Trapped with Bigfoot in Bull Run’s No-Go Zone | Oregon

0:00 This episode contains accounts set in the Bull Run Watershed of Oregon, a protected area closed to the public. We do not condone or encourage trespassing or violating posted access restrictions. Always respect local laws regulations in the environment. Thank you, you're listening to Big for Society and I'm Jeremiah Byron. Tonight's account comes from a man who is paid to patrol the most off limits forced an Oregon, a place so locked down the public hasn't been allowed in for over one hundred years. But just because it was closed to people doesn't mean it was empty. This is a story of Rick in what he encountered while working deep inside the bull Run Watershed. So stay with us, I Pig for Society. We've got the privilege of talking to individual today. His name is Rick and reached out to me about some interesting things he experienced over the years.

0:50 A little bit of information about Rick. He is a former for Service and BLM seasonal worker. There will be some conversations about out places in Colorado and also in Oregon that have come up on the show before. I believe was introduced to Rick via the comments on episode six fifty three about Lolo Pass Road the Zigzag area of Oregon, so that will be covered as well. Rick, welcome to the show. How are you doing today, sir? Doing well? Thank you, Jeremiah. Nice to be here. Absolutely, it's always a fun time to talk to people, to talk to witnesses about bigfoot. I love it. I just got off the phone with an individual about southeast Idaho, and I'll be talking to someone about Oklahoma later. But Rick, it's so so good to have you on the phone right now. And as we were talking about before, what you'll be sharing does go through a few different states.

1:53 I think it'll be great to do things chronologically, and so you're welcome to to take us back to the first thing that you remember that was a little bit out of the ordinary. Okay, And as you and I talked before, some of these things just didn't even know we're big bigfoot things back thirty plus years ago. But yeah, I worked for the Forest Service, the seasonal employee in the mountains northwest of Fort Collins, Colorado and southwest of Laramie, Wyoming, and probably about probably about fifty to sixty miles northwest of Fort Collins as where we're talking about. And so I worked for a timber thinning crew, and so the job is to go out and use chainsaws and you know, space out the trees so they can grow bigger, was the easy intent. So we would walk through the forest and for trees to cut down, and so we were off trail areas that the Forest Service laid out for us to go work and then as a crew we would go through and cut them. So when we were in the back country there, we came across things that now and I know are Bigfoot things where they they set up the trees and the x's and the teepees and just hanging things and snapping off the trees at

3:23 seven eight feet off the ground. And I remember seeing some of those at the time and thinking, wow, that's interesting. That's a different wonder how that happened. But no specific things happening, no encounters, just seeing that those things in the forest, and that's really all I have about that area. Again, we camped up in the mountains in that area. We were kind of close to if people want to locate, there's an old fire lookout tower called dead Man Tower, and we were probably about five to ten miles west of that dead Man Tower. That's probably something Yeah, somebody can google that and find it on Google Maps. That's the area we were in where we saw these things. Now, I know I've heard encounters from whether it's from you, Jeremiah, or some of the other channels that I listened to that where people have talked about experiences in that part of Colorado. So because that's about all I have is just coming across those those structures.

4:29 That's so that's that's interesting. And just for context, this is I believe you said this is about thirty years ago, is that right? Yeah, we see like nineteen eighty nine. Okay, gotcha, gotcha. Now when you were seeing these these things, like the exes and all these different structures, how far out in the woods were you guys usually when you were starting to see these things. So we're quite a ways, you know, not terribly far off of for service roads, but those people who who know about driving back and forest service roads, you go on a main one, then you get on the smaller one, and then you get on a smaller one. So we were probably a good oh at least five miles off of any main county road or for service roads. So we'd taken some little smaller and smaller roads, and then we park our trucks and take our saws and walk back into the the area. So we you know, we could have been you know, a few hundred yards to half a mile. I don't think we got much more than a mile any given time when we were working away from the forest road. It's just that we were getting on, like I said, down those smaller and smaller.

5:45 Roads when you were I'm so I'm imagining, you know, before you guys were set out in an area. Were there ever times conversations that were had, you know, looking back with your knowledge now you know bigfoot information, were there ever any conversations from higher ups where it's like, you know, watch out for weird stuff for like, you know, if you see weird stuff, don't worry about it. Did that ever come up or just kind of you just. I don't I don't recall that. Okay, I'm kind of looking in the area. I've got my Google Maps open right now. I probably should have done this ahead of time on this one, so sure did on some of our later things that we're going to talk about, to see what for service roads we would have gone back on.

6:36 I'm in the general area, but I don't can't spot exactly what worlds we would have gone on. Oh yeah, we are in the area off of Larmer County Road, and now I lost it again. I don't call one sixty nine, I think, okay, And so then you again there were smaller and smaller roads. They're branched off from there. But yeah, we know we were never told anything to look out for this or that. And just remember walking through the woods, and I do remember those those structures and the tree snaps and just thinking, wow, how did that happen? How did that get set up? Just like that with the structures, and again not knowing what I was looking for at that time, but I do recall that very specifically when I was doing that work.

7:35 Absolutely, So this is around eighty nine, and you had those run ins that would probably become more significant later on. When you started, I imagine you probably saw a documentary or a picture online you're like, oh, yeah, totally saw that. I've always been interested in Bigfoot since I was a kid, you know, and in the eighties and caught plenty of well actually more books from the library about monsters and things like that, So I was always interested in Then as I started to catch oh, gosh, the finding Bigfoot in the BFR website and uh Su Sasquatch chronicles where I started going into it more with the aid of internet.

8:26 I did find a road. So the main county road is called dead Man Road. It is eighty six, and then some of the forest service main arterials we went on and we're like four Service Road three h three three thirty six. But then I don't I'm not tracking the numbers for the smaller and smaller roads. Is it is it split down? But that's the general area. Well, there you go. That information could definitely be important to maybe there's someone listening that is from that area and they're like, yeah, we've definitely that area. So it'd be interesting if people can always email me or throw it in the comments if they've had situations happen in there.

9:08 So you spent a bit of time in this area Colorado. But then what was did you then move out to Oregon after this or what would you think the next thing? So I'm from northern Colorado, but at that time I was doing summer jobs while I was working through college, and I was working through college on a forestry degree. So this stinning crew was a summer job that I had while I was working at my foester degree. The next thing that I had chronologically was in like ninety two, and I was going to summer camp for forestry. All four three majors are required to do a summer camp class.

10:01 So we were going to Pingree Park, which is a which anybody can google that ping Gree Park. It's about thirty miles pretty more straight west of Fort Collins and Pingree Park is. It's a feat a land feature, like a big open meadow area, but it's also the name of the Colorado State University Forestry campus. And so I was up there for most of the summer taking classes, and on weekends, the vast majority of the other students would go back to Fort Collins and do the going to the bars and washing clothes and things like that, and the vast majority of the weekends for me, I would prefer to stay up there on CSU campus and just go out and do things out in the wilderness because that's what I like to do. So I would just do solo hikes up into the mountains from Pingree Park, and I would take a trail that went to I can't rember the name Fast Cirque Lake was one of them, and then what's the name of that pass? But up into the Commanche Peak wilderness is where the trail headed, and so we would take a Mummy Pass is the name of the trail, Mummy Pass Lake Meadow trail. So I would do that one often. There were many trails around the area, but that's the one I would do most often. And one of the times I was doing a solo hike up to Mummy Pass and back down

11:33 to the forestry campus. I do distinctly remember being paralleled on the way down and the classic of the classic case of I hear something thirty forty feet off to my left, and what the heck is that I'm hearing something stepping? Is it an elk? It doesn't sound like an elk, it's it sounds like by pedal, and the it's I stop, it stops, I start, it starts. But you know, always be a be a step or so off, so you can always hear that, oh, here's a step, what what is that? And and I'd always look over there and try and figure out what it is. I remember my called hello, who's over there? And no response, and just to said, okay, am I crazy and just going on with the hike. But I remember that happening along that trail outside of Pingrey Park.

12:38 Was there anything else that was the ordinary about the hike, any weird smells or sounds or lack of sounds or anything. I thought it was really quiet. But no, no strange smells, no no vocalizations, But yeah, it was. It was very quiet in the in the woods at that point, which it's not usually you always have when you're up in the mountains in that part of Colorado. You totally get pine squirrels making their chattering noise regularly, and you know, the jays and other birds chirping and squawking, and it was quiet. I do remember that.

13:21 Interesting in your time at Pingree Park was the subject of Bigfoot, anything that ever came up or not really in that situation, not really in that. Think, just just as in the case when I was working for the Forest Service in the summer, I think not a lot of people really knew or thought about bigfoot in being in Colorado. It was always Oregon, Washington, British Columbia kind of a thing California, not not in Colorado. And it's only been since the advent of the VFRO website that I always be finding it that I thought, oh, well, there's actually there are big foot sightings in Colorado and Wyoming, in Montana and all the Rocky Mountains area, and so I and I've read stories of people being prologed, and I said, oh, that's what it was. Or I don't know for positive, but I'm strongly suspected that makes me less crazy. I guess the thought is that at the time, is am I crazy hearing things? And now, no, that's an explanation that makes sense.

14:31 As you kind of progressed in your work in you know, going towards forestry and things, was it in the back of your mind at all that you wanted to also work in or were you even working in the hopes of maybe a big Foot interaction with this or just weird stuff just happened to happen as you went along in your journey. I think it's there wasn't really a desire, there was, but there was always the wondering. There was always the knowledge in the back of my head, well, especially once I moved up into the Northwest, that that could be a thing. And I remember even had high school, I lived in Washington State for a little bit and being out in the woods there and just thinking, I wonder if this is going to happen. Nothing that I remember ever happened when I was that young in Washington State, but it's always been on my mind and just didn't think about that being a thing in Colorado.

15:34 Absolutely did being followed like that? Did that affect how you were in the woods after that scenario? No, it just I mean, it's been a question that's stuck in my mind ever since. I've never forgotten that. But I love to hike and I love to be out in the living liss and it didn't caused me to fear at all. I just I kept doing what I was doing. But I seem to remember that there was another occasion or two when I had that same situation and was going a huh, there it is again, But it was another It was another place in Colorado and on a different hike, and I just can't remember the specifics of where that was at this point. I do just remember because as Pingree Park, which was an area that became very familiar with that that was the one occasion. I think that was the first one, and that's why it stands out so much to me.

16:36 Absolutely, after spending this time in Colorado, did you then next head out to the Northwest, as you'd kind of alluded to before. Yes, So I finished my forestry degree, didn't find the kind of work that's like permanent, you're going to keep doing it day in day out, year after year, but went to go see what kind of jobs can I get. It was definitely interested in going back to the northwest part of the country, not specifically with big Foot in mind, but again it was in my mind when I was moving up there. So I actually had two jobs for the Forest Service in nineteen ninety five, and so I started off first doing some work in the coast range of Oregon, almost straight west of Portland area. But I don't recall anything big happening. Of course, we were working right around some areas that were being logged, so lots of people, lots of noise, so I wouldn't expect there to be much or if there, if the Bigfoot was ever there, it was super super stealthy. Don't know anything of that. But then later that same year I moved to take on a joe job as a fire prevention officer with the Zigzag Ranger District West or not west

18:07 east of Portland, and I'd been working fire jobs. I'd done the one timber job, the timber thinning job, but most of my jobs that I'd done for summer jobs while I was still in school were firefighting jobs. So I'd gained quite a few years of experience with the Bureau of Land Management doing firefighting around the Rocky Mountains, and so I took the opportunity to go out to forest the Forest Service in Oregon and landed this job as a fire protection officer, which put me in charge of a fire engine. But also my main job every day was to patrol parts of the forest, the mount Hood National Forest east of Portland, and so my job was just a patrol looking for fires, to be there on the spot if a fire was occurring, to see people who might be not being careful with fire and talk to them, or if it was egregious enough to ride a ticket for that. I also, because I guess the main thing that was about what I was doing, that was my job, but mainly where I was I was in an area east of Portland called the ball Run Watershed, and the Bowl Run Watershed is an area that is locked off to the public. The public is not allowed. It's been over one hundred years since the public has been allowed into this bow Run watershed. And the reason being at least that they give is that

19:39 this is the area, the bow Run Watershed is where water for the City of Portland comes from, so they wanted to keep they keep people out of there so that the water doesn't get tainted or polluted in any way. So it's it's just the only people allowed in this Bowl Run Watershed are force of its employees in City of Portland Water Company. The Bull Run Watershed runs pretty much from the eastern suburbs of Portland between the Columbia River Gorge on the north and Highway twenty sixth on the south, and it runs all the way to the Loto Pass Road, which is that was the episode that caught my eye or caught my ear when you had that a month and a half ago or whatever it was.

20:31 So I was like Loto Pass Road, I know, I drove that road every day going into the Bowl Run heading from the four Service office to the Gole Run. So that's the area. It's over one hundred square miles where there's just a few people in there every day, very very few people. So that's a place no logging is allowed except on a very case by case basis, and it's really for more of a the forest services to remove some trees here or there for whatever reason, so they let an area get cut down, but it's generally not logged. And the summer I worked there, there was no longing occurring at all. But you can see evidence that this area of trees was shorter than that area of trees. But other than that, it's a largely untouched area that's locked off from.

21:26 The public absolutely. And there's a few things I want to jump in here with just in case the right people are listening, because this area, as you said, only the right people can get in there and you know, make sure stuff is okay. It is one of these perfect areas that if a bigfoot was wanting to hang out where people were not able to mess with them, it would be this area. So if they're individuals listening that also maybe had similar jobs and are had experience is in this area, bull run, I'd love to talk to you. You can always reach out to me. It's also I'll throw in this as well, if anyone has had any things happen up on large mountain that's kind of in a similar area, maybe not super similar, but it's up there. I'd love to talk to you as well.

22:18 But you know, you provided some interesting photos. I'm going to put those in the YouTube version of this episode as well. I think it's pretty It's not normal to be able to see photos of Bull Run. I believe I'd have to do a little bit more research it, but they are very cool photos from the nineties. So, you know, Rick, I'd love to hear maybe a little bit about what were some things that you you notice that we're out of the ordinary in this Bull Run area. So yeah, I worked for the Zigzag Ranger District, and I know I'm being pretty specific. And there were two of us that did this job. I work in the Bowl Run and that area, and the other one worked more around Mount Hood to the east, and we crossed sometimes.

23:09 He would come with me and I would go with him sometimes. But most of you were solo. So we again to explain, there's maybe ten twelve City of Portland water people that work in there on a daily basis. They stay more towards the Portland metro area. There's some dams and some reservoirs, and that's where they would stay. There was one other Forest Service employee. He was the staff for a fire lookout tower, and we'll talk about that in a little bit. But and then then me and that's it because even most days for serviced and send anybody else in there. So again, yeah, as we were saying, the perfect place for if Bigfoot wanted to be alone, they can be alone. So the first thing was early on in the summer, they had me going to the roads, because nobody arrives through here. They had me going to the roads that cross through the ball Run.

24:10 There's only one main one, and then there's different side roads that you can catch a portion off the main road and come back to it. And in various places there there's a road that heads out south that comes out, you know, somewhere around Mount Hood Village or something like that, Welches, and there's one that comes out the north end close to the Clumbery River Gorge. But mostly it's just one east west that winds all over the place. As somebody we're looking at the map we're talking about and F ten is what they label it on Google Maps, and that one it traverses the area east to west, west to east. It just it curves all over the place.

24:57 So anyway, so I had to clear that because you know, those of you were from the Northwest know that with the rain things grow like crazy. So if you go for a season without people really going in there and right driving on the roads, the brush encroaches on the roads quickly and pretty well. So I was supposed to patrol, but I was also also supposed to find these spots and just cut the brush back and vines growing across the road and cut those backs of the road was clear and you could drive through. So it was one of the days earlier in the summer that I was doing that Peepy Spot number one, And so this was an area where I was just out cutting back the brush, and so I remember when I was working. This took me a few days, maybe two or three to cut the brush back in that area so that it was satisfactorily off the road and anytime for sort of sort of portant water crews wanted to go through, they could without having to worry about trying to squeeze through on these narrow roads. So I was in there working and I just remember that feeling of the hair raising on the back of my neck and feeling like someone who's here, who's watching me? And I remember looking up looking around.

26:20 I don't remember particularly calling out, but I do remember that feeling that someone was watching me. It persisted, and I remember coming back the next day. And it wasn't immediate, like as soon as I get out of my truck, but it was that it would appear someone would someone something showed up and was giving me that feeling, and then the next day they it came back. So it wasn't the whole time I was there, but it was it was it was an amount of time, and it was definitely persisted for some time. How long would it approximately take for you to drive into that area?

27:05 That not too far. I don't think it's a couple of miles, but you know, I sent you the picture of the Lo Lo Pass Road gate and that's you know, probably not more than twenty or thirty feet off of the Lolo Pass Road, so barring a vehicle, and certainly if somebody parked their for service people would notice a vehicle. So but as far as hiking in, probably wouldn't take terribly long to get there. There's also that road. If you see the place on the map, there's an NF Oh, come on, I'm trying to zoom in where the number will show up. That goes above that road and it winds up the mountain and I'm following it, but I'm not getting it to show me what number. Oh, nope, that's forty three. That's a little spur. So there's there's a road that was above it on the slope aways and in that area the tree the trees were terribly thick.

28:06 It could be I was going to say, yea, I thought it was going to be a ten something. Oftentimes for service will just add a number to the end of the road. It's coming off of two to number it. So it's coming off of an F ten and it's to the north of n F ten on the map, and it kind of does this hairprint turning goes back east and that actually overlooks I sent you a picture of the bull Run Lake, and the one where I got the look overlooking from up above, I took from that road. So so with that area, it might have been that side road that I was clearing, but it was right in that area there, and I think you can even tell on the map there's some thinner there's some thinner trees if you're looking at the satellite view.

29:01 So that's where I was working. And yeah, definitely had that feeling that like I was being watched. And I think at the time I talked it up to a bear or mountain lion, and I was just very wary to keep looking over my shoulder, you know though, you know, I at the time I did think, well, I don't wonder if it's bigfoot. So because as I told you before, I knew bigfoot. I was a believer already, and so I just knew that could have been a possibility. It's extremely interesting because you know, as you already said, it is a rare occurrence to be even able to talk to someone who has access to this area. So I'm just glad that you were able to come on the show to share more context about it. You know that the normal public we're not going to have even that contextual information, which.

29:59 Is really cool. I think I keep thinking that there has to be plenty of sasquatch in this area. I just never actually had a visual encounter, and so but I keep thinking, well, if I've driven through there at night. I keep thinking that would have been a really good possibility. But yeah, that was definitely something that happened. At one spot where I had to clear the road, I had to do a similar project to this. This was a lot. The second spot that I label creepy Spot number two is way down close to the first first. They call it Bull Run Reservoir number one, so one of the major reservoirs that supplies water to the Portland area, and the road at this point is kind of paralleling the the reservoir, but it's probably a good one hundred yards back from the reservoir. At least. You can't see the reservoir from that point. You can just tell from the map that you're paralleling it. And the road widens in and out and follows the contours, so it'll wind away from the reservoir when you cross a creek because it's following the contour of the elevation there. And so one of those places where across the creek there's a spot where the Forest Service had built just a little I

31:31 don't I want to say between the twenty and thirty foot stub off of the road, and that was place where they had dammed up the creek cascading down from above to not to dam it permanently, but just enough to make a little pool of water stand there. And the purpose of that was to build a back of fire engine up to the back of the stub and you can then pull water out of that pool and to fill your tanks. So if you're fighting a fire prolonged that you can have to go back and fill your tank. You don't have to drive all the way back to the forest service st agent to use a hose.

32:14 You can just draw it with your engine from a pool of water. Well that had become completely over overgrown, like you could see where the pavement turned towards something else off of the main road, but you couldn't get you couldn't even get a foot or two into it. It was just that overgrown. So my job was to completely clear that, which was a lot of work. That was that was I can't remember it was a week two I don't think it was two weeks, but it was more than a week's worth of work to clear away all the the brush and vines from that so that it was open again, so that an engine could get to it so and clean it, clear it away around the pool and that sort of thing, so that again, so an engine can get in there and draw water if it was needed. So that I was doing that task, and I had the same situation where I definitely started to feel and the forest the brush was right up next to where I was working. Whereas I felt like there was a little bit more openness in that first area that I felt something something watching me. This the forest is right up on you, and I definitely felt that feeling that I was being watched and something's there and I better be on my guard. And just as we talked before, like when I was being paralleled, I do remember at this spot for sure that everything was quiet.

33:44 The forest felt kind of dead and empty, and I had that creepy feelings while I was working there. And it's several days in a row. It's it's so something was in the area and came back to check check on me. That seems a little odd for a bear or a mountain lion to me. Yeah. Absolutely. How long would it take to get to this particular area. This one's a longer ways, and it's so to traverse this road like by miles from I usually went in on the east side from Lolo Pass road. That's why I was familiar with the road. I went in from that side and would drive to the west, and then I would pick another route and drive back east and come back out at lo Low Pass. Most of the time.

34:33 Sometimes I would try this way or that way to come out a different way. But as I said earlier, there's really only four ways out in and out of the Bull Run. It's just that Lolo Pass was closest to where the four service offices in Zigzag, at least it was in nineteen ninety five, so that was the easiest access to the Bull Run. So at this point, I would so it's twenty to thirty miles by road across, but it would take a day to drive it because you just have to drive that slow on those narrow, twisting roads with a fire engine. So it's probably it's about thirty miles from end to end. I would say this is closer to twenty miles in by road, and the forest is incredibly thick at this part of the bull Run.

35:25 It's just incredible. And I mean, you think about it's ninety five, so you don't have I mean, you don't have a cell phone. It probably wouldn't even work if you did, you know, I mean, did. You have the radio on the truck? Radio? Okay, okay, so you at least had that. Wow, Holy mackerel, that just blows my mind. I actually I had a probably one of the days that I was working on this, the problem with the drive shaft, and so I wasn't able to leave on my own. I had to call for help to come in and get me. So the tow truck had a long ways into the bull Run to get my truck out, so it was a long wait. But yeah, I could make contact with somebody who needed something, but there's nobody to come talk to you or see you or help you for hours. It just took that long to drive in there.

36:20 Interesting. I was going to ask if there were stories passed around with the people you worked with in this area, but then I'm thinking, like, there's not a lot of people to even pass around stories. I mean, so there were, but nothing with details kind of I heard it. So I heard stories from my colleague who did the same job I did, except for not in the bull Run because he'd been working there for many years prior to me, and I think he worked there many years after me, and so he'd been around the Forest Service for a while and he's just the things that are whispered around the office kind of a thing more specifically, And I think I alluded this to this in my email to you right after the episode for Loto Pass Road aired that another one of my jobs weekly. There's a one fire lookout that is still in the bowl run and it's called Hickman Butte as the name of the fire lookout. You can people can google it and you will find pictures of it and find information about Hickman Butte fire lookout. This the one that has survived because most of those with the advent of technology were torn down and not staffed, and so Hickman Mute was still staffed. There was one volunteer young man who stayed up in the tower twenty four

37:51 to seven for weeks at a time, and his so one of my jobs to run up there once a week, grab his garbage, throw it in the back of the engine, but also to bring him about four i would say, four or five five gallon containers of water, so he had twenty to twenty five gallons of fresh water once a week because there's no water to the top of the to the top of the butte where the lookout is. So that was my job once a week to drive up to that lookout and like I said, take him water and take his trash. And so the first time I went up there, my colleague who did not work in the bowl run drove with me, or road with me up there, guiding me how to get which road to turn, where to get to the lookout. And so he went up with me and we climbed to the top of the tower, met the volunteer, the or the employee who worked there, and I remember looking out. We're on the catwalk around the top of the tower, and we're looking off to the north northwest and there was a ridge off in the distance, and they're in a couple of the pictures I sent you. It's about the farthest ridge you can see in those pictures. He pointed at that ridge. He says, there's all kinds of rumblings

39:22 about from the Forest Service employees about Bigfoot being up over and there. So that was a very clear acknowledgment. Again the Forest Service. People in the Forest Service know we don't share, they don't share with the public, but they know, so they talk about amongst themselves. And this is an area that's known if you want to see Bigfoot, that's where to go. And I've told you looking at the map, I think it's a wilderness area or really close to one, which means you would have access by foot, just have to have an adventurous person who would want to walk up in there. It's this day and age is called the Marco Hatfield Wilderness. I think you had a different name back in the nineteen nineties with the Hatfield Wilderness. Is where that ridgeline would be. Just by looking at the pictures and what the view escape from that lookout tower would be and where the ridges would be run, it has to be that area, so again people can get up into there. One of the last sets of things I sent to were for Nesmyth Point and there used to be a fire tower there and my friend colleague took me there to that spot just to show me where the fire tower used to be.

40:39 And there's a trail that comes up from the Calmia River gorge and there's definitely places up there at Nesmuth Point where you can look out and you can see the gorge down into the gorge and the river and across to Washington State. The trail takes off from the Loa And if I'm saying that lo Wall parking Lot is Asmuth Point. Trail number four twenty eight takes you up to that point. And I hiked in that area, got out of my truck and walked several times because there's no road that takes you right there, even from within the Bull Run. Well, the trail is you can tell, is an old two track road, but it's been abandoned for a while and it's and it's closed off to vehicle traffic. But yeah, up in that area is a place that is accessible by trail. There's definitely some knowledge of for service employees of a bigfoot in the in the Bull Run. Oh. I just remembered on the on the fire tower, there was a week when the guy who worked that he was married with kids and he was away from them all summer, and he took a week off from manning the fire tower to go back and be a family for a week. And so it fell to me to be up in the tower all day every day, and so for that week, and I want to say that was in August, I was up

42:10 in there and I just most days I would just drive up and climb up the tower and sit in the tower and watch for smoke during the day. There was one one night out of the lunch that I decided, you know, I just want to stay up here for the night, and so I did and got permission to do so. And it was it was definitely interesting, and I remember going out on the cowalk and straining to look with binoculars and scopes. Is there anything moving out there? Can I hear anything? I don't recall that anything like that happened while I was up there, which was disappointing, honestly, because that that was one time I was hoping to see a bigfoot, really truly thought about wanting to see one.

42:53 And it's just looking at the pictures of that area, and I mean, I know I have heard of things happening up in that Hatfield Wilderness that you you talked about. I believe I've had conversations about that area in the past. And also it comes pretty close to that whole large Mountain area too, that comes up a lot. Yep, yep, yeah, you just said large mountain that. Oh my goodness, I just remember that now. I remember that colleague of mine think over there is Large Mountain. There's been digfoot there that you mentioned the name Large Mountain. So he confirmed that. So he was a seasonal employee like me. He's just one that returned Europe for year.

43:39 I think he worked for the Oregon Department Highway Department on snowplows in the winter and good Forest Service firefighting in the in the summer for years after year. So the yeah, the episode that we've referred to that you heard, is that anything. Are you familiar with the area that they were they were talking about. Yes, yes, I am. So that was in the area that my colleague did the patrols. The dividing line was the Lolo Pass Road. He was west of it and I was east of it. But as I said, there there were some times that we crossed over and he would come with me on my patrol and I go with him on his patrol. That happened a few times, not a lot, but a few times. And so part of his patrol was to drive that Muddy Fork Road, which is the name of the road that comes off the Lolo Pass Road where there are campgrounds. There's several campgrounds back on the Muddy Fork Road off of the to the to the east of the Low Pass Lolo Pass Road. In fact, there was one time where there was a nasty rollover accident that happened in the middle of the night. He and I had to get out of bed and go respond to that emergency situation. And so we're out there right in that so somebody had taken a turn too fast on the four service roads

45:13 and rolled over in there. So I spent some time in there. I know where the campgrounds are, I know where the creek is. I remember looking down over the creek that they were talking about in that episode. And that's again part of what prompted me to write you, is like, oh, I can remember that spot. Yeah, it's I've never had. I'm just I'm thinking of that. I'm not sure how I feel about that one is it makes me a little nervous. It's I don't know, man, I don't know if I would go out in that area. I mean, well, you did it for years. I mean it was your job, going out in that area by yourself, just a radio, and you're I mean sounds like he did it for years.

46:02 No, I only did it for one year. I did those kinds of things for years in different parts of the country. I was kind of the adventurous sort that wanted to just, well, let's go try getting a job in this part of the country, and let's go try this part of the just to see the country sort of a thing. The other guy who did the same job as me had done it for years, so I had his experience, and he's again he's the one who's saying, yeah, big puts up on large mountain kind of a thing. So yeah, I don't that's what else to add there, but that area where the campgrounds are, that wouldn't be too concerning it. I guess I was out there in that full run day after day for about six months I did that job. I don't know, I like five five months and they're just about every day, and I don't know. I didn't ever worry about something happening to me.

46:57 I guess I always thought, I know where the road is, and I know where I have a radio, and I did have a walkie talkie that would connect into the same network radio if I was off the truck. I just guess I didn't really worry about it, didn't think about it. But it was definitely adventurous to be nobody in this area where nobody was you know the occasion. I remember coming across people a couple of times that were in there, but they were They had lighter vehicles than I, and one of them was a motorcycle. There's no way I'm catching up to a motorcycle on these roads with a with an engine. So yeah, I did encounter people a couple of times. I never actually talked to them.

47:42 Okay, so you were you encountered unauthorized people in this area then ye wow yeah, oh man, any idea what they may have been doing in there. I'm guessing they're just well, the one was riding a dirt bike. I'm sure they were just riding their bike back in there and seeing how far in they could. I'm guessing they're exploring. I'm trying to remember that area of bull Run. There's a power lines that run through there, and there's a power line cut. We heard plenty that Bigfoot likes to follow power lines cuts just because it's easier walking for him or her. So yep, I found the cut. If you find Aimes, Oregon actually, which is close to the town of bull Run, Oregon, and you can find a straight line that runs across right past Large Mountain, so that would have been an interesting place to look in there between Yeah, the little town of Ames, Oregon and Large Mountain. It comes out on the east side near Bonneville Power Station, which is the Bonneville Damn Powers. Yeah, BONNIVL Damn Hydropower hydro electric power.

49:12 Sure so. But yeah, I remember the dirt bike took off down that. I followed him on the road for a bit and then he took off down that cut off road. Is there's no way I'm not going to trying an angine. I'll just break it or get stuck. The other time was up in that northern area because people that is there's a road that runs at the north end of yep n S National Forest Road twenty and there's actually a place on the map that where the Large Mountain Road also connects, in which I believe north the Large Mountain Road is public like a county road or something like that. And there's a four service entrance that there were four service Road twenty takes off and it's called the North Entrance. OHI labeled that salmon Berries because there were a lot of salmon berries in there, and it's the top beneath them. They were really good. But there, Yeah, there was an area there and to the bull Run on in that area, and so somebody was in that area.

50:28 They'd parked along the art the large Mountain road. I think honestly that one. I don't think. I think they're in there gathering berries. So there it was. They were not very far from the from the entrance at all. There were just those vines in there with the berries on them. Such such an interesting area. I know there's just a ton of encounters from this area. You just have to talk to the right people. But wow, it has been so enlightening being able to talk to someone who spent time in this area. Rick. I want to make sure that you were able to share all the things that you had come prepared to share today.

51:19 I think so. I think we hit highlights fantastic Again. I appreciate you, you know, sharing some things from over your years in the forestry service. And if this jogs the mind of anyone listening about places like Larch Mountain or bull Run, I would love to talk to you. You can reach out to me Big for Society gmail dot com, send me an email. I would love to talk to you. About what you experienced as well. But Rick, thank you so much for coming on the show today and for spending some time with us. I appreciate Jeremiah, and you're welcome.

52:04 I was calling about the Bigfoot story in the Garden of the Gods, and I just want to tell you that everyone calls some sasquatch around here. But not only that. I'm telling you I don't really know much. But why it was calling is because, yes, I live in Harrisburg, Illinois. We have statues of it outside of our courthouse and one uptown so people could take pictures with it. We have sasquatch festivals. I'm not sure what Murphy's World does, but I do know this, and I could give you gas station phone numbers. I could give you a courthouse number.

52:44 I can give you the best ways to get to some of the more beautiful towns if you are interested in that. I guess you could either text me. I probably won't answer a call. I don't know I sent a text beforehand that might work. But I can lead you to people who could lead you to people. And if that's any If that tickles your fancy, let me know and. I'll do it. Grey. Thanks so much. My name is Beth.

53:25 If you'd like to share a voicemail to be potentially featured on the show as well, head over to Bigfoot Society podcast dot com and hit the Share your Encounter button. I just want to take a minute to say thank you for listening to this episode of the Bigfoot Society Podcast. Rick's story is one of those encounters that lingers not because of what was seen, but because of what was felt, that deep sense that something else was out there and it was watching. A huge thanks to Rick for giving us a rare look into the bull Run Watershed, a place most of us will never see, but one that may be hiding more than old trees and locked roads. And if you enjoyed this conversation, please subscribe to us on YouTube, hit the bell icon so you don't miss any new episodes, and share this one with a friend who's in a Bigfoot off limits for us or accounts from Oregon if you're listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, and make sure you're following the show, and please leave a review if you can. Five star positive reviews help more people find these encounters. And hey, if you were someone you know has had a Bigfoot encounter, especially in Oregon near places like Lolo Pass, mount Hood or the Bull Run Watershed. I'd love to hear your stories. Please shoot me an email at Bigfoot Society at gmail dot com.

54:40 One more thing, Sasquat Summer Fest is coming up really soon, July eleventh through the twelfth at Greenwaters Park in Oakridge, Oregon. I hope to see you there. I'll be there in person listening to people share their Bigfoot accounts. Bigfoot Society listeners can grab a two day pass for the price of a one day admission with code B at checkout. Tickets are available now at www dot Sasquatch Summerfest dot com. Thanks again for being part of the big Foot Society. Until next time, stay curious, stay safe, and remember just because the place is off limits doesn't mean that it's empty. To see you in the woods.