 -Visiting Bigfootin Texas
 It's October in Texas, and time again for the annual Texas Bigfoot Conference in Jefferson - deep in the Texas pineywoods, which is a noted area for alleged sightings of the mysterious creature that some say still stalks the nearby woodlands area around eerie Caddo Lake.
BIGFOOT? Just a silly legend - an old fable that refuses to die - a go-bump-in-the-night story designed to frighten the kids around the campfire? Well, maybe. But there is a long history of reports about giant, mysterious creatures that roam the backwoods of not just Texas, but most every part of the world. And many of these reports come from credible witnesses who say they have experienced a chance encounter with the unlikely creature.
Like UFO sightings, most of these reports have little credibility. Mankind, it seems, has a love affair with creating magical, mystical tales of splendor to entertain or confuse a willing audience. But the men and women who gather in Jefferson each fall are anything but whimsical about the subject. Most are serious researchers and consider their work an entirely unique science. And they're not the first to believe an unidentified species of animal stalks the deep woods in locations all around the world.
East Texas was once the home to Caddo, Cherokee and Hoopa natives. The Cherokee have two words for just such a creature, Nun Ynui We - meaning hairy giant, and Kecleh-Kudleh, meaning hairy savage. The Hoopa called the creature O-Mah, which roughly translanted means the Chief of the Woods.
The Texas Bigfoot Research Center, headquartered in the heavily wooded northeast texas region, says there have been over 250 credible sightings of a bigfoot-type creature in the state. The Center is dedicated to investigating credible reports of the fabled creature in hopes of securing proof positive that the ape-like creature is much more than just a fable.
October 15-16 marks the date for the 2005 Bigfoot Conference, an event that will feature speakers and bigfoot researchers from across the country and Canada. Craig Woolheater, one of the founding fathers of the research center, reports the group's annual conference is quickly becoming one of the premiere events for researchers and enthusiasts from around the country.
Part of the reason is undoubtedly because Jefferson is in the heart of Texas Bigfoot country. Caddo Lake, about 15 miles away, is one of the most dense and least populated wetland areas of North America - an easy place for a bigfoot to hide.
Of course, say serious bigfoot researchers, there will always be skeptics - at least until definitive evidence is found and substaniated that such a species walks the secret parts of the world.
But skeptics are encouraged to take their RVs and tents into the eerie Caddo Lake region to spend a few nights listening to the sounds of the thick wilderness to decide for themselves. Skeptics, say believers, may not be so skeptical afterwards.
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Rio Grande Valley
