Cryptotourism

Storsie To Resurface

The forthcoming Storsjoyran Great Lake Festival on July 27-29, 2006, will have the local “president” Ewert Ljusberg of Jämtland making his annual speech to the region, again marked by a new imaginative and spectacular entrance. According to John Gammon’s June 17, 2006, Pollstar article, the idea is to top last year’s stunt: In 1996 [Ewert Ljusberg] rode in on a seven-ton elephant, which was making a guest appearance while en route from a Spanish to a Swedish circus, but he topped that in ’99, when he tried to float down in a huge air balloon. He missed the main 20,000-capacity [...]

Add to Your CryptoZoo Tour

The fossil jaw of Panthera atrox can be seen in the left hand of the Joseph Leidy statue that stands in front of The Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania. Have you spotted any other similar hidden treasures across America or around the globe?

Crikey! Thylacine Update

Australian cryptozoologist Debbie Hynes has sent along the following update to be shared with you: There have been a lot of sightings down there. There are two thylacine "hot-spots" in Victoria. One is the Portland area – as far inland as Ozenkadnook and west as far as the Koorong, a coastal national park in South Australia, next door to Victoria. The other is he so-called Foster-Wilson’s Promontory-Wonthaggi "Triangle". The animal (thylacine?) is part of local legend, being known as the "Wonthaggi Monster", and the small country town of Foster even has a billboard on its outskirts boasting of "Coming Attractions". [...]

Malaysian Update

The story out of Malaysia today is pegged as an update, but there’s not much news in it. Bigfoot: Johor to verify new info New Straits Times 12 Jun 2006 By R. Sittamparam ———————————————————————— JOHOR BARU: Queries about the Johor Bigfoot continue to pour in from all over the world, with many Malaysians claiming to have seen the creature. State Tourism and Environment Committee chairman Freddie Long said the State Government’s Bigfoot Steering Committee had recently received some new information. “However, we have to conduct more studies and get scientists to verify the information collected so far,” he said. “A [...]

Mammoth Cave Mystery Cat Sightings

This is a frame from the video of a cougar taken in Willmar, Minnesota, which lead to the capture of the animal on February 1, 2006. Most people didn’t believe the reported cat was anything more than a figment of people’s imagination before the video. Meanwhile hundreds of miles away, officials in other locations are confronted with similar situations with less imagery. Nevertheless, sometimes it becomes “official business,” merely based on the where and the who of the encounters. Take, for instance, the events unfolding now in Kentucky. What happens when the United States federal government has to deal with [...]

Okapis Rediscovered!

Thought extinct for 47 years in the Congo’s Virunga National Park, the okapis have been rediscovered! Okapis are important in the history of romantic natural history. The animal was used to symbolize the International Society of Cryptozoology (1982-1995), and was the centerpiece of the organization’s logo. The okapi (Okapia johnstoni) is a beautiful animal, a true “living fossil”. I have observed them in St. Louis, Chicago, San Diego, and every zoo I can find that has any. Last weekend, I was able to observe for several minutes over the space of three hours, the 21-year-old male, born in the San [...]