Top 5 List of Possible Sierra Kills Locations [Bigfoot Shooting]

Gold Lake, CA

Now that Justin Smeja has tossed us a bone saying that the incident occurred near Gold Lake in California (possibly 2-10 miles away from it), we spent some time looking over what has been stated by Smeja and studying maps of the area to see if we can locate the area.

Here are some quotes that stood out as important clues to discovering the actual location of the Bigfoot shooting:

• "...it was by Gold lake, CA. Maybe it was 2 miles away maybe it was 10 miles away." [Source]
• "...While driving down a dirt road looking for bear, hunter 1 and hunter 2 were noticing large piles of feces along their route. They commented on the amount they were seeing, and at the strange nature of it. They were having a rough time figuring out what was responsible. To big for Cougar, and didn't appear to be bear. It is important to note that they were hunting at considerable elevation." [Source]
• "...This incident occurred in October of 2010 in Northern California." [Source]
• "...Derek Randles was put in touch with the hunters about two weeks later" [Source]
• "...The site has been under snow since last November." [Source]
• "...On one side of the game refuge, there was this single road in a canyon leading into and out of the refuge. Bigfoots were apparently using the game refuge, since they are safe from hunters there." [Source]
• "..As the truck came around a corner they both noticed a large hair covered figure standing approx 80 to 100 yards in a meadow off to the side of the road." [Source]
• "...They exited the truck and started across the meadow still wondering what just happened. When they reached the spot where it was standing they noticed movement in the nearby brush." [Source]

Our Criteria

Smeja stated that when they returned to the site, there was snow on the ground in November (likely mid-November). That information combined with data from the maps puts the likely location between 6000 and 8000 feet elevation. In the original story, it had the dirt road described as being close to a meadow. There was also a mention of shrubs in the area. There was also mention of a canyon.

So combining this previously known information with the new information regarding Gold Lake, we have compiled a top 5 list of possible locations:

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5. N39.73374 W120.74746 – This location is 20 miles out by road, but it does have some interesting land features. There is some rocky cliff type areas that could be prime shelter and all the other criteria match this area and the neighboring Florentine Canyon area.

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4. N39.62941 W120.59424 – This location does not have any apparent access roads, but there may be some unmarked dirt roads going into this area. This area is also at a pretty low elevation, so we're not betting the farm on this one but it is plausible.

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3. N39.58148 W120.68949 – This location is a little low in elevation and the road is marked “4WD Only”. In the story though, Smeja was in a truck, so it is not impossible.

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2. N39.70912 W120.60232 – Welcome to Bear Wallow Basin! As is the case of many California names, it does not necessarily mean that there are bears crawling everywhere though. The maps shows a ton of access roads going into the area, this tells us that it is probably a popular location for humans but maybe not Bigfoot.

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1. N39.60554 W120.67634 – This one has our bet. It fits all the criteria, including dirt roads visible by satellite leading up to a meadow area. The location appears remote and the elevation at this part of the canyon is 6400 feet.

3D Arial view of N39.60554 W120.67634
Thank to Josh Brown for the image

Related:

• Sierra Kills Bigfoot shooter cracks under pressure, reveals location and everything under the sun