MIB Posted 6 hours ago Admin Posted 6 hours ago 50 minutes ago, georgerm said: There are reports of rural people in Oregon who lived along the Applegate River in Oregon who built a bigfoot trap out of logs Not correct. The trap was made by Ron Olson, a bigfoot researcher of decades past. He was a member of a research group out of Eugene, not a "local." It is not made of logs, it is made of sawed timbers with a sliding trap door. Here's a link to a newspaper article in case you wish to read up on it. (I've been to the trap and drive by the parking for it a few times a year. It's a nice walk if you are in the area.) The trap's door has since been rendered inoperable / open. Interesting (to me) stuff about the location ... the trap was built prior to the construction of Applegate Dam / reservoir. Since construction was completed in 1980 the location of bigfoot activity nearby has shifted. My personal best guess reviewing the terrain is that the trap was built on a ridge which was part of a route they'd use through the area. The lake now cuts off that path. Though BF can swim, getting to the water's edge requires exposing themselves to view. I have investigated one report from the upstream end of the lake which seems potentially credible. Beyond the lake is the OR/CA state line; the headwaters of the Applegate are on the California side. It is incredibly rugged country. Just a little west, also in the headwaters, is Red Buttes Wilderness, and beyond, connected, you'll get into the Oregon Caves country. All of this is in fairly close proximity, and mostly with cover, with Bluff Creek and the G.O. Road of PGF fame, Willow Creek, etc. If a person wanted to put some "sweat" into figuring out something useful, they could try to figure out how the BF's are getting from the Siskiyous west of I-5 to the Cascades east of I-5 .. there are essentially NO reports but they have to be getting across that freeway somehow / somewhere without being seen. I've pondered use of railroad overpasses, I've pondered underpasses where roads go under the freeway. These are on private land. No reports. Question .. unanswered .. is someone helping them by deliberately providing a covered crossing point? Sorry .. rambling. This area is personally fascinating, I spent over 20 years living adjacent to it trying to puzzle it out (unsuccessfully) and it remains a bit of an obsession. 2
georgerm Posted 3 hours ago Author Posted 3 hours ago (edited) 2 hours ago, MIB said: Not correct. The trap was made by Ron Olson, a bigfoot researcher of decades past. He was a member of a research group out of Eugene, not a "local." It is not made of logs, it is made of sawed timbers with a sliding trap door. Here's a link to a newspaper article in case you wish to read up on it. (I've been to the trap and drive by the parking for it a few times a year. It's a nice walk if you are in the area.) The trap's door has since been rendered inoperable / open. Interesting (to me) stuff about the location ... the trap was built prior to the construction of Applegate Dam / reservoir. Since construction was completed in 1980 the location of bigfoot activity nearby has shifted. My personal best guess reviewing the terrain is that the trap was built on a ridge which was part of a route they'd use through the area. The lake now cuts off that path. Though BF can swim, getting to the water's edge requires exposing themselves to view. I have investigated one report from the upstream end of the lake which seems potentially credible. Beyond the lake is the OR/CA state line; the headwaters of the Applegate are on the California side. It is incredibly rugged country. Just a little west, also in the headwaters, is Red Buttes Wilderness, and beyond, connected, you'll get into the Oregon Caves country. All of this is in fairly close proximity, and mostly with cover, with Bluff Creek and the G.O. Road of PGF fame, Willow Creek, etc. If a person wanted to put some "sweat" into figuring out something useful, they could try to figure out how the BF's are getting from the Siskiyous west of I-5 to the Cascades east of I-5 .. there are essentially NO reports but they have to be getting across that freeway somehow / somewhere without being seen. I've pondered use of railroad overpasses, I've pondered underpasses where roads go under the freeway. These are on private land. No reports. Question .. unanswered .. is someone helping them by deliberately providing a covered crossing point? Sorry .. rambling. This area is personally fascinating, I spent over 20 years living adjacent to it trying to puzzle it out (unsuccessfully) and it remains a bit of an obsession. Hey MIB thanks for the in-depth description of the bigfoot trap that sounds like it was up the Applegate canyon somewhere. It good to hear some accurate history. I was raised in Medford, and headed up to the Applegate River to swim and explore during the summers especially in 1965 when I was a senior in high school. Later after I graduated from the U of O in Eugene, my past wife and I hiked a trail beginning close to the river and went up and over the mountain to the Oregon Caves before I knew about bigfoot. If someone wants to study bigfoot that would be a good area for the event. As far as crossing Interstate 5 highway, if bigfoots are smart which they seem to be they would cross at night when there is no traffic. There are also reports of them crossing highways when there is traffic so who knows how they think. Why do you think the Forest Service refuses to publish studies on bigfoot when they hire many credentialed wildlife biologist? Their job is to set aside land for logging and to look out for the well being of forest animals. Skilled foresters and wildlife biologist hired by the forest service could make logging and bigfoot compatible. After a clear cut, the deer flock in to eat the tender leaves off the brush which is a win win situation. Hunters might have a greater negative impact on bigfoots and drive bigfoots into roadless mountains where food is more scarce. During the Fall when bigfoots need to fatten up for winter they are driven away from the low lands where deer, elk and moose are feeding on nutritious leaves. What are your thoughts? How long will it take before someone captures or shoots a male and female bigfoot that will tie down discovery? How can discovery be speeded up? Edited 3 hours ago by georgerm
MIB Posted 2 hours ago Admin Posted 2 hours ago It's not really up in the canyon ... exactly .. semantics, perhaps? If you drive up the Applegate to the top of the dam then continue on the main highway you'll come to a turnoff (left, down toward the lake) for Hart-Tish recreation site. Boat ramp and, in summer, a little store / concessions place. Just barely up-lake beyond that is a sign for the Collings Mountain trail .. the trap is up that a short distance. We generally drive past the trailhead, which is just on the road shoulder, across a small canyon where we can back in behind the guard rail instead of parking on the edge of traffic, then walk back a couple hundred yards or so to the trail. Edit to add - the Collings Mountain Trail is a loop and it returns to the highway near the back of the lake across the highway from Watkins Campground. Since you know the area, the report I followed up on was from Seattle Bar. A good friend / partner in crime followed up on one across the lake from the trap just uphill from the French Gulch boat ramp. I think it was part of that corridor that was cut off when the lake was filled. So far as USFS? I grew up around USFS employees, seasonal trail crew to district rangers. In 60+ years I've never seen anything to support the idea of an official cover-up. There's no play book they're working from, no conspiracy to hide bigfoot. If there is anyone out there who does know with certainty and feels tasked with keeping the secret, they don't have to do anything, the myth and ridicule will do that work without deliberate help. It's a matter of momentum. And so far as proving, I see essentially no way short of a body on a slab. I think pre-Ketchum, photos and DNA could have drawn enough scientific interest but that debacle snuffed those. DNA could probably still do it but it requires a big hunk of flesh, big enough to test, retest, re-retest, to eliminate contamination as an option .. which is a very high bar to clear .. and I think a hunk of flesh that big functionally implies a body. Taking it a step further, I think someone with deep enough pocket$ could fund testing and analysis that would tell us a lot about bigfoot without it being necessary to prove existence first. It would not be universally accepted but it would still be information for anyone willing to listen. I don't know who that would be now that Wally Hersom has passed away and Adrian Erickson has exited the playing field.
Trogluddite Posted 1 hour ago Posted 1 hour ago 5 hours ago, MIB said: Not correct. The trap was made by Ron Olson, a bigfoot researcher of decades past. He was a member of a research group out of Eugene, not a "local." It is not made of logs, it is made of sawed timbers with a sliding trap door. Here's a link to a newspaper article in case you wish to read up on it. (I've been to the trap and drive by the parking for it a few times a year. It's a nice walk if you are in the area.) The trap's door has since been rendered inoperable / open. For those who wish to read more about Ron Olson and other early researchers in Oregon, or elsewhere, there are numerous newspaper articles at https://bigfootforums.com/forum/203-more-historical-newspaper-archives/page/27/?sortby=title&sortdirection=asc.
Catmandoo Posted 1 hour ago Posted 1 hour ago 20 hours ago, georgerm said: Do we lack shovels and picks? Not enough backhoes. Seems like backhoes find a lot of ancient bones, especially at construction sites.
Catmandoo Posted 1 hour ago Posted 1 hour ago On 9/23/2026 at 10:17 AM, Backdoc said: The public and animals: Back in the old days I imagine movie production was less concerned about animal harm. Today there are more concerns probably based on public input. Some might even say we have gone too far the other way. I don't know what the public would demand to protect Bigfoot but there would be something. The only question would be what level of those protections. How far might we go? Relax, the groundwork for protections was laid at the end of the previous century. A movie ran their disclaimer at the end of projection and stated that no animals or aliens were injured during the making of the movie. What a relief. 1
Catmandoo Posted 16 minutes ago Posted 16 minutes ago 10 hours ago, MIB said: That depends on what you count as "discovery." They are not acknowledged by mainstream science. Lacking that, I don't count them as "discovered." It doesn't matter what I've seen or experienced. My knowledge that they exist is irrelevant. Someone else's belief they exist is irrelevant. Until we have proof of existence accepted by mainstream science, the notion of discovery is as mythical as bigfoot is. ^^^^^ What MIB said. Acknowledgement requires a description/label by Linnaean taxonomy. Unconfirmed/unverified sightings do not count. Even when Sasquatch finds you, all you can do is change your underwear.
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