US film
crew claims possible yeti prints
An
American TV host who travelled to the Himalayas to film a show on the
mysterious yeti said he took castings (objects made using models) from
three footprints that could prove the legendary giant ape exists and is
living on Mount Everest.
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American television channel host Josh Gates displays what is
believed to be Yeti footprints to the media in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Pic: Reuters |
Josh Gates, the host of Sci Fi's 'Destination Truth' show, said he
and his crew found three footprints on November 28 when they were
investigating reported yeti sightings by Sherpas and farmers living in
the remote Khumbu region of Nepal.
One print was clearly from a right foot with five toes, and was about
13 inches long, but the other two were only partial prints, Gates said.
The footprints were found on rock and sand, he said. The TV crew planned
to have the castings analysed in the United States, he said, without
providing details.
"We are excited about what we found," Gates said before leaving
Nepal. Ang Tshering, president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association,
said he had talked to the American film crew and heard their story, but
was not convinced they had found yeti prints.
"It could most likely be footprints of the mountain bear which is
found in the area," Tshering said. "They showed five toes in the
footprint cast they brought back, but according to the legends we hear
from the villagers, the yeti is only supposed to have four toes."
Sherpas and sheep herders have for years told stories of a giant
ape-like creature that roams the remote mountainous area near Mount
Everest. There is no confirmed photographic evidence to support their
claimed sightings.
Gates' claims were not independently verified before he left Nepal,
and he seemed to accept that the prints may not be enough to prove the
yeti's existence.
"The unfortunate thing about footprint castings is that they are
rarely conclusive (proves something without any doubt)," he said.
Tshering said he believed there is something unusual wandering the
Himalayas, but that Gates' discovery would probably not prove anything
new.
"There is a mysterious animal that exists in this region, but that
does not necessarily mean it is a yeti," he said. "It is still hard to
say if this is a myth or reality."
AP |
