Skip to content
From the High Desert book cover

From the High Desert

A Cultural History of Art Bell

Thumbnail for October 7, 2015: Sounds of Sasquatch - Ron Morehead & Scott Nelson

October 7, 2015: Sounds of Sasquatch - Ron Morehead & Scott Nelson

Oct 7, 2015
2h 27m
0:00 / 0:00
Art Bell presents some of the clearest Bigfoot audio recordings ever captured, joined by researcher Ron Morehead and retired Navy crypto-linguist Scott Nelson. Ron recounts how he first encountered Sasquatch vocalizations at a remote Sierra Nevada camp in 1971, where creatures approached the shelter nightly and interacted with his group over several years. The recordings, known as the Sierra Sounds, were authenticated by Professor Kirlin at the University of Wyoming.

Scott Nelson, who spent 35 years analyzing foreign language communications for the U.S. Navy, explains why the recordings contain unmistakable markers of genuine language. He identifies conversational turns between two creatures, repeating morphemes, inquiry and response inflections, and a full spectrum of emotions from aggression to humor. Art plays multiple recordings, including a striking exchange between what sounds like a male and female in heated discussion, rhythmic body slapping, rock cracking between two creatures, and whooping calls.

Ron describes seeing a creature moving between trees with impossible speed and finding 25-inch tracks with a 13-foot stride. Both guests discuss the possibility that Bigfoot possesses intelligence far beyond what most researchers assume, with Ron suggesting a paranormal dimension based on unexplained lights and anomalous sounds observed at camp over the years.

Key Moments

  1. Sierra sounds show language markers: Nelson says the recordings display nearly every characteristic of human language, including turn-taking and repeated morphemes.

  2. Rock cracking as code: Morehead describes loud rhythmic rock cracking as a code-like signal between creatures.

  3. Seventy-five pages transcribed: The guests say they have 75 pages of transcribed Sasquatch vocal material.

  4. The question vocalization: Morehead identifies one vocal pattern as a question the creatures appear to ask him.