Two men were found dead Saturday in a southwest Washington forest where they disappeared last week while searching for Sasquatch, authorities said.
The bodies of the men, ages 37 and 59, were discovered after a three-day search through the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, according to the Skamania County Sheriff’s Office. Exposure appeared to be the cause of both deaths, the sheriff said he said in a statement, noting that the men did not seem prepared for the brutally cold weather.
Neither man was identified, but the sheriff said the couple was from Portland, Ore.
The sheriff’s office had coordinated a search and rescue operation involving the U.S. Coast Guard, several local law enforcement agencies and 60 volunteers, including canine, drone and ground search teams, to locate the men disappeared
Their “difficult terrain and harsh weather” investigation was launched on Christmas Day, when Skamania County sheriffs received a report from two people who had returned from an outdoor excursion to locate Sasquatch.
Also known as Bigfoot, Sasquatch is a mythical creature that according to folklore inhabits the American forests, especially those of the Pacific Northwest.
“The Skamania County Sheriff’s Office would like to recognize the exceptional volunteers who sacrificed time away from their families during Christmas to assist our agency with this mission,” the office said. “These phenomenal volunteers also battled freezing temperatures, snow, high water levels, heavy rain, falls and heavily wooded terrain. Their exhaustive search efforts resulted in bringing family members home to their loved ones “.