Underground There are some stories about what we would probably call monsters living under the ground. There are people who think there is more paranormal activity in caves and caverns than we suspect, while others believe there are animals, prehistoric creatures and unknown life down there. One has only to look at what many believe are alien underground bases. By alien I mean extraterrestrial. Could it be that some of the creatures which have been seen can’t be tracked down because they hide in underground places? Why is it our ancient ancestors built entire cities underground, some so large they could hold over 20,000 people and all their animals? We still are not sure why, but we suppose they did this to get away from their enemies. Several of these large cities have been found and a lot more smaller digs. People used to think underground meant protection and even in the nuclear age we again looked to underground shelters to protect ourselves from attack. If we think this way, could animals and creatures feel safer hiding from us underground? Underground shelters for monsters have been written about in fiction and one of the greatest stories is the Time Machine by H.G. Wells. When a time traveler goes deep into the future, he finds the Morlocks who live underground and raise humans to eat. There have been stories about fire breathing dragons which were found underground and many other types of monsters. It seems we humans are fascinated by these types of stories. If we go back to the 1800s, we find reports of cattle being pulled down under the ground. Witnesses in the province of Goyaz, in Brazil reported a huge worm like creature living underground and named it the Minhocao. They said it was over 75 feet long and could even reach 150 feet at the maximum. It was described as having tentacles and very sharp teeth. An article about the monster appeared in the American Journal of Science. These worms were said to be so huge they left furrows as they traveled under the earth. There are those who think some of our monster legends could be true. It is often said if we look deep enough into some legends, we will find seeds of truth in them. When people talk about Mothman and its many sightings they wonder where it has gone. Could it have gone underground and went into hibernation? Caves have been associated with all sorts of creatures for thousands of years. There are certain creatures which are only seen years apart and some wonder if it is because they go to a cave and sleep for years and then reemerge. There have been many Bigfoot sightings along with Yeti, Skunk Apes and other related creatures, but where do these creatures go to hide. Many are betting they hide underground. It seems reasonable to think that if they have any intelligence, the creatures that is, could there be some huge cave which if we went into deep enough, we might find all sorts of monsters hiding in? Would these creatures, if they exist, be able to get along with each other? Even if there are no monsters in caves there are plenty of stories of people being trapped in them and even dying. Think about this, you decide to explore a cave and start going deeper and deeper. You have to force your body through some very narrow openings and finally decide you have had enough and start to come back, but you lose your way and never find your way out, or the narrow opening you came through is now blocked by a large boulder that fell from above it and you can’t move it. What could be scarier than that? There are so many stories about cave tragedies, it is hard to know where to start. I guess the Mossdale Cavern Disaster is a good place. The cave is located in England. A man named John Ogden decided to go exploring in the cave with five of his friends in 1967. They managed to go about 2 miles deep into the cave when tragedy struck. What had happened was it had started to rain and that became a downpour which made the creek outside the cave rise. Water started to pour into the cave and reached the explorers and began to rise quickly. It became obvious if something wasn’t done, they would all drown. John Ogden managed to get his head into a crack above where there was a small air pocket. There was no room there for anyone else. His companions all drowned and when he was found days later, he was also dead. There is a story about some boys coming across a mine out west. It had been abandoned and was posted against entering. The boys knew the mine had been closed for many years and there would be no one there so they entered. After walking about a half mile into the cave they came across a man sitting on the ground with his back against the side of the mine. They asked him if he needed any help. They were very surprised to see anyone there. He didn’t answer and just looked at them. The boys got spooked and decided to leave and walked a few steps but turned to the man but he had vanished. They believed they had seen the ghost of a former miner. When you go into underground caves they can be occupied and I am not talking about by people. I am talking about animals like bears. One case is a little different. A Boy Scout leader was dragged into a cave by a bear and mauled, but three of his scouts were able to rescue him. They tried to lure the bear out with snacks, but that didn’t work, but a dog that was with them scared the bear away. Paiute Indians have a legend of fighting a battle with Red haired giants in a cave. It was said the giants ate some of the Indians. This was disregarded by the white community as being just a legend, but then something happened. Archaeologists found a cave which looked like the one the Indians had described. Inside the cave were hundreds of arrows and the bodies of two red headed giants. The cave was also full of artifacts and it is said they are on display at a museum in Winnemucca, Nevada. The male giant was said to be 8 feet tall and the female 6.5 feet tall. The story was carried in the Salem News in 2010. There have been many stories of red haired giants also in other countries.
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