Almost anyone familiar with Bigfoot lore has seen the famous Patterson-Gimlin footage shot in Willow Creek, CA on October 20, 1967. Even those who don’t know about that footage, or care about Bigfoot, have been exposed to these images—they’ve been iconic and burned into our collective consciousness since it hit the global stage. Even today, the footage is widely still considered to be the best we have, and quite possibly the most compelling evidence of the legendary creature’s existence.
As famous as the “P-G footage”—and its allegedly female subject “Patty”— has always been, there exists another set of footage that comes in at a very convincing “#2.”
On August 20, 1992, former Forest Service ranger and avid outdoorsman Paul Freeman videotaped a Bigfoot—and quite possibly a juvenile with it—in a remote part of the Blue Mountains range in Oregon (Deduct Spring, to be precise). The footage begins with Paul speaking on camera about the huge, man-like tracks he’s been following in the mud, just before spotting one striding right into about fifty yards ahead.
“There he goes!” Paul says, not knowing at the time that this subject would later be identified as a female. “Jesus!”
As his camera follows the enormous creature loping through the trees, from right to left across his field of vision, his heavy breathing and fright are palpable. He is clearly shocked and stunned by what is unfolding in front of his eyes.
As a Bigfoot researcher myself, I’ve known about this footage for a long time now, ever since I saw it on a now-defunct Facebook page about nine years ago. Since then, I’d always wondered what the story was behind this incredible footage, and wanted to know more about the man behind the camera.
Just weeks before planning to research Paul more and write a post about him (there is very little about him online), I coincidentally and only very recently came across Paul’s son, Michael, on a Facebook thread about his upcoming book—which will be about his father’s Bigfoot research (more about this ahead). I spoke to Michael for almost an hour, and you can see the full interview below.
In interviewing Michael, I was immediately struck by his deep knowledge of the topic, and how committed he was to sharing his father’s story in the form of his upcoming book.
I encourage watching the full video, but for those who prefer to read highlights, I’ll continue to summarize what Michael had to say below.
The footage was not Paul’s first encounter
Michael describes his father as a big guy: 6’5”, 270 pounds, and as a people person. Before joining the Forest Service, he’d been a butcher and even a bodyguard to famous musicians like Ricky Nelson and Chuck Berry. The call of the wild had him apply to his dream job as a ranger, and Paul moved the family up to Walla Walla, Washington, to start work.
What was even more surprising for me to learn was that Paul had three sightings before this taped encounter—his first being in 1982, and yet another in 1988 with Michael’s older brother, who still won’t talk about the incident.
Soon after this first sighting, it was picked up by the local paper, then national news outlets. Unfortunately, as it inevitably happens with those who report such encounters, Paul and his story were not taken seriously.
Attack of the skeptics
Paul was discredited by his employers at the Forest Service, and told to keep a lid on it. One of his colleagues was judicious enough to make a note of the encounter, in support of Paul’s credibility and to document what they both felt was a legitimate sighting. Paul, Michael and his siblings were also harassed and subject to ridicule, eventually forcing the family to move out of town.
Although skeptics were the majority, Paul’s sighting did manage to attract the attention of credible researchers like Jeff Meldrum of Idaho State University and Grover Krantz of Washington State University, who supported Paul and the legitimacy of Paul’s encounter. Some 40 FBI forensic experts from the FBI also reviewed plaster casts of the footprints, declaring it convincing evidence of an unknown species—and virtually impossible to discount as proof of the creature’s existence.
But the worst hit to Paul’s credibility was yet to come—in the form of an ill-fated interview on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” They did not take the subject seriously, and Paul naively admitted to faking prints for the sole purpose of demonstrating that the legitimate tracks he found could not be faked.
8.20.92
Fast-forward to the day the footage was taken. As Michael tells it, Paul had actually been tracking these particular creatures well in advance, knowing they’d be there. In some twist of fate, he hadn’t even planned to make the 1.5-hour trek into the remote area that day, but decided to go at the last minute. He’d been carrying around a video camera almost constantly in anticipation of his next sighting. He’d also been going to the site about five times a week, usually very early in the morning, starting at 4 A.M.
That day, on August 20, 1992—almost 25 years after the PG film was shot—Bigfoot history would be made again.
In the coming years, Paul’s health would decline, and he slowed down considerably on his Bigfoot activity, telling people that they should just be left alone. He passed away at 59 from complications related to diabetes.
About Michael’s upcoming book
Michael is lucid and articulate in his reflections of his father, and how Bigfoot affected his family’s life. His main goals are to contribute to the research, carry on his father’s legacy, tell his story, and set the record straight. He accepts there are different points of view and regrets there has always been a lot of disagreement in Bigfoot circles. Even so, he says he can get along with any of them, as long as they’re respectful.
The book about Paul and his research will be published by White Wolf Publishing in September, just past the 20-year anniversary of the footage itself. The project was prompted by Michael’s friend, “Monster Quest” producer Doug Hajicek.
Although much time has passed since Paul was most active in his research, Paul’s wife (and Michael’s mother) carefully documented Paul’s exploits, logging all of his footprint casts, photos, videos, and audio tapes.
Michael tells me that the book it will be a large coffee table-sized volume consisting of these materials, with scannable QR codes that will link to about an hour of audio of Paul’s unheard audio recordings; footage with new enhancements; over 100 photos, and chapter contributions by other notable Bigfoot researchers, including Dr. Jeff Meldrum and Cliff Barackman of Finding Bigfoot.
Michael’s upcoming book about his father, Paul Freeman.
According to Michael, the book will likely be followed by an upcoming episode about Paul on the History Channel, as well as a Japanese documentary—Bigfoot apparently being a hot topic there. Check back here to get a link to pre-order the book, which will be available in mid to late September.
Want more Bigfoot?
Be sure to check out my other Bigfoot posts right here on my blog.
Please support my work:
Consider buying my Bigfoot-inspired T-shirt, hoodie, or sweatshirt
Listen or buy my music on Bandcamp, including my single, “Bigfoot’s an Alien.”
You can donate to my efforts on both of those sites.