Legends of the Mountains: Woodbooger (AKA Bigfoot)

No one knows where it came from;

its been known 

for generations.

Over the last generation or so the creature has been known as the "WoodBooger". It is said to live in the wilderness of Jefferson National Forest in Wise and Scott County, VA. There are many theories about its beginnings and how it has survived all these years. 

Like any Bigfoot, Sasquatch, or Yeti legend it is believed to be a "hairy man" cryptid left over from some earlier version of man or ape. The WoodBooger lives happily on its own in the mountainous wooded terrain, and tries to avoid humans as much as possible. 

A few years ago a tv show called "Finding Bigfoot" produced an episode in the High KNob area of Wise, VA and the Woodbooger was the creature they hoped to find. 

The first time I ever heard of the creature it wasn't referred to as the "WoodBooger", but just a "hairy creature like the Bigfoot". I was around 7 years old sitting outside on the back porch one summer while my mother sun bathed, and I had just heard about Bigfoot. My mother mentions that we had a Bigfoot here, too! That she remembers hearing her uncles and brothers talking about hearing a terrible screaming sound out in the woods when they would be hunting, and seeing a huge hairy manlike creature running through the woods. It was huge and could jump high and swing from tree to tree using vines and its own long arms. 

From that moment on I started looking out into the woods with high hopes of catching a glimpse of this creature. Every strange sound I was sure was the creature. However, I never did catch a sight of it. 

One account of an interaction between man and the WoodBooger  was recounted in the Kingsport Times News (July 26, 2013; reported by Greg Peters):

"William Dranginis heads the Virginia Bigfoot Research Organization. Based in Aldi, Va., he takes reports of sightings, does interviews and even goes onsite looking for the elusive “hairy man.”Dranginis works full time for defense contractor Northrop Grumman and had little or no interest in Bigfoot until 1995.In March of that year, Dranginis and two friends were trying out a new metal detector in Culpeper County, Va. The three were looking for treasure in and around old gold mine shafts in the area. The mines were active during the Civil War.After a long morning of searching with no luck, they were returning to their vehicle on a country back road.“The two guys with me were FBI agents, one of them did three tours in Vietnam. Suddenly he threw up his arm and stated that there was a man behind a tree up ahead,” said Dranginis.Both agents drew their guns and pushed Dranginis to the rear.“I was looking in the area where a man’s head would be and then about three feet above that a black hairy face came out from behind the tree,” Dranginis added.The creature then moved across the road from left to right and made its way into the forest.“It moved with a fluid motion, it was covered in black hair. The shoulders were huge and you could see an area of gray on the upper back.”That event led him down a new path and into his current role as VBRO director. A search of his website found several reports of sightings in and around Southwest Virginia.Currently Dranginis is working an active case in Washington County near Saltville.A couple from North Carolina bought remote property in the area and were using it for camping. “The area is remote and can only be accessed by ATV. Their first night camping, they began to hear screams close by and got scared. They jumped on their ATV and left everything at the campsite,” said Dranginis. “As they drove off the husband turned around and saw something dark and close to 8 feet tall running behind them.”The couple waited over a week before returning for their equipment."

Since the episode of "Finding Bigfoot" aired Norton, VA has hosted a WoodBooger festival. It is a yearly event in October, and is slowly finding a larger audience. The City of Norton has also named the Flag Rock area of High Knob as a Bigfoot and Sasquatch Sanctuary.

Does the WoodBooger really stalk the Appalachian Mountains of Southwest Virginia? I like to think so. Growing up with stories and having my own experiences with boogers, haints, witches, and everything else that goes bump in the night I wouldn't disbelieve in this creature. 

I honestly think there might be a small clan or tribe of these creatures still living in relative anonymity in the almost impossible to reach areas of the wooded mountains. Just every once in a while man gets too close or one of the WoodBoogers wanders to far, and a glimpse is caught.

Just look at this small section of the mountain area that they can hide in!:

What do you think? 

Do you think there are WoodBoogers living in the mountains? 

Have you ever ran into one?