The Skamania County Bigfoot Ordinance, Explained

STEVENSON — Visitors to the Columbia River Gorge are often surprised to learn that the county they are standing in has protected the Sasquatch by force of law since April 1, 1969. They are more surprised to learn the county was not kidding.

This paper — which operates from within the protected zone, for reasons it declines to elaborate — offers the following plain-language guide.

What the 1969 ordinance actually says

Ordinance 69-01, adopted by the Skamania County Board of Commissioners, found that “an apparently gorilla-like creature, variously described as an ape-like creature or a sub-species of Homo Sapiens,” may exist within county lines, and that its habitat should not become a hunting ground. The original ordinance made slaying a Sasquatch a felony, punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of ten thousand dollars — 1969 dollars, when a dollar meant something and a Sasquatch meant more.

The board adopted it on April 1. Asked whether that date signified anything, the commissioners of the era maintained it did not. This paper has reviewed the record and concurs: the fine schedule is not a joke. Nobody drafts penalty language as a bit.

The 1984 amendment

Ordinance 1984-2 refined the framework. The felony became a gross misdemeanor — a softening this newsroom protested at the time and protests now — and the entire county was formally designated a Sasquatch refuge. The amendment also, with a lawyer’s optimism, provided that if the creature proves to be human, the charge converts to homicide, to be handled by the appropriate authorities. The appropriate authorities have not commented, which the appropriate authorities would say either way.

What this means for visitors

• Harming a Sasquatch in Skamania County remains against the law. This is not folklore. It is in a binder in Stevenson.
• No equivalent protection extends to you. Hike Cape Horn or Dog Mountain with ordinary humility.
• The ordinance does not require you to report a sighting. Most people couldn’t substantiate one anyway. Most people never can.

Frequently asked questions

Is it really illegal to kill Bigfoot in Washington?

In Skamania County, yes, since 1969. Statewide, Whatcom County followed in 1991, declaring itself a Sasquatch protection area. Between the two counties lies a corridor of legal ambiguity that the Sasquatch is understood to travel quickly.

Has anyone ever been charged under the ordinance?

No prosecutions are on record. Advocates credit deterrence. Skeptics credit other factors. The county prosecutor’s office, reached for comment, asked this paper how it got this number.

Why would a county pass such a law?

The 1969 board cited public safety amid armed Bigfoot search parties in the hills — a real and documented concern. The minutes of the relevant meeting are brief. The woods around Stevenson are not.

Related: our newsroom’s standing coverage of the Gorge, and one Sasquatch’s ongoing correspondence with local breweries.