'Bigfoot' fever grips Malaysian rainforest
Bigfoot fever is gripping Malaysia, with local newspapers and the official news agency reporting sightings of a huge ape in southern rainforests.

In one reported sighting, an indigenous man claimed he saw a three-metre-tall ape standing on two legs beside a river in heavy rainforest in Johor state, the director of the state's national-parks service told Reuters on Sunday.

"He said it was hairy all over, like a gorilla," said Hashim Yusoff, director of Johor National Parks Corp.

Mr Hashim took and a group of park rangers and journalists into the Sungai Madek forest reserve last week in four-wheel-drive vehicles to ask Indigenous people in the area about the reported sightings.

He said he was keeping an open mind and wanted to enlist scientists to prove whether the beast was fact or fantasy.

"We are collecting a database on the sightings," he added.

Mr Hashim denied he was staging a publicity stunt to lure more visitors to the area.

But with latest remake of the movie King Kong and bigfoot-spotting almost an industry in itself, there are bound to be suspicions.

"No way. If there's any suggestion that we are using this one to get publicity, it's not true," Mr Hashim said.

The Malaysian press is enjoying the story, running headlines like "Rangers on the trail of Bigfoot" and "Villagers' close encounter with Bigfoot".

One newspaper published a picture of a large but vague impression in mud, calling it a footprint.

Villagers’ close encounter with Bigfoot

STORY AND PIC BY FARIK ZOLKEPLI

KLUANG: It looks human but has fur the shades of dark red and black covering its face and body, stands about 4m tall and lets out a loud roar.

That is how the orang asli villagers from Batu 25, Kampung Punjat Sungai Nadik, in Kahang, about 190km from Johor Baru, described a creature known as siamang or better known as Bigfoot.

One of the villagers supposedly even had a 15-minute standoff with the creature and has stopped going into the jungle alone.

A 40cm to 50cm footprint of the Bigfoot discovered in Mawai, Kota Tinggi, recently. The print was found in mud after a group of workers tracked down the creature to a river.
Recalling his horrifying experience four months ago, Amir Md Ali said he was catching frogs in the Gunung Panti jungles to sell when he stumbled upon the creature.

“I was heading to my favourite spot when I suddenly saw this tall creature about 30m away.

“I was trembling with fear as the creature stared at me,� he said, adding that he did not move for about 15 minutes.

Amir, who initially thought the creature would leave, decided to run when the creature continued to stare at him.

“I did not look back and continued running until I reached my village,� he said, showing a clearing in the jungle where the standoff occurred to some 50 people who took part in an expedition to gather information on the Bigfoot sightings in the state.

The one-day expedition, led by Johor National Parks director Hashim Yusof, comprised park officials and press members.

Another villager, Herman Deraman, 21, or better known as Along, had a closer encounter with the creature in the woods.

“I was resting one night in a wooden hut on stilts after a long day of collecting bamboo strips.

“Suddenly, the hut started shaking violently,� he said, adding that soon after that, he heard a loud roar that sounded like that of a wild beast.

That incident kept him awake the whole night.

The next day, he encountered the creature again but this time at the place he usually gathered bamboo.

“I thought I saw a tree shaking but after a while, I realised there was a huge creature sitting down and rubbing itself against the tree.

“Luckily, the creature did not see me as its back was facing me,� he said.

Kampung Punjat Sungai Nadik is home to about 30 orang asli families who earn a living by gathering and selling produce collected from the jungle. 

Hashim said the expedition was aimed at ascertaining the truth on the existence of the Bigfoot.

“We want to uncover the truth about this creature and also quash any rumour that can scare away visitors to the national park,� he said, adding that some 124,000 people visited the parks annually.

Hashim said they were also compiling a database on Bigfoot or orang mawas sightings at various spots.

One Bigfoot, one big footprint

(Daily Mail Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)IT has long been local legend, something to terrify villagers in the remote jungles of Malaysia.

But after several recent sightings, the idea that big, hairy, manlike creatures may be living deep in the rainforest is starting to be taken a whole lot more seriously.

The evidence that something really might be out there has even led the Malaysian government to begin a hunt for Bigfoot - as the creatures have become known.

The fever began when wildlife officers spotted a family of the hair- covered beings walking through the thick undergrowth.

Then there was the discovery of a large footprint about 17 inches long pressed into the leaves on the jungle floor.

Although difficult to make out at first, the three officers who claim to have seen Bigfoot say it is more than enough proof that they have not lost their minds.

'Oh yes, we believe the men who saw these animals,' said Vincent Chow, an adviser to the Malaysian Nature Society. 'I've been hunting for Bigfoot myself for years, and my father before me, so I know they aren't making it up.' Villagers and fishermen who live on the fringes of the Endau-Rompin National Park, 300 miles south of the capital Kuala Lumpur, have been reporting Bigfoot sightings for generations.

Mr Chow said even his grandfather had seen Bigfoot, called the 'snaggle-toothed ghost' by locals because of its crooked molars.

So what did the forestry workers see? 'They were building a fish pond on the edge of the jungle when they saw two large creatures, covered in hair and accompanied by a young one, come out of the jungle,' said Mr Chow.

'The men ran one way and the Bigfoots ran the other, each group terrified of the other.

'But after a while the men plucked up courage to return and found a number of footprints in the leaves.' The workers alerted a member of the local nature society, who took pictures. They also found brown hair snagged on a branch nearby which reeked of body odour.

'We're definitely on to something-said Mr Chow, who has persuaded the government to set up infrared cameras in the area to try to capture the creatures on film.

The recent sightings are certain to excite cryptozoologists - enthusiasts who study phenomena such as North America's Bigfoot and the Abominable Snowman in the Himalayas.

Although bulging files exist for the Endau-Rompin National Park, sceptics say the sightings are of sun bears, the smallest in the world.

But Mr Chow pointed out: 'Sun bears don't have 17-inch feet.'

Official Bigfoot tracking team being formed in Malaysia And what are they planning to do even if they find the beast? Besides maybe sending a picture to Megadeth.