Men in Cryptozoology

My Favorite Hillary & Yeti Photo

The tributes to Sir Edmund Hillary continue to roll in from afar, a fact acknowledged in today’s New York Times. The man’s reach was far indeed. In Portland, Maine, the local newspaper recalled Sir Edmund visited here in 1962, and gave a lecture for teachers and school children at the-then-grand Lafayette Hotel on his Abominable Snowman expedition. As a final goodbye to Sir Edmund Hillary, I want to share my favorite photograph of him. It is Hillary with an unknown artist’s drawing of the Abominable Snowman that Hillary loved to show to the media before his 1960 expedition. To prepare [...]

Yeti Hunter Sir Edmund Hillary Dies

Sir Edmund Hillary, one of the first two men to climb the world’s highest mountain, Mount Everest, has died at the age of 88, on January 11, 2008, local New Zealand time. He climbed the 29,035 ft (8,850m) peak with Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, reaching the top on May 29, 1953. Hillary’s health had reportedly been in decline since April 2007, after a fall while visiting Nepal. He suffered a heart attack in hospital on Friday morning. Sir Edmund’s fellow climber, Sherpa Tenzing Norgay (right), died in May 1986. Born July 20, 1919, in Auckland, New Zealand, Sir Edmund Hillary began [...]

Living Moa News

The little blue moa. The Thylacine of the Avian world is in the news again. Australian cryptozoologist Rex Gilroy recently discussed the latest new findings for Moas with the Hawke’s Bay Today. One of the good points about Gilroy is that he does serve as a lightning rod for unusual animal accounts in the region sometimes, and likewise has the ear of the media. The press reports tend to lower the ridicule curtain and more reports and sightings, historical and recent ones, then come forth. Most of the cryptozoological attention to the survival of the Moas has been directed to [...]

Men in Cryptozoology: John-Mark Sheppard

John-Mark Sheppard (above) is the young man who is supplying cryptozoology with new insights about cryptids being reported in Liberia, e.g. the Gbahali and the Kumbway. In response to reader requests for more about the person collecting the reports, I asked him to share some insights about himself. Here is John-Mark Sheppard’s personal profile: I am an American, 25 years old, single. I first came out to Liberia with my parents in 1986, and have spent most of my life between Liberia and Cote d’Ivoire. For the most part I have lived in rural areas of West Africa. I can [...]

Maine Mountain Lion Study Group

A group of Dexter Regional High School students and their teacher-adviser Regan McPhetres plan to investigate and prove the existence of mountain lions in Maine. McPhetres, who along with another teacher ran a similar program from 1992 through 2001 in the Winslow-Waterville area, believes there is plenty of evidence that the elusive creatures have a presence in Maine. “There’s evidence they exist around us,” McPhetres said Sunday, despite the reluctance of some state officials to embrace the findings. He said confirmed sightings have been reported in Vermont, New Hampshire and New Brunswick. Mountain lions are supposed to be extinct east [...]

Men in Cryptozoology: Doug Hajicek

Face Time: Doug Hajicek of MonsterQuest Doug Hajicek is creator of the History Channel’s MonsterQuest, a 13-part weekly series that “reveals the truth of legendary monster sightings around the world.” It’s his quest to explain the unexplained. Hajicek is known for his productions of “The Man Who Walks with Bears” for Animal Planet, Discovery Channel’s “Legend Meets Science” and the History Channel’s “Giganto: The Real King Kong.” This Wednesday, Hajicek’s MonsterQuest comes to central Maine. The show will examine the mystery of mutant canines, with a special focus on the Turner Beast found in August 2006. Producers also examine a [...]