The Himalayan region is believed to be inhabited by the Yeti or the Abominable Snowman, making it a part of their mythology and local folklore. Many speculate that the Yeti is, in fact, the endangered Himalayan Brown Bear. British explorer Major L.A. Waddell was the first one to this creature and thus gave birth to its legend way back in 1889. He spotted a set of large footprints in north-east Sikkim, which his servants claimed were those of the ‘yeti’!
He wrote that the trail of footprints which led up to the higher peaks were supposedly of the hairy wild men believed to live among the snows, along with the mythical white lions. He also added that the Tibetans seemed to believe in these creatures but nobody could give him an authentic case in this subject upon interrogation. He, then, concluded that the tracks had been made by a bear.
A royal Geographical Society expedition to Everest in 1921 catapulted the yeti into the international imagination, when they reported to have spotted footprints in the snow at 21,000 ft. Since then many encounters and sightings were reported thus creating Yetimania. While a few considered it to be a ‘demon’, a ‘mythical’ or ‘magical’ creature, few others remained quite skeptical of the whole issue.
Well, the Yeti is once again in the limelight thanks to an American television documentary team, claiming to have spotted enormous footprints in the Himalayan region of Nepal. They took castings from these huge footprints which are approximately 13 inches long and almost as wide between the first and fifth toe.
Josh Gates, an American television presenter and a member of the expedition says that these mysterious prints were relatively fresh and doesn’t believe it to be that of a bear.
But, Ang Tshering, president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association thinks otherwise. He thinks that these footprints, most likely, are those of a mountain bear, as they show five toes whereas legend has it that the Yeti supposedly has four toes. Nevertheless he does believe that a mysterious animal exists in that region of which man has to learn a lot.
Source: Dailymail