Sasquatch Chronicles Blog

Nov 19

SC EP:274 First Nations encounters with Sasquatch

Tom Sewid will be my guest tonight. Tom is a Native Watchman from coastal British Columbia. For the next couple of nights, I will be having Tom on to share with us encounters and stories from the First Nation people. I think you will really enjoy these episodes. It is a great chance to learn about Sasquatch.

Thomas Sewid was born on a small island off northeast Vancouver Island British Columbia Canada called Alert Bay. This is the modern epicenter for the northern Kwakwaka’wakw (Kwakiutl) First Nations Tribes, otherwise known as Canadian Indians. Raised with the rich culture and heritage of this coastal First Nations Tribe, he was brought up hearing the stories of the animal kingdom and seeing the great ceremony known as Potlatch. At Potlatch he has witnessed the ancient dances with carved masks and beautiful traditional regalia hosted in the great buildings known as Bighouse’s.

Raised to be a commercial seine fisherman from an early age he would work his way up the ranks to be a captain of salmon seine boats during the 1990s. Thomas has also participated in numerous other commercial fisheries throughout the entire British Columbia coast. During this time, he would meet other First Nations from throughout the coast and hear their stories pertaining to the Sasquatch/Bigfoot.

In his mid-twenties Thomas was sent out by his Chief and Council to the abandoned Indian Village known famously as Mamalilacolla, Village Of The Last Potlatch to be its care taker . The name is far from the truth, and Tom would educate the boaters and sea kayakers that came to this world famous site to see the fallen totem poles and Bighouse remains that the Potlatch ceremony was and is still alive to this day. Little did he know in the first year that the caretaking would lead him to give daily summer tours throughout this village educating all about the rich history and culture of his Tribe for over 25 years! It also turned his life around where instead of catching salmon during the summers he was now working in the Eco-cultural tourism industry of the B.C. coast.

Living in the bush world of his people he honed his skills to be a modern day bushman. One of the things that interested Thomas was the stories about encounters with large and small hair covered bi-pedal creatures’ visitors and local homesteaders had had in the region. He also began to wonder about some of the night time noises and strange happenings that were taken place while he was living out in the bush? Then came his encounter with two creatures and a few years later another encounter that set him on the course to be one of North America’s leading Sasquatch/Bigfoot researchers for he has deep insight into the First Nations stories and beliefs!

In the 1990’s he hired on with a yacht to be a commercial hunting guide. Traveling throughout all of The Broughton Archipelago he poked around in every bay, channel, nock and cranny as he states looking mainly for black bears for his International clients. In fall the outfit would journey deep into the inlets in pursuit of grizzly bears. Thomas spent many years being a big game guide and as though it was just part of what he did, he was always questioning locals and people working in the bush about Sasquatch.

Each year though, Thomas always found himself back in Village Island during the summers conducting tours and building his tourism business. He would have a float house which became British Columbia’s only floating Indian Art Store, a small marina and eventually a 12 passenger water taxi/tour boat with native orca design painted across its’ bow. He would build cabins out of red cedar reminiscent of his peoples’ traditional styled Bighouse’s which he still has to this day. He also purchased a sea kayak fleet and became one of the most sought after outfitters specializing in paddling with orca whales and grizzly bears all with a heavy First Nations cultural component.

Through the years, Thomas was active in the Canadian Indian political field as a Director on the boards of Aboriginal Tourism British Columbia, Aboriginal Tourism Team Canada. He even participated with the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver B.C. when he assisted with incorporating the Canadian Indian cultural component into the games.

As a true aboriginal entrepreneur he honed his business skills, so that now he works part time under contract helping others build or expand their tourism business ventures as a consultant. It has and is taking him all over western Canada and he just finished one year living and working in the Northwest Territories. There he conducted boat tours, fishing operations and in the winter ice fishing charters for the world famous Aurora Village which focuses on catering to people to see the northern lights.

These days sees Thomas assisting his life’s partner in Kent Washington with www.hamoomooadventures.com which is an adventure tourism operation catering to people wanting to sea kayak, high end camp called Glamping, take yacht based adventures and of course conduct or participate in Sasquatch tours or research. The focus to all is a heavy First Nations cultural component which is amazing after decades of honing his skills.

Tom and his partner Peggy have just launched The Seattle Sasquatch Tour, where one gets to see Peggy perform the costumed masked native Sasquatch dance in the shadow of the Tzoonakwa (Wildwoman Of The Woods) Totem pole in down town Seattle. Afterwards Thomas guides you through the Seattle Art Museum to share insight into the Sasquatch carvings found here and at The Burke Museum. This tour is sure to give insight into the creatures like no other tour in North America. They even have a dinner tour where all go to Ivar’s Salmon House which is designed and decorated like a traditional west coast Indian big house.

Thomas being an astute legend speaker and historian with decades of stand-up performance experience, he always enthralls his audience. He plans on bringing his performances and narratives to stages and conferences’, and who knows, if he gets time he will eventually write a book about what he has learned, witnessed and heard in regards to the Sasquatch?

On an end note, for those that have witnessed Chief Lalooska’s performances in Ariel Washington one will want to learn about the connection between Chief Lalooska and the Sewid family? It’s an amazing insight into how Washington State was blessed to have the Sewid family’s legends, stories, songs and crests come to this land?

If you get the chance take one of Thomas’s tours or contact him to sit with him as he works at one of his many trades of creating west coast traditional native art in wood and other mediums. He’s always eager and will take time to just sit and talk Sasquatch/Bigfoot with anyone anytime, for it’s one of his greatest passions.

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Tom will be sharing with us his own personal encounters with Sasquatch as well as his views on the Sasquatch from a First Nations perspective. Tom has spent many years in the bush alone, living off of the land. He also works as a commercial fisherman and shares his encounter when he was anchored off of the coast line.

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Tom says “we were really close to shore when two of the creatures approached, I turned my spot light on and got a clear view of the creatures. There was several people on board and I raised my rifle to shoot one but I was unable to pull the trigger.”

Tom will be sharing not only his own personal encounters on Sasquatch but also historical accounts. We might even get into Dogman and the little people.

When I spoke to Tom he mentioned that he creates and sells traditional First Nation art. You can find most of his art on his Facebook page under Thomas Sewid. Tom welcomes people to contact him. His contact information is below.

tom-s1

 

tom-s

 

Thomas Sewid & Peggy Ferderer

tom.sewid@gmail.com

U.S.A. Cell 206-617-7547

Ha Moo Moo Adventures www.hamoomooadventures.com

 
 

 

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66 Responses to “SC EP:274 First Nations encounters with Sasquatch”

  3. Martin Z

    4th!! Yeah!!! I have a question. Why do people on this show say that these creatures sounded like demons or sounded demonic. What do demons sound like? and where can I hear an actual recording of a real demon?

  8. Jan D

    Really good show. Here’s someone who’s been in the bush his whole life. Where these things are a fact of life. No sentimentality, no bullshit. His accounts match up exactly with what this thing is. A big, bipedal primate. If you look across all the cases compiled here, the physical details, the behavior, all of it points to that, a primate. Dig this guy’s delivery as well. Looking forward to part 2.

  9. F S

    Beteren the vulgarity and the racism (“white people smell worse than Native Americans”), I’ll opt out of listening to any more from this “Wise Man”.
    ??????

    • Russell K

      i agree, im a paying member and i did not see any humor in what was said, have i heard worse? thats not the point, im paying to hear people speak of their encounters with sasquatch not make racist bigoted comments about whites.

      • Wes

        I’m sorry you were offended, I do not think it was meant to be offensive, I think it was humor and I did not take offense to it at all but will you accept my apology?

        • F S

          Wes – this is your show. You personally have promoted that children and families are the heart of your fan base.
          How hard is it to just bleep the f-word? As a business man, your show will be listened to you by more people – which is more $$$ for you.
          I have read in the past where you apologized when members pointed out that they don’t want to hear that garbage.
          Don’t apologize. Just fix it.
          Be that smart, professional business man we all want to support.
          Please.

          • Daniel S

            I think that these Swear words help show caracter or convey feeling,surprize,amazament, as for whitey smelling bad i found it funny and just wrote it off as his sense of humor 934(3

        • Wendy C

          Hi Wes, I am resorting to contacting you here because every email I sent justd bounces back, I have been having problems with my account direct debits and would like it fixed as soon as poss thanks. I can provide my account number and details should you require them. I have been trying wes@sasquatchcronicles.com but no luck.

          Kind regards

          Wendy

      • James E

        I agree…. I loved his stories. He’s a great narrator and a wealth of knowledge, but BAD LANGUAGE. I laughed at the first “stupid white people” comment, but then the racial comments kept coming. It doesn’t work that way when the shoe’s on the other foot. His credibility takes a hit. He’s of the “Hypocrita’Qua” Tribe.

  10. Nathan E

    Tom is a great witness. It is very interesting to get the witness account of an Indian who not only has tribal lore but also encounters and some contemporary perspective on the creature.

  11. Russell K

    was enjoying his interview up to the point where he made the disparaging comment about white folk smelling like a sasquatch, sweaty unwashed white man. seriously? how could he know what a white man smells like when his nose is filled with the scent of his own stench? a dog smells his own shit first. other than that underlying off the cuff borderline racist comment i found his tales almost believable.

    • SantiamLady

      ?Ahem….wow…..Russell & FS……I’m white…….I laughed my head off at Tom’s ‘smelly white man’ joke. ? He poked fun at himself too, ‘fat Indian with a gun’ comment, among others. ? The guy’s hilarious, and a FANTASTIC storyteller! I was on edge of my seat, when I wasn’t laughing my head off! ??
      LOVED his encounters and can’t wait for more! ???
      And…….as far as I’m concerned…..after everything my Race did to the First Nations Peoples, they can say whatever they want about us. We have it coming. ?

  12. melissa t

    Wow ,Russell Sir I believe you blew that joke way out of proportion he seems like an fun type of guy to me.I wouldn’t take affiance to it but I can see were you could have mistaken it.

  13. melissa t

    I swear if anyone says anything about a guest that makes Wes upset enough to stop his show heads are gonna roll………………………..it’ll be curtains my friend curtains for your whole family……LOLZ not really but I will be very pissed off so take it easy on the guest some of them are from pretty isolated areas that aren’t so liberal I mean think about it

    • F S

      For every one person who gives constructive criticism, there are 26 who don’t but just leave.
      Wes’ excellent show is something I would like to promote and send my friends and family.
      It is actually a good thing to give feedback.
      If I did not care I would not give it, and I appreciate Wes’ concern and professionalism.

  14. Jan D

    As a white guy, that comment didn’t phase me a bit. Worse thing I’ve ever smelled was a white homeless guy on a Paris Metro. Seriously, empty car during rush hour. Stepped on. One guy in the car. The smell was horrendous. Just as Tom described it. Gagging uncontrollably for fifteen minutes afterward. I think the point is, that smell is put out by something alive. If human beings can smell that bad, it makes sense that a huge primate would. I also think bigfoot have scent glands, like gorillas do. And when they get freaked out or want to send a message, they just release the stank.

  15. ian s

    Hey Russell K and FS, I am a white man, and I stink of sweat, because I was so engrossed in Toms stories that I have not had a shower yet! I guess he was right about me at least, mind you I am not offended about his humor, sorry that you were.
    Also as a paying member, its great to see a fat Indian take up his precious time to share his stories with us on this bald guys show, I know that I appreciate it, so a big thank you Tom and to you Wes. Now I am off for that shower ………… nah, I am gonna listen to part 2 bugger it!

    • Russell K

      ian,s
      sorry but i fail to see the humor of his comments.
      i was not really offended, just shocked that he felt it was ok to make the comments he did.
      seems we white men are the only ones left that all of society can attack with impunity. imagine his outrage if i made comments of his beluga breath, or his tooth brush for his tooth. or any of the many racist bigoted disparaging stereotypes of natives. words have power but i am not so weak as to let them offend me, if i knew him personally and worked with him i would have laughed and made some good comments right back, but as a white man i would be assailed as a racist bigot if i did so on a forum. time to bury the hatchet, so to speak, happy thanksgiving, hey tom if you get cold i have a blanket for you, cough, cough, lol

      • ian s

        Hey Russell,
        I respect your opinion bud, but really this is a great site were people of all types take up their valuable time to tell stories of their encounters to entertain us, that’s all, I am sure none of the guests go out of their way to purposely hurt or offend anyone, its just their humor dude, walk on by. Oh and please except my apologies, I must confess that I am not really a white man as I see it, I am sort of fellow human colour. Tell you what my friend, hows about we both lighten up and we all welcome the guests and what they have to say, they will only offend you with their words if you let them!
        Happy thanksgiving to you as well, it doesn’t really apply to me as I am not from the USA, but I do appreciate your sentiment.

  17. Kathryn C

    Wonderful interview, terrific guest. What a great show full of rich stories of the First Nations people. I feel really fortunate to hear some of their history and old stories. I was fortunate enough to work at job corp here in Alaska and most of our 270 students were Native Alaskan most of them coming from small villages around Alaska. My job allowed me to work very closely with the students and I learned a few things from them. Most were very quiet as a look or glance or slight nod says a thousand words in their culture. I came to have a huge respect for them and was glad to find out what I had always thought was shyness was actually showing respect to one another. And just as an aside, personally I am not at all offended by the language as it wasn’t said to be vulgar but was true to his story. I’d be more offended by a bunch of beeps. I personally would be glad to pay double what I do to be a member of SC and I won’t ask you to change a thing. haha Thank you for all you do to put out such quality shows.

  20. m99

    ~I really was looking forward to listening to the perspective of this First Nations man. I was a bit taken aback a couple times. One, when he was speaking about hypocritical Christians who should just get off their high horse… well, being a believer in the Lord Jesus, and called a christian by the world, I was really sad to hear him say that about people like myself. It was also a bit incredulous to hear the f- bombs. I guess I’m mostly taken back by the frequency of the disrespectful language.

    • SantiamLady

      Yeah, m99, the cracks about ‘christians’ did hurt my feelings too.? As well as his remarks about people who believe in Devine Creation in 6 days being stupid. Ouch……the ‘smelly white man’ remark didn’t bother me at all, but shots at my deepest beliefs was hurtful.
      But…… I recovered quickly and continued to enjoy his stories, profanity and all. Hearing profanity always makes me ?. Odd reaction I’ve had to profanity all my life.
      While the shots at Bible Believing folks were hurtful, I’ve learned that you just can’t do anything about other people’s fixed beliefs, so no point letting it ruin you day.?

  22. Reed D

    Not one of the better episodes im affraid; the guest’s rude, crude demeanor got a little tiresom. I shut ‘er down about halfway through.
    No worries, Im sure next week will be great, as the majority of episode are.

  23. Katie F

    I am a born again Christian and I was totally offended by his Christian- bashing,
    and his racist remarks. If a Christian or a white person made derogatory comments
    like he did – they would be banned from this site and would likely make
    the national news. I am also offended by his filthy language.
    Nope- not impressed with him or anything else he has to say.

  25. Anita S

    Ha ha first time I laffed so hard at one of these episodes your guest reminded me of my late brother how staight forward he was. How he would tell a story
    I am from a plains tribe but all our teachings are about caring for family so if we had a teaching not to harm it I wudnt either
    Russell K must really smell bad eh? Poor guy
    Im kiddin before you get your shorts more twisted lmao

  28. Marybelle H

    Wow! What an amazing show! I completely enjoyed the experiences Tom shared and really appreciated the Native American perspective, knowledge and historical information that Tom shared. Being a non-Christian myself, it was refreshing to not have another life form referred to as demonic. I know these things are big, smelly and scary, but sometimes the culture that has sprung up around Christian religion gets pretty old to stomach. Thank you Tom and Wes! I look forward to listening to the other interviews.

  31. Tom S

    Gilakasla. I am sorry to have offended some of you people that listened to the three episodes. I am just a busher who was brought up as a commercial fisherman in a world that far differs most. Yes I am a Canadian Indian and once you get to know we west coast Indians you will find we have big cheeks and some such as I have big bellies. It’s all part of who we are and having these traits allows us to have a great belly laugh with a beaming grin! You will find people such as I have tough skin from living in a world where we joke and continually poke fun at each other for a laugh. Once we see someone taking offense to comments or getting all flustered, we generally lay it on continually like bullets from a machine gun. Just our world and the way I spoke is just all a part of who and what In am. I meant no harm and for the Christians I too am one of Anglican fallowing. As for stink, oh I have been as stink if not worse than any Sasquatch or a person I jokingly made a comparison of in the podcast. As many said, lighten up abit and grow some tough skin. Life is too serious and to step back or forward so to speak to a bushers way of jest, maybe if we all took it in stride and focused on the point of what the podcast was about instead of lashing out, we could be helping to make this a better world? Remember who I am, I lived years on boats sleeping in tight quarters hearing snoring men and smelling their sleep farts. I come from a world where Christianity almost eradicated my Kwakwaka’wakw culture and sent many of my family to prison for Potlatching – yet I am a Christian. I am rough around me edges, but I always try not to lash out at people due to their differences. Maybe it’s time Wes get me to share the Legend of Tsoonakwa and Bogger Boy who was born from the nose of his mother? Halla Kas La, Go In Peace, and more so for the ones that lashed out.

    • SantiamLady

      It’s Okay Tom.? Enjoyed the heck out of your Encounters and can’t wait for more!
      One question tho……you say you’re a Christian, but you don’t believe in Devine Creation? ? How does that work? A Christian evolutionist?

    • F S

      Manners: “What we do to make OTHER PEOPLE feel comfortable in our presence.” That’s what the business of hospitality is all about.
      As far as I am concerned, you can speak as you please. I would love to take a vacation with such an experienced guide, but it would not be possible as my family would be too uncomfortable.
      I did not ask you to change. I asked that the vulgar words be bleeped out.
      I would think that someone who is so tough could take respectful input. Guess we all have some skin that needs thickening.
      God Bless and may you be extremely successful.

    • Katie F

      Tom, thank you for your explanation. I greatly respect you for addressing this
      issue. I humbly accept your apology and I forgive you and pray you
      forgive me for my rush to judgement.
      We are brother and sister in Christ.
      Thank you,
      Katie

  32. Cindy R

    This is the single best interview I’ve heard you ever do. I don’t care if a person is interested in crypto, bigfoot, or not, the stories are fascinating. I learned something. What a wonderful hour of my time!

  35. Brian D

    If Dr. John Bindernagel befriended this man for decades before his passing, Doc being a man of character, bringing an honor and integrity to this subject unsurpassed by anyone, can’t we all just calm the fuck down and quit taking ourselves so seriously as to insist that everyone with an opinion express it in a manner that does not offend us!?
    Sorry, not sorry!

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