Texas BFCon 2013 (your feets too big)

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

“Never take a picture of a Sasquatch foot print without a scale!”
Dr. Jeff Meldrum, PhD. (From 2013 Texas Bigfoot Conference)

Upon hearing those words, I never felt more at home sitting in room 203 at the Fort Worth Convention Center on a sunny spring day, March 16th. I whispered to my son; “isn’t it great to be alive?”
Whether it’s the Marfa Lights in West Texas, Aliens from Roswell, Wooly Bugger or the Fouke Monster from Arkansas, Texas and her neighboring States have so much to offer.

My son and I attended the Texas Bigfoot Conference yesterday (March 16) at the Fort Worth Convention Center. The conference was sponsored by the North American Wood Ape Conservancy, formerly known as Texas Bigfoot Research Conservancy. http://www.texasbigfoot.com/

I wanted to take this opportunity to share a little from our experience.

First a little ditty to get us in the mood - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=in1eK3x1PBI

Refer to the following link for the list of speakers and their credentials:
http://www.texasbigfoot.com/index.ph...ws/48-news/225

We ended up only staying for two presentations, the first being Dr. Jeff Meldrum’s Sasquatch-Legend Meets Science followed by Kyle Blackburn’s The Beast of Boggy Creek-The True Story of the Fouke Monster

(click on thumbnails for larger image)

Dr. Jeff Meldrum PhD Idaho State University.
Here he is introducing his Sasquatch Field Guide:



“Field notes” I jotted down during Dr. Meldrum’s presentation:



Dr. Meldrum brought along several plaster castings of Sasquatch tracks. (no pics sorry)

Lunch Break – we headed over to Picchi Pacchi Pizza in Downtown Fort Worth:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeldwfOwuL8



A few slides from Kyle Balckburn’s presentation highlighting a few notable sightings from the four state region (Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas)

Oklahoma:
(Note the 1855 “Indian/ Bigfoot War”)



Arkansas:



Louisiana:



Last but not least, Texas:
(You short story writers might find some useful character names)



Some scribbling from Blackburn’s presentation:




We were taken hook, line, sinker and wallet:
(Field Guide and Kyle Blackburn’s book)




Let’s close with an appropriate song from the Kinks:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEep67akIn4


Please share your experiences with big feet, extra terrestrials, local legends, strange phenomena and the like.


.

[papayahed]

Cool. A friend of mine was on a TV show looking for Bigfoot here in Louisiana. They didn't find him.

[Charles Darnay]

While I personally have no faith in Bigfoot (or relatives) I enjoy that such a conference and such a community exists, and think I would find this conference interesting. One day I will make it to the southern states.

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

Cool. A friend of mine was on a TV show looking for Bigfoot here in Louisiana. They didn't find him.

Louisiana is prime realestate for Bigfoot or, as the NAWAC is trying to promote, "North American Wood Ape".

While I personally have no faith in Bigfoot (or relatives) I enjoy that such a conference and such a community exists, and think I would find this conference interesting. One day I will make it to the southern states.

We'll plan an expedition now that I have the laminated field guide.
One point that both speakers mentioned is that even for those who think the Bigfooter's have lost their marbles trapesing through the woods, one still experiences the side benefits being in the great outdoors, camping, hiking, commoraderie around the camp.
I have to admit, it would be fun to join in on a search. Seeing how I made the leap to attend a conference, don't be surprised to hear that I went on a "hunt".

[qimissung]

I had no idea such a thing existed so close to where I live. I refer to the conference, of course. Nor did I realize that there had ever been any sightings in Oklahoma! So exciting. I'll have to let my sister know so she can keep an eye out for him/it.

Sounds like a nice father/son activity, Gilliatt.

[papayahed]

Louisiana is prime realestate for Bigfoot or, as the NAWAC is trying to promote, "North American Wood Ape".

That does sound better than "skunk ape"!!

[Sancho]

Dude!

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

I had no idea such a thing existed so close to where I live. I refer to the conference, of course. Nor did I realize that there had ever been any sightings in Oklahoma! So exciting. I'll have to let my sister know so she can keep an eye out for him/it.

Sounds like a nice father/son activity, Gilliatt.

The past two or three years that I happened to check the TBRC website, I noticed the conferences were in Tyler. When I noticed Fort Worth was the location this year, there was no stopping me. hehe. There's always next year. If she lives in or around the Ouachita mountain area, then she may just bump into one.

That does sound better than "skunk ape"!!

There's a new movement among the culture to do away with the term "Bigfoot" and move toward "wood ape".
I agree, "skunk ape" doesn't have a pleasent ring to it. I do like "Wooly Bugger" though.

edit

Sancho,
You chimed in while I was typing.
That's right...you may call me dude!
This was right up your trail my friend.

[Helga]

Here on the ice there are so many creatures said to be living with us and the 'believe' in elves is a bigger part of us than we care to admit really. When it come to big feet trolls of all shapes and sizes come to mind and 13 of them visit our youngsters before Christmas every year.

My thought these days are with a certain being that lives in a big lake, it's kinda our 'Nellie' but because of some stupid factories and stuff almost all life is dead in the lake so I guess they finally managed to kill our mysterious monster.

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

Here on the ice there are so many creatures said to be living with us and the 'believe' in elves is a bigger part of us than we care to admit really. When it come to big feet trolls of all shapes and sizes come to mind and 13 of them visit our youngsters before Christmas every year.

My thought these days are with a certain being that lives in a big lake, it's kinda our 'Nellie' but because of some stupid factories and stuff almost all life is dead in the lake so I guess they finally managed to kill our mysterious monster.

Thanks for sharing that.
Did you mean to say "Nessie?" Anyhow, can you share more about your ice creature? Did it achieve a nickname status?
It gets more depressing as each year passes by without irrefutable evidence of Nessie or Bigfoot turning up.
The search must go on.

[Calidore]

A Bigfoot con. That's awesome. They should hold one somewhere in the Bermuda Triangle.

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

A Bigfoot con. That's awesome. They should hold one somewhere in the Bermuda Triangle.

The Bermuda Triangle!, another classic from the world of the unexplained. Thanks for bringing that one to the table Calidore. Holding the Wood Ape (notice I’m using the new lingo) conference somewhere in the Triangle would be risky; since there’s no guarantee that attendees would safely arrive.
Do I need to remind you of Flight 19 ?

I made my own attempt at mixing two unexplained phenomenon. At the conference I wore my “Roswell Mystery Cover Up” tee shirt with a “Gray’s” head on the front to see what kind of reaction I might get. There were a couple of smirks from two of the speakers I passed in the Lobby, but for the most part folks gave me the nod of approval. Carrying a note pad aided in my attempts to blend in.
A couple of guys were in awe of me saying, “we’re not worthy”

My son spoke with Dr. Meldrum about Sasquatch nest structures, as they conversed I was strategically positioning myself in a manner that would allow Dr. Meldrum to see my shirt. I caught him glancing a couple of times, but to no avail.

Btw – Refer to the following chart for typical “Gray”. The pic was taken at the UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell.

[YesNo]

The wood ape is only 7 feet 4 inches tall? Look no further. Here's a list of people even larger than that:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_people

Bigfoot is among us.

[prendrelemick]

YesNo you've just beaten me to it.

I was in Millets the other day and a tall hairyish bloke was asking for some size 14 boots. I reckon tired of the harsh life hiding in forests, Bigfoot has moved into the cities, much like the urban fox has. There he has taken advantage of all the oppotunities that are on offer, including international travel and paid employment. I dare say a few diehard Bigfoot naturists are still out there, giving the run-around to organised expeditions, and suprising unprepared trippers who have no tape measure or camera.

[Emil Miller]

A Bigfoot con. That's awesome. They should hold one somewhere in the Bermuda Triangle.

Why did you have to mention the Bermuda Triangle? I looked it up on YouTube and, arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh! this is what I found.



http://youtu.be/sBbZ31uKgnA