Do you like to play in the woods? For many children, there's no greater joy than to hike off the beaten path to go exploring in a forest. You never know what you'll run across: tall trees, beautiful flowers, serene ponds, curious deer, and maybe even a turtle or two!

Of course, you also need to be on the lookout for potential danger. Itchy poison ivy, slithering snakes, and angry bees can all make a trek to the woods a bit unpleasant. And if you live in certain areas, there's another creature you may need to watch out for.

Do you live in the Pacific Northwest? How about Kentucky? Maybe the hills of West Virginia? These places — and many more — have been known to hide one of the most fearsome creatures you could ever come across in the deep woods. What are we talking about? Bigfoot, of course!

Have you ever seen Bigfoot in the wild? Many people swear that they've seen the tall, hairy, ape-like creature moseying through the deep woods. Often known by another nickname, Sasquatch, Bigfoot is alleged to be a huge, hairy mixture of ape and human that walks on two legs like a man.

Some believe that there is an entire species of these creatures, which would mean that there are Bigfeet roaming the deep, dark forests of the world. Certain areas seem to accumulate more alleged Bigfoot sightings than others.

For example, the Pacific Northwest, Kentucky, and West Virginia in the United States seem to be fertile grounds for alleged Bigfoot encounters. Some people claim to have seen an Arctic version of Bigfoot, sometimes known as the Yeti or Abominable Snowman, in places like the Himalayan regions of India, Nepal, and Tibet or the Arctic regions of Alaska and Canada.

Whether you watch modern reality television shows or surf the Internet for information, there's no shortage of stories about Bigfoot out there. But are any of them true? Is there actually any proof that Bigfoot is real and roaming the forests?

The overwhelming majority of scientists will tell you that Bigfoot does not exist. Most scientists think Bigfoot is nothing more than a myth and a legend perpetuated by tall tales, mistakes, and hoaxes.

Perhaps the biggest factor in their conclusion is the complete lack of physical evidence of the creature. Although people repeatedly make claims to have found physical proof of Bigfoot's existence, such “evidence" repeatedly fails to prove anything…other than another hoax or misidentification has taken place.

Scientists also note that, for Bigfoot to exist in so many places, there would have to be a significant number of them alive in order to maintain a viable breeding population. They claim that, in today's world, such a large number of creatures simply could not go undiscovered.

Bigfoot enthusiasts, though, will point to “mounds" of evidence, including eyewitness accounts, photographs, videos, and even DNA evidence of the reality of Bigfoot. To date, though, none of these pieces of alleged evidence has proved to be trustworthy, according to most scientists.

Eyewitness accounts have often turned out to be elaborate hoaxes or outright lies told by people seeking a few moments of fame. Other accounts may be simple mistakes, such as believing a bear was Bigfoot.

Alleged photographs and videos of Bigfoot have also been inconclusive, with some of the more famous examples eventually proving to be nothing more than footage of someone dressed in an ape costume.

Recently, Rick Dyer, a Bigfoot hunter, claimed to have killed a Bigfoot and had conclusive DNA tests run on the body. He took his find on tour and charged people money to see it. Eventually, though, he admitted it was all an elaborate hoax. This incident was the second time Dyer has perpetrated a Bigfoot fraud on the public.

Without any real proof that Bigfoot exists, why does the legend and myth of Bigfoot continue to grow? The answer is probably as simple as this: because so many people want it to be true. People are fascinated by the idea that there might be a hairy, ape-like creature hiding in the forests of the world, surviving in the wild for hundreds of years without any contact from modern society. Since there is really no way to conclusively prove that something like Bigfoot does not exist, the legend and myth will probably continue as long as people are alive to tell the tale. Long live Bigfoot!

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Tomorrow’s Wonder of the Day is going…going…GONE!