SEASON: Fall
MONTH: September
DATE: 1
STATE: California
COUNTY: Fresno County
LOCATION DETAILS: March 2003 Update. This incident occurred in California's Sequoia National Forest, the eastern part of Fresno County, along the North Fork of the Kings River, to the south of Wishon Reservoir, east of Long Meadow Creek in Granite Gorge at about 36 degrees, 58 minutes and 21 seconds north and 119 degrees, 30 seconds west. Granite Gorge is about 1 kilometer wide at this point. Entry is by way of forestry road and logging roads. The actual footprint sighting was on a lower bluff inside a pool of wet sand about 100' below the canyon rim and about 1000 feet above the river.
OBSERVED: March 2003 Update of BFRO #2996. I've purchased a composite USG topographical map with the advent of the internet. This has allowed me to be much more specific in the location of the sighting.
The late Vanwedigen and I were going fishing along the river over the Labor Day weekend. While back packing in along the forestry trail leading down to the river, we missed a trail marker and wound up at night along the canyon rim. We made camp on a bluff slightly below the canyon rim. I didn't sleep well that night. I had a feeling I was being watched and was uneasy. Breaking camp the next morning, Van went for water coming from an artesian spring in the wall of the canyon. He found one very clear bigfoot footprint in the wet sand below the spring, about 30 feet from where we'd camped. He called to me to come over and see. My first reaction was this was a hoax. Van and I examined the footprint in detail. It was about 17 inches in length, with 5 clear toes and pressed down about 2 1/2 inches in the sand. There was a musty smell in the area but this wasn't overpowering. Van concluded the print was real based upon the fact it had rained hard the previous morning and you could see the pattern of the rain drops on the surface of the sand except where the footprint was. Also whatever had made the print may very well be slightly above us at the end of the bluff in some rock outcroppings. He suggested we get out of there while the getting was good. Van had grown up in Minnesota hunting and fishing with his dad and brothers. I decided we should take his advice. We left and back tracked to Van's Toyota Landcruiser. We went over to Bass lake to fish for the rest of the weekend.
I now believe this bluff, artesian spring and cave or recessed rock overhang is a summer nesting or hiding place for the species. The watershed flows down toward Huntington Lake which has had more activity in recent years. It should be possible to locate the bluff from the air or via satellite imagery.
ALSO NOTICED: The Forestry Service refused to discuss the incident and was unaware of anything else in the area. The rock of the chimney was worn but the erosion didn't appear to be all from water. There are 4 BFRO Reports from Huntington Lake which is 15-18 miles on a direct route from this siting. These sitings may be from a family, family group or a number of groups changing altitude with the seasons and the food supply.
OTHER WITNESSES: None but Van and I and Van died in 1976. Breaking camp.
ENVIRONMENT: This area is around 4500 to 6000 feet in altitude and is covered primarily with conifer forest with some very heavy underbrush in areas. The trails through it are generally good and the terrain is somewhat rocky but passable. A slanted chimney goes down to the bluff which runs parallel to the canyon rim. The bluff is about 200 yards in length and has a few trees, some brush and rock out croppings. It drops off to the canyon below.