On a Quest for Mythical Creatures of the National Parks
If you’re traveling to national parks this year, you may want to pick up a Legends of the National Park Guide Book, as dozens of national parks are said to be home to mythical creatures and spooky legends, cryptids, ghosts, aliens, and more.
In the following sections, we identify a national park in each geographic region of the U.S., focusing on a park that is said to be the proverbial “stomping grounds” of a cryptid or legend. Enjoy snippets from our Legends of the National Park Guide Book, presented here along with mythical creature art created by ADG’s award-winning poster artists to celebrate these elusive beasties.
But first, check out this fun reel featuring mythical creature art!
The Pacific Northwest: Bigfoot of Mount Rainier National Park
Since several states across the U.S. have recorded Bigfoot sightings in the hundreds, there is no scientific consensus on where the elusive Bigfoot creature lives. Or are hundreds of “Bigfeet” out there roaming nationwide? While the speculation continues, it’s worth mentioning that no U.S. state has as many recorded Bigfoot sightings as Washington State.
With about 676 recorded sightings centering around the state’s National Parks (Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic), this neck of the woods does seem to be the preferred home and the “stomping grounds” of the Bigfoot creature.
Bigfoot sightings are so common in the forests and mountains of Washington State that nine out of every 100,000 Washington residents have seen Bigfoot! To learn more about Bigfoot sightings in Mount Rainier National Park (like the most realistic Bigfoot footprint ever found!), check out this article at the Lewiston Tribune.
The West Coast: Yucca Man of Joshua Tree National Park
For the residents of southern California, the infamous Yucca Man is almost as well known as Bigfoot is to the Pacific Northwesterners. Yucca Man is tall, a looming beast eight feet tall, covered in stringy, unkempt hair. And with a lumbering, shuffling gait, this fellow could easily be a cousin or distant relative of Bigfoot!
Yucca Man has been spotted across southern California, from the suburbs of Lancaster to the runways of Edwards Air Force Base. However, the most recent Yucca Man sightings have occurred in Joshua Tree National Park.
To learn more about the stories and history of Yucca Man’s travels across the Southwest, read the article by Ken Layne at Long Reads.
The West: Walking Sam of Wind Cave National Park
Walking Sam is a mysterious legend, a sobering Indigenous Dakota ghost story of a spirit bogeyman who is said to live in the caverns of Wind Cave National Park but who comes out at night to haunt people in nearby communities. Sightings of Walking Sam have occurred across the Dakota region, with Indigenous and non-Indigenous residents reporting sightings of the spirit man.
Walking Sam is said to be a tall and skinny specter (some say he's over seven feet tall) whose job it is to collect the souls of suicide victims. Walking Sam saunters along behind depressed persons, ready to take them away in the grievous event that life becomes too much to bear for those individuals.
To learn more about Walking Sam and his connection to the Oglala Lakota Indians of the Pine Ridge Reservation, read this article by Indigenous writer Cree Born.
The Southwest: Giant Mummy of Death Valley National Park
Death Valley National Park is home to many spooky stories and mysteries, but perhaps the most mysterious is the story of the prehistoric Indians who once lived in the region. Most notably, this group of Indigenous Americans was said to be a clan of giants, Indigenous peoples who towered at least eight to nine feet tall!
Two men discovered a cave network in Death Valley in the early 1930s. This cave system, they said, contained ancient treasures, heirlooms, tribal artifacts, and the mummified remains of three gigantic humans. However, the two explorers who alleged to have found these caves could never prove their existence, and both men later disappeared mysteriously.
To learn more about Death Valley’s Giant Mummies and other park mysteries, check out this article at Legends of America.
The Southeast: Spearfinger of Great Smoky Mountains National Park
With over 200 ancient cemeteries dotting the mountains and valleys of the Great Smoky Mountains, it’s no wonder the region is home to its fair share of ghost stories and mysterious happenings. One of the oldest and perhaps most terrifying legends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the Indigenous Cherokee story of Spearfinger, a stone-skinned, witch-like creature who has a long, sharp spear for a right index finger.
Spearfinger is said to prowl the forests and mountain sides of the Great Smoky Mountains at night, hunting for the livers of animals and humans alike. As the story goes, Spearfinger particularly liked to prey on Cherokee children, often appearing to them as a wise old woman, but then turning into a monster as soon as the children got close to her.
After learning about the Spearfinger witch of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, our team here at Anderson Design Group will never look at our favorite National Park quite the same way again! If anything, we respect the park even more now, but we’ll probably be looking over our shoulder the next time we visit.
To learn more about the ghost stories of Spearfinger, check out the Cherokee writings on this website.
The Great Lakes Region: Wendigo of Voyageurs National Park
A cannibalistic beast brought to life by Indigenous Algonquin and Ojibwa folklore, explorers to the northern forests of Minnesota and Voyageurs National Park have good reason to fear the Wendigo. As the legend has it, the Wendigo was once a man, a hunter, roaming the forest looking for deer. But driven mad by his hunger, the hunter resorted to cannibalism, which turned him into a gruesome beast that looked like a cross between a haunted, emaciated deer and a tortured, rage-filled man.
Not only is the Wendigo thought by some to be a real creature that roams the forests of northern Minnesota, but it’s worth noting that Indigenous Americans only began talking about the Wendigo after their contact with European settlers. Some Indigenous historians believe the Wendigo was once a symbol of Euro-American greed, land theft, and violence against Indigenous peoples. Others believe Indigenous elders began telling the tale of the Wendigo to their children to discourage them from pursuing a life of greed and self-interest.
To learn more about the spooky history of the Wendigo beast, check out this news article that quotes Ojibwa teacher and storyteller Basil H. Johnston.
The Midwest: Grassman of Cuyahoga Valley National Park
What may start as a pleasant afternoon stroll on the manicured walking paths of Cuyahoga Valley National Park may end with quite the frightening encounter should one come across Grassman!
Also called Ohio Grassman or the Eastern Bigfoot, Grassman is a local legend, a creature of the rural Buckeye State grasslands. Legend has it that, as Ohio’s population grew and as the rural areas became more heavily populated, Grassman sought seclusion in the peaceful quiet of Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
To learn more about Grassman, check out this article at Exemplore.
Appalachia: Mothman of New River Gorge National Park
Part man, part moth, this humanoid creature with insect/bird-like wings and a moth-like head, was the source of years-long investigations, research, stakeouts, law enforcement examination, and inquiry. The Mothman of Point Pleasant, West Virginia, first appeared in 1966, with dozens of eyewitnesses coming forward over the following year, claiming they’d seen the beast.
Some believe that the abrupt drop in Mothman sightings was because the creature had left Point Pleasant, West Virginia, perhaps going into hiding in nearby New River Gorge National Park. It’s difficult to say where Mothman is now, but visitors to New River Gorge should keep an eye on the sky for a humanoid creature flying above, just in case!
To learn more about Mothman, check out this article at All That is Interesting.
The Northeast: White Walker of Acadia National Park
If you hear a shrill, shrieking cry in the forests of Maine’s Acadia National Park… beware! A White Walker may be nearby. This feral beast is said to be at least seven feet tall, looking quite like Bigfoot of the Pacific Northwest but clad entirely in white fur. Indigenous legends from the Penobscot, Micmac, and Passamaquoddy tribes say that every White Walker was once a man (that’s right, there’s more than one White Walker) but that if the man committed a terrible crime, dark magic would possess the man and turn him into this hideous creature.
Called “Kiwakwa” which translates to “walks about the woods,” this creature may be cured by a Native American herbal remedy that can unfreeze its frozen heart, but it would take a brave soul indeed to get close enough to attempt it!
To learn more about White Walkers, check out this list of Indigenous writings on the website: Native Languages of the Americas.
Hawai’i: Mo’o Water Guardian of Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park
Indigenous Hawaiians believed Mo’o Water Guardians were protectors of the islands. These beautiful, huge lizard spirits took the shape of massive geckos and kept watch over the plants and animals of Hawai'i. The stories surrounding these creatures are many. Some even depict them as cunning, dragon-like beasts who would go to war with Indigenous Hawaiians and even battle with Pele, the volcano goddess. Some eyewitness accounts of the Mo’o Water Guardians describe them as shapeshifters, able to take the form of geckos, dragons, humans, or even bodies of water.
It is believed that when a Mo’o dies, its petrified body becomes part of the landscape, which is why many Indigenous Hawaiians believe certain stone-like structures scattered across the islands are the petrified remains of sacred Mo’o Water Guardians. Some stories say the rocky topography of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park has a few Mo’o laid to rest within the landscape, forever protecting the park.
To learn more about the history and stories of the Mo’o Water Guardians, check out this article.
Alaska: Tizheruk of Kenai Fjords National Park
A pristine, awe-inspiring trip to the scenic wonder that is Kenai Fjords National Park might turn into more excitement than one bargained for if the mighty Tizheruk should appear! The Tizheruk is a mysterious creature said to inhabit the waters of the Bering Sea, though the creature prefers to frequent bays, inlets, and fjords. And yes, legend has it, the fjords of Kenai Fjords National Park are a particular favorite of the creature!
Stories of the Tizheruk stem from ancient legends passed down by the Beringian Iñupiat peoples, with tribal elders telling tales about how the Tizheruk would stalk Iñupiat hunting parties. According to the stories, the Tizheruk is particularly sneaky and will only attack humans if it can find one alone. Though the Tizheruk, in some ways, resembles a seal, it seldom leaves the water, as it is most agile in the sea and is vulnerable on land.
To learn more about the Tizheruk and other mythical creatures of the wild Alaskan North, check out the website for the Encyclopedia of Cryptozoology.
Happy Exploring!
For centuries, the 63 national parks have been central to campfire ghost stories, spooky legends, Indigenous tales, folklore, and scary observations. Even before these wilderness places were national parks, travelers, Indigenous peoples, and settlers told anecdotes of the elusive beings and mythical creatures witnessed in these lands.
Will you see a cryptid or national park mythical creature this year? Only time will tell!
Stay safe out there,
-Ren Brabenec
Anderson Design Group Staff Writer
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