GHOST HUNTERS

Upon occasion, a researcher is presented a piece of evidence that makes no sense. Such is the case of the Hand of Unknown Origin. Don Monroe, researcher and adventurer, was called in by a law enforcement official in 2003 because of his background in tracking, hunting and trapping in Montana. They had been given a found hand someone came across not far from a landfill region. Don arrived at the precinct and brought a cast with him of a hand found out in cave areas in his research area. He wanted to compare the two.  The officer was quite shocked to see how similar they were (cast on the left, hand on the right - below). The hand was not exceptionally large, but the fingers and the angle of the palm all seemed to match up with the cast as much as your hand and my hand might match.  They told him that they could not identify where the hand came from, it was obviously not human. The tips of the fingers had been removed and the hand skinned. This was a talented feat, as Don had ski...

Upon occasion, I work with researchers whose time in the field and worldwide range impress the hell out of me. I have been lucky enough to work with Don Monroe on projects and he has shared his 80 years of world exploration and finds. His diligence in long-term studies has been astonishing and he shared with me recently casts he has rendered over the decades from frequently researched locations. Don describes the majority of the handprints from mud and in caves as having a wide variety of looks, some of them mutations of a sort. He has found prints that he found the identical one miles away and that has given him a range of their habitat. After several decades of researching a 50-mile radius in America's Northwestern States, he has come to learn a few things about these hands.  It is interesting to note the hand creases show the same dexterous use of hands that we possess. I had wondered if they might have a single palmar crease as is found in some genetic variations among us such ...

Gather around, my dearies, for tales of phantom islands and shivers of delight. Phantom islands are islands that were drawn on maps long ago, but seem to have gone missing. Hy-Brasil The  Lost Phantom Island of Ireland  is one such island. For ages, Ireland referred to an island by the name of "Hy-Brasil" (and other spellings). It was documented first in 1325 when it appeared on maps. It was described as perfectly round with a channel river running down the center. The people had known of the island and spoke of it, so it being shown on a map was an obvious consequence of documenting the shores of Ireland. It had earned a reputation for being laced in fog most of the time and possibly holding gold or the answer to immortality.  In the 1480s and explorer went out, determined to find it, but could not. Interestingly, one explorer kept pushing further and further and eventually ran into Newfoundland.  A few in the 1600s claimed they had managed to stumble upon it. One s...

abandoned islands are the stuff adventure movies are made up of. We think of "Castaway" or "Swiss Family Robinson," but there are islands that, for various reasons, are abandoned. And what's left behind can be quite intriguing to those of us who are interested in urban exploration. Hashima Island, Japan Hashima Island, Japan From 1887 until 1974, the island of Hashima (Battleship) Island in Japan was used for mining coal. Eventually in the 1970s, the island emptied out and remained that way until recently when they began some limited tours of the site.  Hirta St. Kilda, Scotland Add caption Hirta, St. Kilda, Scotland This isolated island was always inhabited, by no more than 180 people usually, and in 1930, it was emptied out. Today, the only people to go there are researchers and scientists.  Spinalonga, Crete, Greece Spinalonga, Crete, Greece This island once harvested salt and then was a leper colony.  Inishmurray, County Sligo, Ireland Inishmurray, County Sl...