Beyond the Secret Elephants by Gareth Patterson

Author:Gareth Patterson [Patterson, Gareth]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780639992945
Publisher: Jonathan Ball
Published: 2019-12-13T08:14:22+00:00

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From time to time over the years I have come across what I suspected (but was not always convinced) were otang footprints of a variety of sizes. The most astonishing of these occasions was in March 2007 when I was accompanied by my friend and neighbour, Dominique Diane. As mentioned earlier, ‘Domi’ was a great outdoors person and often accompanied me in the forest, and she was well versed on the subject of the otang.

On yet another clear and bright Sunday, Domi and I headed out north to check a trail camera I had set up to monitor wildlife activity on the lip of a deep valley. Every couple of weeks or so, I would replace the camera’s batteries and the memory card.

After servicing the camera, we headed home at a leisurely pace along a different route.

Just as we entered into the shadows of a pine plantation, I saw on the ground ahead of us small human-like (bare) footprints. We were both somewhat taken aback. Otang immediately and obviously came to our minds.

Using a cigarette lighter for scale, we photographed the footprints (see the photo section). Later at home, calculating the approximate footprint measurement to height ratio (x 6.67),11 if this had been a human child’s footprints, he or she would have been roughly 100 centimetres in height – therefore only about four years old!

We scanned the vicinity for other footprints, but found none. This little individual was apparently moving alone – which was even more surprising. We tracked the little footprints for about a hundred metres along the track before they eventually led off the road and we lost all signs of them on the blanket of pine needles and other vegetation on the ground. We were now almost certain this was a young otang. What human child would be walking barefoot in the middle of a pine plantation, totally alone? It did not make any sense.

Domi and I were amazed but could not think of another explanation. The findings had been doubly verified that day since Domi was with me and she had seen and witnessed what I had seen.

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