Nick Redfern December 23, 2021

Make a mention of hairy humanoids and it almost inevitably provokes imagery of Bigfoot, the Abominable Snowman, the Australian Yowie, the Chinese Yeren, the Orang-Pendek of Sumatra, and lesser-known creatures, such as the giant-sized Nyalmos of the Himalayas, and the Fouke Monster. There are, however, others, too. In fact, some of them may not even be from our world. There are a number of reports that suggest Bigfoot entities come from worlds and galaxies far away – and not from our world or anywhere near it. We’re talking about aliens of the hairy kind, but seen right here, on our planet. Perhaps the best examples of this particularly mystifying aspect of the phenomenon are those that occurred in Venezuela, back in late 1954. So far as can be determined, the controversy – which very quickly became a matter dominated by nothing but cold, unrelenting terror – began sometime after midnight on November 28. All was normal for Jose Ponce and Gustavo Gonzalez, as they traveled along a small road on the fringes of Caracas, Venezuela. Or, to be absolutely correct, all was normal for a while. The dark road was suddenly lit up by what the astonished pair could only describe as a bright ball of light, with a circumference of around three feet. It swayed slightly in the air, not unlike a small boat bobbing along on the water.

(Nick Redfern)

The two slowed down their vehicle as they approached it, eventually coming to a complete halt. It was then, suddenly, that astonishment was replaced by outright terror. While Ponce stayed inside the van, Gonzalez cautiously exited the vehicle; he began to slowly and tentatively walk towards the hovering globe. Suddenly, Gonzalez found himself thrown to the ground by an unseen force. The reason why the attacker was unseen – for a few seconds, at least – was because of its size. Or, rather, its profound lack of size. Gonzalez, to his shock and fear, was finally able to see what had assaulted him: a small, hair-covered creature that was built like a man, but which was only around three feet in height. Acting on impulse and Adrenalin, Gonzalez attempted to plunge his knife into the body of the creature, only for the knife to bounce off it. In mere seconds, another hairy dwarf was on the scene, and temporarily blinded Gonzalez with a bright light that emitted from a powerful, flashlight-type device.

Shocked to the core, Ponce gathered his wits together and jumped out of the van to help his friend, who was stumbling around, his eyesight still affected by the powerful beam that hit him with full force. To Ponce’s growing concern, two more of the hairy creatures surfaced out of the shadows, and both making their way towards the men – and armed, no less, with large rocks. Although the presence of the rocks suggested to the men that the hairy things were ready to kill them, with hindsight it seems they were only a defensive measure, in the event a last resort-style situation developed. Fortunately, it did not. The small things raced to the ball of light and, somehow, launched themselves inside it, despite its equally small size and vanished in the blink of an eye! That was the end of the story, but there are plenty other kinds of hairy humanoids.

(Nick Redfern) Mysteries and monsters

Moving on: From Borneo, situated east of Sumatra, home of the cryptid ape known as Orang-Pendek, come stories of an approximately four and a half foot tall ape-man referred to as the Batatut. Like so many other man-beasts, this one is covered in hair. There is, however, one intriguing difference: the Batatut sports a noticeable, thick mane of hair that runs down the back of its head, not unlike that of a horse. Somewhat ominously the creature is said to have a particular liking of human meat – and an even greater liking of human livers. A fascinating, and very credible, account that may have a direct bearing upon the story of the Batutut is that of zoologist, John MacKinnon. In 1970, while on Borneo he stumbled upon a series of unusual, small, human-like footprints. He said: “I stopped dead. My skin crept and I felt a strong desire to head home…farther ahead I saw tracks and went to examine them. I found two dozen footprints in all. I was uneasy when I found them, and I didn’t want to follow them and find out what was at the end of the trail. I knew that no animal we know about could make those tracks. Without deliberately avoiding the area I realize I never went back to that place in the following months of my studies.”

(Nick Redfern)

Another example: In the Central American country of Belize exists an enigmatic and mysterious entity known as the Duende (also spelled Dwendi, depending on the particular region of Belize). A fascinating commentary on the Duende surfaced in 1961, from one of the world’s most respected seekers of unknown animals, the late Ivan T. Sanderson. He said: “Dozens told me of having seen them, and these were mostly men of substance who had worked for responsible organizations like the Forestry Department and who had, in several cases, been schooled or trained either in Europe or the United States. One, a junior forestry officer born locally, described in great detail two of these little creatures that he had suddenly noticed quietly watching him on several occasions at the edge of the forestry reserve near the foot of the Maya Mountains. These little folk were described as being between three foot six and four foot six, well- proportioned but with very heavy shoulders and rather long arms, clothed in thick, tight, close brown hair looking like that of a short-coated dog; having very flat yellowish faces but head-hair no longer than the body hair except down the back of the neck and midback.”

What is particularly intriguing, but also puzzling, about the Hibagon of Japan is that sightings of the roughly five foot tall creature did not begin until the dawning of the 1970s. In pretty much every other location on the planet, however, the lore and legends of cryptid apes dates back centuries. While there is no solid answer as to why the Hibagon seemingly surfaced out of nowhere, that does not detract from the significance of the encounters. The date was July 20, 1970, and the location was Japan’s Mount Hiba, which is situated within the Hiba-Dogo-Taishaku Quasi-National Park. One of the many witnesses to the creature, Yokio Sazawa, said that as he dug for sweet potatoes in Mount Hiba’s foothills: “All of a sudden, this thing stood before me. It was about five feet tall with a face like an inverted triangle, covered with bristles. Having a snub nose, and large, deep, glaring eyes.” And, of course, there are even more reports of strange, hair-covered, humanoid creatures from all across the world, and all steeped in mystery.

MU*

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