Review: Monsterquest 3-11-09

On this episode, the areas around Pikes' Peak, Colorado are being searched for a predator which kills elk. Several witnesses are interviewed as to their sightings and footprint finds. The creature is said to have a bellowing cry. Kathy Lell, a historian, has been researching stories of a manlike beast for over 35 years, and a story from 1881 is recreated of a sighting of a Bigfoot-type creature. Two miners were involved, but only one of them actually saw it, and it is described as a cross between human and gorilla. A biologist named Bill Heicher is skeptical, and thinks that the lack of physical evidence is proof to him that there is nothing to the sightings. A fellow named Keith Foster is profiled, and has been researching it for over 15 years. He has catalogued over 100 sightings. A series of photos of tracks from 10,000-11,000 feet is shown which seem to be tracks of the Snowbeast. An expedition is mounted up to find the beast, being done by helicopter. Paul Drexler is using the latest in thermal technology to attempt to photograph a Snowbeast from the air. The camera he has is heat recognizing. The chopper they use is especially designed for this type of terrain in the high mountain peaks. Some nasty weather seems to be moving in, so the chopper crew must hurry. The temperature is getting noticeably colder as they fly. They believe they may have something before the first commercial break. Witness Jeff Dysinger, a professional guide, had a face to face sighting in 1999 with a hairy hominid. Foster believes it is not a coincidence that Dysinger's sighting was near elk; he believes that they prey on elk as a predator. He believes they migrate with the elk populations. A G.I.S. expert works with Foster on the migration patterns, a Chris Markuson. Bill Given, a WIldlife Biologist, says it is even difficult to track known animals successfully, much less unknown animals. Their findings so far is that the creatures frequent the higher elevations, the mountainous wilderness regions. These sightings occur between October and April, which would seem to rule out bears since that is their hibernation season. The winter sightings range from 7,300-9,000 feet, while during the summer, they are 1,000 feet higher. A team on horseback sets out to search valleys as well. A military-trained tracker with over 30 years experience is leading the ground team. Signs of activity which are old are found by the ground team, evidence mainly of elk. They find a cave which seems to be occupied by a predator, most likely a cougar given how narrow the cave is. The cave is actually an old mine, which the ground team is a bit hesitant to investigate the mine due to not knowing what might be in there and also fear of cave-ins. They do, however, put a camera close to the mine entrance to see what, if anything, is coming in or out of the cave. Getting back to the air search, a line of tracks is filmed from the air, but it is hard to tell from the air what the tracks are made by. The track-maker is revealed to be a coyote. The air team lands, but is encouraged that the area is ideal. Bill Brice, an area fisherman, took photographs at the Eagle River of tracks in 2000. Heicher is intrigued by the photos, and does not think they are bear, human or hoax. An Eagle County deputy is also intrigued by the photos, and his resources believe the track-maker to weigh between 400-700 pounds. Ecologist Jim Halfpenny of the Track Education Center is called upon to use his expertise to attempt to explain the photos. He is also intrigued by the photos, and believes they are one of two things-a hoax or true-bill. Heicher is conducting an interesting experiment to indicate whether or not the footprints photographed are real or fake. They are also conducting an experiment to see if changes in weather patterns could possibly affect more mundane tracks and form them into large humanlike tracks. Another witness who has had two encounters, Dan Trujillo, is interviewed and says he heard rocks clacking high up in the Rockies, and heard some sort of yell. Dan and his father saw a large hairy biped walk away from them, frightening their dog. More exploration is done, experiments are conducted, and the results are...well, I won't give too much away. I have to say, this was a rather intriguing episode. I would give it a 4 out of 5 stars.