New 12-foot Bigfoot greets visitors at Deception Pass entrance

A 12-foot cedar Bigfoot rose at the entrance to Deception Pass State Park, giving Squatchy’s a bigger, tougher roadside mascot for one of Island County’s busiest pull-offs. The new figure weighed about 2,000 pounds and now marks the Oak Harbor storefront at 40751 SR-20, where travelers heading into the park have already been slowing down for photos since the shop opened on August 14, 2023.

Scott Meaker said the old outdoor Sasquatch, a nine-foot figure that had stood outside for years, had taken a beating from wind and rain. Birds had even pulled hair from it for nests, leaving the statue looking worn enough that the family decided to move it inside and replace it with something built to last. The new version was carved from cedar by Washington chainsaw artist Kyle Christopherson, who finished it in less than a week using scaffolding, several chainsaws and a propane wood torch to seal and darken the wood.

The change kept the same basic business plan but made it more durable. Squatchy’s has always depended on the natural brake-pedal effect at Deception Pass, where traffic backs up as drivers see the bridges, the cliffs and the park entrance. The new carving is meant to keep that impulse alive, giving visitors another reason to stop, photograph the figure and turn a scenic drive into a quick purchase.

That matters in a place like Deception Pass, which Washington State Parks says spans two islands and is connected by iconic bridges, with rugged ocean cliffs, old-growth forests and panoramic views drawing heavy visitation year after year. State and tourism sources describe it as Washington’s most visited state park, with annual visitation measured in the millions. The Discover Pass is generally required for parking at Washington state parks, including Deception Pass, which makes every stop at the gateway a small but valuable moment for nearby businesses.

Meaker previously said the original figure was intended to be “the tallest and most realistic fake taxidermied Sasquatch in the country,” and the new cedar version kept that same realism while shifting the emphasis from novelty to permanence. Earlier coverage identified Meaker and Usery as the people behind Squatchy’s, and the shop’s roadside Bigfoot has become part of the island’s identity at a corridor where scenery, local lore and impulse stops still drive foot traffic.