Michigan: Bigfoot Hotspot Revisited
Posted by: Loren Coleman on August 12th, 2012
Finding Bigfoot continues to get lots of media attention. In my continued look at Michigan, here’s more.
It is rather obvious that younger people are learning way too much about Sasquatch studies from Finding Bigfoot these days.
I guess my goal is for folks to get some good information in the midst of the publicity. For example, I was approached by Huffington Post, with this lead-off question, “Has the change in the climate shifted Bigfoot sightings from the Pacific Northwest to all these new sightings in Michigan, where there is more water?”
What? What did I just hear? Was the interviewer serious?
OMG, I said to myself. I have to pull this interchange back to the facts, not flash. There were more questions from the point-of-view that Finding Bigfoot was investigating evidence of Michigan being a new location for Bigfoot sightings. The lore of Bigfoot in Michigan goes back a long way, to Windigo traditions, of course, I slowly started explaining.
I decided to respond calmly within a foundation of reality; here are the few quotes that Huffington Post used:
“Michigan has been a hotspot for sightings since the 1960s, especially areas like Sister Lake and Monroe, where there were reports of very aggressive creatures and people being attacked,” said Loren Coleman of the International Cryptozoological Museum in Portland, Maine.
Coleman said the high number of sightings makes sense because of Michigan’s extensive wilderness.
“It’s in the boreal forest, the heavily tree-covered area that goes from the Pacific Northwest across the U.S.-Canada border to Maine, but it has more sightings than other places because there are more people,” he said. “You need people to see Bigfoot and Michigan has a higher population than, say, the Dakotas.”
Reporters David Sands and David Moye wrote this new article about the Animal Planet series in Huffington Post, which you can read, in full, here.
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.
There’s more physical evidence to support the existence of a bigfoot like animal than there is “Climate Change” sad to say. One relies on photos, eye witness sightings, tracks and hair samples (still no sign of the DNA analysis and paper) where as the other relies on – hmmm.. “Computer Models.”
I hesitate to point this out because it is so obvious, but “computer models” for weather are based on fairly long history of data (temperatures, rainfall, wind speeds, directions, etc.) recorded by a wide number of sources. They’re not just made up from nothing. If fifty people say it was 87°F on a particular day, it’s probably safe to say that’s correct. If one person says they saw a bigfoot at a particular spot, it’s still just one person’s report.
I’m not saying that there’s not evidence for bigfoot. There is, indeed, a lot of it. But the amount of weather data/evidence far outweighs bigfoot evidence, not the other way around.
That said, interpretation of weather data is not an exact science — otherwise the weatherman would be right everyday.
The mere fact that this question was posed by the Huffington Post qualifies as further evidence of just how very much the media remains completely uneducated of the Sasquatch phenomenon. In any interview I have been a part of involving mainstream media, I far to often come away with a sense of frustration at the conclusion of it. Their general level of knowledge of the subject matter, and the nomenclature associated with it, is astonishingly low. It also doesn’t lend itself to a positive light, the fact that so few media representatives are willing to constructively approach the topic, or review the existing research. I would much rather spend my time addressing a class of high school students on the subject, who I have found to be much more receptive and genuine. Unfortunately, the media will ultimately play a part in uncovering the existence of this creature, and therefore cannot be completely disregarded.
The Huffington Post is not exactly the paragon of truth. Their reporters do very little research on the subjects they write about, or so it would seem. Since the Bigfoot controversy is now gaining acceptence due to “media saturation” of the phenomenon, any “reporter” feels qualified to offer an opinion without doing much homework. The fact would seem to be that people who, at one time, wouldn’t dare report a sighting due to ridicule, are now telling of their experiences with seeing or hearing the elusive giant. There are certainly other “hotspots” (i.e. Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, New York, etc.) that generate more reports than Michigan. Climate change? Probably not. Awareness and the changing acceptence of the subject by the general public is more likely the reason for the increase of Michigan reports.
Bwaa, ha ha! The more I see this show, the funnier it gets. Might as well call it the “Bigfoot Comedy Hour” and probably a good show for NBC. Invite some of the older stars like Don Rickles, Ruth Buzzi and JoAnne Worly. Maybe Phyllis Diller for the eye shine program! (I looked it up and yes, there is a Bigfoot Comedy Hour, go figure).
@RandyS
Thanks for “I hesitate to point this out because it is so obvious,” because it actually isn’t. As a programmer of 30 years – ten of which spent in consultancy, and after review of some of the climate modelling software being used, our industries axiom of “garbage in garbage out” applies. Moreover, the use of constants rather than variables inclines data the way one would prefer it to go. That’s before we start applying statistical formulas, modifying baselines etc. et al.
Irrespective, pure science is based on observation through experiment. The other sciences – of which climate is one – can not be – which leaves hypothesis, modelling and in the case of climate science – “soft-guesses”. Inconvenient data, under those circumstances, can not be left out. Curiously we see this data being omitted in a number of disciplines, not just climate. The biological sciences being a notable example – and I’m not referring to BF.
I’m going to assume here the folks at Cryptomundo would prefer we don’t extend this topic, as it’s not directly related. Thanks for your comments, though.
“There are certainly other “hotspots” (i.e. Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, New York, etc.) that generate more reports than Michigan?”
Having recently retired from a Detroit Suburban police agency where I developed a massive research database used to study criminal groups that drew attention from law enforcement at all levels and abroad so, let me add this. I examined and applied many of the same principle methods to Michigan Bigfoot Sightings for the sole purpose of analyzing key “words” or signature facts regarding this creature.
Important to know is that none of this is 100 percent true and accurate, however, it appears Mr. Moneymaker and his crew were on to something when they stopped here some months ago.
I believe the great state of Michigan has had more than 500 sightings from the turn of the century to present which is in and of itself an extraordinary number of sighitngs. Furthermore, one of the greatest obstacles confronting seekers of this mysterious but illusive creature is this: There are far too many individual Bigfoot Research Groups each with individual standards of investigative criteria.
For example, if the U.S. Government CDC (Center for Disease Control) and many American health groups use predictive benchmark and standards for all types of injuries and diseases they know how many persons suffer gunshot wounds per year. Not just because hospitals and medical centers are mandated to report them but, government anaylsts accurately predict for every reoprted gunshot there are five times the number go unreported all based on different variables etc. Each entire report is picked apart and every detail is analyzed and the data is stored.
How does this apply to Bigfoot research and study or anything else?
When one looks over a number of sightings from whatever state understand those figures are not imperical meaning not 100 percent scientific fact. Rather there are a guess or personal opinion. Therefore, if for example if Michigan did have lets say 500 incidents multiply that by 5 and that would be probably closer to the truth. That is not taking in account for all those incidents or sightings that folks simply refuse to speak about.
I have only done this for my own understanding and I am not affiliated with the official Michigan BFRO folks. On the downside the method applied here is extremely time consuming but demonstrates very clearly where the path of migration is, if it exists at all. In so far as the migration question goes why is there such large numbers of active sighitngs in the Hillsdale, Jackson, Lenawee counties on the extreme lower of the state than further north? These are important questions that need to be answered in order to learn more about these creatures.
Using the textbook line to put it another way, epidemics are localized issues for reporting purposes but pandemics are vast and cover large regions and get a lot of attention. Likewise Bigfoot sightings and encounters are localized only because societal attitudes toward the topic and people reporting them and until folks make some inroads in breaking down negative barriers associated with this creature we can never truly know more about them.
Are they predatory? Are they flesh eaters? Why are they here and where did they come from? Do they carry or transmit disease? Does their presence change the biological and environmental balance of animals who compete for food? Nobody can say what long term issues these creatures may cause to environment do they? Here in Michigan, the greater portion of the population is centered in the middle or southeast state and more and more reports have surfaced reporting large cats and wolves in densley populated areas why? These animals have not existed in such regions since the mid 1800’s and one has to wonder what is going on up north to cause such southward migrations.
Of course I have read and heard from various sources of their own personal experiences and encounters but nobody really knows enough of the Who, Where, What, Whys of this creature. For those who refuse to believe this creature exists, it is okay but it doesn’t relieve recurrent emotional issues some children and adults carry all their life who did encounter it. For me, as an independent thinker who spent a career seeing things in abstract “Black and White” and who learned to live by intuitive instinct and senses these creatures are real.. Though I am not clear as to what underlying their purpose nor do I understand from where they derive.
In summary there are many times more sightings in Michigan and every state for that matter than folks realize. Many more sighitngs go unreported than are reported and until a vast number of independent sources unify into a local organization information and data will be always be skewed. Because and until barriers admonishing people are brought down reporting Bigfoot sightings nobody can say what or why these creatures are here in such vast numbers and if they present a danger to humans.