05x02 - Nests of Giants

[bunniefuu]

[narrator] Previously on
Expedition Bigfoot...

[Bryce] After months
of silence, we got a hit.

Two upright creatures
walking through the woods.

-We are here
to explore this idea...
-Holy crap.

...that these creatures
are raising their young
right here.

[drone buzzing]

That LiDAR has given us
such an advantage.

-That, interesting.
-[man] Oh, wow.

-[Mireya] Oh.
-[man] This looks like those
could be little nesting areas.

It's exciting to know that
we suddenly have a target.

[Bryce] Hey, Mireya.

-[Mireya] Yeah.
-Come here.
I think I found something.

-Check that out.
-[Mireya] Do you think
you got a print there?

[whispering]

[animalistic grunting]

[whispering]

[narrator] While
staking out a clearing
in Northern California

in an area known
as the Lost Coast,

survivalist, Russell Acord,
just spotted what appears

to be two massive
heat signatures
just 100 yards away.

[Russell whispering]

[speaking normally]

[Russell whispering]

Bro. That's a bear.

[whispering] A big bear.

[Russell]
Right in front of us.

It's aware that we are here.

Generally, a bear
will run away from you

if it's alone
or doesn't feel threatened.

[whispering]

[Russell] Those are big.

If this is a bear
and her cubs,

we have to back out of here,
and it's too close.

-[bear grunts]
-[Russell] Do you
hear that sound?

[bears growling]

[Russell] Holy crap.

That's moving.

[normally] Let's
move out of here.

Light, light, light.
Get moving.

Let's go.

We need to move out
of here right now.

Watch your step.

[Bryce] So, I was
just trying to sleep,

and I just keep
thinking about earlier,

whatever was hunting me,
for lack of a better word,
paralleling me...

[whispering]

[gasps]

You know, I read a lot
about these accounts
of these creatures,

paralleling hunters
and loggers.

But then, to actually
have it happen to me was...

[chuckles] Every bone
in my body just wanted to
stop moving and just freeze.

I mean, we have no idea
what we're dealing with.

I mean,
we think we do, but we don't.

I mean, it's... "Careful
what you wish for," right?

[narrator] At base camp...

Okay, so this is a sample
that I collected from
the tree hollow.

[narrator]
...Mireya and Bryce decide
to divide and conquer.

Hey, Dr. Bondar.
How are you?

Very well, thanks.

[narrator] While Mireya
examines the hair samples

she collected
the previous night...

Wow.

Quite a large clump
of hair here.

[narrator]
...Bryce will speak with
an expert on animal behavior.

Thank you so much
for taking the time
to speak with me today.

Listen, yeah. How can I help?

We are back here
in Northern California
because I believe

Bigfoot is using this area
as a breeding ground.

Which is why Mireya
has set me up to talk
with Dr. Carin Bondar,

a biologist who specializes
in animal reproduction.

Well, I really want
to start with this idea

of how breeding
can affect animal behavior.

I mean, essentially,

the way that
an animal, you know,

has sex and reproduces
pretty much dictates

everything else
about that animal's life.

Whether it is a decision
about resource gathering
or distributing,

whether it's a decision
about whether to copulate
with one mate or the other,

we see all kinds
of interesting things
across the mammalian world.

[Mireya] Okay. So, basically,

if I see anything
that looks like a medulla,

I can already dismiss it

because Bigfoot is said
to lack a medulla.

[narrator] The medulla
is the innermost layer
of the hair.

In deer and elk,
the medulla is thick.

In primates,
and theoretically, Bigfoot,

it should be largely absent.

I can see that this one
has a very long,
continuous band,

and it looks like
what we have here
is a hair from a deer.

What we're after
does not have a medulla.

So, I can rule out
this hair sample.

Let's see if I can get
this one to read now.

[Bryce] What are
some of these behaviors
that are affected?

[Carin] So, anytime
you are breeding,

there's going to be
elements of competition.

But when we're
thinking about mammals
that have large size,

males certainly
can be vicious
with each other

when it comes
to winning the girl,
if you will.

Another layer of complication,
I would add to that, is,

finding a partner
might even be a bit tricky.

And so, mammals, and birds,
and all kinds of animals

undertake massive
migrations to find a mate
and mate with that mate.

But I love this idea
that, you know,
these vast ranges,

which I think
these Bigfoot reside in,

-it might be tough
to find partnering.
-Absolutely.

[Bryce] I want
to speculate here
for a second that

I think we've
captured these things
moving in pairs.

If these creatures
are traveling in pairs,

would they stay
in family groups
together as partners?

I have to tell you that
sexual monogamy does not
exist in the animal kingdom.

-It just doesn't.
-Right.

[Carin] A particular family
group need not look
any particular way.

So, it sounds like
what you're saying is,
if these creatures do exist

then their family structures
could exist outside
of the norm, let's say.

[Carin] I'm so glad
you said it that way.

Because the norm...
What is the norm?

We as humans have,

really, you know,
we have expectations
of what a family looks like.

We have to really
try to leave all of
our assumptions at the door.

Across the primate world,
it really varies when it comes

to what a partnership
might look like.

We see everything
from h*m* ones
to heterosexual ones.

Animals are abundantly
h*m* in nature.
That is just a fact.

For example, something
like bottlenose dolphins,

something like
even silverback gorillas.

We also see all kinds
of multiple partnerships
happening.

We see things
akin to polyamory...

-That's incredible.
-...where we have a pretty
traditional alpha male

and female situation
in the animal world.

We see absolutely everything.

[Mireya] In the microscope,
I can see that in this case,

there is very clearly
a medulla present.

So, I can rule out
this hair sample.

These might not be
Bigfoot hairs, but this
does tell us that wildlife

is using these burnt out trees
as shelter.

There are Bigfoot researchers
that talk about deer
as a source of food.

So, that's encouraging.

[Carin] Well, I guess
what I'm getting at here

is that, essentially,
the mating ritual is
just beginning... [chuckles]

...when they have gotten
to the breeding ground.

There's actually
a lot of steps.

For example, getting
to that breeding ground,

then finding a suitable mate,
then copulating with
that mate.

And then gestating
an offspring.

So if I understand what
you're saying,

then there's probably
a lot of activity

taking place within
that breeding ground.

And it sounds like
me and my team might
really be able to capitalize

by giving us more and more
opportunity to catch,

I don't know,
vocalizations,
moving through areas,

possibly even stumble on
or surprise one
of these creatures.

Absolutely.

This has just
been really elucidating,
and I can't thank you enough.

Oh, it is my pleasure.

I wish you all the best
for the expedition.

[whispering]

[narrator] Ten miles
away from Mireya
and Bryce's position,

Russell closes in
on the Northeast target zone.

[whispering]

We know there's been a lot
of activity and there's been
a lot of rain in this area.

The rain can actually soften
the soil beneath our feet.

So, if we can move quiet,
we have that element
of surprise.

I think that's
a huge advantage.

[whispering]

[Russell speaking]

[Russell speaking]

Well, that's a bear.

A big bear.

[Russell] Two, three.

Last night...

Those are big.

...I saw a mama bear
and her babies.

A bear and her cubs
right in front of us.

I know I'm still
in that same proximity.

So I'm thinking in my head...

This guy this could be
from the exact same creature.

You don't want to get between
a mama bear and her cubs

because, if you come
anywhere near them
or between them,

you're sealing your fate.
That's how people get k*lled.

[whispering] There's two.

See how the toes
are pushed in here.

That's one big boy.

Maybe a year
or two-year-old.

Still running with mama.

[normally]
Right now, I'm looking
at these prints, and...

[whispering] This one's
bigger than that one.

...I'm seeing
how massive this thing is.

[whispering]

[narrator] Nine miles
from Russell's position,

Mireya and Bryce
head east from basecamp

to retrieve the plaster cast
of a possible Bigfoot print

they had discovered
on the first day
of their expedition.

[Mireya] How did the call go
with Dr. Bondar?

[Bryce] I mean,
I learned a lot about
what to expect

if this is
a Bigfoot breeding ground,

and the types of family
structures they might have.

[Mireya] How often
are they reported to be
seen in a family group?

[Bryce] Well, not very often.

There's not a lot of reports
about people observing
the family units of Bigfoot.

So, there's really
not a lot there.

So, that's
pretty interesting because

if you're talking about
just very rare sightings

of multiple individuals,

it would lead me to believe
that you have

a male with multiple females
in a group.

Generally speaking,
in the primate world,

it's the male that determines
that group movement

-and puts themselves
out and at risk first.
-Yeah. Yeah.

The females tend to stay
a little bit further behind
with with the young

as they go through.

And the females
eventually needs to follow.

That's really interesting
because it could explain why

why finding
single Bigfoot tracks

are more common
than finding groups of tracks.

That's definitely the case
when you're out in the field
with gorillas.

[Bryce] Based on
what Dr. Bondar
and Mireya are telling me,

the track we found yesterday
could be a solo male Bigfoot

scouting ahead
for a safe location
for his family.

And if that's true, that means
the rest of his family

could be close behind.

There it is.

I had a gut feeling
this was going to be
an active site.

But I had no idea
that I would stumble upon
my very first Bigfoot track.

[Mireya] Let's see
how this turned out.

We took a cast of it, and I
cannot wait to see what
that plaster cast reveals.

Oh, wow.

[Mireya] Look at that.
Wow, that dried nice.

-[Bryce] That's amazing.
-Yeah.

[Bryce] Oh, wow.

[Mireya] Here we go.

Wow. That's wild, huh?

Yeah. After it's
dried up, we'll start
removing everything.

That way, we'll get
a lot more detail.

That would be
incredible. Okay.

I mean, it certainly
looks like a foot, doesn't it?

[Mireya] Yeah, it does.

-[Bryce] Yeah.
-[Mireya] Put that in there.

[Bryce] Hearing Mireya
and Dr. Carin Bondar
talk about

primate group dynamics
has really got me thinking,

because I believe this print

might come from
a large male Bigfoot looking
for new nesting grounds.

[Russell] Watch
your step. I'm gonna
let this thing snap back.

Don't let it hit you.

[narrator] In
the northeast section
of the target area,

nine miles away from
Mireya and Bryce,

Russell continues
to head toward a possible
Bigfoot nesting site.

[Russell] A lot of meltwater
moving through here.

There's been a lot of rain.

A lot of landslides,
a lot of downfall,
a lot of turned-over trees.

It makes the terrain
much different than
what we experienced before.

Two years ago,
this would have been
a fairly small stream.

But given
the last several months
of nothing but rainfall,

all these little creeks
are now raging rivers.

That nesting site area
is just on the other side
of this waterway.

I don't have time
for an obstacle like this.

I'm looking at my map.

And I'm thinking, if I can't
get across that water,

I have to backtrack up
this very steep terrain.

We're talking
two days of work.

This waterway
presents a problem.

I've got this right here.
An anchor point.

Across the way,
that big tree over there.

If I can get
that rope there and back...

I might get wet,
but I can get across.

[grunts]

I only want half the rope
up that way.

The other half of it
stays here.

[grunts]

[Russell speaking]

[grunts]

You see all that?
It needs to be over there.

Right by the trunk
of that tree.

Not snaking its way
down the water.

Out here in the forest,
you have to think
on your feet.

You have to mix
ingenuity with stubbornness.

And I'd like to think
that I have both.

I need an anchor.
This might be it.

Stay.

Look at that.

It looks like I got it.

I'm halfway to not letting
this water stop me.

This is huge.

I have a tree as
an anchor point

and I have a tree here
as an anchor point.

All I have to do is secure
the two ends, and I have a way
to get across that water.

Now comes the tricky part.

Because now,
I have to find a way
to grab hold of that rope

and pull it back across.

All right.
I found what I needed.

Got to get this thing
cleaned up and make it
a little bit better.

I'm making a wooden anchor.

Or a wooden grappling hook.

It's ugly.

But it's going to work.

[narrator] Now that Russell
has one end of the rope
around the base of the tree

on the other side
of the river...

I'll give you
an idea of how it works.

[narrator] ...he will use
a grappling hook to snag
the loose end of the rope...

-Let's give it a try.
-[narrator]
...and pull it back across.

[grunts] No, no, no, no, no.

[narrator] This will
create a loop around the tree,

allowing him to easily
secure both ends of the rope
on his side of the river.

[Russell] The distance
I'm trying to throw this rope
isn't a short distance.

It's quite a ways across.

Oh. It hit the tree.

I got very, very close
several times. I would catch
on branches above me.

I would throw it
on the wrong side of the tree.

The wrong side of the tree.

This was not going
to be an easy task.

[grunts]

There it is. There it is.
Come on. Come on.

[strains] Come on.

[grunts, straining]

Yeah.

[grunting]

I have an anchor point there,
and an anchor point here.

Now, if I don't make
all that rope tight...

tight enough
to support my body weight,

we're going
down into the water.

This is gonna make
the difference of us
crossing or not.

If I do this right,
I shouldn't even get wet.

If I don't...
Well, we'll see how this goes.

I don't know
if it's gonna work.

But I have to try.

I just saved
two days of traveling time.

This was a victory.

If you don't take a risk,
you don't get the results.

Now that I've made it across,
I want to shore up this rope,

raise it a little bit,
make it tighter so I can
get my equipment across,

and get the cameraman
on this side.

That way, we can be
on that nesting site
right on schedule.

I have investigating to do.

[narrator] While
Russell forges on,
on the outskirts of town,

Bryce's newest addition
to the team, former
CIA agent, Ben Smith,

runs down leads after
gaining critical intel
from the locals.

So, part of my job
as an intelligence officer,

and here, investigating
Bigfoot sightings,

is to vet a person,
a source, an asset.

And this place turned out
to be a gold mine.

[woman] We just kind of
kept hearing things, like,
following us,

-like an aggressive energy,
if that makes sense.
-[Ben] Uh-huh.

[man]
I know some people definitely
that have had experiences,

that heard crazy
screaming calls.

Would you mind giving me
the contact information?

Yeah, I can give you
the contact information.

-I mean, I can't guarantee
they'll talk to you, but...
-Yeah.

So, I'm headed out
to meet a woman named Debbie,

a long-time resident
of the Valley,

who has a really
interesting experience

that actually changed
her belief in Bigfoot.

Hey. Well, Debbie,
thanks for making time.

[Debbie] Yes. No problem.

I'd love to hear
firsthand from you

what happened.
What did you see,
or experience?

[Debbie] I'll never forget it.

Um, it was really
early in the morning.
I was asleep.

And then, I woke up
and realized I was
hearing something outside.

-I thought it sounded
like a motorcycle.
-Mm-hmm.

And the first thought was,
"Gee, I wonder

who was riding a motorcycle
this early in the morning."

-It's still dark
at this point?
-Yeah, it's still dark.

It was warm. So, the windows
were open, and I went
to the window...

And at that moment,
the sound started
getting bigger.

Like a howl.
A big, deep howl.

And in a split second,
my mind said, "Wow,
that's not a motorcycle."

And the sound started
getting louder and louder,

and the howl was so deep

that I could hear vibrating.

And when I heard it,
I had the chills
because it was so close.

And I said, "Well, I think
I just heard Bigfoot."

Which direction did
you hear it from?

I was just standing there
at that window.

-The sound, I think,
carried from this area.
-Mm-hmm.

I don't think it was
very high up on the hill.

-It was that close.
-And that hill,
it connects to a ridgeline

that probably extends
deep into the forest.

[Debbie] Yes, yes.

[Ben] So,
you're at the window.

You hear this long howl.

And how did you confirm
that it was a Bigfoot howl?

I know what
all the animals sound like
in this area,

and your mind kind of...

fights with itself and saying,
"Is this an animal?"

Because it's nothing
you've ever heard before.

Yeah.

Whatever made
that howl was huge

because it had to have
a huge lung capacity

-in order to carry
a howl that loud.
-Mm-hmm.

For, like,
two weeks afterwards,

my mind didn't believe
what I heard.

Now that I know, for sure,

-after investigating--
-What kind
of investigating did you do?

I got online, and then,
I came across a Bigfoot howl.

-It was almost exactly
what I heard.
-Right.

-And do you think
about that moment a lot?
-Oh, yeah, I do.

It's scary.
It's a scary sound.

-Yeah.
-It's something
I'll never forget.

I am a believer now.

There's no doubt
in my mind now.

Now that I've
heard one, Bigfoot exists.

[Ben] Debbie's account
is really interesting

because she heard a long howl

from a ridge
on the backside

of the hot zone that
our team is investigating.

I'm really excited to pass
that evidence to the team

because this could be huge
in helping us identify
the exact location

of where
the Bigfoot might be living.

[Bryce whispering]

[Mireya whispers]

[narrator] As darkness
descends on night two
of their expedition...

[narrator]
...Russell closes in
on the northeast target zone,

while Mireya and Bryce
return to the area

where they discovered
a possible Bigfoot print.

[Bryce] Tonight, Mireya and I
are back at the location

where we found a print
that could indicate

a large male Bigfoot
may have been
scouting this area

before bringing in its family.

And based on
what Dr. Bondar told me,

if there is a family
of Bigfoot breeding here,

then the activity
is just getting started.

-[Mireya] There's new trails
going in every direction here.
-[Bryce] Yeah.

[narrator] Unlike
the white light typically
emitted by most flashlights,

red light has
the longest wavelength
on the visible light spectrum,

but carry
the least amount of energy.

The eyes of most animals,
including humans,

are less sensitive
to red light,

and some animals,
such as rabbits,
are unable to see it entirely.

[g*n c*ck]

Utilized by hunters
and special forces units
in the military,

these specialized lights
allow the team

to covertly move
through the forest at night

without giving away
their position.

-[Mireya] You see
the deer tracks right here?
-[Bryce] Oh, yeah.

-[Mireya] All of this...
-Yeah.

[Mireya] ...was underwater
just a week or two ago.

Any tracks we pick up
on tonight, that means
that it's very fresh.

So, this is a great sign.

This looks like
a really active trail.

So, let's just keep
heading that way 'cause
the trail just keeps going.

[Bryce] You got it.

Wow.

-[Mireya] Look, it
opens up over this rock.
-Mm-hmm.

Oh, wow. What is this?

[Mireya] Oh. That's...
That's sort of strange.

It's parallel to the ground.

Interesting geometry out
in the middle of the woods,
don't you think?

What immediately
catches my eye is
just how perfectly parallel

this large log is
to the trail that we're on.

-Is there anything
holding it up on that end?
-No.

And not only that,
but it's sitting at
about nine feet high.

It's really finely balanced.
Here's the tip of it.

I don't see any saw marks.

What's strange is that
I don't see any trees
like this around here.

Yeah, it looks out of place,
doesn't it?

I mean, I don't have
to tell you the stories
of these creatures

using signals like this
as markings for territory,

possible nesting sites.

This could be a tree
structure of some sort.

Let's walk down there
and see if it's connected
to anything.

You know, for a second,
I was reminded
of those huge trees

that were stuck
upside down in Alaska.

[Mireya] Oh, my God.

-[Bryce] That's weird.
-That is weird.

The moss up there says that
this thing's been here for
years and years and years.

[Bryce] I have to admit
that I was thinking to myself,

"Could this be
a smaller version of that?"

Look at this.

It goes all the way back here.

[Mireya] But it's
connected to the ground.

It's rooted at the end.

-[Bryce] Oh, that's
buried in there.
-Yeah.

[Bryce] Upon
further examination...

-[Mireya] Definitely natural.
-Yeah.

...we realized that this log
was probably downed
by the recent rains.

And we can actually
see where the roots are
embedded into the ground.

-[Mireya] Yeah.
-Oh, that's so deceiving.

So, this is not
a Bigfoot structure.

[Mireya] It's a great
example of not jumping
to conclusions for sure.

[Russell whispering]

[narrator] Nine miles
to the northeast of
Mireya and Bryce's position,

and 11 miles from
where he split from
the rest of the team,

Russell has finally
made his way to a clearing

overlooking a possible
Bigfoot nesting site.

[Russell] Tonight,
it's clear skies.

It feels like almost
a full moon has given us
all this ambient light,

which means we don't
have to use flashlights,

and we're able
to move at night
very, very stealthily.

Right now, I'm on
this north hillside
right at that nesting site

that we've identified
on Pete's LiDAR scans.

[whispering]

[Mireya] You learn from
every single expedition,

and I've been able to witness

some really intimate moments
in the life of wild animals...

where I'm reminded
that we're not dissimilar.

And one of the ones
that really struck me
involved gorillas

and how caring
they are for each other.

There was an old
silverback that was
really on his way out,

and there were
two of his sons,

sort of as rivals
wanting that position.

And yet, the females
were really calming
the situation,

waiting for the male,
who could not travel

as quickly as
the rest of the group,

and never, ever
leaving him behind.

That, to me, struck me
as something that
we see in our own families,

where we care for our elders.

[whispering]

[Russell speaking]

Let's see what we can find.

I'm making the decision
now that I'm going
to go investigate

and see what's
making that sound.

Coming into this tree line,
it's very daunting

because you have
no idea what you're
going to walk into.

But I have to continue
this investigation.

I don't know if I'm going
to run into a mama bear
and her cubs,

or if I'm going to come
face-to-face

with what
I've been looking for
all these years.

[rustling]

[shushes]

[rustling]

[whispering] Let's make
our way down to the river.

-Let's see if we can find
a spot where we can set up.
-Great idea.

We're at the river tonight,
right near the area where
we found the footprint.

I can't wait to explore
this area more,

to see if we can find
any evidence of just
what created this thing.

[Mireya whispering] There's
a lot of different places
for animals to go here.

-[Bryce whispering] Yeah.
-So many trails.

It's so quiet, like everything
is so still suddenly.

[Bryce speaking]

We just got a tree knock.

I heard it clearly,
whatever that was.

[man] Yeah, tree knocks
always happen
when Bigfoot is around.

It's believed that Bigfoots
communicate by hitting
branches against the trees,

and every time I've heard one,
weird stuff comes with it.

[whispering] I swear to God,
I'm not even kidding.

-[Mireya speaking]
-[Bryce speaking]

[Mireya speaking]

[device beeping]

[normally] Look, look,
it's heating up.

[Bryce whispering]

[whispering]

Look, look, look.

[Mireya speaking]

[Bryce speaking]

[Mireya speaking]

[Bryce] Oh, look at that.

[normally] Mireya,
I just saw eye shine.

-[strange howling]
-[Mireya normally]
Bryce, Bryce. Oh, my God.