Adam Davies on Olympic Project
Posted by: Craig Woolheater on June 30th, 2014
PART ONE:THE OLYMPIC PROJECT:
The first part of my expedition, was to the Olympic Project in Washington State,which is headed by Derek Randles. Of course, my friend Dr. Jeff Meldrum is also central to the project as well.
This is a truly beautiful place, and it was a great opportunity to meet up with some old friends and make new ones alike.If you have never been before,I do advise you to go.Its an excellent opportunity to meet other passionate people in the field, and I was impressed by both their depth of knowledge,and their expertise.
You would expect Derek to know his woods, and he does, providing first rate lectures on them and survival techniques as well.
As well as the first rate lecture given by Jeff, I also attended great ones given by Tom Baker and David Ellis, who are working at developing important statistical data and vocal recording expertise which could prove extremely significant in our understanding of Bigfoot.
I also chose to join a night investigation headed by Tom, which was to move towards a nearby lake where there had been a concentration of sightings.
As we headed up the trail, I noticed that debris was falling from an area above us where the treeline had broken due to a sloping bank. afforded a perfect view of the track which we were walking on.Significantly, there was no wind. I decided to try one of the Bigfoot grunts that I had used on a previous expedition last year which had led to a direct interaction with Bigfoots.
I emitted a grunt, and got a grunt back from what I assumed to be an Alpha male.
I then asked the group who were with me,which included Issac John and Shelley Covington-Montana, to wait slightly behind me while I continued to make the grunt, while the male continued to answer me from the same direction, as he appeared to follow me as per my objective.
From the opposite direction, I then got a higher pitched grunt in response, which I assumed was a female.
I was keen to establish both Alpha male activity and a perimeter for Derek to work with. I then proceeded to urinate on the track `marking my territory`. At this juncture, the male emitted a very large grunt,seemingly furious with my activity.
I have since learned that Derek has been back to this area, and also got grunts. It was a fantastic personal result for me that I was able to do a repeated interaction with a Bigfoot, based on my previous research.Importantly,it was witnessed by people who i had never met before until we joined together that night.
The following day I went with a team which included Guy Edwards to the same area in an attempt to gather hair samples for analysis.
I had a wonderful time at the Olympic Project, and was really impressed by the dedication to research shown there.
I have many people to thank, but here are a few. Jeff Meldrum as ever for his insight and knowledge, Tanya for the cats, Guy for the T-shirt, Tom Baker for leading the night excursion, and David Ellis for the sound bites he has sent me.
Shane Corson and his wife helped John and I and were great to me, and helped John and I out. Jes and Shelly kept me entertained all evening, and Shelly provided an excellent D.N.A. testing kit.
I am delighted I could contribute to Derek’s research. He and his wife Torrie were excellent hosts.
The Olympic Project is a place I will certainly return to..I look forward to seeing my friends there again.As soon as possible.
Co-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005.
I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films:
OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou.
adam… always dig your stuff… but alpha males…juveniles, females… calling back etc.
a wee bit of a stretch for me to believe.
there’s not even legit proof these things are real… (first hand sightings are just great stories without proof). even the best proof has lots of holes in it. (people still question the PG film which would be the best, right?)
How can someone say they get calls back from alpha, beta males, juveniles without ever knowing for sure, that these things are real??
I mean… people, bigfoot hunters, will say they are real, that is their belief, cool…. and in the woods, they’ll tend to associate whats unknown (sounds etc.) to support that belief.
hopefully my comments dont start a riot on here…lol… just being serious… and curious… (mostly curious) think everyone’s all over the map with this is a bigfoot… thats a bigfoot… but no ones started at square one establishing the unrefutable proof that these things are real.
grunts, sounds etc… but no one has video or photo proof…. other than the morons who do these stupid hoaxing.
I think then, all this other stuff will have a context…. right now it doesn’t, to me… other people might disagree… and thats totally cool. 🙂
That is a truly fascinating tale! I’d love to have a real interaction some day. Limestone Co. AL Is where I usually go. Nothing yet, but hopeful!
dconstrukt: It seems that the OP is maintaining a more or less continuous presence in the target area. As such, they would be familiar with where hunters were likely to be, and where they would not, or could not.
While I respect the opinions in your post, I sort of object to the implication that you know more about the target area than those who are there, and have been there for some time.
Also, it was a night investigation, which doesn’t totally eliminate hunters as suspects, BUT HOW GOOD DO HUNTERS GRUNT?
😀
Also, is it hunting season?
Hi all!
Dconstrukt. Thanks for your comments 🙂
I think my assertions do have to be assumptive. I think the important point for me is that there were multiple witnesses in attendance there who were able to verify what happened, some of whom I had never met or had any association with before. So of course independent corroboration increases legitimacy… and the experiment has been repeated again sucessfully as you have read. it prove Bigfoot exists to science? No. However, it does show how certain methodology can have repeated success, and could be used to help gather tangible proof such as collecting specimens for D.N.A. analysis. For me personally it is a cracking adventure as well. 🙂
adam…. thanks for the reply… love your outlook on things dude… really sets you apart from most. 🙂
i’m genuinely curious… wasn’t meant to rattle any cages.
goodfoot… you mentioned this: “While I respect the opinions in your post, I sort of object to the implication that you know more about the target area than those who are there, and have been there for some time.”
think maybe you misread the comments…. not sure how you came up with that one… lol… i dont know *anything* about that area or any areas… i live in the city dude. all i’m saying is people are talking about alphas, juveniles etc. but its all assumptions without concrete proof.
A man of science would have reported that an unobserved animal responded with a grunt. Bears, pumas, even deer use grunts to communicate. By saying you assumed it was an alpha male Bigfoot, you’re demonstrating a bias toward one cause over another. The general public will not take your reports seriously until you and your companions understand the difference and act accordingly. Sorry, that’s just the way of the world.
There were plenty of us there who are clearly able to tell the difference between bear and deer grunts. I am demonstrating bias yes, but on the basis of cumulative years of experience in the field, as have those who were with me. Importantly, the experiment was repeated. It is not going to prove Bigfoot exists to science, the public or anyone else. Only D.N.A. will do that. Therefore I am at perfect liberty to express my personal observations and it is important I draw conclusions from them on optimum approach.
PoeticsOfBigfoot:
1. I’ll put people with experience with the subject animal over people with none. In this sense, proof doesn’t matter. One can have evidence sufficient for personal proof without having proof acceptable to the society. The former always precedes the latter. Sorry, that’s just the way of the world.
2. Primate grunts sound different from those of the other animals you cite. The similarity of sasquatch vocalizations to those of other primates has been cited, frequently, by people who have experienced both. Again, I’ll take people with experience with the animals, on the site, over people with none. I don’t think any of us can give an expert opinion if we weren’t there.
3. The ‘general public’ and the scientific mainstream are pretty much ignorant when it comes to this topic. The only thing that will even move the needle with them is a body. Reports like this will only mean anything to people keeping track of what is going on in the field. And that number is extremely small. Shame that, but it too is the way of the world.
here’s the thing…. grunts… knocks etc… how do you guys know a bigfoot made them?
unless anyones seen one doing these things, its all just assumptions.
and with people making these assumptions going out LOOKING for a bigfoot, there is obvious bias, which means nearly anything thats heard or seen is going to get that bias as well.
when you study and understand how the mind works this all makes perfect sense this would happen, its just human nature.
but to me, while super cool to go out and do… and really makes you wonder wtf is out there…the whole thing is flawed.
My assertions about the grunts are based on previous interactions I have had with Bigfoots. All of it has to be assumptive unless it is corroborated scientifically of course.
As a general point though, if it is making people wonder what is out there, then that’s great.
From a field research point of view, its important you try and repeat your results to see what works and what does not. That way, hopefully you will be able to gather the best specimens possible.