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Applegate, Oregon: World's Only Bigfoot Trap

Built in 1974, restored in 2006. A 10-foot-high cube of bolted-together wood with a metal mesh door designed to fall shut behind any Bigfoot that enters.

Address:
Upper Applegate Rd, Applegate, OR
Directions:
I-5 exit 30. Drive west on Hwy 62, which quickly becomes Hwy 238. Follow Hwy 238 west for 13.5 miles to the town of Ruch. Turn left onto Applegate Rd toward Applegate Dam. Drive 15.5 miles. Turn left into parking lot for Hart-tish Park. Walk back to Applegate Rd, cross the road, turn left, and walk a couple hundred feet. You'll see the sign for the Collings Mountain - Hart-tish Park Trailhead (It has a Bigfoot footprint). Hike about a half-mile to a fork at a dilapidated pile of wood and branches. The trap is about 200 feet up the trail on the left. Wear long pants to avoid touching the poison oak.
Phone:
541-618-2200
Admission:
$5 day use fee
RA Rates:
Worth a Detour
Save to My Sights

Visitor Tips and News About World's Only Bigfoot Trap

Reports and tips from RoadsideAmerica.com visitors and Roadside America mobile tipsters. Some tips may not be verified. Submit your own tip.

World's Only Bigfoot Trap

I got way more than I bargained for on this visit. I hiked in to see the Bigfoot trap, which was cool. It was a cold calm morning -- nobody else around. When I got back to the trailhead and was stowing my camera bag in my truck, an incredibly loud, powerful shriek echoed down the valley where I'd just been hiking. Definitely not human. It went on for about a minute, then five minutes of absolute silence before the birds started making noise again. Never heard anything like it.

[Jeff B, 03/17/2023]

Bigfoot Trap.

Bigfoot Trap

My first trip to the trap. First, I wanted to say I am a believer, so I had big expectations. The distance from the road is about three-quarters of a mile. It is not a level, easy path for those with heart or lung issues or knees and hips that don't cooperate as well as they did when they were younger. I do have medical issues and it was a test for me. I made it, but I had to stop several times, especially when going up hill. It was worth it, barely. The trap is much more fortified than I thought it would be. It was also quite large. I was disappointed that there was no mention or plaque describing who erected it and when. Also, some info. on Sasquatch sightings could have made the trip very rewarding.

[Kim Anderson, 06/09/2018]
Bigfoot Trap

We've read descriptions of a dilapidated old shack about a half-mile up the path, which signifies the fork in the trail to the Bigfoot Trap. We wound up walking about a mile past the fork, missing it because the shack is now flat on the ground in a pile of branches. So, around the half-mile mark, look close for the piles of wood.

[Michael Hermant, 06/29/2016]

Bigfoot Trap.

Bigfoot Trap

This is a real Bigfoot Trap built in 1974 by the North American Wildlife Research Team and restored in 2006. Miner Perry Lovell reported that he discovered 18-inch, human-like tracks with a 6-foot stride in his garden near the Applegate River. The trap was baited with carcasses for six years -- a couple of bears were caught. The Forest Service finally bolted it permanently open because of safety concerns for hikers.

You can reach the trap with an easy half-mile hike from the Collings Mountain Trailhead.

[Lisa Fu, 08/14/2011]

Nearby Offbeat Places

Batman, Formerly a TreeBatman, Formerly a Tree, Rogue River, OR - 26 mi.
Bozo the Clown's Childhood HomeBozo the Clown's Childhood Home, Jacksonville, OR - 20 mi.
Wooden RoosterWooden Rooster, Rogue River, OR - 26 mi.
In the region:
Big Box of Doughnuts, Phoenix, OR - 22 mi.

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