Original subtitles

Josh: ON THIS EPISODE OF "EXPEDITION X,"

MY TEAM TREKS DEEP INTO THE CAMBODIAN JUNGLE...

THERE IS A MONSTER LIVING IN THIS FOREST.

♪♪

...TO TRACK A TERRIFYING CREATURE...

[ GROWL ] DID YOU HEAR THAT?

JESS, WE GOT A CAVE.

- JUST SAW SOMETHING RUN ACROSS. - ALL RIGHT.

Josh: ...THAT'S NOW ON THE ATTACK.

- COME HERE. NO, PHIL. - PHIL, PHIL, PHIL.

- HOLY -- - OW!

MY NAME IS JOSH GATES.

IN MY TRAVELS, I'VE EXPERIENCED STRANGE THINGS THAT DEFY LOGIC

AND MADE ME QUESTION EVERYTHING.

OH, MY GOD.

NOW, I'VE PUT TOGETHER A TEAM

TO INVESTIGATE THE STRANGER SIDE OF THE UNKNOWN.

LET'S GO.

Josh: PHIL TORRES IS A SCIENTIST

WHO HUNTS FOR RATIONAL EXPLANATIONS.

THIS IS INCREDIBLE. WE'VE ACTUALLY FOUND TOMBSTONES.

Josh: JESSICA CHOBOT'S PARANORMAL RESEARCH

HAS MADE HER A TRUE BELIEVER.

THERE IS A MONSTER LIVING IN THIS FOREST.

PHIL, PHIL, PHIL, I JUST SAW SOMETHING RUN ACROSS.

Josh: TOGETHER, WE'RE SEARCHING FOR ANSWERS...

WHAT IS THAT?

...TO THE WORLD'S MOST EXTRAORDINARY MYSTERIES.

THIS IS "EXPEDITION X."

- -Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

PHIL AND JESS, THE CASE THAT WE'RE TACKLING TODAY

IS ONE THAT I'M SUPER INTRIGUED BY.

AND ONE OF THE REASONS I'M SO INTRIGUED BY IT

IS BECAUSE I'VE ACTUALLY HAD MY OWN FIRSTHAND EXPERIENCE.

ABOUT 10 YEARS AGO, MY TEAM AND I DISCOVERED

AND CAST A SERIES

OF ENORMOUS MYSTERIOUS FOOTPRINTS IN THE HIMALAYAS

WHILE INVESTIGATING REPORTS OF THE YETI.

THAT ONE IS A BEAUTY. LOOK AT THAT.

THAT ONE IS CLEAR AS DAY.

WHAT DO YOU THINK THAT IS? IT'S A BIG ANIMAL.

THIS LOOKS LIKE A CLEAR, ALMOST LIKE A HUMAN FOOTPRINT.

SO YOU ACTUALLY FOUND REAL YETI FOOTPRINTS?

WELL, THAT'S THE QUESTION.

THEY'RE REAL, THEY'RE FOOTPRINTS.

THE QUESTION IS, WHAT ARE THEY FROM?

AND EVER SINCE THIS HAPPENED,

I HAVE BEEN OBSESSED BY THE IDEA THAT THERE COULD BE UNKNOWN,

UNCATALOGED PRIMATES OUT IN THE WORLD.

THIS IS SOMETHING THAT REALLY SPANS THE GLOBE.

EVERY CULTURE, EVERY CONTINENT MAKES REFERENCE

TO THIS KIND OF BIGFOOT-LIKE CREATURE.

AND WITH THAT MANY SIGHTINGS

AND THAT MANY STORIES, I JUST DON'T THINK

IT'S SOMETHING YOU CAN EASILY WRITE OFF.

YES, YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.

HERE IN THE STATES, WE THINK OF THIS AS BIGFOOT.

IT'S THE YETI IN THE HIMALAYAS,

BUT THERE ARE SO MANY VARIANTS OF THIS STORY.

IN AUSTRALIA, THEY CALL IT THE YOWIE.

IN CHINA, IT'S CALLED THE YEREN.

IN CENTRAL ASIA, IT'S CALLED THE ALMAS.

AND IN FACT, NEARLY EVERY CULTURE DOES HAVE

ONE OF THESE MYSTERY PRIMATE STORIES.

AND LOTS AND LOTS OF PEOPLE CLAIM TO SEE THEM.

SO, PHIL, YOU'RE OUR RESIDENT BIOLOGIST HERE.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? IS SOMETHING LIKE THIS A POSSIBILITY?

I WILL ADMIT THAT THERE'S A POSSIBILITY.

IT MAY BE SMALL, BUT WHEN YOU LOOK AT SOME OF THE EVIDENCE,

IT'S HARD TO EXPLAIN AWAY.

YES, IT'S A STORY THAT SPANS THE GLOBE,

BUT I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO LOOK AT IT REGIONALLY.

AND CERTAIN AREAS HAVE MORE OF A BIOLOGICAL PLAUSIBILITY

THAT SOMETHING LIKE THIS COULD EXIST.

AND IN TERMS OF A REGION WHERE THERE'S BEEN

A LOT OF INTERESTING EYEWITNESS REPORTS,

TODAY WE'RE GOING TO TURN TO SOUTHEAST ASIA.

THERE IS SOMETHING REALLY UNUSUAL GOING ON

IN CAMBODIA RIGHT NOW. CHECK THIS OUT.

LOCALS CALL IT THE TEK TEK OR THE [SPEAKS FOREIGN LANGUAGE],

AND IT HAS EARNED ITSELF A UNIQUE AND FEARSOME REPUTATION.

THOUGH CAMBODIA IS HOME TO MORE THAN 800 SPECIES OF MAMMALS,

BIRDS, AND REPTILES,

LARGE APES ARE NOT KNOWN TO INHABIT THE REGION.

AND YET FOR CENTURIES, LOCALS HAVE TOLD STORIES

ABOUT A TERRIFYING APELIKE CREATURE THEY SAY

INHABITS THE MOST REMOTE AREAS

OF CAMBODIA'S 500 MILLION ACRES OF JUNGLES.

DUTCH TRADERS IN CAMBODIA WROTE ABOUT THEM IN THE 1700s.

DURING THE VIETNAM CONFLICT IN THE '60s AND '70s,

U.S. SERVICEMEN AND NORTH VIETNAMESE FORCES

NEAR THE CAMBODIAN BORDER FILED OFFICIAL

AFTER-ACTION REPORTS

OF ENCOUNTERS WITH FEARSOME APELIKE CREATURES

DURING FIREFIGHTS.

SOLDIERS CALLED THEM ROCK APES BECAUSE THE BEASTS

REPORTEDLY RESPONDED TO RIFLE AND MACHINE GUN FIRE

BY THROWING ROCKS.

MORE RECENTLY, TERRIFIED VILLAGERS IN WESTERN CAMBODIA

DESCRIBE ENCOUNTERS WITH A BIGFOOT-LIKE CREATURE

MORE THAN SEVEN FEET TALL, AGGRESSIVE,

FEROCIOUS, FOUL-SMELLING,

AND AT TIMES EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.

NOW, AS HUMANS ENCROACH FURTHER

INTO THIS JUNGLE HABITAT, SIGHTINGS ARE INCREASING.

WILDLIFE RESEARCHERS, PARK RANGERS, HUNTERS,

AND HIKERS HAVE ALL DESCRIBED THE TEK TEK

AS SOMETHING MORE THAN LEGEND.

THEY INSIST IT'S A FLESH-AND-BLOOD CREATURE.

SO THERE WE GO. YOU LOOK INTRIGUED.

YEAH, I'M VERY INTRIGUED.

I MEAN, THE TEK TEK SEEMS TO BE CREDIBLE.

AND IF WE CAN PROVE ITS EXISTENCE,

THEN THAT MEANS WE COULD POSSIBLY PROVE

THE EXISTENCE OF OTHER MYSTERY PRIMATES.

AND, PHIL, WHAT DO YOU THINK?

YOU KNOW I LOVE ME A GOOD JUNGLE MYSTERY.

YES. AND THE WAY I SEE IT,

WE ARE IN A GOLDEN AGE OF DISCOVERY, OR REDISCOVERY,

BECAUSE WE HAVE ALL THIS NEW TECHNOLOGY

TO PUT TO USE IN THE FIELD THAT WASN'T EVEN AVAILABLE

TWO OR THREE YEARS AGO. RIGHT.

SO THERE HAVE BEEN NEW MONKEYS DISCOVERED IN TANZANIA

AND THE CONGO, THERE'S A NEW SPECIES

OF ORANGUTAN IDENTIFIED IN INDONESIA,

NOT FAR FROM CAMBODIA. RIGHT.

SO THERE ARE MYSTERIES OUT THERE YET TO BE DISCOVERED.

I'M NOT SAYING IT'S A TEK TEK,

BUT THERE COULD BE SOMETHING THERE

IN THE JUNGLES OF CAMBODIA WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO FIND.

WHICH BRINGS US BACK TO THESE STORIES OF THESE U.S. SERVICEMEN

WHO CLAIMED TO SEE SOME SORT OF APELIKE CREATURE

DURING FIREFIGHTS IN VIETNAM AND CAMBODIA DURING THE WAR.

NOW, I'D ONLY EVER READ ABOUT THESE ACCOUNTS UNTIL NOW.

I ACTUALLY WAS ABLE TO TRACK DOWN ONE OF THESE MEN.

HE'S A GREEN BERET WHO SERVED IN CAMBODIA,

NOT FAR FROM WHERE THESE RECENT TEK TEK SIGHTINGS WERE REPORTED.

AND HE'S AGREED TO GO ON RECORD FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME.

TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT HE AND HIS MEN CLAIMED TO SEE.

MY NAME IS ROBERT GALE.

I ENTERED THE ARMY IN THE LATE '60s.

I TRAINED TO BE A SPECIAL FORCES SOLDIER.

ULTIMATELY, I WAS AWARDED AND EARNED THE GREEN BERET

AND THAT'S HOW I ENDED UP WITH PART OF

THE FIFTH SPECIAL FORCES GROUP IN VIETNAM AND IN CAMBODIA.

WE WERE UNDER DIRECT ORDERS. IT WAS A CLASSIFIED MISSION.

AND THE WEIRDEST ENCOUNTER I EVER HAD WAS

ON -- LATE ONE AFTERNOON.

IT WAS VERY DARK. WE ENCOUNTERED AN ATTACK.

I'LL NEVER FORGET, THE POINT MAN STOPS,

HE SAW SOMETHING AND HE POINTED UP.

AND I TOLD THE PEOPLE AROUND ME, "LOOK UP, LOOK UP."

AND WE LOOKED UP, AND HE SAW SOMETHING CLIMBING THE TREE.

SAW IT SCAMPERING UP, APELIKE HUMAN FORM,

SOMETHING THAT I'VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE.

OUR POINT MAN, HE GOT PELTED WITH A ROCK,

AND THEN WE ALL STARTED GETTING PELTED WITH ROCKS.

WHEN I FIRST BECAME ALERT TO WHAT WAS HAPPENING IN THE TREES

AND I SAW THE MOVEMENT, IT WAS BLACK, NO CLOTHES.

I COULD SEE IT WAS CLUMPED WITH DIRT AND MUD.

I COULD SEE THE EYES,

WHICH WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT IN THE TREES,

IT TENDS TO SCARE YOU. IT WAS KIND OF A FOUL ODOR.

YOU KNOW, THE HAIR'S KIND OF BUSHY AND MATTED

AND IT WAS JUST STRANGE AND VERY UNNERVING.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

I MEAN, EVERYTHING THAT HE MENTIONS

IN REGARDS TO THE THROWING OF THE ROCKS, THE BAD ODOR,

IS ALL CONSISTENT WITH OTHER REPORTS

THAT I'VE HEARD AND READ ABOUT REGARDING TEK TEK.

AND, PHIL, WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF IT?

YOU KNOW, I CERTAINLY BELIEVE THEY SAW SOMETHING

AND EVEN WERE ATTACKED BY SOMETHING,

BUT I'M JUST NOT CONVINCED OF WHAT IT WAS.

AND TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION,

I'D LIKE TO SEND THE TWO OF YOU ON A MISSION

DEEP INTO THE JUNGLES OF NORTHWESTERN CAMBODIA.

ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT.

- YOU READY FOR THIS? - Both: YEAH.

THIS IS THE AREA WHERE THIS GREEN BERET AND HIS MEN SERVED.

IT'S ALSO THE AREA WHERE THE MOST RECENT

TEK TEK SIGHTINGS HAVE BEEN REPORTED.

IT'S ALSO AN AREA WHERE AN ANCIENT RUINED CITY

CALLED MAHENDRAPARVATA WAS RECENTLY REDISCOVERED.

IT'S A FASCINATING PLACE,

BUT THE VILLAGERS WHO LIVE THERE, REMEMBER,

THEY BELIEVE THAT THIS MYSTERY PRIMATE

IS NOT ONLY REAL, THEY BELIEVE IT'S DANGEROUS.

THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF RECENT ATTACKS.

SO YOUR MISSION IS SIMPLE.

FIND OUT WHAT THESE PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY ENCOUNTERING.

ALL RIGHT. SOUND GOOD?

GREAT. YEAH. YEAH, LET'S DO THIS.

Josh: PHIL AND JESSICA HEAD TO SIEM REAP,

200 MILES NORTH OF THE CAPITAL OF PHNOM PENH.

THIS IS A LAND OF TEMPLES AND TUMBLED STONE,

A GATEWAY TO THE GLORIES OF THE PAST,

AND TO THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE ANGKOR EMPIRE.

IT IS ALSO THE REGION OF THE COUNTRY

WITH THE LARGEST CONCENTRATION OF TEK TEK SIGHTINGS.

THE INVESTIGATION BEGINS AT ANGKOR WAT.

WOW. HERE WE ARE.

WHOA. THIS IS SO COOL.

Josh: THIS 400-ACRE SITE WAS INITIALLY CONSTRUCTED

AS A HINDU TEMPLE IN THE 12th CENTURY.

AND ACCORDING TO THE CARVED RECORDS ON THE WALL,

IT TOOK MORE THAN 300,000 WORKERS

OVER 35 YEARS TO BUILD IT.

TODAY, THE RUINS ARE AN EVOCATIVE REMINDER

OF THE POWERFUL KINGDOM

THAT ONCE ROSE FROM THE JUNGLES OF SOUTHEAST ASIA.

- SO WE'RE MEETING NICK UP HERE. - ALL RIGHT.

Josh: I'VE CONNECTED MY TEAM WITH MY FRIEND,

AUTHOR AND JOURNALIST, NICK RAY,

WHO'S AN EXPERT ON CAMBODIAN CULTURE AND HISTORY.

- HI. - SO GOOD TO MEET YOU.

- NICK. GOOD TO MEET YOU. HI. - NICE TO SEE YOU.

Josh: NICK NOTES THAT THE RESIDENTS OF THIS REGION

HAVE LONG SHARED SPACE WITH THEIR PRIMATE BRETHREN,

FROM THE PIGTAILED MACAQUES THAT NOW OVERRUN ANGKOR WAT,

TO ANCIENT HINDU IMAGERY THAT ADORNS THE TEMPLE WALLS.

THE DETAILS PRESERVED IN THESE WALLS --

THIS IS AMAZING.

AS YOU SEE, IT'S SHOWING ALL THESE EPIC CHARACTERS

FROM HINDUISM, INCLUDING HANUMAN, THE MONKEY.

Josh: OFTEN REFERRED TO AS THE MONKEY GOD,

HANUMAN IS A WARRIOR DEITY PROMINENTLY FEATURED

IN AN EPIC HINDU POEM

ABOUT CAMBODIA'S ORIGINS, CALLED "THE REAMKER,"

AND APPEARS ALL OVER THE WALLS OF ANGKOR WAT.

HE MAY ALSO HAVE SERVED AS FOLKLORIC INSPIRATION

FOR THE CREATURE SEEN IN THE JUNGLES TODAY.

THEY MAY ACTUALLY RESEMBLE WHAT A TEK TEK LOOKS LIKE.

WHAT TYPE OF WRITTEN RECORDS OR EVIDENCE

IS THERE ABOUT THE TEK TEK?

MAINLY IT COMES FROM THESE EARLY EUROPEAN EXPLORER ACCOUNTS

THAT DESCRIBES FROM LOCAL TRIBES,

THE HORROR OF THIS JUNGLE CREATURE.

Josh: IN THE 17th CENTURY, A FRENCH EXPLORER

NAMED HENRI BEAUDASSIN

WAS THE FIRST TO WRITE ABOUT THE TEK TEK.

WHEN HE VISITED WESTERN CAMBODIA,

LOCAL TRIBESMEN SPOKE OF A GIANT APELIKE BEAST

FIERCER THAN ANYTHING ELSE IN THE JUNGLE,

A KIND OF MONSTER THAT WOULD ATTACK VILLAGERS.

AS TIME WENT ON, SIMILAR STORIES OF GIANT APE ATTACKS

STARTED POPPING UP ALL OVER THE JUNGLES OF SOUTHEAST ASIA.

AND WHAT'S BEEN THE MOST RECENT SIGHTING?

NOT SO FAR FROM HERE, THE HOLY MOUNTAIN OF PHNOM KULEN,

THE BIRTHPLACE OF THE KHMER EMPIRE,

THERE'S SOME PEOPLE UP THERE,

AND THEY ALSO HAVE THE SAME STORIES

WHERE THE TEK TEK WOULD ATTACK PEOPLE.

WOW. INTERESTING.

HOW DO PEOPLE SEE THE TEK TEK NOW?

DO THEY SEE IT AS A PROTECTOR OR AS SOMETHING TO FEAR?

THEY SEE IT AS DANGEROUS.

DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT YOU WANT TO AVOID

AND YOU CAN SEE PALPABLE FEAR ON LOCALS WHEN THEY TALK ABOUT IT.

THEY BELIEVE, AND THEY'RE SCARED.

♪♪

BLOODY TAIL.

- IT'S BEEN SCRAPPING. - OH, SOMEBODY GOT IN A FIGHT.

YEAH.

Jessica: THOUGH SOMETIMES AGGRESSIVE,

THESE MONKEYS ARE USUALLY NO THREAT TO HUMANS.

THOUGH IF YOU IMAGINE THEM SCALED UP TO 10 TIMES THIS SIZE,

THEY'D BE TERRIFYING.

IT'S ONE THING TO TALK ABOUT THESE LITTLE GUYS HERE,

BUT WHAT PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT WITH THIS TEK TEK,

IT REMINDS ME ACTUALLY OF THE GIGANTOPITHECUS.

THIS WAS A FACTUAL THING,

THAT THERE WAS AN APELIKE CREATURE

ROAMING AROUND THIS AREA

AS RECENTLY AS A HUNDRED THOUSAND YEARS,

WHICH IN EVOLUTIONARY TERMS, THAT'S PRETTY RECENT.

IT'S CERTAINLY PLAUSIBLE THAT A SPECIES COULD

CONTINUE TO EXIST HERE THAT JUST HASN'T BEEN SEEN.

Phil: THERE'S PRECEDENT FOR THE DISCOVERY OF SPECIES

THAT WERE BELIEVED TO BE MERE LEGEND.

NORSE MYTHOLOGY IMMORTALIZE THE FEARSOME KRAKEN,

A TENTACLED MONSTER RUMORED TO ATTACK SHIPS.

IT WAS MOST LIKELY INSPIRED BY SIGHTINGS

OF THE ELUSIVE GIANT SQUID,

WHICH WASN'T SEEN BY CAMERAS UNTIL A JAPANESE TEAM

CAPTURED FOOTAGE FROM A DEEP SEA MISSION IN 2004.

WITH MUCH OF CAMBODIA'S JUNGLES STILL LARGELY UNPOPULATED,

IS IT POSSIBLE THAT THIS REGION COULD BE HIDING A GIANT PRIMATE

LIKE THE TEK TEK?

Jessica: WE ACTUALLY HAVE A MAP OF RECENT SIGHTINGS.

OH, FANTASTIC. LET'S TAKE A LOOK.

- YEAH. - THIS IS OUR WORKING THEORY

- RIGHT NOW. - YEP.

UP IN THIS AREA OF VIRACHEY NATIONAL PARK,

THAT'S WHERE A LOT OF THE OLDER SIGHTINGS

WERE FROM SEVERAL YEARS AGO.

AND NOW IN THIS AREA, JUST NORTH OF WHERE WE ARE NOW,

THERE'S BEEN A BUNCH OF RECENT SIGHTINGS.

AND THAT FASCINATES US. THAT'S WHERE WE WANT TO GO.

YEAH, THAT'S THE HOTSPOT.

WELL, THAT'S, YEAH, YOU'RE LOOKING AROUND PHNOM KULEN

AND THE LOCATION OF THE LOST CITY OF MAHENDRAPARVATA.

RIGHT. YOU KNOW, JOSH WENT TO MAHENDRAPARVATA

AND WAS TELLING US ABOUT IT, AND AT THE TIME

HE WAS ONE OF THE FIRST PEOPLE TO GO THERE.

AND IT'S REALLY REMARKABLE

HOW A PLACE THAT BIG HAS BEEN THERE THE WHOLE TIME.

IT'S THE PERFECT EXAMPLE OF HOW LEGEND AND ORAL HISTORY

ACTUALLY TURNED OUT TO BE TRUE.

YEAH. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY.

WITH ALL THE NEW ARCHEOLOGICAL FINDINGS THERE,

IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A LOT MORE HUMAN ACTIVITY

HAPPENING IN THAT AREA, WHICH COULD FLUSH OUT WILDLIFE.

CERTAINLY HUMAN ENCROACHMENT,

AND THAT'S CERTAINLY GOING TO HAVE AN IMPACT

ON ALL THE WILDLIFE, INCLUDING ANY POSSIBLE TEK TEK.

YEAH. JUST MORE EYES TO SEE THE THINGS.

MM-HMM. ABSOLUTELY.

Josh: NICK OFFERS TO CONNECT PHIL AND JESS

WITH A PROMINENT WILDLIFE BIOLOGIST

WORKING AT A RESEARCH STATION HIGH ON THE MOUNTAIN.

THAT IS, IF THEY CAN REACH HIM.

AND KEEPING THAT IN MIND, IT'S PRETTY TOUGH TO GET TO.

THE TERRAIN IS INCREDIBLY REMOTE.

IT'S REALLY DEEP JUNGLE. THIS IS THE WET SEASON

AND THERE'S ONLY KIND OF ONE SMALL ROAD UP THERE.

WELL, THAT IS NOT GOING TO BE A DETERRENT FOR US

BECAUSE WE ACTUALLY HAVE A PLAN.

WE'RE HOPING A RIDE TO AN OUTPOST

ON THE EDGE OF CIVILIZATION

WHERE THE REAL DANGERS OF THE CAMBODIAN JUNGLE AWAIT --

DEADLY INSECTS, VENOMOUS SNAKES,

AND HOPEFULLY THE STRANGE CREATURE

THAT'S TERRIFYING LOCALS.

♪♪

Josh: MY INVESTIGATORS, PHIL TORRES AND JESSICA CHOBOT,

HAVE TOUCHED DOWN IN SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA,

TO LOOK INTO RECENT REPORTS OF A MYSTERIOUS APELIKE CREATURE

KNOWN AS THE TEK TEK.

Josh: NOW, THEY'RE FLYING OUT OF THE CITY,

BOUND FOR THE HOLY MOUNTAIN OF PHNOM KULEN

TO MEET A BIOLOGIST AND HIKE

TO THE ONCE-LOST CITY OF MAHENDRAPARVATA,

THE EPICENTER OF THE RECENT SIGHTINGS.

YEAH.

Phil: THIS IS THE WETTEST TIME OF YEAR,

WHEN THE AREA WE'RE FLYING OVER GETS 75% OF ITS RAINFALL.

WITH STORMS DUMPING WATER TWO OUT OF EVERY THREE DAYS,

MANY OF THE LOCAL RIVERS OVERFLOW.

THAT MEANS MUCH OF THE FOREST AREA

WHERE WE WILL BE TREKKING COULD BE HIT BY DEADLY FLOODS.

YEAH.

COME ON.

♪♪

Josh: THE TEAM LANDS AT A REMOTE JUNGLE OUTPOST,

WHICH IS AS CLOSE TO THE LOST CITY AS THEY CAN GET BY AIR.

♪♪

THE SUN DROPS AND THE TEAM HEADS INTO THE VILLAGE

TO MEET THEIR CONTACT, WILDLIFE RESEARCHER,

GREG McCANN.

GREG IS THE PROJECT DIRECTOR FOR HABITAT I.D.,

A GROUP WHOSE MISSION IS TO PROTECT THE PLANET'S

ENDANGERED WILDLIFE AREAS.

HE HAS AGREED TO TAKE PHIL AND JESSICA

TO THE OUTSKIRTS OF MAHENDRAPARVATA,

WHERE AN ALLEGED APELIKE BEAST

HAS REPORTEDLY ATTACKED SEVERAL VILLAGERS

IN THREE SEPARATE INCIDENTS.

[ THUNDER CRASHES ]

WHAT'S INTERESTING ABOUT THIS AREA

IS THAT THERE ARE SO MANY INDIGENOUS GROUPS.

YES, THAT'S RIGHT.

AND THEY ALL SPEAK DIFFERENT LANGUAGES.

I THINK THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST

LANGUAGE DIVERSE AREA IN THE WORLD.

PROBABLY.

AND THEY PROBABLY ALL HAVE A WORD

FOR SOMETHING LIKE A TEK TEK.

YES, THAT'S RIGHT.

MY TAKE ON IT IS THIS IS ACTUALLY THE REAL THING.

NOT TO MENTION BOTH THE NORTH VIETNAMESE ARMY

AND THE AMERICAN G.I.s

CLAIMED TO HAVE SEEN AND FIRED ON THIS THING.

I BELIEVE THAT PEOPLE WHO SAY THEY'VE SEEN IT

BECAUSE THEIR DESCRIPTIONS ARE CONSISTENT

OVER A LARGE GEOGRAPHICAL AREA,

AND THESE DESCRIPTIONS GO BACK CENTURIES.

- TAKE A LOOK AT THIS. - OOH, YEAH.

YOU'RE FAMILIAR. THERE'S THE OLDER ONES OVER HERE --

YEAH, BUT LOOK AT THAT.

THERE'S SO MANY SIGHTINGS

HAPPENING IN AND AROUND THAT PLACE.

SOME OF THESE LINE UP WITH WHAT I HAVE.

THIS IS ACTUALLY WHAT THEY'RE CALLING

THE MOST DANGEROUS PLACE THAT --

NOT A LOT OF LOCAL PEOPLE WANT TO GO UP THERE.

THERE ARE CAVES UP HERE. THIS IS HARDER TO GET TO.

IT'S MORE REMOTE. IT'S LIKE A HOTSPOT OF ACTIVITY.

Jessica: THE AREA ON THE MAP IS ONLY EIGHT MILES AWAY,

BUT GREG SAYS WITH THE ROUGH TERRAIN,

IT WILL TAKE US AN ENTIRE DAY TO GET THERE.

TOMORROW MORNING, WE'RE TAKING IT ON.

PERFECT. LET'S DO IT.

♪♪

YOU GUYS HAVE HANDLED MACHETES BEFORE?

YEAH. OH, YEAH.

ALL RIGHT, LET'S DO THIS. Jessica: IN THE MORNING,

WE PACK UP OUR THERMAL AND INFRARED CAMERAS

PLUS SOME AUDIO RECORDING EQUIPMENT

AND HEAD OUT WITH GREG AND HIS LOCAL COLLEAGUE

DO YUK IN SEARCH OF THE TEK TEK.

I PUNCH IN THE GPS COORDINATES

FOR THE EASTERN RUINS OF MAHENDRAPARVATA.

THAT'S WHERE THE TEK TEK HAS BEEN SPOTTED MULTIPLE TIMES

AND GREG HAS PUT HIS CAMERA TRAPS

HOPING TO CAPTURE DEFINITIVE PROOF

OF THE CREATURE'S EXISTENCE.

♪♪

ALL RIGHT, WATCH YOUR STEP HERE. ALL RIGHT.

GUYS, CHECK THIS OUT. LOOK AT THIS SCORPION.

HE LOOKS TICKED.

THIS THING IS READY TO STRIKE. LOOK AT THAT.

THIS IS THE ASIAN FOREST SCORPION,

AND I SWEAR THEY ARE EVERYWHERE.

YOU FLIP ANY LOG, YOU WILL FIND A SCORPION.

THIS IS ACTUALLY A JUVENILE.

THEY GET PROBABLY FIVE TIMES BIGGER THAN THIS.

OKAY.

GOOD JOB FINDING THE MOST PAINFUL THING IN THE FOREST.

YOU KNOW?

[ GRUNTING ] [ EXHALING ]

- AND WE GOT A RIVER. - Jessica: UGH!

Josh: GREG POINTS OUT THAT IF THEY TRAVEL BY RIVER,

THEY COULD SHAVE HALF A DAY OFF THEIR JOURNEY.

A RAFT, I THINK, IS PROBABLY...

- YEAH. - ...OUR OWN BEST OPTION.

DO YUK, DO YOU THINK WE COULD BUILD A RAFT?

YES...

♪♪

HE WILL MAKE US AN UNSINKABLE CRAFT.

DO YOU WANT TO GO GRAB THOSE VINES?

- YEAH. - IT'S STARTING TO LOOK LIKE

A LITTLE RAFT.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? WE GOING TO FLOAT?

NO, I DON'T THINK... [ LAUGHTER ]

YOU DON'T THINK WE'RE GOING TO FLOAT?

- DO YUK, COME ON. - HE'S GOT A GOOD SENSE OF HUMOR.

- OKAY, READY? - READY.

UGH! WHOO!

HEY, IT'S FLOATING. Jessica: NICE.

ALL RIGHT, I'LL GO ON THE BACK AND PUSH.

YOU GOT UP FRONT STEERING? I'LL STEER, YEP.

- SEE YOU DOWNSTREAM. - YEAH.

[ GRUNTS ]

♪♪

Josh: RIVERS IN THE CAMBODIAN JUNGLE

HAVE DANGERS ON, IN, AND AROUND THEM,

FROM VENOMOUS SWIMMING SNAKES LIKE THE KING COBRA

TO ALL MANNER OF DEADLY PARASITES.

IT'S DEFINITELY MUCH SAFER TO BE ON THE RAFT THAN IN THE WATER.

PADDLE FORWARD.

- ALL RIGHT, LOOK OUT. - OKAY.

- WE GOT... - YEAH.

...A BIG BRANCH UP AHEAD.

♪♪

- WHOO! WHOO, OOH. - GOT IT?

STAY TO THE RIGHT UP HERE.

ALL RIGHT, WE'VE BEEN ON THE RIVER FOR A COUPLE HOURS NOW.

MAKING UP GOOD GROUND.

STILL GOT A WAYS TO GO, BUT WE WILL GET THERE.

THERE WE GO. ONE, TWO, THREE.

GOT IT. [ GRUNTS ]

Josh: THE TEAM PULLS ASHORE AT THE SPOT

CLOSEST TO THE RUINS OF THE LOST CITY.

THEY'RE NOW WITHIN TWO MILES OF WHERE THE TEK TEK

WAS REPORTED TO HAVE ATTACKED SEVERAL VILLAGERS.

HOW ARE WE LOOKING, JESS? GETTING CLOSE?

UH, YES. WE'RE GETTING --

WE'RE ALMOST JUST ABOUT THERE. ALL RIGHT.

♪♪

IS THIS WHAT I THINK IS?

LET ME CHECK. YEAH. GPS SAYS WE'RE HERE.

WOW. THIS IS THE LOST CITY OF MAHENDRAPARVATA.

WOW!

♪♪

Josh: PHIL AND JESS ARE IN THE JUNGLES OF CAMBODIA

IN SEARCH OF THE GIANT APELIKE CREATURE KNOWN AS THE TEK TEK.

THEY ARE TREKKING WITH GREG McCANN

AND HIS ASSOCIATE DO YUK,

WILDLIFE EXPERTS WHO HAVE PLACED REMOTE TRAIL CAMERAS

IN THE VICINITY OF A RUINED ANCIENT CAPITAL.

Phil: IS THIS IS WHAT I THINK IT IS?

LET ME CHECK. YEAH. GPS SAYS WE'RE HERE.

WOW. THIS IS THE LOST CITY OF MAHENDRAPARVATA.

WOW! THIS IS IT. YEAH, THIS WAS THE OLD CAPITAL.

300 YEARS PREDATING ANGKOR WAT.

Josh: THE CONSTRUCTION OF MAHENDRAPARVATA

IN THE YEAR 802 MARKED THE BEGINNING OF A POWERFUL EMPIRE

THAT STRETCHED THROUGH WHAT IS TODAY CAMBODIA,

THAILAND, LAOS, AND VIETNAM.

IT THRIVED FOR MORE THAN SIX CENTURIES.

IT WASN'T UNTIL 2012

THAT SCIENTISTS LEARNED OF ITS TRUE SIZE.

AND RECENTLY VILLAGERS WORKING AROUND THESE SPRAWLING RUINS

CLAIMED TO HAVE SPOTTED THE ELUSIVE BEAST

KNOWN AS THE TEK TEK.

LIDAR SAYS ALL OF THIS WAS THE SIZE OF BERLIN.

WE'RE JUST SEEING A SMALL, SMALL PORTION.

SO, ALMOST ALL OF IT IS STILL BURIED.

- YEAH. - SO YEAH, THIS THING IS HUGE.

Josh: LIDAR SCANNERS EMIT MILLIONS OF LASER PULSES

AND CAN DIGITALLY STRIP AWAY

THE JUNGLE CANOPY, IN THIS CASE, TO REVEAL A LOST CITY

STRETCHING ACROSS 20 SQUARE MILES.

BUT AT GROUND LEVEL, YOU'D HARDLY KNOW IT.

DOWN HERE, THE SITE IS OVERGROWN

AND CRAWLING WITH ALL MANNER OF LIFE.

♪♪

- IS IT NOT STINGING? - NO.

- NO WAY. [ LAUGHTER ]

HANG ON. I GOT TO GET SOME.

OH, IT TASTES LIKE... McCann: THEY ARE GOOD.

THEY ARE REALLY GOOD. ...LIKE A LIME DORITO.

Jessica: YOU'RE SUCH A LIAR. I AM NOT.

THAT TASTES BETTER THAN TARANTULA AND SCORPION.

- OH. - IT IS ACTUALLY PRETTY GOOD.

- IT'S GOOD! - RIGHT? THEY'RE DELICIOUS.

WOW. NO WONDER HE WAS HUNGRY. YOU'RE LIKE GRINNING.

OH, MY GOSH. THESE ARE REALLY GOOD!

YEAH.

IT'S LIKE GETTING THE LAST CRUMBS OUT OF A BAG OF CHIPS.

YEAH.

Josh: AFTER A LIGHT LUNCH, PHIL AND JESS TURNED THEIR ATTENTION

TO THE GPS COORDINATES OF THE TRAP CAMERAS

THAT GREG AND HIS TEAM HAVE PLACED CLOSE BY.

WE'RE REALLY, REALLY CLOSE.

WE SHOULD HEAD RIGHT ON OVER THAT WAY.

YEAH. ALL RIGHT, THEN. I SAY WE GET GOING.

OKAY, YEAH.

Phil: WE MOVE INTO THE SUSPECTED TEK TEK HABITAT WITHIN A MILE

OF SEVERAL RECENTLY REPORTED ENCOUNTERS AND ATTACKS.

THERE ARE OTHER DANGERS HERE TOO --

LEOPARDS, TARANTULAS,

AND EVEN DEADLY PIT VIPERS INHABIT THIS REGION.

AND EVEN GREATER DANGER ARE THE MILLIONS OF LAND MINES

LEFTOVER FROM THE CAMBODIAN CIVIL WAR.

IN OTHER WORDS, WE WATCH EVERY STEP.

WHOA. OH, LOOK AT THIS GUY.

WHAT DID YOU FIND? LOOK AT THIS.

McCann: OH, WHAT DO WE GOT HERE?

THAT LOOKS LIKE A BEAR CLAW MARK,

BUT IT'S A LITTLE BIT THIN.

Jessica: THIS COULD TOTALLY BE THE TEK TEK.

AGAIN, IT'S VERY POSSIBLE.

WE'VE GOT PHOTOS ON THE CAMERA TRAP.

BECAUSE IF WE'VE GOT A CLAW MARK HERE,

A CAMERA TRAPS NOT FAR AWAY. ALL RIGHT.

LET'S GO CHECK THAT OUT. OH, AMAZING.

♪♪

YEAH, WE'VE GOT THE CAMERA RIGHT HERE.

LET'S DO IT. NOTHING I LIKE MORE THAN THIS.

IT SHOULD BE IN. HERE WE GO.

YEAH. WHAT DO YOU GOT?

YEAH, THE CLOUDED LEOPARD. WHOA. WOW.

IT'S ACTUALLY THE SMALLEST OF THE BIG CATS.

THESE THINGS ARE SO BIZARRE. WOW.

WHAT ELSE?

- ALL RIGHT. - OOH, [BLEEP] THAT?

WE GOT BIG LEG...

AND THAT LOOKS LIKE ANOTHER LEG OF SOME SORT.

I CAN'T TELL WHAT THAT IS.

IT COULD BE THE BACKSIDE OF A BEAR.

- I'M NOT SURE. - THAT'S TOO BIG FOR THE BEAR.

LOOK AT HOW THICK THOSE LEGS ARE.

THAT IS A THICK LEG. THAT IS REALLY THICK.

AND I DON'T THINK -- WAIT, WHAT'S THERE DOWN ON THE BOTTOM?

IS THAT, IS IT LIKE -- IS THAT A KNEE OR A HEEL?

IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE A BLACK BEAR EITHER.

Phil: GREG'S CAMERA TRAPS

HAVE CAPTURED IMAGES OF BEARS IN THIS REGION,

AND THEY ARE KNOWN TO LEAVE CLAW MARKS ON TREES.

BUT THIS IMAGE COULD BE OF SOMETHING DIFFERENT.

WE IMMEDIATELY SCOUR THE AREA FOR SIGNS OF PRINTS OR SCAT

BEFORE RETURNING THE CAMERA TO ACTIVE DUTY.

AND IT IS ARMED.

ARMED AND READY. AND IT IS READY.

♪♪

Phil: WE CONTINUE OUR TREK TOWARDS THE EPICENTER OF THE SIGHTINGS MAP,

AND I FINALLY SEE ANOTHER CREATURE

I'VE BEEN HUNTING FOR -- LEECHES.

OH, LOOK AT THIS THING! HANG ON. THIS IS PERFECT.

LEECHES. I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR THESE.

I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR THESE.

I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR THIS FOREVER BECAUSE INSIDE OF THESE,

WHATEVER THEY DRINK THE BLOOD OF, THERE'S A DNA IN THERE.

- EXACTLY. - SO IF WE COLLECT

A BUNCH OF THESE, WE CAN ANALYZE THE DNA

AND FIGURE OUT WHAT ANIMALS ARE LIVING OUT HERE.

I MEAN, THERE'S BEEN SO MUCH RAINFALL

THAT I'M SEEING PUDDLES EVERYWHERE.

I BET IF WE CHECK THESE PUDDLES, WE'LL GET MORE LEECHES.

YEP, THERE'S SOME MORE RIGHT THERE.

- WOW. THEY ARE EVERYWHERE. - OH, THEY'RE SO GROSS.

THIS IS WHAT I CALL SCIENTIFIC GOLD RIGHT HERE.

ALL RIGHT, LET'S GET THIS GUY IN.

YI!

SO WHAT YOU'RE SAYING IS, WHATEVER ANIMAL,

A LA A TEK TEK, THE BLOOD WOULD BE IN THERE.

LET'S IMAGINE A TEK TEK

IS HYPOTHETICALLY OUT HERE... UH-HUH.

...AND IT'S INTELLIGENT.

I DON'T CARE HOW INTELLIGENT YOU ARE,

YOU'RE STILL GOING TO GET LEECHES YOU.

POTENTIAL TEK TEK PROOF IN THAT LITTLE JUG OF SLIMY LEECHES.

♪♪

Phil: LEECHES PRESERVE DNA EVIDENCE OF WHATEVER THEY FED ON

FOR ABOUT SIX MONTHS.

I'LL SEND THE SAMPLES TO A LAB,

AND WE'LL KNOW WHAT KINDS OF MAMMALS

ARE INHABITING THIS AREA.

♪♪

[ RUSTLING ]

WHAT IS THAT? SHH.

LISTEN. WHAT IS THAT?

IT'S NOT GOOD.

♪♪

♪♪

Josh: PHIL, JESS, AND LOCAL WILDLIFE EXPERTS

ARE IN THE THICK OF THE CAMBODIAN JUNGLE

SEARCHING FOR THE ELUSIVE APELIKE CREATURE

KNOWN AS THE TEK TEK.

AFTER CAPTURING AN INTRIGUING IMAGE

ON A TRAIL CAMERA OF AN UNIDENTIFIED ANIMAL,

THE TEAM SUDDENLY HEARS SOMETHING IN THE BUSH.

[ RUSTLING ]

WHAT IS THAT? SHH.

OH, THAT'S A PERSON.

THAT IS A PERSON, YEAH. IT'S PROBABLY A POACHER,

AND I WOULD SAY IT'S A GOOD CHANCE HE'S ARMED.

Josh: POACHERS ARE ONE OF THE BIGGEST DANGERS

IN THE JUNGLES OF CAMBODIA.

IN RECENT YEARS, THE COUNTRY HAS EMERGED AS A KEY REGION

FOR THE MULTIBILLION-DOLLAR ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE.

[ GUNSHOT ]

ONE 250-POUND ELEPHANT TUSK CAN FETCH MORE THAN

A QUARTER OF A MILLION DOLLARS ON THE BLACK MARKET.

WITH SO MUCH AT STAKE, POACHERS HAVE BEEN KNOWN

TO PROTECT THEIR ILLEGAL LIVELIHOODS WITH DEADLY FORCE.

[ GUNSHOT ]

THESE GUYS DON'T REALLY LIKE TO BE SEEN IN THE FOREST.

THEY DON'T LIKE TO BE APPROACHED.

LET ME HANDLE IT. I'LL TALK TO 'EM.

HEY.

[ INDISTINCT CONVERSATION ]

♪♪

HOW WAS THAT?

YEAH. I TOLD HIM WHY WE'RE HERE,

THAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR THE TEK TEK.

AND I USED THE CAMBODIAN WORD, THE [SPEAKS FOREIGN LANGUAGE].

WITHOUT A MOMENT'S HESITATION,

HE SAID THAT HE SAW THE TEK TEK DOWN BY THE RIVER'S EDGE.

OH, MY GOD.

HE SAYS HE'S ACTUALLY SEEN IT,

OR SOMETHING VERY MUCH LIKE THAT,

DOWN BY THE RIVER OVER THERE, KIND OF WHERE WE'RE HEADED.

ALL RIGHT, WE GOT TO GET DOWN THERE.

♪♪

Jessica: LOOKS LIKE WE'RE ABOUT TO HIT ANOTHER SECTION OF THE RIVER.

♪♪

Phil: WITH THE SUN GOING DOWN, WE FIND THE AREA

WHERE THE POACHER CLAIMED TO HAVE HIS SIGHTING,

ABOUT HALFWAY BETWEEN THE EDGE OF THE RUINS

OF MAHENDRAPARVATA AND THE NEARBY RIVER.

THAT TEK TEK SIGHTINGS TEND TO OCCUR NEAR A RIVER MAKES SENSE.

MOST LARGE PREDATORS, WHETHER A BEAR,

OR EVEN A THEORETICAL SEVEN-FOOT APE MAN,

HUNT NEAR FRESH WATER.

THAT'S WHERE THEIR PREY ARE AT THEIR MOST VULNERABLE,

WHEN THEY'RE STOPPING TO DRINK.

THIS HABITAT IS ABSOLUTELY PERFECT FOR THE TEK TEK.

WE HAVE THE RIVER. WE HAVE A STREAM OF FRESH WATER.

WE HAVE FRUITING TREES, AND WE HAVE AN EYE WITNESS.

SO I THINK WE NEED SET A PERIMETER OF THE TRAIL CAMP,

JUST TO SEE WHAT'S AROUND HERE. UH-HUH, OKAY.

WHILE GREG AND DO YUK

ARE SETTING UP CAMP A SAFE DISTANCE AWAY,

JESSICA AND I LOOK TO POSITION CAMERAS

IN THE LIKELIEST PLACES TO CAPTURE WILDLIFE ACTIVITY.

WHAT ARE WE LOOKING FOR? LIKE, WHAT KIND OF TREE--

SO YOU SEE THIS RIGHT HERE?

YOU SEE HOW IT ALMOST LOOKS LIKE A TRAIL?

THIS IS A GAME TRAIL.

DO YOU THINK A TEK TEK WOULD USE A GAME TRAIL AS WELL, THEN?

EVERY BIG MAMMAL, BASICALLY. THEY'RE KIND OF LIKE US.

IF THERE A TRAIL, THEY'LL TAKE IT.

YEAH. MAKES IT EASIER? YEAH, ABSOLUTELY.

WELL, I FEEL EXCEPTIONALLY SAFE STANDING IN THIS GAME TRAIL NOW.

[ CHUCKLES ]

GOT EVERYTHING?

I LIKE...THIS.

ARMED. THIS GUY'S SET. ALL RIGHT.

GOT IT? ALL RIGHT,

LET'S MOVE ON TO THE NEXT ONE.

ALL RIGHT. ARM CAMERA.

WE ARE GOOD TO GO.

[ BEEP ]

Jessica: WE TREK AWAY FROM THE TRAIL CAMERAS, MAKE A ROUGH CAMP,

AND SETTLE IN AROUND A FIRE.

THAT'S WHERE GREG SHARES THE STORY

OF HIS OWN ENCOUNTER WITH THE TEK TEK.

I WAS IN THE PARK WITH THREE CAMBODIAN RANGERS.

WE'RE ALL CAMPED OUT IN OUR HAMMOCKS,

WE'RE LISTENING TO THE JUNGLE MUSIC LIKE WE'RE HEARING NOW...

[ IMITATES JUNGLE CHIRPING ]

I'M JUST ENJOYING IT, AND SUDDENLY HEAR --

[ IMITATES CHIRP STOPPING ]

IT STOPPED. I'M LIKE, "THAT'S WEIRD."

IT WENT COMPLETELY SILENT.

COMPLETELY SILENT.

AND THEN THIS ABSOLUTELY AWFUL SMELL DRIFTED IN.

IT LASTED ABOUT ONE MINUTE,

AND THEN SUDDENLY THE SMELL LIFTED,

AND ALL THE INSECTS CAME BACK.

[ INSECTS CHIRPING ]

I ASKED LIKE, "WHAT WAS THAT?" EVERYONE REFUSED TO DISCUSS IT.

THE NEXT MORNING, THEY WANTED OUT.

THEY SAID THAT WAS A TEK TEK.

IT'S ALSO WHAT THEY SAY IN NORTH AMERICA ABOUT BIGFOOT.

THEY SAY IT HAS A TERRIBLE SMELL.

- Both: YEAH. - I MEAN, THAT'S NEXT LEVEL FEAR,

TO NOT EVEN WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT,

NOT EVEN LIKE SAY ITS NAME UNTIL YOU'RE BACK AT THE BASE CAMP.

♪♪

[ THUNDER CRASHES ]

ALL RIGHT, WE GOT RAIN COMING.

[ RUMBLING CONTINUES ]

Jessica: THERE WAS NO WARNING!

[ THUNDER CRASHES ]

WHOA! THAT LIGHTNING IS CLOSE.

WE'RE RIGHT BY A RIVER,

AND YOU CAN ALREADY TELL, THE WATER LEVEL IS RISING.

WE HAVE STREAMS FORMING AT OUR FEET.

WE GOT TO GET OUT OF HERE.

HOLY -- WOW. LOOK AT THIS WATER.

OH, WHOA, THAT CAME UP QUICK.

LOOK AT THAT.

THIS WATER'S RISING FAST. I'M SEEING ROCKS UP HERE.

LET'S SEE IF WE CAN FIND SOME COVER.

Phil: WHILE GREG AND DO YUK MOVE OUR CAMP

AWAY FROM THE FLOODING RIVER,

WE HEAD BACK TOWARDS THE GAME TRAIL AND OUR TRAIL CAMERAS.

I WANT TO GET TO SOME HIGH LAND.

I ALSO WANT TO GET OUT FROM THE TREES, SINCE,

YOU KNOW, LIGHTNING STRIKES.

Phil: THIS IS BAD.

YOU DO NOT WANT TO BE IN THE RAINFOREST

IN THE MIDDLE OF A RAIN STORM.

[ GROWLING ]

DID YOU HEAR THAT? WHAT THE [BLEEP] WAS THAT?

DO YOU RECOGNIZE THAT SOUND?

[ THUNDER RUMBLING ]

♪♪

- I THINK IT WAS OVER HERE. - THIS WAY?

YEAH.

♪♪

[ EXHALES SHARPLY ]

♪♪

[ EXHALES ]

JESS, WE GOT A CAVE.

WOW. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[ RUSTLING ]

THAT'S CRAZY. LIKE...

♪♪

OKAY.

WOW. THAT'S A BIG SPIDER.

♪♪

ALL RIGHT, LET'S GO BACK OVER THIS WAY.

Phil: OKAY.

♪♪

[ ROARING ]

YEAH.

WAIT, DOWN HERE? I DON'T KNOW.

...AND SEE WHAT'S IN THERE. OKAY.

♪♪

PHIL! PHIL, PHIL, PHIL! PHIL, COME HERE.

- COME HERE! - WHAT DO YOU HAVE?

DID YOU SEE IT?

♪♪

PHIL AND JESS'S SEARCH FOR THE ELUSIVE TEK TEK

IS TAKING PLACE ALMOST 100 YEARS

AFTER ANOTHER ATTEMPT TO TRACK DOWN A SO-CALLED MONSTER,

THIS ONE IN INDONESIA.

THAT'S WHEN A WEALTHY AMERICAN EXPLORER

NAMED W. DOUGLAS BURDEN

MOUNTED AN EXPEDITION AND SAILED TO KOMODO ISLAND.

THE GOAL, TO FIND AND CAPTURE EXAMPLES

OF THE ENORMOUS DRAGONS BEING REPORTED THERE,

AND TO BRING THEM BACK TO NEW YORK ALIVE.

WHEN BURDEN FINALLY REACHED THE ISLAND

AND SAW ONE OF THE CREATURES FOR THE FIRST TIME,

HE WAS ASTONISHED.

HE DESCRIBED A HARROWING ENCOUNTER

WITH WHAT LOOKED LIKE A 10-FOOT-LONG PREHISTORIC BEAST.

HE AND HIS TEAM CAPTURED IT,

BUT THE FEROCIOUS CREATURE BIT THROUGH ITS CAGE AND ESCAPED.

THEY BUILT STURDIER ENCLOSURES,

AND EVENTUALLY CAPTURED TWO SPECIMENS,

BRINGING THEM BACK TO BE EXHIBITED AT THE BRONX ZOO.

TODAY, WE STILL CALL THEM KOMODO DRAGONS,

BUT IN FACT, THEY ARE THE WORLD'S LARGEST LIZARD.

♪♪

Jessica: IN OUR SEARCH FOR THE TEK TEK,

CAMBODIA'S SEVEN-FOOT-TALL APE MAN,

PHIL AND I HAVE FOLLOWED A MYSTERIOUS ANIMAL SOUND

TO THIS GIANT CAVE.

WE'RE TRACKING A NOISE DOWN THIS WINDING PASSAGEWAY

WHEN I SPOT SOMETHING ON MY THERMAL CAMERA.

PHIL! PHIL, PHIL, PHIL! PHIL, COME HERE. COME HERE.

ALL RIGHT. WHERE DID...

NO...

YEAH.

Phil: WE CONTINUE SEARCHING THE CAVE,

SCOURING FOR ANY PHYSICAL EVIDENCE

OF WHATEVER MIGHT BE LIVING IN HERE,

OR WHATEVER MADE THAT NOISE.

EVENTUALLY, WE HIKE BACK OUT INTO THE JUNGLE,

WHERE WE CHECK OUR TRAIL CAMERAS.

CAMERAS WILL ROLL LONG AFTER WE LEAVE.

WE THEN RELINK WITH GREG AND HIS PARTNER ON THE MAIN TRAIL,

AND FIND HIGHER GROUND TO CAMP.

BY THE LIGHT OF A NEW DAY, WE CLIMB TO EVEN HIGHER GROUND,

A PLATEAU THAT OVERLOOKS THE VAST JUNGLES

THAT ARE HOME TO THE TEK TEK SIGHTINGS

AND LAST NIGHT'S ACTIVITY.

IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT CRAZY RAIN STORM,

- WE ENDED UP IN THE CAVERN. - Jessica: MM-HMM.

AND WE SAW SOMETHING ON THE FLIR.

- WE GOT TO SHOW YOU THIS. - McCann: SERIOUSLY?

IT'S WEIRD. LIKE, IT DOES LOOK LIKE IT'S STANDING UPRIGHT,

WHATEVER IT IS. YES, RIGHT.

Phil: THERE WAS SOMETHING THERE,

BUT I'M NOT QUITE READY TO CALL IT A TEK TEK.

I THINK THERE'S ENOUGH THINGS OUT THERE

THAT CAN WALK UPRIGHT LIKE THAT.

FOR THAT LONG? AND IT WAS A QUICK VIEW.

I MEAN, THE -- IT'S HARD TO SEE ON THE THERMAL CAMERA.

IT'S GREAT EVIDENCE FOR SURE MM-HMM.

BUT I STILL THINK IT LEAVES A BIG MYSTERY.

THE ONLY PHOTO I HAVE OF SOMETHING THAT WOULD DO THAT

IS A SUN BEAR.

ALSO, I'VE GOT OUR AUDIO RECORDING FROM LAST NIGHT.

YEAH. I MEAN, YOU KNOW THIS RAINFOREST

WAY BETTER THAN I DO, SO WHATEVER WE HEARD,

I'M HOPING YOU'LL BE ABLE TO RECOGNIZE.

I GOT TO HEAR THIS.

WE DEFINITELY HEARD SOMETHING WEIRD.

[ ROARING ]

YEAH.

♪♪

I CAN'T TELL WHAT THAT IS. UM, I DON'T KNOW.

WE FOUND CLAW MARKS THAT WE DON'T RECOGNIZE.

WHOA! WOW. LOOK AT THIS GUY.

- WHAT DID YOU FIND? - LOOK AT THIS.

OOH, WHAT DO WE GOT HERE?

WE'VE GOT AN IMAGE ON YOUR TRAP CAMERA THAT WE CAN'T EXPLAIN.

Phil: AND WE HAD SEVERAL EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS.

HE SAID THAT HE SAW THE TEK TEK DOWN BY THE RIVER'S EDGE.

OH, MY GOD.

YEAH, HE SAYS HE'S ACTUALLY SEEN IT

OR SOMETHING VERY MUCH LIKE THAT.

APELIKE, HUMAN FORM.

IT WAS JUST STRANGE AND VERY UNNERVING.

TO ME, THAT ALL BOILS DOWN TO THE FACT

THAT THERE IS A MONSTER LIVING IN THIS FOREST.

GUARANTEED THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF SPECIES OUT HERE

THAT WE STILL HAVE YET TO DISCOVER.

DOES THAT MEAN ONE OF THEM IS A TEK TEK?

I JUST DON'T KNOW. ALL THESE CAVES,

VERY FEW OF HAVE BEEN EXPLORED BY SCIENTISTS.

TRUE. SO WE COULD EASILY FIND

FOSSIL EVIDENCE OF A HOMINID,

LIKE GIGANTOPITHECUS, THAT COULD HAVE LIVED HERE AT ONE POINT.

OR ACTUAL LIVE EVIDENCE OF A TEK TEK

LIVING IN ONE OF THOSE CAVES RIGHT NOW.

♪♪

Josh: FOR TODAY, OUR INVESTIGATORS WILL HAVE TO AGREE TO DISAGREE,

BUT THE TRAIL CAMERAS WILL KEEP ROLLING.

AND IT'S ANYBODY'S GUESS WHAT THEY'LL CAPTURE NEXT.

AS FOR PHIL'S THEORY THAT THE LEECHES COULD HOLD THE ANSWERS

TO THE TEK TEK MYSTERY, WELL,

THE RESULTS OF THE DNA ANALYSIS FROM THE LEECH BLOOD ARE IN.

IT INDICATES THAT THERE IS PRIMATE DNA PRESENT,

BUT SCIENTISTS ARE UNABLE TO CLASSIFY THE EXACT SPECIES.

SO, WHILE INTRIGUING, IT'S FAR FROM CONCLUSIVE PROOF

OF THE TEK TEK'S EXISTENCE.

JESSICA IS CONVINCED THAT THE CENTURIES OF TEK TEK LEGENDS

ARE BASED ON ACTUAL ENCOUNTERS WITH AN APELIKE HOMINID.

AND MANY LOCALS IN CAMBODIA WOULD AGREE WITH HER.

ADD TO THAT THE CLAW MARKS,

STRANGE IMAGE ON THE TRAIL CAMERA,

MYSTERIOUS AUDIO, THE THERMAL FOOTAGE,

AND THE PUTRID SMELL,

AND YOU CAN SEE WHY SO MANY PEOPLE BELIEVE

THERE COULD BE A MYSTERIOUS CREATURE

LURKING IN THE BACKCOUNTRY.

SOUTHEAST ASIA IS, AFTER ALL,

A PLACE OF MONUMENTAL DISCOVERIES.

THESE JUNGLES STILL HAVE SECRETS TO TELL,

AND IT'S ONLY A MATTER OF TIME

BEFORE THEY YIELD UP MORE INCREDIBLE WONDERS.

♪♪