Case file · Cryptid
David Thompson's tracks in the Rockies
In January 1811 the fur-trade explorer David Thompson found large four-toed tracks in snow near present-day Jasper, Alberta; Bigfoot books often cite them as the first record.
1811 CE · 52.88, -118.08 · status: explained
The account
His men believed the tracks belonged to a giant animal of local lore. Thompson himself, an experienced naturalist, concluded they were the tracks of an old grizzly bear, noting the short claws and the impression of the pads.
The sceptical view
Thompson's own explanation was a bear, and four toes do not match the usual five-toed Bigfoot print.