Death Worm News
Little Gobi, Mongolia
Famed for hunting the Mongolian Deathworm, the self-made Cryptozoologist Ivan Mackerle receives an excellent review in the Prague Post.
Mackerle, 65, and his small band of friends have travelled across the Gobi desert, hacked through the jungles of Madagascar, and scuba dived remote Micronesian islands to name but a few.
Ivan was one the main influences for our very own expedition to Mongolia in 2005 where we also searched for the Allghoi khorkhoi. You can read more about Operation Deathworm here.
Related Links:
Read the Ivan Mackerle Prague Post article
Ivan Mackerle interview on Prague TV
Cryptoworld’s Operation Deathworm
Weird Weekend 2005
It’s that time of year again! Craziness with the CFZ!
So if you have nothing better to do over the weekend of the 18th-20th August, then I highly recommend you head down to Devon and have some damn find crypto-fun!
Highlights will definitely include some alcohol, giggles, a damn good meal or two and Richard Freeman looking very dapper in his Gambia-Stained Safari Suit… nice!
A recent mailer from CFZ’s Jon concerning the Weird Weekend is as follows:
For the seventh year running, devotees of the weird and wonderful, the strange and supernatural, and the downright odd will be converging into Devon for what has become the biggest event of this type of the year. The weekend of 18-20th August, will see the little North Devon village of Woolfardisworthy (Woolsery), becoming the weirdest village in the land!
The ‘Weird Weekend’ was the brainchild of Jonathan Downes (46), Director of the Centre for Fortean Zoology the world’s largest cryptozoological (mystery animal research) organization.
Today is Book Review Day here at Cryptoworld. I’m not sure where the idea came from, but I thought it would be useful to point out a few weird and wonderful books on Adventure Travel, Cryptozoology, Myths, Lost Legends and the like…
Buy from Amazon
First up, On the Trail of Ancient Man,
by Roy Chapman Andrews.
From a Cryptozoology point of view, On the Trail of Ancient Man appears to contain the first account of the Allghoi Khorkhoi, the Mongolian Death Worm.
On the Trail of Ancient Man is primarily a narrative by Roy Chapman Andrews on his fieldwork as leader of the Central Asiatic Expedition of the American Museum of Natural History. In response to many requests for a collected account of his experiences during the expedition, Andrews recounts his adventures throughout Mongolia in the 1920s. He explores Asia, in search of the origins of Ancient Man, as well as the continent’s archaeological past. This is less an attempt at relaying the full scientific significance of their discoveries, and more an overview of the most important thoughts and ideas.
So what’s been happening this week? Well I don’t know about you, but I seem to have miss-placed most of it - its zipped by so fast that I didn’t even realise it was Saturday until a few hours ago. But I guess it’s subjective and for some of you the week probably dragged, and still feels like Monday? Ah, I’m digressing, again… time for some news.
Cryptoworld & e-Mongol – I would like to announce that we are now the official UK representatives for e-Mongol. As you know Cryptoworld joined forces with the CFZ in May of this year, and headed to Mongolia in search of the Allghoi Khorkhoi (Death Worm). The trip as you can imagine, was not your usual run of the mill package-holiday (what is these days?), and because none of us had visited Mongolia before, we thought it best to enlist a local company that could organise this rather unique adventure, e-Mongol fitted this bill perfectly.
How it worked - we selected a few locations that we new we wanted to visit, and using this information e-Mongol suggested a complete itinerary, organizing transport, accommodation, meetings with local officials, even access to the strictly prohibited areas of the southern Gobi that borders China - yet still allowing us time to visit all the usual tourist sights along the way.
Since our return to the UK, Cryptoworld has been working with e-Mongol, following up on reports of the Death Worm and planning a return trip in 2006/07. In October they asked if we would act as their official UK contact, seeing we had first hand knowledge of just how good a service they offer, and how friendly the whole e-Mongol team are, we couldn’t really say no.
So if you’re thinking of traveling to Mongolia for a two week vacation, or want to plan your own tailored-made expedition, give e-Mongol a call, and if you have any questions, or would just like to find out more about our expedition, drop us an email emongol@mac.com.
A Classic Chupacabra Pic
Other bits and bobs - New sightings of an animal that can only be described as the ‘Chupacabra’ have been reported in Las Vegas (New Mexico). Reports and sightings have popped up all over the city the past few weeks, pets have gone missing and State Police have responded to a call where locals claim they have seen “an evil blood-sucking creatureâ€. There’s even one report of the creature attacking a donut truck! So is the Chupacabra back? KRQE News 13 has a video report/interview with an eye-witness and two waitresses (Windows media player will be needed I’m afraid).
Texas Bigfoot Group
Bigfoot, Bigfoot, Bigfoot – everybody seems to be going Bigfoot crazy. The 2005 Texas Bigfoot conference appears to have been a huge success, media coverage at this years (5th) annual event was high. The Associated Press fired off an article, and due to the normal stories of doom and gloom, it seems to have been picked up by a worldwide audience. The local Mayor has even proclaimed that the third weekend of October will now be known as “Texas Bigfoot Weekend†– crazy! All we need now is some hard evidence to prove they really do exist… anybody fancy a trip to Texas?
With the resent wave of TV programs and tabloid interest in all things weird, it seems that more and more people are believing in monsters, ufo’s, ghosts and previously poo-pooed subjects, but why? Are we all so totally fed up with reality TV and stories of war that we need something new to stimulate our tiny minds? Maybe? But I think this is an exciting time, if more people are looking for these things, the greater the chance of actually finding something tangible, and the more evidence they find the more they will want to look. But it’s interesting how we can swing from cynic to believer so quickly. More than half of the UK population believe in UFOs, and a staggeringly large amount of Americans are convinced the US Government are in contact or in league with Aliens. Are they? Should we be worried?
Loch Ness Monster?
Bigfoot, Nesse and Monster hunting have become big business, with more and more expeditions being planned all over the world, and with large rewards for the capture of some of these beasts you can understand why. Believe it or not, a $1 million reward for the capture of the Loch Ness Monster has been announced! Yep you read it right - Loren Coleman has said the bounty would be paid by a US firm who has an interest in cryptozoology (the study of hidden, rumoured or unknown creatures). Who is this firm and why do they want a live Nesse? Are they planning a Nesse-World theme park? Apparently, the cash will only be paid if it’s captured ‘Alive’, pictures won’t do - so put your cameras away and go buy yourselves a very large fishing net!
Mokele-mbembe footprint?
Another fascinating, but slightly bizarre reason for an expedition is planned by Creation Generation. A quick glance at their Mission Statement will explain! But nerveless, the 2006 expedition to Equatorial Africa, in search of Mokele-mbembe (The Living Dinosaur) sounds very interesting indeed. Previous expeditions in the 80s and 90s turned up some interesting information and eyewitness accounts. The team believe Mokele-mbembe is a real living animal and not just a legend. A semi aquatic animal, a strict vegetarian, but probably very dangerous if approached.
Japanese expeditions in 1988 and 1992 resulted in frequent observations of a large animal moving around in a lake as if foraging on the bottom. And a joint search by CryptoSafari and the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club in 2001 were told by witnesses that the mokeles were not forest-dwelling animals, they lived solely in rivers and swamp pools and only ventured ashore to eat the leaves of trees. If discovered, the Mokele-mbembe would definitely be the greatest zoological discovery of all time.
Mongolian Almas?
Extreme Expeditions are planning to return to Mongolia in 2006; their expedition in 2003 to look for the Allghoi Khorkhoi (Death worm) was the inspiration for our trip this year. This time they are looking for the Almas, a strange apelike creatures allegedly resembling Neanderthal man. They are also hoping to revisit some areas where the Allghoi Khorkhoi has been sighted. The CFZ and Cryptoworld are also planning expeditions next year; Cryptoworld would like to re-visit Mongolia to follow up reports of the Allghoi Khorkhoi, and there is talk of a trip to New Zealand, investigating stories of the Giant Gecko lizard.
The next 12 months are definitely going to be an exciting time, if you’ve been on an expedition, or have an idea for one that you would like to share with us, please contact Cryptoworld via our Contact Page.
Richard ‘Dragon’ Freeman
… oh, and … Richard “Dragon†Freeman.
SELFS (South East London Folklore Society) has had talks on a wide range of subjects, from local folklore and paranormal events such as Greenwich ghosts and earth mysteries, the Deptford Jack-in-the-Green, Southwark witch trials and May Day customs & sacred sites in south London to an eclectic range of talks covering our interests of ‘paganism, folklore, forteana, high-strangeness and the occult.’ Recent talks have included subjects such as dragon-lore, alien abduction, the life of Alistair Crowley, suspension and other body rituals, vodu, Thee Temple ov Psychick Youth and the folklore of Subterranean London. If you fancy finding out more about SELFS - check their website!
And what about Richard “Dragon†Freeman?
Well he talked about the Mongolian Death Worm at SELFS on the 10th October.
Eyes front… Smile!
Weird Weekend, CFZ style!
Another fantastic Weird Weekend, was had, I believe by one and all. Thanks to all the guys at the CFZ, Jon, Rich, Graham etc., etc… beer was consumed, fun and games played, talks were talked and I guess we learnt a little about this and that - Texas and its Big Foot, Mystery animals, Black Dogs, Fairies, Monster Hunting, just what did happen at Roswell?, Mermaids, Were-tigers and of course Mongolia 2005 to name a few!
More pics can be found on our Flickr account.
