Sunsquatch Sighting: Dracut

Sunsquatch. I may not be any closer to knowing just where they came from, but my friends, once again I can tell you where they’ve been . . .

I was in my pantry for a midnight snack, rooting out the last of my pepper pickle preserves from 2022 when my phone rang. I did bump my head on the shelf, but fortunately, retained my grip on the pickles.

To my amazement, it was a late-night call from the same source in Millinocket! This time, rumblings in the agricultural sector of Massachusetts. They had a second cousin there. It seemed our furry friend was continuing their trek south. I did wonder if perhaps the creature was migratory, but too little evidence to determine as of yet.

I drove hours before dawn that very next morning to stake out the location at the center of all the buzz (or rather – fuzz . . . yellow fuzz). Farmer Dave’s of Dracut, MA. I settled in the parking lot of their farm store, taking a look at my reading materials to pass the time.

This farm used solar panels on their roof to power pumps for geothermal heating and cooling for their packing facility, and to run their irrigation – a farm not just producing fruits and veggies, but their own electricity! And using this smart cost-saving system they were boosting their ability to feed their communities, fresh, healthy, delicious food. I was impressed.

The sun just beginning to glow like an ember through the trees and my eyes bleary from reading on my phone, I reached for my coffee mug and took a long sip… of jalapeño-hot pickle juice! A flimsy three hours of sleep had gotten the better of me, and I paid dearly, friends. Hours ticked by, and without caffeine, I nodded off.

When I finally startled from my accidental slumber at the wheel of my parked car, total pandemonium was unfolding around me. I rolled down the window as a man rushed by with phone clenched in hand, shouting, “Over there! They said they saw it over there! And it was yellow!”

I lunged from my seat, and I followed the crowd, but by the time we raced around the corner of the barn in classic farm red, the only glimpse I could catch of this elusive Sunsquatch was a flash of yellow in the corner of one lucky farm store customer’s blurry photo.

So it continues. Will this creature keep moving south as the weather grows colder? Will I follow it? It all remains to be seen – and next time, I’m determined it will be with my own eyes.