- FRANKFURT (Reuters) - A Tyrolean adventurer said on Tuesday he had destroyed
the legend of the Yeti, the mythical creature that has terrified Tibetans
for thousands of years. Contrary to popular myth, the Yeti or Abominable
Snowman is not a humanoid ape but a large bear and there are about 1,000
roaming Nepal and Tibet, usually at night, Reinhold Messner announced at
the world's biggest book fair. Bearded, rugged-faced Messner, himself a
mountaineering legend since he climbed Mount Everest without using artificial
oxygen in 1978, has devoted his life to tracking the creature after a close
and terrifying encounter in 1986. Over the years, several researchers have
suspected that the Yeti may be a bear. German researcher Ernst Schaefer
expounded the theory after he was commissioned by the Nazis to seek out
the missing link between apes and humans in the 1930s. He even shot a few.
Messner's book ``Yeti,'' unveiled at the Frankfurt Book Fair, claims to
confirm this with the help of photos taken during several encounters. Messner,
who has visited the Himalayas many times, said he had not believed in the
Yeti but changed his mind after he came face to face with a dark creature
one night in 1986 while hiking in a remote forest of eastern Tibet. ``I
came across this indefinable, big, stinking exotic animal,'' he told a
news conference. ``I stood still and he walked off. ``If he had come towards
me I would probably have died of a heart attack before he got to me.''
The creature walked on two legs. Messner said he examined its footprints
and discovered they were similar to a famous 1951 photo of a footprint
taken on a Himalayan expedition which had helped to make the Yeti as famous
as Scotland's fabled Loch Ness monster. ``It's clearly a Tibetan bear,
similar to a grizzly but with longer hair,'' Messner said. It can grow
up to 3.40 metres and can walk on all fours as well as on its hind legs.
It lives at heights of between 4,000 and 6,000 metres (12,000-18,000 feet).
``Its faeces are similar to that of humans because it eats the same food.
That's because it follows humans and steals their food. It's easier.''
The bear is elusive because it mainly travels at night. It can be dangerous.
``It will not harm people if they go out of its way. The local legend has
it that it brings bad luck to anyone who sees it. Messner kept his findings
secret while he was writing the book. Several German newspapers have cast
doubt on his findings. He launched a counter-attack at the news conference,
accusing the media of trying to destroy his reputation. ``I can't help
it if people expected King Kong and didn't get him,'' he said. ``As sure
as I sit here, you will agree with me in 10 or 20 years.''
|
