Bigfoot Found?

Look at this photo and what do you see? Well, many (including the people responsible for the submission of it) claim that this is undeniable proof that mythical Bigfoot does in fact exist.

Similar to the above, there is an alleged photo of a Bigfoot carcass about to be releases by three men in the US. They claim that this discovery is providing undeniable proof of the creatures existence, even now with pending DNA results. (More about Bigfoot here) This now frozen carcass has been well described in the press-release: Male, 7'7'' high, +500lbs, reddish hair, blackish-grey eyes, human-like teeth, its footprint is sixteen and three-quarters inches long and five and three-quarters inches wide at the heel. (3)

Matthew Whitton and Rick Dyer, Georgia residents who lead Bigfoot-tracking expeditions, say they found the body of what appears to be a Bigfoot in the woods of northern Georgia and will join local Bigfoot researcher Tom Biscardi at the news conference, according to Robert Barrows, who is publicizing the event. The three men plan to release a photo of their Bigfoot and what they claim is DNA evidence at a news conference in Palo Alto on August 15th. (2)

DNA evidence and photo evidence of the creature will be presented in a press conference on Friday, August 15th from 12 Noon to 1:00pm at the Cabana Hotel-Palo Alto at 4290 El Camino Real in Palo Alto, California, 94306. The press conference will not be open to the public. It will only be open to credentialed members of the press.

Whitton, a police officer in Clayton County, and Dyer, a former correctional officer, are not saying exactly where the body was found or where it is now. Biscardi, a veteran Bigfoot tracker who went to Georgia to view the find over the weekend, said that DNA tests are being conducted and a team of scientists will study the body, but declined to name any scientists involved. (1)

Officials from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Division said the largest wildlife they are aware of in the state are black bears and white-tail deer.
Deer. Sure.

Source(s):
1. Source 1
2. Source 2
3. Source 3
Photo From: Cryptomundo

Mongolian Death Worn

Science Fiction creatures like the giant Sandworms of Frank Herbert's Dune may seem like a true stretch of the imagination, but there are tales that suspect otherwise. Enter the world of the Mongolian Death Worm, AKA: The Intestine Worm.

What is The Mongolian Death Worm?
It's a giant worm that causes death. *insert evil laughter here*
Alright, for those of you who are still interested, the Mongolian Death Worm is a creature located in the Gobi dessert of Southern Mongolia. For generations, natives of the area have sworn to the reality of the creature they call Allghoi khorkhoi, which literally translates to "Intestine Worm". These Intestine Worms are the legendary inhabitants of the Gobi Dessert, and have almost only spoken of through out mythology and folklore through the area's culture, as one has never been known to have been captured. However, eyewitness accounts by locals and investigators claim otherwise.

What does The Mongolian Death Worm look like?
Several experts and Cryptozoologists, including Czech Explorer Ivan Mackerle, attest to a particular description of this creature. The Mongolian Death Worm is said to be a large, dark red, worm-like creature that is estimated to be over a meter in length and roughly 2 inches thick. It is also referred to as the "intestine worm" because it is said the resemble the description of a cow intestine, distinguished by both color and shape. It's rear tail is short, but not tapered, with no visible facial features. Thus making identification between the rear and head extremely difficult. Descriptions of it's movement vary between that of a sidewinder and something similar to a barrel-roll. Said to only be visible during the hottest months of the year and likes to surface after rain, while the ground is still wet. It is said to be dormant at all other times of the year.
According to the locals, the Intestine Worm is said to have the ability to spray an acid-like liquid that causes instant paralysis and most time death. It is also said that the creature has the ability to kill from a distance with an odd form of electrical discharge. (Worm sign, to all you Dune fans out there. hehe) Those who claim to have seen the worm have described it as being deep, blood-red, in color and measuring between two and five feet long.

Possibly expanations or related creatures?
Regarding the local tales of acid-spray and electric shock emanating from the Intestin Worm suggest two associated creatures. The first would be the Electrick-Eel, which contrary to popular belief is not an Eel at all. The second is the Spitting Cobra, and other similar snakes, which have the ability to spray blinding venom accurately up to 10 meters away.

Is there anyone out there crazy enough to look into this?
Well, if you're reading this blog, you can add yourself to the many. There have recently been attempts at genuine research and investigation concerning the creature, similar to the search for other Cryptozoological entities like Bigfoot. Though it lacks the authenticity of the legendary Lochness Monster, and other like phenomena, Intestine Worms are still on the Cryptozoological list of unknown species and therefore should be subject to research and investigation just as prevalently as other proposals.
In 2005 there was an investigation conducted by British scientists in an attempt to produce scientific proof that the Intestine Worm was a genuine phenomena. After four painstaking week in the middle of the scorching dessert, the team returned, convinced that there were in fact creatures like the Intestine Worms in the vicinity. Interestingly enough, the team did not find any trace of the Death worm, however they did discover two animals previously unknown to science: a dragon-like lizard and a two-meter-long horned snake.

You can find out more about Operation Death Worm (2, 3) and the Intestine Worm at the links below.

Source(s):
1. http://www.yourparanormal.co.uk/mongolian-death-worm/
2. http://paranormal.about.com/od/othercreatures/a/aa053005.htm
3. http://cryptoworld.co.uk/projects/operation-deathworm-1/

Ley Lines

What is a Ley Line?

Ley lines are hypothetical alignments of a number of places of geographical interest, such as ancientmonuments and megaliths. Their existence was suggested in 1921 by the amateur Archaeologist Alfred Watkins, whose book The old Straight Track brought the alignments to the attention of the wider public. It is important to note the Watkins did not invent or discover, but merely re-discover and popularize the theory of Leys or Ley Lines.

What do Ley Lines mean?

The existence of alignments between sites is easily demonstrated. However, the causes of these alignments are disputed. The major interpretations are:
-Archaeological-
-Cultural-
-New Age-
-Skeptical-
The Archaeological interpretation of Ley Lines suggests a new avenue of archaological study: archaeogeodesy. Archaeogeodesy examines Geodesy as practiced in prehistoric time, and as evidenced by archaeological remains. One major aspect of modern Geodesy is surveying. As interpreted by geodesy, the so-called ley lines can be the product of ancient surveying, property markings, or commonly traveled pathways.
The Cultural interpretation of Ley Lines suggests many cultures use straight lines across the landscape. In South America, such lines often are directed towards mountain peaks; the Nazca lines are a famous example of lengthy lines made by ancient cultures.
The New Age interpretation of Ley Lines suggests that Ley Lines and their intersection points resonate a special psychic or other form of mystical energy, often including elements such as Geomancy, dowsing, or UFOs, stating that, for instance, UFO's travel along ley lines (in the way that one might observe that cars use roads and highways). This belief postulates that points on lines have electrical or magnetic forces associated with them.
Lastly, the Skeptical interpretation of Ley Lines often suggests the classification of Ley Lines to be pseudoscience. Such skeptics tend to doubt that ley lines were planned or made by ancient cultures, and argue that apparent ley lines can be readily explained without resorting to extraordinary or pseudoscientific ideas.
Note: The existence of the observed alignments is not controversial. Both believers in magical and ancient theories of ley lines and skeptics of these theories agree that these alignments exist between megaliths and ancient sites.

According to claims by investigators of Ley Line theories, some points along the lines possess higher magnetic energy than the average geomagnetic intensity. These claims have been published in "Places of Power" (Paul Devereux; Blandford Press, 1990) and "Lodestone Compass: Chinese or Olmec Primacy?" (John B. Carlson; Science, 1975).

Ley Line Controversy?
According to Paul Devereux, it was the Occultist Dion Fortune in her 1936 novel The Goat-Foot God (republished in 1971 by S. Weiser, New York, and in 1989 by Aquarian Press, Northamptonshire) who invented the idea that ley lines were "lines of power" linking prehistoric sites. A few years later, it was suggested that ley lines followed lines cosmic energy in the Earth and could be detected using dowsing rods. In the 1960s, ley lines, or "leys" as they were now called, became linked with UFO sightings.
The demonstration of the plausibility of the current evidence under the null hypothesis is not a formal disproof of Ley Line claims. However, it does make skeptics likely to consider Ley Line theories as unsupported by the current evidence. Most skeptics would be willing to reconsider the hypothesis of Ley Lines if there were non-anecdotal evidence of physical, geomagnetic or archeological features that actually lie along the lines. Skeptics believe that no such convincing evidence has been presented. There is a broad range of beliefs about and theories of Ley Lines, many of which are not falsifiable, and which are thus not generally amenable to the Scientific Method. Some people find Ley Lines compatible with a scientific approach, but much of the literature is written by people who are indifferent to or actively oppose such an approach.

Whether there is any real power or reason behind Ley Lines, the world may never know.

Wendigo

For our first blog, I figure I will post details and/or information of the infamous Wendigo(s). (AKA: Windigo, Windago, Wee-tee-go, Windiga, Witiko, Wihtikow, and various other variations.)

If you have ever read (or seen) The Village, you can understand what I mean when I say that things are not always what they seem. From the beginning of time, man has created stories, myths, and so forth about the things that live in the dark, the woods, or the unknown lands. The Wendigo is one of these many tales. Generally associated with the dark, cold, wooded areas of northern Minnesota and Ontario, the Wendigo is a well-noted part of Algonquian culture and since had lived on through other Native American cultures and legends.
As with the Witch and Werewolf trials in Europe, Canada had it's share of Wendigo trials in the settler days; such accounts were often well documented.

What is a Wendigo?

The Wendigo's classification has remained debatable, jumping somewhere between the physical and biological anomolies associated with Cryptozoology and a spiritual view ranging from malevolent spirit to forms of demonic possesion.
Theories of how one becomes a Wendigo are varied, but they all resort to one cause: cannibalism. Some believe a human could transform into the Wendigo, while others believed the phenomena to be related directly with possession by a Wendigo spirit. No matter, all cultures in which the Wendigo myth appeared shared the belief that human beings could turn into Wendigos if they ever resorted to cannibalism or, alternately, become possessed by the demonic spirit of a Wendigo.
They were strongly associated with the Winter, the North, and coldness, as well as with famine and starvation. At the same time, Wendigos were embodiments of gluttony, greed, and excess; never satisfied after killing and consuming one person. There is even a satirical ceremonial dance originally performed during times of famine to reinforce the seriousness of the Wendigo taboo.

Can a Wendigo stop itself?

Though most tales recount the Wendigo as being cannibalistic, dangerous, and malevolent, some still maintain that the human spirit can have some impact on the decisions of the Wendigo. That the host can still try to live far from civilization to prevent anyone from gaining the misfortune of becoming it's next victim. Some Wendigo possessed people were said to even commit suicide to prevent hurting anyone.

What does a Wendigo look like?

To paraphrase various complex and detailed descriptions of the creature, the Wendigo is an extremely skeletal creature lacking any real muscular tissue other than skin and bones, it's skin color ranges from yellow to ash gray, and its eyes range from deep blackened pits to glowing yellow eyes. The description varies quite a bit at times; adding hair, fur, fangs, antlers, and other variations, the Wendigo is one truly left up to the darkest reaches of the human imagination. Some groups believed whenever a Wendigo ate another person, they would grow larger, in proportion to the meal they had just eaten, so that they could never be full.
To sum them up: Windego(s) are tall, lanky and are driven by a horribly insatiable hunger.

Is there any recent Wendigo Activity?

A Wendigo allegedly made a number of appearances near a town called Rosesu in Northern Minnesota from the late 1800's through the 1920's. Each time that it was reported, an unexpected death followed and finally, it was seen no more. The latest sighting in Ontario of such a creature was back in 1997 by an American trucker near St. Catherine's.

What our your Conclusion?

Some theorize that the tales of the Wendigo were the result of sightings of Big-Foot-type creatures, which the local leaders quickly took advantage of as a way to repress cannibalistic views of some, thus they created the story of the Wendigo. With this in mind, it is interesting to note that the wendigo legend is restricted to the colder parts of the American continent and hasn't spread south. Some would suggest that this bit of information would encourage the idea that a Wendigo is some kind of fictitious tale surrounding some form of ape-man.
Unfortunately, many people tend to believe that the Wendigo is more of a spiritual takeover, or infection, than anything else. Some stories borderline the theories of Werewolf lore; being if one is bitten that the spirit of the Wendigo infects them with no real cure. My personal opinion is that the legends created some form of Wendigo-Psychosis frenzy, resulting in cannibalistic tendencies in persons who were said to be possessed by the Wendigo Spirit. Though, by that same coin, people could simply be possessed and by that note out of their own mind, which is a troubled mental state in itself. Either way, the northern tales of the Wendigo will live on, deterring canabalists everywhere. Real or not, anything that keeps people from trying to eat me is okay in my book.

Anything else?

Like Lycanthropy and it's obvious associate with Lycans or Werewolves, Wendigo's have an associated mental condition related to the symptoms of the legendary cannibal, known as Wendigo Psychosis. But Windego Psychosis is a coined term and is not recognized as an official mental condition my the APA.

Note: Wendigo Psychosis is also an associated mental condition. (As with the term Wendigo, the associated mental condition has many referenced spellings and alternative terms) It refers to a condition in which sufferers developed an insatiable desire to eat human flesh even when other food sources were readily available, often as a result of prior famine cannibalism Windigo Psychosis is identified by Western psychologists as a culture-bound syndrome, though members of the aboriginal communities in which it existed believed cases literally involved individuals turning into Wendigos. Such individuals generally recognized these symptoms as meaning that they were turning into Wendigos, and often requested to be executed before they could harm others.

Popular Culture Note: Recently the Wendigo has also become a horror entity of contemporary literature and film, much like the vampire, werewolf, or zombie, although these fictional depictions often bear little resemblance to the original entity.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wendigo
http://www.prairieghosts.com/wendigo.html
http://dinojoe.8m.com/crypto/windigo.html
Troy Taylor
Trevor Mendham