Fascinating, if flawed skeptical book
This book, written by a PBS documentary maker, takes an interesting tack on the skeptical side of the Bigfoot phenomenon-McLeod goes into the writing with the premise that Bigfoot is all either a hoax or misidentification or misinterpretation, and that the Patterson/Gimlin Film was a hoax due to Patterson being supposedly so obsessed with Bigfoot that he wanted the story to continue by faking a film. McLeod also gives a bit too much credit to Ray Wallace and his obviously hoaxed tracks and seems to think hoaxing of tracks and sightings goes back many years, even before Wallace. McLeod includes many interviews he conducted with several figures in the Bigfoot world, including Rene Dahinden, Peter Byrne, John Green, Bob Gimlin, Larry Lund and even Ray Wallace himself. He also talks to several rangers and other non-Bigfoot-related figures who are kind of on the periphery in that they have had strange sightings reported to them. McLeod concludes the book with a trip into the Bluff Creek drainage with a fellow named Jay who was there on the road-construction crew that Wallace ran. One interesting note (which may or may not be BS on Jay's part)-Jay claims that he never saw anyone camped in the Bluff Creek area around the time before or after the P/G Film was shot; he says that no one was there in 1967 from March to Thanksgiving, when he says he was there. Again, it is an interesting tidbit, but that does not make it true. I would give this book a 3 1/2 stars out of 5. It's a good read, no question about it. I do recommend it, even with reservations.
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