Cryptomundo
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“John L. Green laid the groundwork for many modern researchers like myself,” said Steenburg, who once hailed from the Nordegg-Kananaskis area. “Hairy giants were first recorded in the Mission-Harrison Lake area in the late 1920s by J.W. Burns, a Chehalis Indian agent, but stories date back to pre-contact. He became somewhat of a sensation, with his work being published in McLean’s magazine nationally and coined the name sasquatch as a mispronunciation of the Indian name.”

Steenburg added that his initial exposure to sasquatch sightings came when he lived in Alberta’s Nordegg area. When he was called out to investigate, he went two or three times to B.C. for one local investigation.

“The Kananaskis-Nordegg area was a hotbed from 1948 to 1984 for sasquatch activity,” said Steenburg. “A string of sightings of a 13- to 15-foot tall creature with 19-inch long footprints were not uncommon in a 100-mile radius of Nordegg.”

He added that the construction of the Bighorn Dam seemed to put a stop to sasquatch activity.

“Since I moved to B.C., I have focused on research and taken the approach to not deviate from the facts,” said Steenburg, noting there is a lunatic fringe that hangs on to every supposed sighting as if it was 100 per cent verified. “While I cannot say for certain that I have seen a sasquatch, or Bigfoot if you’re American, I have seen a very large creature from 500 yards that may have been a sasquatch, but I could not verify it.”

He was quick to add that the Internet has been a boon to researchers, and quacks alike.

“As soon as you post a YouTube video or photo, it no longer becomes as legitimate as it might be,” added the veteran researcher. “The advent of the Internet has brought more real sightings and information out but it has also shed light on hoaxes as well.”

Sasquatch sightings still continue around the world, with Steenburg continuing to investigate these reports.

“As we move into the deeply wooded tracts in and around the mountainous areas we are in their backyard,” added Steenburg. “If people call with real evidence we will investigate.”

Meanwhile, Steenburg is only one of a number of sasquatch researchers from North America and beyond. In recent years, a Sasquatch Summit has taken place at B.C.’s Harrison Hot Springs Resort & Spa with lectures and displays, including footprint casts, possible hair samples and images from the famous Patterson-Gimlin film.

But the basic question remains: is sasquatch real?

Green believes the “hairy giant” of the Chehalis Reserve is real, and Steenburg is not sure despite a potential sighting, and verbal reports from those he has interviewed who are believers.