Peeping "Uncle Harry"

It seems strange that an animal that supposedly is as shy and reclusive as the sasquatch would have gained the reputation for being a "peeping tom".

The Free Dictionary defines a peeping tom as a person who stealthily peeks into windows.

There are numerous reports of sasquatches either observing people or looking in windows at people.

BFRO: Youngster frightened by "monster" peeping in window

BFRO: Daytime sighting by swimmers in Wolf Creek area

I have a contact who as a child would frequently see "red eyes" outside her bedroom window at night. This went on intermittently for seven or eight years. I spoke with her mother, now in her seventies. The mother related how her child was punished for making up stories and not wanting to sleep in that particular bedroom. It all changed one night when the mother, while checking on her daughter, also saw the "red eyes". The family was never for sure who their peeping tom was.


An older story is found in:

Bigfoot Of the Blues by Vance Orchard copyright 1993 Walla Walla, WA p. 81

That concerned the story of Jim Ralph, retired Forest Service employee. In 1942 he was assigned to lookout duty at Hoodoo Lookout on the Walla Walla Ranger district. [This is 7 miles west of Troy, Oregon]. After spending the daylight hours in the lookout tower, Ralph would come down to spend the night in a log cabin at the base. One night after retiring he had the sensation someone was looking in his window. Checking outside he could see nobody so went back to bed.



The next morning there was a set of hugh footprints, toes pointing toward his window, when he arose! Ralph recalls he followed the tracks leading away from the cabin for several miles but had to return to duty in the tower. He says he covered the two tracks at the window with a washtub until his boss came up from headquarters. "He asked me what I was going to do about them," Ralph said. "I told him he was the boss and it was up to him. That's the last I ever hear of it, though."



My parents and my oldest brother (who was three years old at the time) spent the summer of 1941 at this lookout tower in Wallowa County, Oregon. I wonder what my mother would have said if she had seen those giant footprints outside her window. Maybe she wouldn't have been so skeptical.

My only conclusion is that these animals have an extreme curiosity about us and feel secure being hidden either by the darkness or the bushes.

*photos courtesy of Rex Hamstra

Be Prepared

If there is one recommendation in research that I try to live by and encourage others to do so also is "be prepared". The Boy Scouts of America certainly picked an appropriate motto. Although I have not necessarily recorded anything significant I have tried to learn by my mistakes, have the correct gear and hopefully keep myself alert for opportunities to record when they are presented.

In doing wildlife research I feel that the two most important pieces of equipment are some type of camera or camcorder and a audio recorder. There are many new digital camcorders on the market and prices continue to drop. For doing a remote video setup I happen to like the Sony analog because it has 4 hours on long play and the aperture can be opened up to allow in more light. For audio recorder recommendations please see my soundrecording page.

I have had some successes and many failures in my quest to be ready. In March of 2005 I happened to be fortunate enough to get a digital still picture of a bobcat.



I was walking along a pond when Belle, my Karelian Bear Dog, assumed a point position. I saw some motion in the grass at about 300 yards distance. I immediately started clicking pictures. I did not know at the time what it was, I thought perhaps coyote until I downloaded the pictures on my computer. Even in the corn stubble the bobcat was still very well camouflaged.

On the 29th of August 2006 I had a cougar cross the road in front of my pickup at 7 a.m. in broad daylight. Was I prepared, no. If I had my camcorder running, sitting on the dash I would have perhaps recorded an excellent sequence. I had stopped the vehicle to allow my dog to greet the farmers dog that always comes out to say hello. When I looked back up the road the big cat was crossing the road only 50 feet in front of me. Since then I keep my camcorder running on the dash when I get within a mile of my research area.

I try to do 10 hr remote audio recording every night. My audio recordings can be found at:

my unknown sounds and bird and animal sounds.

Doing remote video setup I have taken video's of deer, possum, coyote, bobcat, fox, squirrel, rabbit. Of course using night vision the pictures are never as good as daytime. Some of these can be found at:

bird and animal videos.

I think the future is bright for researchers getting new recordings. Prices have plummeted for both audio and video equipment. Almost everyone can now afford to have at least some type of recording gear. And whatever you do, always keep your recorders running while in the field.

The Patterson Film

Sound Recording Recommendations

Big Cat Crossing

Big Cat Crossing