According to the Bigfoot Field Researchers Association, there are various counties in New Mexico that have experienced encounters with the legendary creature known as Bigfoot. Also known as Sasquatch (an anglicized derivative of the word “sesquac,” which means “wild man” in a Salish Native American language), Bigfoot in an ape-like cryptid said to inhabit the forests of the Pacific Northwest region of North America, although there are increasing sightings in other locations, including New Mexico.
Since the early 1970s, there have been around 38 documented sightings of this creature in counties such as Colfax (the Raton Pass), Dona Ana (outside Las Cruces), Lincoln (Ruidoso), Los Alamos (where I live), Rio Arriba (from the Jemez to Dulce), Otero (Mescalero), and San Juan. The largest numbers of encounters are in Rio Arriba (8), Otero (10), and San Juan Counties (8). To date, there are no documented sightings in and around Albuquerque.
The latest documented encounter with Bigfoot took place on March 7, 2011, in Thoreau, New Mexico. According to the witness, he was traveling home from work in Gallup to Bluewater, South Side. It was about 8:00 pm and it was snowing. He was traveling along Highway 612 when he noticed a figure moving by the road. At first, the witness believed the form to be that of an unusually tall person, but as he got closer he saw that the creature looked much more ape-like than human.
He estimated the size of it as more than seven feet tall an in excess of four hundred pounds. The creature was covered with long stands of brown hair over the body, with shorter, grayish hair on its head. It had dark eyes, a pronounced brow, and a face like an “old warrior,” stern or angry in expression. The witness was frightened and elected not to stop, not only because of the creature but also because of the mixture of snow and ice on the road. The creature did stop and had started to make its way toward the witness’ truck. The witness said that the creature did come very close to his vehicle.
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