Yeti/Abominable Snowman/Meta Kangmal

It is patently clear from the above movie poster that no other cryptid has suffered from such a negative reputation at the hands of humans than has the Yeti or the Abominable Snowman as it has unfortunately become known as. The Yeti is neither Abominable nor does it frequently inhabit the snowfields where its tracks are sometimes found. Instead it is found in the more wooded regions of the Himalayas where there is more abundant plant and animal life on which to feed.

Sherpas, Nepalis and Tibetans alike have actually described two different types of Yeti. The larger variety is described as being a hybrid of man and ape and standing well over two metres tall and having a fur of a dark brown to black colour. The other specimen of yeti is described as smaller than an average man with a reddish-brown pelt. Bothvarieties walk upright and are equally elusive. Contrary to popular belief, the Yetis are highly unlikely to dwell in the snowfields where food is scarce, but rather inhabit the jungle and forested areas where there are abundant plants and small animals on which they may feed.

Although very much a part of Himalayan folklore and considered by the indigenous peoples to be very much part of the local fauna, not much was known about the Yeti, other than from sporadic reports by outsiders, until British climber Eric Shipton discovered and photographed unusual tracks in the snow in Nepal. The photographs caused a sensation in the United Kingdom and inspired the Daily Mail to mount expeditions to find these denizens of the Himalayas. Known to the indigenous Sherpa population of the Himalayas, the Yeti was said to be fond of Yak meat and was known to attack untended cattle.

Its tendency toward being carnivorous was partly responsible - as was a mistranslation of its Sherpa name - for giving rise to its "abominable" nickname, but the larger yeti was merely indicating its dietary preferences like any other animal. We do not call lions or tigers "abominable" because of their carnivorous habits, so it is patently unfair to brand the Yeti thus for the same reason. In the years of searching and expeditions by numerous groups and individuals, none has actually obtained even a fleeting glimpse of the animal. However, for those who have been in the Himalayas for other purposes, Yeti has been somewhat more forthcoming about putting in a personal appearance. Reinhold Messner , mountain climber extraordinaire and the first man to conquer Everest without the aid of oxygen tanks, had a chance encounter with a Yeti while at his base camp.

Messner was out in the moonlight stretching his legs when he noticed a strange animal covered in reddish-brown hair not fifty metres away. It was about the same size as an average man and appeared to be searching the snows for something to eat. A Sherpa guide joined Messner in witnessing the animal's antics before it sprang away and bounded off into the darkness. Messner now claims that Yeti is nothing more than evry large brown bear, a somewhat contradictory statement to his earlier claim to have seen the enigmatic unknown animal of the Himalayas.

Although there have been relics of the Yeti on display in monasteries in Nepal and Tibet these have been discounted as genuine artifacts relating to the creature also known as Meta Kangmai in some regions. A finger bone from the mummified hand of one of the creatures was smuggled out of Nepal by the late American actor Jimmy Stewart at the behest of Peter Byrne who obtained the relic from a Nepali monk who he had supplied with copious amounts of a local alcoholic beverage before taking the finger bone into his possession. Subsequent identification of the remains by Dr W.C. Osman-Hill who identified the finger bone as being something less than human. Further reading on this subject is available in Loren Coleman's book Tom Slick and the Search For the Yeti, Faber and Faber 1989. What has happened to the bone is as great a mystery as the yeti itself. It seemingly has been lost and we will not know for certain whether it was indeed a relic from a cryptid or the remains of dead Nepali.

Renowned Sasquatch investigator Peter Byrne was also one of the original searchers on the 1950s expeditions to find the Yeti. Byrne recounts his experiences in his book, The Search For Bigfoot , Pocket Books, 1975 and includes references to his discovery of what appeared to be beds constructed by Yeti in a number of caves. This would make Yeti a possible relation of Sasquatch in that they both seem to have the ability to assemble rudimentary constructions.

With so many expeditions on the waiting list to climb the mountains of the Himalayas it is a wonder that few have reported seeing a Yeti or its traces the past few years. Perhaps Yeti has retreated into more hospitable climes where he no longer needs to awake to the sight of human pollution in the form of the rubbish left behind by some environmentally unfriendly expeditions. Or perhaps he has ventured off to the Tien Shans to look for his friend the Almas who is featured in the next section.

In 1998 two yetis were sighted by an American climber and his Sherpa porters, thus raising the hope of the yeti research fraternity that the species has not gone over the brink of extinction as a result of the large-scale encroachment on its territory by the human race.