Expedition news and film footage.

Well, the analysis of the India expedition field research has begun,and here's hoping for some great results. There seems to be a very good chance for example, that John McGowan will have discovered a new species of deer.Unlike John, I am no expert on deer species ,but I could easily see that the antlers we took D.N.A from at Mr. Llewellyn Marak's house, were significantly larger than a Munjac.This would of course , be a find of huge significance ,and I really hope it bears fruit. Of course ,there are other samples of hair and bone which we gathered,including hair that just could be from the Mande-Burung,but I think the horns are our best bet.
That takes nothing away from the existence of the Mande-Burung .I firmly believe in its existence, and in my last post I speculated as to what it was.If you would like to see some of the footage I shot on the expedition,please take a look at John Carlson's Paranomalist blog.It gives you a litle taster of what it was like on expedition.
I am pleased to say that I am doing an interview with Tim Binnall on Tuesday night.I will let you know when its available for upload. I always have a good time doing Tim's show!
In my dayjob, it was Office Party week, and I have to say I really enjoyed mine.What a merry go round.....Last night I went out with my old friend Andy Sanderson, and had a talk about a few of our past adventures.Where shall I go next?

Mande-Burung.A relic Gigantopithicus?

I have started looking through my notes now, and the detailed interviews we conducted with eyewinesses to the creature ,and I thought I would share a few facts with you from them.Firstly, it appears to be ominvirous, and seems to make the most of its environments food sources..I was told it has been sighted in pineapple plantations.One of the eyewitneses described how he had seen a mother and baby eating bamboo .Secondly it displays agression,for example, another witness told how he had been chased out of a bamboo plantation.Could this have been a mock charge, in a similar fashion to the Gorilla?
Before I entered the jungle, I was also told by one of the forest guides that it ate freshwater crabs and I subsequently found what appeared to be MB prints, turned over rocks, and crab shells in a small stream. All described the creature as being huge,at least 9 feet tall, it seems, and covered in black hair. The consistency of the descriptions from the witnesses, especially under the scrutiny I gave them, was very encouraging.
I have shown some of my photos to some of my friends now.I expected them to remark on the beauty of the environment, or the snapshots of tribal life ,such as the 100 drums Wangala festival,which I attended. But no. Almost without fail, most have taken the mick out of my jungle trousers.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I was not in Manchester then, and cammo pants and braces really are a good look out there.LOL
I think I know what I 'll be getting for Christmas............

Mande-Burung video footage.

Well, I have been having all sorts of fun with my HD camera jamming on me over the last few days,but I am finally making progress ,and I hope to release some of the footage I shot whilst in India ,very shortly. On every sequence we all seem to look a bit knackered,but then we were , and I wasn't worrying about wether the camera got my best side and all!
It reminded me of when I made my first film for National Geographic in Mongolia.Bilgee , who is my friend and an excellent translator, also accompanied me, as we looked for evidence of the Almas, in the remote western mountains near the border with Kazakhstan. He is a very hard man, and is missing a few teeth through various scrapes he has go into over the years. One morning, before we started filming, I noticed him staring into the wing miror of the jeep, looking troubled "What's up mate,?" I asked " Oh, nothing really" sighed Bilgee"but I think I need make-up before I go on set".... Imagine my response.
Right off to Antony's to sort out that camera. I had no major injuries while I was in India, but I will be hobbling to his house as I have just dropped somebody's Christmas present of a bottle of Chablis on my foot!
FIFA eh... no more words needed!

Orang-Pendek:Final Results.

Well, Lars has finished his analysis on the hairs we brought back from Sumatra last year.In summary ,he concludes that whilst the structure of the hairs point to a creature resembling an Orang-Utang, the D.N.A. more closely relates to a human. He states that he is `foreced to conclude that their is an unkown species of primate` in Sumatra.
Now , whilst this doesn't ,and cannot at this stage, say exactly what the creature is, it does state that the creature,unique in nature, DOES exist. This is a major step, and of great significance.
As many reading this will know,I have previously found evidence of the OP before .For example, cats of prints I found in 2001 were analysed by primatologists as being from an unkown species.Simlarly, hair samples found on the same expedition ,led Dr.Hans Brunner to conclude that there was an unknown species in Sumatra ,in the same manner as Lars.
So, the evidence is gathering.The moe science the better.This is a great result!

I`m back from India.

I just arrived home a few hours ago. As you no doubt appreciate ,I am a tired tonight , but I had an amazing time,and felt that I ,and the rest of the team ,met with some great success.I will post more detail about the expedition over the next few weeks , but here are some headlines. I am convinced the Mande-Burung exists. Dave Archer found what appears to be an MB footprint, at a site where an eyewitness confirmed he had seen the creature.He and John McGowan, went on to find a trail of them. I found an MB footprint in Nokrek national Park. What I found particularly interesting about this one, was that you could see a boulder in the stream which had been tossed aside , followed by some debris of a freshwater crab. The locals had told me on previous occasions that the MB was fond of eating these particular types of crab.Whilst I can't be certain it was an MB print, the size and shape were certainly consistent with eyewitness reports.The casting at site failed due to the very wet conditions. We collected a number of very consistent eyewitness reports, which described a large black bipdeal ape, which built ground nests and ate bamboo. Nothing on the camera traps so far, but we haven't finished going through them all yet. We have collected hair and bone samples which just MAY come from the MB, but of course we need to test them.
Quite by chance , and very significantly indeed, John McGowan may well have discovered a completley new species .I can't say anything more about this though, until he has conducted a thorough analysis.
The area has some amazing , vast, and largely untraversed, jungle.Beautiful.The perfect place for a relic gigantopithicus.....

We are off!

On Saturday,I will leave my house in Manchester,to travel down to Dave Archer's house ,ready for the flight to Delhi the next day.I'm really looking forward to the expedition. I began planning this in March, and now finally, we are ready to go.I hope we have a great adventure,but more than anything,wouldn't it be wonderful to bring back some proof of the existence of the Mande-Burung!
Well, we couldn't have done any more preparation.These sort of expedtions, trying to unravel mysteries that have persisted for hundreds of years, are always a long shot. Will we be lucky?Here's to hope, and in the words of Winston Churchill ,we will `never, never give up!`
You will hear from me as soon as possible............now is the time.

India-The Countdown Begins......

This weekend , as a preparation for the India Expedition, I climbed Snowdon.Llanberis, the village which nestles in the valley below, is simply gorgeous.The place has an undoubted Alpine feel about it.The ascent was shrouded in mist,but one I got to the top, I could see for miles;miles of rolling green Welsh hills and valleys,peppered with twinkling clear blue Lakes.At night, in the Hotel bar, I joined some of the other people who had reached the summit that day, and witnessed some amazing crab like walks, as they wearily negotiated the now preposterous stairs!
We haven't got long now people, and the plans are laid,the equipment is bought ,the deal is on.I can hear the Mande-Burung calling me in my dreams now;lets hope these dreams turn to reality in a few weeks time!