Colorado
The business of Bigfoot: Sasquatch tourism brings cryptid-curious to Colorado
For $650 a head, Jim Myers leads cryptid-curious folks from around the world into the wilderness of Colorado’s Park County for a three-day camping expedition in search of the elusive Bigfoot.
Myers’s business, Rabbit Hole Adventures, provides tents, meals, guides, first aid kits and satellite phones as part of the quest. He also brings night-vision binoculars, thermal imagers and cameras.
To tackle the trek on horseback, Myers charges $1,400 a person. For a Sasquatch search easier on the wallet, the lifelong Bigfoot devotee hosts $125 night hikes with the hopes of catching a glimpse of the hairy creature. On expeditions he’s deemed successful, Myers said trekkers have witnessed a pair of uniquely glowing eyes through the trees or large, expertly woven branches forming a Sasquatch nest as evidence the mythical forest-dweller walks among us.
“Bigfoot is a lot more mainstream than it used to be,” Myers said “The number of people openly interested in the topic as opposed to not wanting people to know they’re interested for fear of being considered a nutcase has definitely increased. America is infatuated with Bigfoot.”
Bigfoot can mean big business for Colorado’s rural and mountain towns. The National Paranormal Network hosts annual Bigfoot Adventure Weekends in Colorado to gather Sasquatch lovers to search for the creature, an activity often referred to as Squatchin’. Bigfoot-hunting professionals host private forest tours to show off their Sasquatch know-how and sighting spots. And businesses across the state rent out shuttles, cars or bikes for Bigfoot hunts.
Myers has been a Bigfoot aficionado since he was a kid after laying eyes on the famed Patterson-Gimlin film, footage captured in 1967 depicting a large, hairy creature walking on two legs through a Northern California forest.
The cryptid consumed Myers’ life so wholly that when he and his wife were rebuilding a 150-year-old grocery store in Bailey in 2012, they ditched the groceries and dedicated the store to Bigfoot instead.
Now the Sasquatch Outpost — a souvenir shop and museum dedicated to all things Bigfoot — is one of the more well-visited attractions in Bailey, Myers said.
“For a little town like Bailey, it’s a very popular destination,” Myers said. “We send people to the local restaurants, the gift stores and things just because once they’re in Bailey, then they want to do other things. We try to help everybody else along, as well.
Bigfoot travellers
It’s not easy to gauge Sasquatch’s economic footprint in Colorado. Believe it or not, the state doesn’t track the financial impact of Bigfoot tourism.
The Denver Post emailed the state tourism office requesting an interview to discuss the impact that unusual tourist attractions have on smaller, rural communities. The message was forwarded to an outside public relations firm, which declined to set up an interview.
“I actually do not know that much about Bigfoot tourism in Colorado,” a representative of Handlebar Public Relations conceded.
But Kevin McDonald, the special events coordinator for the town Estes Park, was game for a cryptid conversation.
The Larimer County town that serves as the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park has hosted the Bigfoot Days Festival since 2019, luring Sasquatch enthusiasts from near and far.
“We celebrate all things Squatchy,” McDonald said.
About 5,000 people attend the festival, which features Bigfoot-themed vendors, Sasquatch celebrities from reality television shows like “Finding Bigfoot,” live music by the likes of Denver-based band That Damn Sasquatch, a contest to see who can do the best Bigfoot call and more.
The night before the event — Estes Park already Squatched it up in 2024, but the 2025 festival is set for April 26 — is the Bigfoot BBQ, where 150 people purchase tickets for an intimate dining experience with their favorite Sasquatch celebrities. This year, the dinner attracted people from eight states, McDonald said.
“It’s a very engaged crowd, and people do travel for their Bigfoot,” he said.
Nearly 75% of surveyed festival attendees said they came to Estes Park specifically for Bigfoot Days, McDonald said, according to a 2024 economic development survey of the event. More than 72% of people surveyed said they stayed in Estes Park and 88.2% said they spent the night in commercial lodging for an average of two nights.
According to the most recent state tourism report, visitors who stayed in a Colorado hotel, motel, or short-term vacation rental spent a combined $17.3 billion in 2022. Travel spending in Colorado increased 25.2% from $22.1 billion in 2021 to $27.7 billion in 2022, the state tourism report found.
Estes Park and its surrounding forests are ripe with Bigfoot lore.
That’s why Andy Hitch, owner of Estes Park ATV and Jeep rental shop Backbone Adventures, said he wrote a blog post advertising an ATV travel guide for spotting Bigfoot.
Initially, Hitch was reticent to share his own Sasquatch encounters, having grown up in the mountains around Estes Park.
“I’m not huge into it,” he told The Post, admitting there was “a rumor mill” about spotting the creature.
Later, Hitch admitted to an experience of his own while dirt-biking through the mountains 14 years ago.
“Something ran in front of me,” he said. “It was tall and had dark-colored hair. I can’t say exactly what it was, but I don’t get riled about anything, and this made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I’m not saying I saw something, but I’m not saying I didn’t.”
Hitch figured others might be looking to have a similar encounter. He was right.
Since writing his post, folks come to his business looking for an ATV or Jeep to get further back into the forest, he said, in the hopes of spying Bigfoot.
“Get out there and keep your eyes open,” Hitch said. “Who knows what you’re going to see out there? You might find antlers. You might just see Bigfoot.”
“The wonder and mystery of what we don’t know”
The Bigfoot hunting expeditions don’t generate enough income for Myers to make a living. His bread and butter is the Sasquatch Outpost store and museum, while the expeditions are more of a hobby to continue fueling his passion, he said.
What keeps Myers and other Squatchers hooked?
“It’s the magic of the whole paranormal cryptid world,” Myers said. “Bigfoot is just one of the many unidentified, uncategorized species in the world. If Bigfoot are real — and they are — what else could be real? Are fairies real? Dogmen? Mothmen? It’s the wonder and mystery of what we don’t know and understand.”
Last year, a Bigfoot sighting in southwest Colorado went viral after photos and video taken from the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad showed a Bigfoot-esque creature traipsing through nature. Debates ensued about whether the sighting was a marketing campaign or prank.
The Post reached out to the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad to see whether the sighting sparked more Bigfoot believers to come aboard, but the train folks were tightlipped.
Bigfoot has a number of talents most don’t know about, Myers said, including mind-reading and the ability to put thoughts into people’s brains.
Another skill? The ability to draw a crowd.
People from all over the globe have ventured out for Myers’ expeditions, he said, but even more have visited the museum and store to gaze upon the wonders of a 6-foot-tall fiberglass Bigfoot replica and a 7-foot-3-inch animatronic Sasquatch. Around 90,000 people have braved the cryptid models, plaster footprints, video footage and educational information in the museum over the years, he said.
Myers houses the merchandise — Bigfoot and Yeti salt-and-pepper shakers, plush toys, boxer briefs, Bigfoot foot-shaped soap and more — among 27 real trees he brought inside. He built a cave system for kids to run through and a small theater where Myers gives “cave talks” — his version of TED talks.
“You won’t find any store like it in the world,” Myers said.
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Colorado Avalanche (10-9-0) @ Washington Capitals (13-4-1)
5 p.m. MT | Capital One Arena | Watch: Altitude, 9News, My20, Altitude+ | Listen: Altitude Sports Radio (92.5 FM)
For the second time in six days the Colorado Avalanche will faceoff against the Washington Capitals. Colorado will battle to split the season series after a 5-2 loss at Ball Arena on November 15.
Latest Result (COL): COL 3, PHI 2
Latest Result (WSH): WSH 6, UTA 2
Soaring Past the Flyers
The Avalanche beat the Flyers 3-2 at Wells Fargo Center on Monday. Cale Makar posted his 10th-career multi-goal game and Casey Mittlestadt added a goal. Additionally, Mikko Rantanen recorded two assists and Justus Annunen made 24 saves. Following a scoreless first period, Makar opened the scoring with a wrist shot from the slot at 8:30 of the second period after receiving Nathan MacKinnon’s set-up feed. Makar thought he had his second of the game at 10:44 of the middle frame, but the goal was taken off the board due to a successful Flyers challenge for goaltender interference. However, Makar would eventually double Colorado’s lead on the power play with his eighth tally of the season at 15:08 of the middle frame with a shot from the point that deflected off a Flyers player on its way in. The Burgundy and Blue took a 3-0 lead at 8:34 of the third period when Mittelstadt dispatched the rebound created by Rantanen’s shot into the net for his seventh goal of the season. The Flyers answered with goals from Owen Tippett at 11:48 and Tyson Foerster at 13:32 to cut their deficit to one, but the Avs held on to secure their 10th victory of the season.
Leading the Way
MacKinnon leads the NHL in points (34) and assists (27).
Makar leads NHL blueliners in goals (8), assists (19), and points (27). He’s tied for seventh among NHL skaters in points and tied for fifth in assists.
Rantanen is tied for sixth in the league in goals (12) and tied for seventh in points (27).
History
The Avalanche are 18-20-4 in 42 previous regular-season games against the Capitals. Colorado is 4-1-0 in its last five matchups against Washington dating back to the 2022-23 season.
Winning Out West
The Capitals beat the Utah Hockey Club 6-2 at the Delta Center on Monday. Alex Ovechkin scored twice, and Charlie Lindgren made 24 saves. Utah opened the scoring with a goal by Jack McBain at 3:05 of the first period but the Capitals responded with tallies from Dylan Strome at 7:46, Nic Dowd at 7:56, and Ovechkin at 11:05. Ovechkin extended Washington’s lead to three with a goal at 5:38 of the second period before Nick Bjugstad scored for Utah at 11:44 to make it 4-2 in favor of Washington entering the third period. Ovechkin did leave the game midway through the third period with a lower-body injury and has been placed on injured reserve and ruled week-to-week. The Caps added two more goals in the third period from Brandon Duhaime at 7:30 and Aliaksei Protas at 9:56 to win 6-2.
Putting Up Numbers on the Potomac
MacKinnon has posted 28 points (11g/17a) in 20-career matchups against the Capitals including 11 points (5g/6a) in 10 road matchups against them.
In eight previous meetings with Washington, Makar has recorded six points (2g/4a).
Rantanen has registered 19 points (8g/11a) in 14 previous games against Washington including eight points (4g/4a) on the road.
Capitals’ Contributors
Strome leads the Capitals in points (28) and assists (22).
Connor McMichael is second on the team in goals (12) and third in points (19).
Aliaksei Protas is fourth on the team in points (18), third in goals (7), and tied for third in assists (11).
A Numbers Game
10
Makar became the first defenseman in franchise history to record 10 multi-goal games.
3
The Avalanche have three players (MacKinnon, Makar, and Rantanen) in the top 10 in points. No other team has more than one.
165
The Avs have registered 165 high-danger shots on goal, which ranks sixth in the NHL.
Quote That Left a Mark
“Juice is great. I think he’s been great all year. [He made] some big saves, especially at the beginning there…So [it was a] heck of a job from Juice for sure.”
— Casey Mittelstadt on Justus Annunen’s performance on Monday
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) – Hundreds of Colorado Springs residents showed up at the Pikes Peak Library District Board of Trustees meeting Wednesday night in a last-ditch effort to save the Rockrimmon Library.
The library is set to close December 1. This comes after the board voted to not renew the library’s lease due to financial issues.
In a statement posted on their website on November 8, the board called the decision to close Rockrimmon a difficult one.
“A library provides access to resources and materials to everyone in the community, so considering a closure goes against the grain of our hopes for PPLD. However, our District provides access to nearly 700,000 people across El Paso County. We must make decisions that sustain the entire District.”
More than 250 community members showed up to Wednesday’s board meeting to show their support for keeping the Rockrimmon location open with another 119 tuning in virtually.
Former Rockrimmon Library manager Steve Abbott said he was glad to see the turnout.
“It shows that the community will not give up and they are going to fight to keep this library open,” he said.
For most of the almost five-hour meeting, 43 speakers took turns pleading with board members to postpone the library’s closure, extend the lease another year, and reconsider their decision to close the library in the first place.
One of those who spoke before the board, Abbott said closing the library will leave a massive gap for the 30,000 people who live in the area.
“It leaves a big library desert in the Rockrimmon area,” he said. “For a child to use a library now, they’ll have to go over I-25, under I-25, over Academy, under Academy to get to a library, and it’s six miles away from where Rockrimmon was.”
Speaker and Rockrimmon resident Jennifer Walker said closing the library would also deprive the area of a much-needed community center.
“There is no YMCA, there’s nothing else,” she said. “This is where we meet other moms when we’re desperate to talk to another human being that’s not a toddler, this is where we go to work when we need a quiet space, this is where the elderly come to use the computer or to check out books.”
The fate of the Rockrimmon Library was not on the board’s agenda and those who left the meeting tell 11 News the meeting ended with no resolution.
Walker said residents are still exploring their legal options.
Copyright 2024 KKTV. All rights reserved.
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation released a breakdown Wednesday of five potential paths forward for the fragile state-to-state negotiations surrounding Colorado River operating guidelines that must be updated by 2026.
The Colorado River, which is Southern Nevada’s primary source of water, holds a precarious future as the basin experiences historic drought and state leaders disagree on how to deal with shortages. The range of alternatives is possibly the last major announcement about negotiations to come from the Bureau of Reclamation under the Biden-Harris administration.
“We have worked tirelessly over the past several years to bring Colorado River Basin stakeholders together for a transparent and inclusive post-2026 process,” Reclamation Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton said in a statement. “Today, we show our collective work. These alternatives represent a responsible range from which to build the best and most robust path forward for the Basin.”
What to know heading into 2025
The breakdown between two coalitions of states, the Upper and Lower Basins, centers around whether the Upper Basin — Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Wyoming — should be required to take cuts to its water allocation past what’s known as the river’s “structural deficit,” or the 1.5 million acre-feet lost to evaporation and transport. The Upper Basin has argued that it takes too many cuts already because of its reliance on snowpack instead of big reservoirs.
The Lower Basin also has called for smaller reservoirs in the Upper Basin states to be included in discussions about cuts in water usage across the system.
Notably, one of the five alternatives is based on proposals from Native American tribes, calling for the government to account for undeveloped tribal water.
The acknowledgement of the ongoing duel between the Upper and Lower Basins is the “Basin Hybrid” alternative, which appears to fall somewhere down the middle of the two coalition’s proposals.
In a statement, Upper Basin Commissioner and Colorado negotiator Becky Mitchell said it’s too early to speak directly about the five alternatives from the Bureau of Reclamation.
“Colorado continues to stand firmly behind the Upper Division States’ Alternative, which performs best according to Reclamation’s own modeling and directly meets the purpose and need of this federal action,” she said.
The Lower Basin states of Nevada, California and Arizona didn’t immediately release a statement when the announcement was released at 1 p.m.
All seven state negotiators will convene in Las Vegas in early December at the Colorado River Water Users Association conference, where experts and officials will discuss what’s to come from negotiations under President-elect Donald Trump.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Contact Alan Halaly at ahalaly@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlanHalaly on X.
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