Sasquatch at Habituation Sites?
Posted by: Loren Coleman on February 22nd, 2010
Impossible Visits: The Inside Story of Interactions with Sasquatch at Habituation Sites by Christopher Noël was published a year ago. Has it suggested something we should examine, with hindsight?
Chris Noël
It is well-known that Noël has worked closely with the BFRO in the past. One must ask, did this book signal an overt shift in policy and practice of the BFRO? However, since it was a self-published effort (Xlibris Corporation, February 2, 2009), it may not be sanctioned by the BFRO. Did anyone notice any change in BFRO policy during the last year? Or overall, what has been the result of any developments due to this book?
As to the video sold with the book, does it show breaking new evidence for habituation or merely a sampling of blobsasquatches and interviews?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2SUNS4G8kA
Please note, at least one video on YouTube associated with the book now carries the message: “This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by Richard Noll.” (It appears to be regarding a small clip of Jane Goodall, but since it is referred to in the BFRO link noted above, I wanted to mention that absence.)
The three reviews at Amazon follow:
Awesome account, June 21, 2009By KC (Florida)I experienced my own Bigfoot sighting years ago and even have a report filed on-line with the BFRO.net – Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization. So I am a believer. What I loved about this book was the revealing insight into the behavior and mindset of these creatures as experienced by these habituators. I have read extensively about Bigfoot. This is the first to provide an on-going account of established relationships rather than numerous reports of split-second sightings with little detail into their behavior. I like the premise also. It gave me a glimpse of HOW they exist in relation to humans not WHETHER they exist. This book is not for the skeptics since they are looking for proof positive, not 5 families’ accounts of peculiar, sometimes child-like behavior, inconsistent, and on-going experiences with Bigfoot. I learned a great deal. For the skeptics, you might be interested in checking out the BFRO. The home page is a wealth of information; there are almost 4,000 sighting reports listed by state and then county and a discussion board. It is a very professional and creditable organization with frequent expeditions into the “hot spots” of numerous sightings all over the U.S. The on-line expedition reports are amazing. The BFRO will not publish a report unless the eyewitness has been investigated by a BFRO investigator.
To the author, I really appreciate your time out in the field with these habituators. Your book is very concise and well organized. I look forward to your next book.Riveting Accounts, April 26, 2009
By MH (Pennsylvania)I really didn’t know what to expect but from the moment I picked up this book I couldn’t put it down, didn’t get much sleep that night. I’ve been fascinated by Bigfoot for many years and have read everything I could find on the Internet, but the accounts in Impossible Visits are much more detailed, and better written, than anything I’ve seen before. The writer managed to track down five cases of sasquatch habituation, which he relates in the voices of the people who were lucky enough to get the sasquatch “visits,” in addition to his own research in Vermont, which is amazing all by itself. I’d recommend this book strongly to anyone with an interest in this topic, and even if you think you just MIGHT have an interest, because nobody could read this book and stay apatehtic. The writer says he wanted to put this book together so that when the day comes that a body is found, or a Bigfoot shot and killed, the public will have a reliable source of information to turn to, filled with specifics about sasquatch behavior, intelligence, and non-violence. So they won’t just think it’s some monster. This book is definitaly a step in the right direction for that.
Somewhat Disappointed, April 23, 2009
By JB (North Carolina)Having long held an interest in the subject, I was somewhat disappointed in what I hoped could have been a true compendium of chronicled Sasquatch Habitation. What I got was a narration more similar to the sighting and contact reports from any one of the many “Bigfoot” web sites.
I sprung for the whole deal and got the accompanying CD that is an option.The stills, with the exception of those from a man from Kansas seem obviously “shopped” and unauthentic. The man from Kansas on the other hand, is doing and I think has done what could be done no other way. And that is to use long distance photography to capture the sasquatch on film.
Please understand. I’m not pronouncing judgment on the author’s veracity.I do not know him. But I do think that it is possible for well meaning, rational people, to want to believe so bad that objectivity gets clouded.
I feel a particle of truth in every account in the book. But I also feel much exaggeration as well. There are no great revelations or provable events in this book. In no tiny way will any skeptic be swayed from anything in this book.
Overall it was kind of high priced for the same basic thing you can get for free on the web.
About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct).
Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015.
Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.
Wishful thinking and people seeing what they want to see. To convince me it will take a live or dead specimen in a real lab being studied.
I wonder if those attempting to establish contact with amazonian primitives who are famously reclusive (and for equally good reasons based on the modern history of post-contact treatment) ever get decent photographs. I can’t think of anyone photographing humans in their wild state and intent on not be seen by others, in a dependable reproducible way unless the humans actually intended to be seen at length. I rather think that habituation or not, getting close enough to capture photographic evidence as if these creatures were just another kind of wildlife is unlikely to be very productive and highly unlikely to be reproducible, at least the way I’m reading about the way it’s being done.
The article mentions someone using telephoto techniques in an attempt to photograph an example. That sounds more promising but limit telephotography, even when conditions are nominally clear, has limitation that need to be addressed, though I’d love to see what evidence that person is getting. It does stike me as at least offering an opportunity to combine direct reproducable documentation with other forms of physical evidence.
What is interesting is that one of the suppliers of photos to Chris Noel is currently under investigation for manipulating photos in which they claim to have multiple Bigfoot in them. I’ve seen some of the manipulated before and after pictures done by this person, and it’s obvious that they are manipulating pictures left and right, and deserve no credibility for anything they come in contact with.
For those who are wondering, it’s the Kansas photograph that is displayed on the author’s website, the person behind it is the one being investigated.
I wish Christopher Noel great luck in his future endeavors. I happen to own a copy of his first novel, “Hazard and the Five Delights,” and if this effort is as good as that tome was, then I’m setting myself up for a rewarding evening or two expanding my mind. Looking forward to it. Thanks, Mr. Noel for your research.
dogu4–You are correct! Amazonian natives will only be seen if they want you to see them. They can effectively hide in that jungle habitat and you could walk right past them without seeing them. Very valid point!
Yes, I too would prefer photographic proof over a dead body or a live capture. There are limitations to photography however, given the alleged BF basics. They are reportedly nocturnal or out and about in low light conditions. Most telephoto lenses are fast lenses. You may need a higher shutter speed and the f/stop of the lens to be around 2.0 to 4.5, even in shady conditions. In nocturnal or dusk to dawn type lighting, one would need an extremely high ISO rating, a cumbersome tripod and the fastest lens available. Even then, there would be no guarantee of a clear shot. Most would be blurred if the subject were on the move.
I have stated this here before and I will state it again, if we are ever going to have a clear shot of an alleged BF, there is going to have to be several factors that will need to line up.
First of all, one must be prepared for the environment and lighting conditions and carry multiple cameras. One would have have to be a zoom lens that is capable of wide angle to telephoto. An 18mm to 200mm range zoom, would be effective for a close encounter opportunity. And the other lens would have to be a telephoto lens for searching probable areas from a distance. Having charged batteries, back up equipment, a high MP count camera, and different fast lense would be crucial. Preparedness would be at the top of my list.
Secondly, since BF has the apparent ability to hide or not be seen, unless by chance, the photographer would have to be a pretty good amature to professional. One would have to have their settings ready in advance or the ability to adapt while searching for BF. The photographer would have to have quick hands and not be surprised by any encounter. The photographer would have to be expecting the shot. Then getting the camera to the eye quickly and then steadying the camera for minimized blur would have to be second nature. Most amatures would be unable to do this under normal conditions. Encountering a BF would not be a normal condition. So it would have to be a topnotch amature or professional photographer, that would be able to accomplish this shot. Professional attitude and experience of the photographer would be second on my list, in obtaining a clear BF photo.
Thirdly and lastly, spending the time in the right area and having a bit of luck on your side, would have to be part of the equation, a big part of the equation.
All these factors coming to fruition will produce a clear shot of a BF if they exist. Maybe that is why we have so many photos of blogsquatches and none that are clear.
That’s what I truly feel bad about. I never want to see a Bigfoot get captured just to be studied and tortured in a lab. Let’s study them in their environment. Let’s become friends with them. I bet there is so much they can teach us and we can learn from them. They are truly beautiful animals. This is where science and I bump heads. Why? Why capture one to do things to it. Just to prove that it exists. If anyone has been lucky enough to see one, then consider yourself a very lucky and blessed person. If you have not ever seen and never plan on looking for one then who cares and go about your business.
I don’t want to offend anyone. Everyone on here is highly educated. And I love this site. Maybe one day someone can film them in a HD cam interacting with humans but not interfering. Everyone have a good day.