in the Mid-Atlantic region. Wood knocking and rock clacking are noted as possible forms of communication or territorial displays. Rock throwing and tree shaking are sometimes reported as intimidation behaviors. Nocturnal activity is common, with many encounters occurring at night.Peregrine Chai 2. Physical Descriptions: Height estimates range from 6 to 10 feet, with some reports noting creatures approximately 2.5 times the height of a deer. Descriptions often include a gorilla-like appearance, dark or reddish-brown fur, and a strong, muscular build. Movement is typically bipedal, with a swift and agile gait.New York PostThe Sun+2Axios+2Midland Daily News+2 🗺️ Environmental and Geographic Correlates Sightings are frequently associated with areas abundant in deer and elk populations, suggesting a potential food source. Remote, forested regions with ample cover and proximity to water sources are common locations for reports. Geographic features such as swamps, caves, and mountainous terrain are often present in sighting locations. AxiosOregon Bigfoot 🔍 Recent Notable Sightings 1. Michigan (May 2025): A father and son reported encountering a 6-foot-tall, ape-like creature near Plum Creek in Monroe County while bow fishing. The creature was described as having dark fur and was seen leaping from a tree before fleeing. BFRO investigator Matthew Moneymaker deemed the witnesses credible. Midland Daily News+1The Sun+1Midland Daily News+2The Sun+2New York Post+2 2. Connecticut (October 2023): A resident in Fairfield County reported hearing long-duration whooping sounds matching previous Sasquatch recordings. The incident occurred near Monroe in a forested area, with the sounds lasting up to 10 minutes. BFRO classified the report as credible and a Class B sighting. BFRO+7New York Post+7BFRO+7 These patterns and trends provide a comprehensive overview of the characteristics and distribution of Bigfoot sightings across North America, as documented by the BFRO. I found the lunar correlation very interesting. seems like Sasquatch like dark nights. never heard of this relationship before.

^^^ Well said, as well... There comes a time when every thread and every point has pretty much already been made. The last few years have been spent regurgitating the same stuff over and over again, just phrasing redundant ideas differently. There is little left that hasn't been covered, but that can actually be seen as a positive thing. It means that this Forum has been very thorough in its discussions and debates. I belong to three other bigfoot forums which are all suffering from the same stagnation as this one. I'm hoping as well, BD.