Welcome to the Pacific Northwest, the home of Mount Saint Helens, and the home of the Batsquatch. Shortly after publishing my piece on Bigfoot, Yeti, and the Yowie, I discovered another fantastic beast that fit into the large ape-like category quite well. I was doing research for another piece I’ll be publishing in a couple of weeks, and stumbled across this one. I had to do a double take because I thought it was Man-bat from Batman at first, but it’s not something from a comic book. It is a legendary beast in the real world. Batsquatch has potential to be a viable opponent for Batman in a Halloween themed comic book, in my opinion; or it could show up in a Scooby-Doo episode, if it hasn’t already.

What does a Batsquatch look like and when was it first seen?

There’s no known date for the first sighting of Batsquatch, but the tales of its existence began right around the 1980 Mount Saint Helens eruptions. Local folklore tells anyone that’ll listen (me!) that the eruptions woke this massive winged creature from a deep hibernation. I’ve never been near a volcanic eruption, but I can imagine something like that would wake up just about everything and everyone if it’s nearby. I stumbled across one source that states the Batsquatch rose from the volcano—flying out during the eruptions.

While 1980 is the birth year of this interesting creature, there isn’t a solid sighting reported until April 19, 1994 in Buckley, Washington near Mount Rainier. Teenager Brian Canfield told the local paper about his terrifying encounter with Batsquatch. He was on his way home in his pickup truck when the vehicle suddenly stopped. Standing in front of him, and staring at him was a roughly nine foot tall Sasquatch-like creature. It had blue fur, yellow eyes, and wings like a bat. “It has a wolf like face, yellow eyes, tufted ears and a large mouth filled with sharp white teeth. Its feet were described as bird like and on its back were two wings, attached to the shoulder.”

One of the strangest places to spot a Batsquatch is in the coolers at local liquor stores or grocery stores. Yes, Batsquatch has found a home other than the woods around Mount St. Helens. A brewing company—Rogue Ales have their very own IPA called, Batsquatch. A hazy IPA they describe as juicy with tropical flavors and aromas. I couldn’t find any in the stores by me, but I will be finding a way to purchase it. Road Trip anyone? I’d like to have the box on a shelf in my man cave because it’s a really cool art design. No, they didn’t put me up to this. I just find it exciting to see a beer named after a cryptid I just discovered.

Final Thoughts

For over forty years, rumors and tales have spoken of the large beast wandering the woods on Mount St. Helens—has anyone bothered asking it if it needs anything? Perhaps offer it a drink or directions to a meeting with Bigfoot and Yeti, maybe? Maybe he’s lost. Seriously, if you do come across Batsquatch I beg you to keep your distance, but please take a picture of it, and make sure it isn’t a fuzzy or blurry photo. Then, run like the wind!