MANDE BURUNG: The Indian Yeti of the Garo Hills

One of the lesser known Asian hominids is the Mande Burung  of northeastern India.Said to roam the subtropical rain forests of Meghalaya,particularly the western region of the Garo hills.Reports and sightings are rare,however, curiosity got the better of me and I ended up visiting the area in April 2011.

 

The most challenging aspect of organizing an investigation into this region is the ongoing  violence between the Garo and Khasi  ethnic groups.When this does occur the state is closed off to foreigners.About 3 months prior to my arrival there were a series of  deadly clashes which I was sure would prevent me from entering, luckily things calmed down and I was able  arrive in the town of Tura via Guwahati without incident.An interesting note is that  the Garo people are said to be of Tibetan ancestry while the Khasi have roots in Burma and headhunting was still known in the early 1960s.

Once there I was able to organize several long hikes into the  forest.The park is famous for the endangered western hoolock gibbon (Hoolock hoolock) which are heard more often than seen. I was also prepared to do a multi-day trek across the park but was told there was only one full-time professional guide in the region and he was currently trekking in the Khasi Hills and needed to be booked several weeks in advance.

Strangely enough none of the locals seemed to know much or care  about the Mande Burung. I did meet a government botanist carrying out a taxonomy survey in the park and when I brought up the subject of a yeti-like creature inhabiting the area he shook his head in disgust and told me it was nonsense.However,a few days later as I was wandering the outskirts of Tura I met and chatted with a local outdoor enthusiast who had camped and hiked most of the national parks in Meghalaya.He told me that some villagers believed  that a chimpanzee-like creature did inhabit  the deep jungle and from time to time would raid crops that fringed the forest.

Other than that I was unable to extract any additional  info from the locals.

Will I return one day?Probably,as I was there during my "pre-trail cam period" and I would love to do a hi-tech expedition,which to the best of my knowledge has not been attempted.

For more detailed information about the Mande Burung please visit the link below:

http://www.mandeburung.4t.com/index.html

YEREN: The Wild Man of Shennongjia

Much has been written in the annals of cryptozoology about the wild man of central China but very few foreigners have actually conducted field research in the region.Below are a series of photos taken from my Febuary 2010 Yeren investigation deep into Hubei province.I had just finished a 6-month stint as an ESL teacher in  the city of Nanning and my reward was a weeklong cryptozoological excursion into the infamous  Shennongjia National Park.An incredibly diverse region with  habitats ranging from sub-tropical to alpine and Yeren reports since time immemorial.

                                           

 

  



After a several days of exploring the forests in southern part of the park I headed up north to the restricted area around the town of Songbai.It was here that I wanted to trek and visit the

Shennongjia Museum of Natural History where Yeren casts and a model are supposedly on display.After successfully getting through two checkpoints I walked around the town in search of accommodation.After passing a large police station several times I found a small hotel where I checked in without any difficulties.For the next few hours I wandered around the outskirts of town looking for trailheads as well as the museum.



After finding several interesting paths into the forest I headed back to town and just along the main road I came across a billboard for the Museum of Natural History.It shows a Yeren that significantly differs from what  is usually presented in the western media.Often a very shaggy looking beast with a large lion-like mane is depicted.Yet here the Yeren  is very hominin in nature and could easily be interpreted as form of Pieking Man(Homo erectus).To my understanding the tracks are very similar to a Sasquatch/Bigfoot but much smaller which would indicate a man-sized creature and  most reports ,albeit rare ,would corroborate this.

About 15 minutes after photographing the billboard I was approached by a policeman and told to leave the area immediately or face arrest.Luckily,just across the street a mini van was heading back to Shennongjia town and I hopped in without much hesitation.

 

I have no immediate plans on going back however,if do end up returning to China for professional reasons I will definitely conduct a more extensive investigation and expedition.

I have also posted additional photos on YouTube which you can view below.

   

 





INVESTIGATING THE HAIRY MAN OF OZ

Does a bigfoot-like creature roam the coastal mountains of eastern Australia? In April and July of this year I was finally able to investigate the Yowie phenomenon some twenty years after first hearing about it.

My first stop was Springbrook National Park which is located 25km west of Coolangatta on the Gold Coast.The dominant habitat here is subtropical rainforest and the region has a history of regular sightings since the late seventies.

 

Unfortunately,the area was hit by a storm about a month prior to my arrival resulting in damage and closure to the 15km Warrie circuit which I had hoped to explore.I was therefore limited to a couple of shorter but still very interesting trails.Luckily enough I did encounter two veteran park rangers clearing debris and I was able to have a lengthy discussion about Yowies in the area.

They were both extremely skeptical and after years of working in the bush they had encountered nothing nor found any signs or evidence to indicate that a massive creature resembling a bipedal gorilla inhabited the region.They did say that most of the recent reports were coming from the semi-rural Hinze Dam area just north of the park. However,one of them added that a good friend had spotted a Yowie a few years back while hiking up the infamous Mount Warning,which is just a two-hour drive south. 

After a week of camping and exploring the the trails it was time to head for the coast for some sight-seeing.My final thoughts on leaving were that the area was  just not "wild" enough to conceal a breeding population of  large hominoids, even if they were nocturnal and semi-nomadic as it is widely believed.

 

Mount Warning, NSW, Australia
 

Some ten weeks later I boarded a plane for Sydney,the goal this time was to explore the southern portion of the Blue Mountains and  set up a couple of trail cams which I would  then retrieve two weeks later. After a fair bit of research and several email exchanges with local Yowie enthusiasts, I decide to focus my efforts on the bush-walking and fire trails  near the vicinity of Springwood. The forests around this town on the Blue Mountains Line, have long been considered to be the number one hot spot for Yowie sightings in the country.Local residents have been encountering large creatures with glowing red for almost four decades and some have even claimed habituation with the beasts.

The weather conditions were perfect for long hikes,with highs around +15C and evening lows around +3C. Most of the Blue Mountains are classified as a wet eucalyptus forest but the more exposed  sections have a very dry and somewhat arid appearance.However,the deeper gullies are dark and damp and can be bit menacing when explored for the first time.

    

After purchasing detailed maps of the area I set out on some very long bush walks in search of ideal cam spots.After a week of hiking through some beautiful and moderately challenging trails I selected two locations that I thought a large creature might  just potentially pass through ,I then flew up north to the Townsville.Two weeks later I was  back to retrieve my trail cams and  to my amazement I had recorded more than 600 photos.After quickly playing back the pics I was quite surprised that only a feral cat showed up on one of them.Strangely enough my bait (pieces of fruit) was completely untouched, as I had hoped to at least catch some  forest wallabies in action.

If these present day sightings and aboriginal legends are to be believed then what exactly are we dealing with?Since there are no primates  in the Land Down Under the likelihood of a creature related to a gorilla or orang utan or some robust form of Homo erectus is probably nil.

The best theory I have heard was put forward  by a local researcher who hypothesized that Yowies were a relic population of Australian mega fauna.Large marsupial creatures that have survived to this day and and through convergent evolution superficially resemble large gorillas that primarily locomote bipedally.Sounds very plausible and it would explain the three and four-toed tracks and claw markings on trees that are found from time to time.

 

Alternatively,we could be  dealing with something a bit more sinister but I will leave that hypothesis for another day.

ORANG PENDEK:The River Tabir Expedition (Part 3)

 

In this region of Kerinci, Orang Pendek is known as Tiwau, a slight variation of the name Tirraw which is used further north around the Lake of Seven Peaks. Many  here believe it to be a "hantu"entity (spirit animal),while others say it's a flesh and blood creature that posseses supernatural powers similar to that of a village shaman. However, all agree that it has incredible strength and agility. It is said that it can uproot small trees which are then used to dam streams in order to catch fish.Another interesting story that was related to me by a village elder was that Orang Pendek rubs a magical potion over his body which gives him his extraordinary strength. If one were lucky enough to find this potion they to would gain these powers. It is also said that a large phantom panther roams one of the nearby mountains.

After the weather had cleared and our newly found guides had packed, we set out on our expedition.We hiked for four days at a furious pace,trekking up and over muddy and sometimes treacherous terrain as well as negotiating several crossings of the Tabir river. The daily routine was very simple, trek for 6-8 hours and then while  the  others were making camp I would head out with one of the local guides to set up my two camera traps. Once we reached our destination,a remote fishing hole , we  made camp for four days.Things were a little less demanding here,as the treks were shorter and the overall atmosphere was a little laid back. The area was littered with elephant dung,tiger pug marks were numerous and every evening the sky was  invaded by flying foxes.

I soon noticed that the backpack with food was starting to get smaller and lighter at an alarmingly fast rate.When I got one of the porters to finally count our rations, it turned out we had enough supplies for about one more day but we would need at least two days to make to the nearest settlement. This was not a problem for me,as I regularly hike with a high caloric deficit but for the others this was not good news and they had  also run out of smokes.Hungry guides and  porters without cigs is not a good combination,especially in Indonesia.

 

I made the decision to head back the following day and told them to catch as many fish as possible for dinner.Early next morning we packed our gear and began the steep  and winding trek.Some nine hours later I finally decided that we stop and make camp.However,two starving and nicotine deprived individuals suggested that they could  do a night trek to the village in about six hours. They also promised to return the following day by noon with food and other goodies.Initially I told them that it would be a waste of time and effort as water was plentiful and nobody was going to die from starvation.However,they kept on pestering me,so just before dusk they set off into the jungle following a track that was basically a game trail for the first couple of hours.

 

Soon after they had left I set up my hammock and strapped one trail cam to a tree about 150m away. After a quick dinner of jungle juice(cool aid and stream water with purification tablets) I climbed into my  hanging bed  and began reflecting on the past week. Suddenly at 6:30pm I heard  what sounded like someone stomping a rotting log not far from where  I had mounted my cam.There were two or  three loud crunching sounds and then silence.My first reaction was that a local villager had trekked up into the forest and was setting up his campsite.This was repeated later at 10:30pm and for a final time at 5:30am.An hour later I crawled out of my hammock and went to investigate the area were the disturbance had taken place.To my surprise there was nobody there,no tent or camp as I had suspected.I then quickly unstrapped my camera and checked for a possible photo of the night time intruder.Unfortunately,nothing showed up on the photos and the field scan pic below was taken some 15 minutes before the last disturbance.

Interestingly enough this area is just south east of Kerinci Lake,which is said to be frequented by Orang Pendek due to the readily available food  supplied by the surrounding planations.

 

As promised the two team members arrived just before noon and we all then proceeded  to consume massive quantities of rice and sardines in tomato sauce which they had prepared. With full stomachs we eagerly tackled the the terrain and made it to the village before nightfall.I quickly crashed into my sleeping bag while the other chatted with  friends and relatives.

 

This was my third  and  so far toughest attempt at tracking down  the elusive short person of Sumatra. I plan to return in the very near future but this year I have decided to  focus my efforts on the so called Hairy Man of Oz,the Yowie.

 

ORANG PENDEK: The River Tabir Expedition (Part 2)

The Tebo and Tabir river valleys form a natural corridor from Danau Gunung Tujuh to Danau Kerinci and beyond.  This rugged stretch of primary rainforest would be an ideal “Jungle Highway” for a bipedal primate to easily move between these two lakes. This was my main reason for deciding to tackle the Tabir river, plus I was starting to feel that the Lake of Seven Peaks was becoming a bit too easy and "commercial”.

After arriving and buying supplies In Padang, I headed down to Bangko to meet up with my guide and two of his  unemployed buddies,who would act as porters. Two days later we set off for Dusun Genting, the  last village on the Tabir river. After a 4-hour drive,2-hour boat ride and 2- hour hike we finally arrived at our starting point. It was a long day and we encountered some problems at the start of the river trip. Local officials suspected I was from the WWF and wanted me to produce some special permits and pay additional fees. The lower reaches of the Tabir river contain gold and as a result there are numerous illegal mining operations being conducted by various shady government and corporate entities. Non-locals are treated with suspicion but  luckily our driver was able to sort things out and we left on our merry way.

Our first mission at the village of Genting was to find an experienced local guide. Usually these individuals are farmers who regularly hunt and fish in remote areas. After much consultation and wandering around various settlements we found not one but two such individuals.

Due to the extended rainy season the water levels were abnormally high so we would have to take the highland route, which they had previously done only in sections. I therefore decided to hire both men ,just to be sure we wouldn't have to turn back.It was starting to look like this would be a muddy and leechy affair.

To be continued…

  

ORANG PENDEK: The River Tabir Expedition (Part 1)

In May of last year I was able to organize a 12-day expedition up the rarely trekked Tabir river. Due to its remote location and difficult terrain this area has been avoided by all foreign Orang Pendek researchers.

 

Below is a video slideshow that I recently uploaded on YouTube and I will discuss this expedition in more detail in my next post.

 

 

ZOOLOGICAL ENIGMAS OF ASIA: MY FIRST POST