Bigfoot, Sasquatch, whatever you want to call them - many folks across the country claim to have seen him (or them?)

But that got me thinking...

Have There Been Bigfoot Sightings in West Michigan?

Turns out, yes. Bigfoot encounters have reportedly occurred in Kent, Ottawa, Muskegon, Allegan, Barry, and Ionia counties throughout the years.

Here's a summary of when and what happened in each county. All of this information came from the folks at The Bigfoot Field Researchers' Association. For more detailed information or to report your own encounter, check out their website.


Bigfoot Sightings in Kent County, Michigan

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November, 1978 - This encounter occurred near Cedar Springs, Mich. A man claims that a Sasquatch was watching him while he was deer hunting.

October, 1979 - This encounter at a state park somewhere north of Grand Rapids occurred during the beginning of bow hunting season. A man claims that while hunting, he heard logs and branches breaking as well as "vocalizations" from possibly more than one Bigfoot.

September, 1983 - This encounter, near Lowell, Mich, is super scary. The witness claims that they were walking home down a dirt road when they heard footsteps. When they stopped to look, they saw a "humanoid creature" that "appeared to be hairy".

September, 2013 - This experience, near the Rogue River Gaming Area, involves a husband and wife hearing vocalizations outside of their home that they believe to be those of a Sasquatch.


Bigfoot Sightings in Ottawa County, Michigan

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July, 1994 - In this case, a mother and son claim to have discovered Bigfoot footprints on their property near Nunica, Mich.

November, 2002 - This encounter happened near Holland and possibly had two witnesses, though only one has reported it. The person who reported it claims to have seen two creatures crossing the street in front of their car as they drove home late one night.


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Bigfoot Sightings in Muskegon County, Michigan

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Summer, 1979 - This is more of an "over the years" type of report. The reporter says that he and several others in the area witnessed what they called "Shadow People" over the years in the Montague area.

READ MORE: Unnerving Account With a Shadow Person in Detroit

August, 2006 - This encounter in North Muskegon is pretty disturbing because it involves one of the creatures actually coming up onto the back deck of a home and peering into the windows. (No, thank you.)


Bigfoot Sightings in Allegan County, Michigan

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Side note: I'm a little surprised that there haven't been more sightings/encounters in Allegan County, but it's possible that this is just the only one that's been reported.

June, 2007 - A witness reports hearing vocalizations near the Allegan State Game Area.


Bigfoot Sightings in Ionia County, Michigan

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Fall, 1983 - The person who reported this incident near Palo, Mich. says that they spotted a Bigfoot staring in through their bathroom window.


Bigfoot Sightings in Barry County, Michigan

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January, 2011 - In this incident, near Gull Lake, a young woman claims that she heard vocalizations as well as branches breaking.


Have you ever encountered anything like any of the stories above?

Now that we've discovered West Michigan's experiences with Bigfoot - let's take a look at UFO sightings from around the state.

Reported UFO Sightings Over Michigan in 2023

More than three dozen UFO reports have been filed in Michigan in 2023, any many of them have purported photographic evidence. While some of these are easily explained away, not all of them are.

Gallery Credit: jrwitl