The Family That Squatches Together

The field investigators returned to Sussex County in northwestern New Jersey, a region with documented Sasquatch reports dating back to the 1800s but particularly concentrated between 1973 and 1979. The team focused on the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and surrounding state parks, where witnesses had reported encounters with a creature locally known as "Big Red Eye." Lead researcher Matt Moneymaker noted the area's 70,000 acres of wilderness and 40 miles of forested river valley create ideal habitat, despite the region's proximity to Manhattan. The team interviewed Bill Holzchuch, who had observed a large bipedal figure cross the road in front of his vehicle around 2:00 AM in 1977, and reviewed newspaper clippings and historical reports he had collected over decades. Additional witnesses from both the 1970s and more recent years described encounters in the dense Appalachian Mountain forests.

The investigators employed their standard field methodology throughout the mountainous terrain, including thermal imaging sweeps and call-blasting techniques. In a unique approach for this expedition, the team enlisted assistance from comedian Bobcat Goldthwait, whose distinctive vocalizations were used during call-blasting sessions to potentially elicit responses from any Sasquatch in the area. Team members reported observing movement and activity that warranted further investigation, though the challenging terrain and thick forest cover complicated documentation efforts. The researchers concluded that the combination of historical witness credibility, ongoing contemporary reports, and the region's extensive wilderness areas supported the possibility of an established Sasquatch presence in northern New Jersey's Appalachian corridor.