*This story is both fact and fiction.
Long, long ago a bigfoot was walking through the forest with his companions. The group decided to take a rest for a meal, when our hero – we will call him Henry – fell asleep. While this may not be a problem for small things, like mice or wrens who wake easily after shutting their eyes, sleep is different for bigfoot. Rip Van Winkle was a bigfoot. Mountains grew as dust settled on sleeping bigfoots. Bigfoot, once asleep, are difficult to wake due to their large size, high intelligence and lack of evolutionary response to (nonexistent) predators.
Henry awoke many years later, just last year in fact. Where once was a forest was now scabland. His company had long moved on, although there are still tales of the giants who walked this land. His image can now be seen, along with all the things he loves – namely, flowers, trees, small creatures and crystals – thanks to bigfoot documentarian Ryan Henry Ward, at the private residence in Ephrata near Patrick Park of Katie and Tyler Johnson, and at GoodBudS off Hwy 283 between Ephrata and George.
Katie had been following Ryan Henry’s career for many years and jumped at the chance for him to paint at her home, which she said only took a couple hours to paint the mural at her home. “I always loved the Sasquatches I saw around Seattle,” Katie said, who is particularly drawn to happy and whimsical art, “I was one of the very first sign-ups when he announced he would be doing the 1000 Sasquatches… but it was still hard to process that he was actually coming. The mural he did for me is so much more than I ever imagined and I love it more every time I look at it.”
Kai Rall is a manager at GoodBudS, and artist. He knows Ryan Henry through mutual friends in the Seattle area, and so when he learned of the 1000 Sasquatch project, he reached out. “I asked if he had any interest in doing on at our shop and he said, ‘Gladly!’” Kai said it only took 2.5 hours to transform the outbuildings on the shop’s property into a joyful piece of local lore. He said there’s an open invitation for folks to stop by and take photos with the Henrys.
Ryan Henry Ward “is on a creative mission” since 2025 to paint One Thousand Sasquatch Heads across the Pacific Northwest, according to his website. The vibrant, large-scale public art initiative aims to spark joy, and connect people and communities through kindness and creativity. Over 1,500 home owners and businesses have signed up to participate in arguably the most expansive public art project in the region. You can follow Henry’s progress at www.henry.art.
