Those footprints show the muscles and bones adjusted to the contours of the road, including marks where the toes slid in the mud, he said. The foot of such a creature would be much more flexible than the human foot with its high arch and would flatten out the track. It also would be better adapted for steep mountain terrain. Some Bigfoot buffs think it might be Gigantopithecus, an ancient primate whose nearest cousin was the orangutan. It also would be a reclusive animal apt to hide in the dense forests of the Northwest and Canada.
Critics argue no one has turned up any Sasquatch bodies or bones.
But Meldrum points out there were rumors of mountain gorillas in Africa throughout the 19th century, but it took until 1902 to find them. And it was not until much later that primatologists like Dian Fossey discovered they are largely passive animals. Bigfoot trackers also have found hair in the wilds. Meldrum said it is hard to classify it, since there is no identified Sasquatch hair for comparison. But Henner Fahrenbach of the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center concludes that 10 samples found in three states represent an unknown primate.