Close to 4 out of 10 Washington locals believe that it’s a possibility that Bigfoot is out there. In addition, 13 % claim they have either witnessed one or have an acquaintance that has, based on the most recent PEMCO Insurance Northwest Poll.
“The Northwest is home to unique folklore, so we decided it would be fun to explore what residents think about subjects that clearly are, well, a little different,” said Jon Osterberg, PEMCO spokesperson. “We’ve had our share of strange sightings and events in Washington, and people here apparently are open to the idea that some of it is real.”
Additionally, Washington’s residents were questioned, “Do you believe there have been sightings of UFOs – space craft – that truly cannot be identified by anyone?” While 28 % said “no, there’s always an explanation,” 55 % said “yes, UFOs exist.” And 32 % said they’ve seen a UFO or knew an individual who did. Washington is the location of several well-publicized Sasquatch sightings as well as reports of massive footprints.
“I guess it’s appropriate that ‘The X-Files’ was shot on location in the Northwest, in Vancouver, B.C.,” said PEMCO spokesman Jon Osterberg.
A number of Bigfoot researchers are convinced that Sasquatch could quite possibly be a type of Gigantopithecus, a gigantic ape that inhabited China and Southeast Asia some 300,000 years back. Bigfoot sightings have been reported throughout the united states along with Canada, however the Pacific Northwest in particular.
To read more about the PEMCO Insurance Northwest Poll and also to view a summary of the results, visit www.pemco.com/poll, where the public is asked to get involved in an informal version of the opinion poll to see how their own responses compare with those collected by FBK Research of Seattle in November 2010.