Volume 13 Number 2 January 26, 1983

Manyberries Alberta - No more than a tiny flyspeck on the map, Manyberries is as sleepy a southern Alberta hamlet as you're likely to find most of the time.

But, every town must have its moments of glory and, aside from the annual New Year's Eve dinner and dance at the community centre, the biggest buzz of excitement in recent memory followed the discovery by a former CP Rail station agent of some gargantuan footprints many believe left by the legendary Sasquatch.

Manyberries, population 85, not counting the dozen or so dogs, is not the type of community to stray too far from the norm. So, when Vern Dunlop stepped outside the Manyberries station just before the 08:00 line-up on 1 Dec 1977 and spotted the giant tracks running east in the snow alongside the station, one of the last things he wanted to do was create a commotion.

"I told my wife, Thelma, not to tell any of the neighbors. We didn't really want it known," Mr. Dunlop said during a recent interview.

LOCKED THE DOOR

But, in Manyberries, secrecy is at a premium and by sunrise the whole town was "yappin" about those darn things."

"When I spotted those tracks, the first thing I did was rush inside and lock my door," said Mrs. Dunlop. "I realized a moment later something as tiny as the door lock wouldn't stop something that big."

The tracks, 18 1/2 inches (47 centimetres) long by eight inches (20.3 centimetres) wide, "must've been made by something that weighed 500 pounds (227 kilograms) or more. There were 10 clearly defined prints," Mr. Dunlop said.

"We didn't really want any publicity. It was the hotel owner who reported it to the police."

Within a few hours of the discovery, Manyberries had gained national recognition. Reporters from dozens of newspapers and radio and television stations flocked to the town. Scores of others kept the Dunlops' telephone "ringing off the wall."

"It sure as hell put Manyberries on the map. But, I guess people don't realize what we went through. For 48 hours straight the phone kept ringing. If you were in the limelight at all you could probably accept all the attention, but when it comes right out of the blue sky, well it's kind of hard to take. We got fed up after a while," said Mr. Dunlop.

No one actually spotted what made the prints and, except for the 10 tracks in the snow, there was no other evidence a Sasquatch had come to call.

However, several residents, reported "the dogs put up one heck of a racket that night."

BALD-HEADED PRAIRIE

"I really believe it was there," said Mrs. Dunlop, "I have no reason not to believe it. Where the tracks were, nobody except us, would have seen them. If it was going to be a hoax, the tracks would have had to have been made in town, near the hotel or post office."

Mr. Dunlop said he couldn't understand what would attract a Sasquatch to Manyberries. "I'd heard these things liked mountain areas and trees. You wouldn't expect to see one right out on the bald-headed prairie."

Mr. Dunlop, who retired in 1981 after 38 years with the company, said the event has sparked his interest in the Sasquatch legend but he has not reached a final verdict on whether the creature actually exists.

He does, however, keep a Sasquatch scrapbook, filled with clippings and photographs as well as letters from Sasquatch fans. "I'm really not sure it exists, but something has to have made those footprints," he said.

Today, things are much the same as they were before the commotion five years ago.

The only reminder of Manyberries' moment in the spotlight is a selection on the dog-eared menu at the Southern Ranchmen's Inn, the giant Sasquatch burger. It's one of the biggest, and tastiest, burgers in the province.

And that's no hoax.