All language subtitles for 5 Searching for Bigfoot

I'm on my way to Washington State's
Olympic Peninsula,

which is one of the world's
most active areas for Bigfoot sightings.

According to the ancient
astronaut theory,

extraterrestrials came to Earth
in the remote past

and modified our DNA
to make us what we are today.

There are depictions
throughout the ancient world

of strange hybrid beings
like some of the gods

in ancient Egypt

and the Chimera in Greece.

And there are also numerous
stories of giants and hairy wild men.

So, could alien visitors have done
other genetic experiments?

Ones that resulted
in a race of beasts

that have survived virtually
undetected for thousands of years?

Or could there be another
and even more incredible connection?

I'm on a mission to find out
if Bigfoot really exists

and if it isn't just
a giant hairy beast,

but living proof that
extraterrestrials not only were here,

but maybe they are
still living in our midst.

My name is Giorgio Tsoukalos.

I explore the world that exists
between reality and speculation,

the known and the unknown.

What we've been taught
by mainstream scholars

is not the whole picture.

But I'm convinced that every day
we are one step closer to the truth.

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In 1958, a bulldozer operator
in Bluff Creek, California

discovered 16-inch
human-like footprints

near his equipment.

When he told his story
to a local newspaper,

he said that the footprints
must've been made

by an animal with a really big foot
and the legend of Bigfoot was born.

But tales of mysterious hairy beasts
can be found in cultures

throughout the world
dating back to ancient times.

In the Himalayas,
they have stories of the Yeti,

or the Abominable Snowman.

In Australia, they talk
of a giant ape man known as Yowie.

In Mongolia, they have the Yeren.

And although the stories come
from different parts of the world,

the accounts are surprisingly similar.

Most describe a tall massive creature
walking on two legs

and looking very much
like some sort of a giant ape.

But nowhere
are the stories more prolific

than America's Pacific Northwest,
where thousands of people

claim to have seen or encountered
the mysterious Bigfoot.

You're about to see the people
of the Olympic Project.

They are Bigfoot researchers
and apparently they have all sorts

of scientific equipment
and they have dedicated their lives

to investigating the mystery
of Bigfoot, Sasquatch,

the big hairy monster.

This is in the middle of nowhere
and it is God's country,

it is absolutely gorgeous.

By the way,
I have no idea what to expect.

All right.

This has to be the place.

Gentlemen. Hey. Hey.

How you doing?
Look, I found him.

He's right there.
You can stop your search.

I mean, what are you guys doing?
Game over.

He's right here.

Yeah, right?

How long have you been doing this
and what are you doing?

I mean, this is,
I love the pots and pans.

The Olympic Project
is about six years old.

And it's pretty much,
it started out as a comprehensive

camera trap program where we would
camera trap predatory travel routes.

We're basically taking
this core area right here

and we're documenting
every single thing that happens

in hopes of getting
pictures of Sasquatch.

(Giorgio) The team of two dozen researchers
includes experts in everything

from wildlife habitats to high tech
audio and video recording.

To date, the group has spent
thousands of hours monitoring

the Olympic Forest,
looking for evidence of Bigfoot.

Leading the team is long-time
Bigfoot researcher, Derek Randles.

He has invited both myself
and Dr. Jeff Meldrum,

a professor of anatomy
and anthropology

at Idaho State University,
to join the team

on an overnight expedition
on the Olympic Peninsula.

I explore the ancient
mysteries of the world

and so the whole idea
of Bigfoot to me is interesting

because all throughout history,
there are bizarre stories

of these half man,
half beast creatures

that are found, not just
in this part of the world,

but all around the globe.

Given my background,
I'm always a little more reticent.

I'm a little more critical initially,
so I'm down here and then

as I investigate things
and ask for the questions

and look for correlations
and corroborations,

then that level
of acceptance may increase.

What can you tell me
about the area, and, you know,

are there any local legends
that talk about

this amazing creature here?

(Derek) The Olympic Mountain
Range has been, for many years,

a serious hot spot
in Bigfoot activity.

(Giorgio) Curiously, the Olympic Mountain
Range is also a hot spot for UFO activity.

Over the years, there have been
hundreds of reported sightings

of strange objects appearing and then
quickly disappearing in the sky.

In June 2011, two people
even claimed they witnessed

a cigar-shaped object hovering
in the sky for nearly 15 minutes.

There have also been reports
of people who saw strange lights

following a Bigfoot encounter.

And there are even some reports
of Bigfoot being seen coming out

of a disc-shaped craft.

I started actually investigating
the Olympic Mountain Range in 1985

when I had my own encounter.

And it forever changed my life.

You had your own encounter?
Mm-hmm.

So you've seen Bigfoot?
Yes.

Yes.

Back in the early '80s,
I would get together

with a couple hiking partners of mine
and we would go up on the trail system.

There's a very elaborate trail system
throughout the Olympic National Park.

So, at that time, we started
to take our backpacks off

and pull our tents out and ready
to get situated for the evening.

And we heard a very loud crash.

And here comes a rock.

And it's arcing.

And it comes down and lands
about 10 feet to the left of us.

And we didn't even say anything,
we didn't even move,

we just stood there.

And then another one.

Boom, and it landed
about 10 feet to the left of us.

And then we panicked.

And we just started gathering
our stuff up off the ground

and then another rock hit.

Didn't even take the time
to put our backpacks on.

We just grabbed them up
and starting running down the ridge.

And I just happened to look back
before I turned around.

(Bigfoot roaring)

And there it was.

It had kind of stepped
out of the timberline

and there was no mistaking
of what it was.

(Bigfoot growling)

My world just came
to a screeching halt right there.

Right.

And the next day, pretty much,
I went into Bigfoot research

and I've been doing it ever since.

(Giorgio) Derek's account
seemed very genuine.

But then I have to ask myself,
with all these Bigfoot encounters,

why do we still not have
concrete evidence

of the creature's existence?

Perhaps the Olympic Project
will be able to find that evidence

during our expedition.

So, what are we looking at here?

It's very colorful.

What we're looking at
is a spectrogram of an audio file.

What I like to do is set up
a recorder in an area

that has promise
and record all night long.

And then review the audio file to see
if I can find anything of interest.

Okay.

What I've got here
is an isolated signature

within a loop of five different
vocalizations that are suspicious.

Those lines,
are those the vocalizations?

They are.
Okay.

So, now, this is just
a loop of this specific vocal.

Okay.

[Shrieking]

It's like a guy yodeling.

It's very interesting.

Yes, we can't say specifically
that it's a Sasquatch,

but that's what interests people
that are analyzing the audio.

What do you say to someone
that might suggest,

"Well, what we just heard
is nothing else but a wolf howling."

It's possible, but since
we're looking at it in a spectrogram,

we can compare it
to a wolf spectrogram.

(Giorgio) David Ellis has
collected dozens of animal sounds

recorded in the Olympic Forest.

And each new sound collected
is compared

to documented animal sounds
by using spectrogram analysis.

With it, he can eliminate sounds
that match with known animals.

For example, a wolf howl.

[Howling]

[Shrieking]

According to Ellis,
the sound we are listening to now

does not match up
with anything else on record.

That is very interesting.

The team arms themselves
for the hunt with an arsenal

of super sophisticated equipment.

Their so-called "secret weapon"
is the FLIR camera,

which stands for
"Forward Looking Infrared."

Often used by law enforcement
and the military,

FLIR is the top of the line
in thermal heat-sensing technology.

They also bring along an audio dish
for amplifying sounds

coming out of the forest
and motion detector still cameras,

all in an effort to find
concrete evidence

of the legendary creature
known as Bigfoot.

All of this is great,
but as you all know,

the real research
takes place out in the field,

so I would love to take
all these gadgets and all our gear

out in the open
and let's see what happens.

Let's do it. Yeah. All right.

I'm in Washington State's
Olympic Peninsula

about to set out into the forest
with the Olympic Project.

I'm here to find out if Bigfoot
actually exists, and if so,

could there be
an extraterrestrial connection?

(Giorgio) So, Derek, where
are we headed right now?

(Derek) We're going to actually
go up on this bench up here

on the side of Muller.

(Giorgio) The team often conducts
their Bigfoot expeditions

at Mount Muller, where numerous
sightings have been reported.

(Giorgio) So, we're doing this
on foot, not with a helicopter?

(Derek)
We are going on foot.

(Giorgio)
All right.

Let's do it.

(Derek)
Isn't this beautiful through here?

(Giorgio) The scenery is absolutely
beyond anything I've ever seen.

This area, there are apparently
over 200 reports

of sightings by different people.

And whenever I hear stuff like that,
I'm interested because, you know,

you can't suggest that all these
200 reports are from crazy people.

So, what if something
really is going on here?

And so, I'm very excited
to be out here.

And maybe we'll get some clues
to explore this mystery even further.

Ready for a break?
Let's just take a break here.

(Giorgio) On every expedition
he goes on, Dr. Meldrum carries

footprint cast samples with him
for comparison

in the event they find a fresh one.

And many have recently been
discovered in this particular forest.

So, Dr. Meldrum,
you know, you have to tell me,

to you what is
the most compelling reasons

that you think that
Bigfoot might be real?

Well, from my point of view
it's the footprint evidence.

I mean, clearly that's my area
of expertise, and so it has

the greatest significance to me.

Let me show you
a couple of examples here.

Oh, wow, you brought a cast.

I did. A pair of them, in fact.

If you'll hold that one for a second.

Oh, wow.

These are amazing.

Now, these are some good examples
of some very classic Sasquatch tracks.

This is probably a large male,
measures between 16, 17 inches in length.

That's quite broad, nearly
seven inches across the forefoot here.

And in contrast, the female,
this one which measures

between about 14 and 15 inches, maybe
five inches across the forefoot here.

And so, I mean, clearly
these are not just simply

someone with a big foot
walking around barefoot.

(Giorgio)
Check this out.

Wow.

Dr. Meldrum has over
200 examples of footprint casts

that indicate that the anatomy
of the creature could be similar

to that of a large bipedal ape.

With a foot measuring
some 16 inches in length,

it would stand somewhere
between eight and ten feet tall

and would weigh
in excess of 1,000 pounds.

But rather than an arched foot
as in the case of humans,

the creature's footprints indicate
that its weight is distributed

much more evenly, giving it flat
but still very flexible feet.

So, Dr. Meldrum...

you're of the conviction
that these prints are real.

I am. I am.

Some unknown creature
has been leaving these footprints.

(Giorgio) After hiking for several
hours, the team sets up camp.

Everyone works together
to get organized quickly

before the light fades.

Then we head out into the woods
with thermal cameras

and audio equipment
to search for Bigfoot.

(James)
So, this is what we're going to be using.

(Giorgio) How long do you
leave a camera out like this?

(James) Batteries usually
last for three to six months,

depending on how many
pictures they're taking.

(Giorgio) And it only picks
up when there is movement.

Movement, for sure.
Okay.

(Giorgio) All right, so now we've
set up the infrared camera.

(James) Looks good.
(Giorgio) Let's go back.

In addition to the motion
control cameras, David Ellis

places audio recording equipment
near game trails to capture

any unusual vocalizations.

(David) This is a parabolic
dish and it is designed

to amplify sound
from a specific direction

and usually I'll have
somebody off in the distance

and we'll do sound checks,
so I get an idea of how close

something is to the dish.

So, would you be so kind
as to do a sound check for me?

Are you saying
you want me to be Bigfoot?

Is that what you're saying?

Fine, I'll do it.

So, just into the distance
right here? All right.

(David)
That's probably far enough.

All right, now, give me a whisper.

[Whispers]
Can you hear me?

Perfect.

So, you could hear me whisper,
like, 75 feet away? I can. Yes.

I mean, clear as a bell, right?

Yes. So I'm good.

All right.

In the end, all of this
is about the unknown.

Derek Randles is one of the founders
of the Olympic Project.

I wanted to spend some time with him
and tap into his expertise

about what he thinks
this creature is and is not.

So, in your opinion,
why do you think Bigfoot

is so elusive?

I think that there's very few,
there are very few,

they're very smart.

They are expert woodsmen.

To just go out and find a Sasquatch,
you're going to win the lottery first.

They are far and away
our superior out here in the woods.

I find it interesting that every
member of the Olympic Project

talks about Bigfoot
as being this very large

but also intelligent creature.

When I hear this, I'm reminded
of the story of "The Watchers"

from The Book of Enoch.

This Apocryphal text,
which was edited out

of the traditional Christian Bible,
tells of a group of angels

called "The Watchers,"
who descended to Earth

from Heaven shortly
after the time of Creation.

According to The Book of Enoch,
the Watchers mated with early humans

and bred a race of giants
called the Nephilim.

Might otherworldly visitors
have come here

and engaged in some sort
of genetic manipulation?

And could one of these
genetic experiments still be living

among us right here on Earth?

I want to talk to you about sound.

I've also been told
that people clapping

or to make their presence known,
and then there is a return clap

or something like this?
What's that all about?

You're probably referring
to wood knocks. Okay.

We do wood knocks
to try to solicit a response.

I actually got a knocker
if you want to...

pull it out of my backpack. Yeah.
Is that that thing right here?

I can show you what I'm talking about.

And here I thought
you were a barkeep. All right.

So, normally we just try
to find a tree like this

that's not too thick because
then the sound will carry better.

So this is kind of perfect right here.
I'll show you what I'm talking about.

And then generally
after you do that, you just listen

to see if there's going
to be a return knock.

And believe it or not,
it does happen.

You want to try it?

Of course, yes, absolutely.

Maybe something will happen.
[Chuckles]

Silence.

Silence.

This is great.

Can I keep this while we walk
through the woods? Keep it.

I need protection.

The modern day phenomenon
of Bigfoot isn't something that

has just sprung up recently,
but there are, in fact,

legends from ancient times
from all around the world.

For example, in the remains
of the ancient city of Nineveh

in what is present day Iraq...

Sumerian tablets dating
as far back as 1800 B.C.

Tell the story of King Gilgamesh
and his companion named Enkidu.

Enkidu is described
as a large, hairy wild man living

outside human society.

But the most fascinating part
of the story is that Enkidu

was supposedly created
by powerful beings

called the Anunnaki,
which, when translated,

means "those who
from the heavens came. "

So, could the story of the Anunnaki
and Enkidu be connected

to the similar stories
about the Watchers

in The Book of Enoch?

And if Bigfoot really exists,
could it be the product

of extraterrestrial engineering?

(Giorgio)
Let's go find Bigfoot.

(James)
Let's do it.

(Giorgio) As the light
fades, James and I set off

with the mobile FLIR camera
to look for any signs of Bigfoot.

So, James, is this what you do?
You drive around all night

with the machine on
and you scope a 360-degree view?

(James)
Absolutely.

We'll go find a place
that's got great visual,

and then we'll set up
and sit there and watch for a while.

We'll just keep following the roads
and see what we see.

Pretty impressive technology.

(Giorgio)
I mean, this looks pretty cool.

I mean, this is a thermal camera,
and we'll see things

that are emitting heat.

So, you know, we can point
the camera all the way to the sky.

Potentially see some UFOs.

Who knows?

Suddenly, something
appears on the monitor.

Look, look,
look at this over here.

Where are you pointing?

I mean, this thing, it's glowing.

It's some kind of body part.

(Giorgio) In the fading light,
all we can see are trees,

but the thermal camera
has hit on something

which appears to be
a warm-blooded animal.

I'm going to actually see
if we can make it move.

[Horn honks]

(Giorgio)
Now he's moving.

See its head?
Can you see it?

Oh, wow.

See how it's down right now?

[Horns honks]

(Giorgio)
Whoa.

(James)
That's a deer.

I've been a hunter for years
and I cannot pick that deer

out of the brush right there.

This technology is quite amazing.

(Giorgio) In 1980, investigative
journalist Linda Moulton Howe

discovered a connection
between Bigfoot

and the unexplained phenomenon...

of animal mutilations.

Linda had received a
letter from a man

in Snohomish, Washington, just
90 miles from where we are now.

He reported seeing
a silver disk in the sky

that shot a beam of light
down to the earth.

In the beam of light, he saw
what he described as a tall,

shaggy creature, which walked off
into the woods as the craft disappeared.

Over the next few days,
there were reports in the area

of livestock found dead with
missing organs and body parts.

But all looked as if they had been
removed with surgical precision.

If a connection
can be made between Bigfoot

and these strange
animal mutilations,

I think it's safe to suggest
that we may very well

be dealing with something
of an extraterrestrial origin.

Dr. Meldrum, there's
one personal question

that I would like to ask you,
and that is,

have you ever had an encounter?

Well, I've had a variety of experiences
ranging from, you know,

vocalizations, bumps in the night,
finding footprints

on a number of occasions.

I've even seen
a fleeting silhouette

that could very well
have been a Sasquatch.

But I'm still waiting
for that vivid, conclusive,

definitive encounter
in broad daylight.

All of this stuff today,
it really got me thinking

in correlation to the ancient
stories that I'm familiar with

of these hairy beasts
in ancient times that are

described all around the world
in different cultures.

So, what if what we have here
is something rather similar?

The investigations have
to continue, but I'm tired,

and so tomorrow is another day,
and I'm going to turn off the lights

and go to sleep.

The next day, Dr. Meldrum
and the Olympic Project team

informed me that
they had decided to continue

their expedition for two more days,
but unfortunately I needed to move on.

That way, right? Yes. Yeah.

Straight back.

Before I leave the Pacific Northwest,
I'd like to meet up with Richard Germeau,

a former police officer.

He claims to have seen
Bigfoot not once, but twice.

So I'm really stoked to hear his take
on the whole Bigfoot phenomenon.

I've been told that you've actually
had an encounter with Bigfoot twice.

I mean, that's like hitting the lottery.

So, tell me more about this.

Well, I did have
an encounter back in 2000.

I was a police officer
in La Push, Washington at that time.

And La Push
is an Indian reservation on the coast.

(Giorgio) Many Native American cultures
share traditional ancient legends

which refer to large
hair-covered man-beasts

whom they believe inhabit the deep
woods of the Pacific Northwest.

Even today, the Quinault Indians
of the Olympic Peninsula

report sightings of a huge
ape-like hominid they call C'iatqo.

In fact, the existence
of these tall, shaggy creatures,

also known as Sasquatch,
is simply taken for granted

by many Native American tribes.

I was driving down the road, it was
about 7:00 or 8:00 in the evening,

but it was still plenty light.

And I was coming around this corner
and the beach was off to my left.

And just this dark figure
that was really tall and big.

Stepped out of the brush
on one side onto the roadway

and it commenced
to take about four steps

before it cleared the road
and it went into the brush

and just kept going.

So, from what you saw
during that first encounter,

how big was that creature?

The chest to the back
looked massive.

I mean, I don't know
how deep it was,

but it was thick and...

I was only about a mile and a half
away from my office

that I worked in at that point,
so I drove right there.

And at that time,
there was a deputy

from the county sheriff's
office that was there

and two of my co-workers
and I told them

what happened right away.

Wow.

They ridiculed me and laughed at me
like people normally would.

Richard's experience
affected him so strongly that

despite the ridicule he received
from his colleagues

in the police department,
he went on to co-found

the Olympic Project
with Derek Randles.

In 2010, Richard set up a number
of motion-controlled cameras

in an area believed
to be a Bigfoot lair.

I had a really bad feeling,
even when I got there.

Everything was really quiet
and it was kind of drizzly.

It was just an eerie day.

So I hear twigs break,
but there's nothing over there.

Not more than a few seconds
after that, I hear a... like an exhale.

And I started to look up...

and I could see something was standing
about 20 yards in front of me.

And then, in one motion,
it shot through this opening.

And I said, if I don't leave now,
I'm going to die.

So I turned and I ran the other way.

It was really close.

And it was huge and...

I'm a little shaken up
just right now, talking about it.

You were shaking
just recounting the story.

It was a traumatic event.

(Giorgio) Although legends
concerning large hairy creatures

have been told
and retold for centuries,

what turned Bigfoot
into a household name

was the notorious
Patterson-Gimlin film.

Even though some have
judged the footage as a hoax,

there are many
who believe that it offers

convincing evidence
that Bigfoot really does exist.

So, what do you think
that creature actually is?

In the beginning when I got into it,
I kind of looked at it as...

it must be a relic hominid
of some type, you know,

North American ape.

And that certainly is a possibility.

But when you look
at the Native American history,

that's much more supernatural,
even to some aspects,

of a shape-shifter,
interdimensional type being.

(Giorgio)
A shape-shifter?

An interdimensional being?

Now, when I hear things like that,
my mind goes to stories

of shape-shifting beings that
appear in many ancient cultures,

including the Greek tale of Zeus,
who transformed

King Lycaon into a wolf.

Many Native American myths
include legends of creatures

known as "skinwalkers."

Humans who can
change their shape at will

and often take the form
of large hairy beasts.

I'm not saying that I necessarily
believe along those lines...

But those stories exist.

They do exist and there
must be a reason for it.

That's a verbal history
of those people.

And all tribes tend to have
the same type of stories

about these beings.

Well, Rich, thank you very much
for allowing me to come out here

and to hear your stories.

The second encounter,
the way you described that,

that will haunt me
for the rest of my life.

After hearing Rich Germeau's
incredible firsthand account,

I've decided to reach out
to my good friend

Dr. Jonathan Young,
an expert in mythology

and the founding curator
of the Joseph Campbell Archives.

So, thanks very much
for seeing me on such short notice,

but I recently met
this former detective, Rich Germeau,

and he thinks that Bigfoot,
or whatever it is he saw,

was some sort of
a shape-shifter or a skinwalker.

And so I know that
that is right up your alley.

Whatever is happening,
it's significant.

So we have Yeti in the Himalaya areas,
we have giants in Africa,

we have all the reports
in the Pacific Northwest,

which have been the Bigfoot sightings.

The fact that they keep happening
suggests that there's something to it.

I want to show you some things.

Come with me.
All right.

I was thinking, Giorgio,
about this wild man image,

how it shows up
in some really popular forms.

A very familiar form
from Western culture is Merlin.

Merlin, he's a shamanistic magician.

He lives in a cave.

So you've got
the cave diver tradition there,

the troglodytes, all the way back
to the Greek historians.

(Giorgio) Now, this is a truly
fascinating connection to me

because many historians
believe that the wizard Merlin

is actually based on a legendary
Welsh figure named Myrddin Wyllt,

who is described as a hairy madman
who wandered in the company of beasts.

Now, in the ancient Greek myths,
the troglodytes are these large,

hairy, beastly-looking creatures
that lived underground...

and could be extremely terrifying.

But they were also depicted
as being very wise, and according

to the ancient legends, the troglodytes
descended from the sky

and were hiding out
in caves and tunnels

because they wanted to keep
their presence a secret.

There have been stories
about magical animals

and humans turning into animals,
animals turning into humans

from, well, pretty much as long
as we've had recorded history.

So, take the werewolf.

Those characters
transcend our moral code.

They do what they want.

They are like beasts
in that regard.

And then they become people again.

Is the Bigfoot a shape-shifter?

Is it something else part of the time?

Is that why
we don't see it all the time?

(Giorgio) Man, the idea that Bigfoot
could be some sort of a shape-shifter,

like a werewolf, is incredible.

Because, if true, it could explain
why Bigfoot has been so elusive.

It is able to hide
among us in human form.

I've always been fascinated
by the idea of the hybrids.

These half-man, half-animal creatures
that permeate all of history.

In your opinion,
what are we looking at there?

Yeah, it's just very,
very interesting,

the way they show up
in so many variations.

I've got an image here
of a half-horse, half-man.

This is very close
to the image of Pan.

And it is a very powerful crossing
between the known and the unknown.

(Giorgio) All around the world
we can find carvings or statues

of what are called "hybrid beings."

In India we have the Naga,
which is a half-man, half-snake.

In Greece, there is the Medusa,
who has snakes for hair.

In Egypt, there's an entire
god pantheon of half-man,

half-animal deities like Anubis,
a creature that has the head

of a jackal and the body
of a human being.

Various hybrid images that
show up from time to time

all through history and a recent
present-day manifestation is Bigfoot.

Yeti.

Do they have the kind of impact
that these hybrid gods had?

Are they showing us the way
to something metaphysical?

Something transcendent?

That's what gets me excited
about these sightings.

Life is strange,
and there's a lot to know

that we do not know,

and it's important
to study the margins.

To study the things that
we don't understand yet.

Bigfoot and I will cross paths.

Jonathan, this was great.

Thank you very much for your time.
It was marvelous.

I've learned a lot.

Now, we know that scientists are
always discovering new organisms

all the time, so it isn't so hard
for me to believe or speculate

that there really could be a creature,
even one as large as Bigfoot,

that has so far evaded
detection or even capture.

But the big difference
between believing something

and knowing it, is the difference
between faith and science.

And because scientists
are the hardest people to convince,

I've made a trip
to the Museum of Man in San Diego

to ask biological anthropologist
Dr. Tori Randall

if she thinks that a creature like Bigfoot
could actually be real.

One of the main attractions here
is a model of Lucy,

a hominid whose skeleton
was discovered in Ethiopia in 1974.

It is considered by scientists
to be what many have claimed

Bigfoot could be, a missing link
between apes and humans.

All right, there she is.

(Tori) This is Lucy. She's an
Australopithecus afarensis.

An early hominid that lived
about two to four million years ago.

She stood about
three-and-a-half feet tall

and she has some ape-like
and some more human-like traits.

She's bipedal, which is one of the things
that we attribute to humans.

(Giorgio)
Right.

Although Lucy is far too small
to suggest that she may have

a direct connection to Bigfoot,
there were, in fact, a number

of very large primates
that walked the earth

as far back as 100,000 years ago.

One of these,
known as Gigantopithecus,

stood an incredible 10 to 12 feet tall.

And if Bigfoot really exists,
could it be a direct descendant

of this giant prehistoric creature?

Who are these two friends right here?

So, we have a couple of reconstructions
of different hominins here.

This one is an australopithecine,
which is an earlier form of hominin.

Probably about
two to four million years ago.

This one is a Homo habilis,
which is the first member

of the Homo genus, which is
what we are, as Homo sapiens.

So, a little bit more modern
if you're comparing these two.

So, Tori, in your opinion,
do you think it is at all possible

that a subspecies, for example...

Bigfoot, could exist under the radar
and it hasn't yet been discovered?

Is such a thing possible?

Having a subspecies that's existing
in isolation somewhere...

that definitely is possible.

This has been an incredible opportunity
to explore something

that I've been interested in
for a long time,

the development of animals
and humans on our planet.

Did we descend from apes
over millions of years,

or was there some
extraterrestrial intervention?

It raises many questions
involving science and the unknown.

But what I find myself blown away by
is that a biological anthropologist

like Dr. Tori Randall
believes it's possible

that a large hairy creature
like Bigfoot could, in fact, exist.

If one were to subscribe to the idea
that a species like Bigfoot exists,

what would have to have occurred
for such a thing to even happen?

An organism can be isolated.

There can be interbreeding,
where two different populations

can come together
and a brand new trait will show up.

Or there can be a mutation
where there's a brand new

random trait that no one's ever seen
in that organism before.

(Giorgio) Dr. Randall's notion
that Bigfoot may possibly exist...

but also may have been able
to escape capture

due to centuries of evolution
is really interesting to me.

Perhaps centuries ago
they were hunted by early man,

but by now only the smartest
and most elusive ones have survived.

So, what are the primary
gene differences

between apes and humans?

Our DNA, in general, is very similar.

We share 99.8 percent
of our DNA with a chimpanzee.

But there are particular genes
that distinguish

humans from other apes,
for instance, the DUF1220 gene.

(Giorgio) Scientists have discovered
that a protein called DUF1220

may, in fact, be the so-called
missing link in human brain evolution.

Six million years ago, as humans
began to diverge from the ape family,

there was also a noticeable
increase in DUF1220.

(Tori) If we're talking about brain size,
modern humans have a cranial capacity

of about 1,200 to 1,300
cubic centimeters.

In this gorilla it's about
400 to 450, and the same thing

in this australopithecine
is about 400 to 450.

So, this is looking in one
of our earliest ancestors.

And they had a brain size about
the size of a modern-day ape.

This is really interesting
because not even scientists

can sufficiently explain
why early humans

suddenly featured an increase
in genetic coding

such as DUF1220,
which is part of the so-called

"secret sauce" that makes us
who we are today.

Now, was it simply evolution?

A random mutation?

Or was it extraterrestrial intervention?

Some people have
proposed that Bigfoot

might be the missing link
between humans and apes.

What do you think about that?

People find a brand new species
that's alive all the time that,

you know, something in the rain forest
that no one's ever seen before

and someone comes across it.

So, I certainly would be
open to the possibility

that a fossil's going to be found
that we've never seen before.

And to hear you say this
is very exciting to me that,

you know, to me, science
is always to be open-minded

and not to be closed off
to the possibility of asking

a question, "What if?"

And so, to thank you for your time,
I wanted to give you

this right here
as a token of my appreciation,

which is an ancient
pre-Columbian funerary object

that has been found in multiple
tombs and... Thank you.

Keep me up to date
if anything new happens

in the development of finding
the various missing links.

I would like to hear from you.
I will. I will.

Thank you very much. Thank you so
much, Tori. Until next time, bye-bye.

After connecting all the dots,
I'm more and more convinced

that if Bigfoot exists,
it isn't likely the product

of extraterrestrial gene manipulation...

because we are.

In fact, what if Bigfoot is
what humans would be

if aliens had not intervened
on this planet?

Possibly the last survivors
of mankind's genetic ancestors

before we received
the so-called "secret sauce"

that made us
the creatures we are today...

before we shed our fur for hair
or learned to speak.

And before some of us
began traveling the world...

in search of aliens.

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