Frame 352 from the Patterson-Gimlin Bigfoot film, which was part of footage that captured imaginations worldwide.

California may soon have an official mythical creature — and naturally, it’s Bigfoot. Assemblymember Chris Rogers, who represents a stretch of the North Coast that has long been considered Sasquatch territory, introduced Assembly Bill 666 on Feb. 14, 2025. The bill aims to designate Bigfoot as the state’s official cryptid, a term for creatures that some people believe to exist despite a lack of proof. Rogers’ district spans Del Norte, Humboldt, Mendocino, Sonoma and Trinity counties, a region known as the epicenter of Bigfoot lore.

Matt Moneymaker, a longtime Bigfoot researcher and former star of the Animal Planet series “Finding Bigfoot,” has spent decades studying the elusive creature. As president of the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization, he’s been fascinated by the legend since the 1980s.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

When Moneymaker first heard about Assembly Bill 666, he told SFGATE he was skeptical. “I first thought it was a joke,” he said. “It sounded like it was a parody of states having official all sorts of things. So I thought it was supposed to be a spoof on that.”

But once he realized the bill was serious, his perspective shifted. “Apparently, a state can have an official cryptid. So why not?” he said. “And obviously, Bigfoot’s the biggest one of all among cryptids, and California is where the term Bigfoot was popularized, so it makes sense.”

Moneymaker’s research suggests that Bigfoot isn’t just a lone, mythical creature but a widespread species.........

© SFGate