Monsters of the Great White North

The Mi'gmaq people dwelling in the Chaleur Bay area between Quebec and New Brunswick have legends of a beast they term the Gougou that resembles the near-invariable descriptions of Bigfoot: Hairy, bipedal, with large hands and feet.


One of the earliest written accounts comes from Samuel de Champlain in 1603. Locals told him of the Gugwes or Gougous that dwelled on an island at the southern end of the bay. The locals described the beasts as fearsome and of gigantic proportions (the tallest masts of Champlain's ships would scarcely reach the beast's waist).

Champlain then goes on to state that Sieur Prevert and his men had heard the beast as they passed through the area in search of mining opportunities. The French miners were so frightened by the terrible sound, they would hide themselves whenever they heard it.


The legend also brushes against that of the Wendigo. Cultural anthropologist and folklorist Elsie Clews Parsons wrote in 1925 of her time among the Mi'gmaq in the area of Chaleur Bay. In her work, she recounts a murderous and cannibalistic tale of a pregnant woman who was killed and consumed by such creatures that were described as very hirsute with monkey faces. The implication that cannibalism was afoot seems to establish a connection with ourselves, perhaps in how the creatures were closer to man than animal. It might also be reflective of the folkloric creatures such as the Wendigo whose evil natures are born from taboos, often cannibalism.


Similar to the accounts of dog men, such as the infamous Beast of Bray Road, another tale from the area talks about a more canine iteration of hair beasts that stalk the region. Reverend A. Fulton Johnson (1866-1940) told his son, J. Kenneth Johnson, about his days in New Brunswick. The reverend spoke of a strange beast that could be seen occasionally at the edge of the woods near their home. It was squat with long arms and entirely covered in hair. Legend in the area at the time was that these creatures were half man and half dog. Its presence was a concern for many in the area.
Are these all different creatures being described? Are there such things as Dog Men, Gougous, Wendigos, and Wood Apes? Or are we seeing the same phenomenon through very different cultural lenses?