Destination Truth (2007) s05e03 Episode Script
Ghosts of Cannibal Village; Kapre
- On this episode of "Destination Truth".
.
My team journeys across Fiji looking for the ghosts of men devoured by a cannibal tribe.
Deep in the island's interior, at a former cannibal village, this tropical paradise turns into a paranormal nightmare.
If you feel you were wronged, please let me know.
Next, my team blazes through the wilderness of the Philippines in search of a deadly monster.
In the crumbling remains of a former military base, we discover that this mythical creature is more than just a legend.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Back up, back up! Hold on! I'm Josh Gates.
In my travels, I've seen some unexplainable things, and I've done some things I can't quite explain.
Now I've pulled together a team armed with the latest technology in search for answers to the world's strangest mysteries.
I'm not sure what's out there waiting for me, but I know what I'm looking for.
.
The truth.
Just a few generations ago, an English Missionary named Thomas Baker and his followers attempted to convert a remote tribe in Fiji to Christianity.
Despite meeting their Chief and spending the night in their village, the next morning, they were murdered, ripped limb from limb, and devoured by the cannibal villagers.
Now, the modern-day descendants of the tribe believe the ghosts of the reverend and his disciples remain, and are haunting the cursed village of Nabutautau.
The villagers are really insistent that this place is haunted.
They claim they hear the sounds of screaming, crying.
They see apparitions moving around in the jungle at night.
It's pretty terrifying stuff.
For years, the locals have tried to put the spirits to rest by asking Reverend Baker's descendants for forgiveness, and performing rituals of exorcism.
However, nothing has silenced the unexplained supernatural activity in the village.
And so, despite the risks ahead, we've packed up our gear and set out in search of a paranormal cannibal village hidden deep in the South Pacific.
From our headquarters in Los Angeles, my team and I flew 5,500 miles Best airport ever.
We made quick work of exiting the airport, picked up a car, and hit the road.
Okay, everybody, welcome to Fiji.
Yeah! We're going to a cannibal village.
Boo! Can't win 'em all.
We began by driving 120 miles east across the island to the city of Suva.
At the Fiji museum, we got a grisly look at the history of cannibalism, including Reverend Baker's actual shoe.
The one part of him too tough for the villagers to consume.
To learn more about this unimaginable tradition, I spoke with a local archaeologist.
Talk to me a little bit about the history of cannibalism here in Fiji.
In just that one village? And tell me a little bit about Reverend Baker and what became of him.
All right, since this is still an active village.
We're going to bring some gifts.
Perfect, like a bouquet of flowers, maybe some Jenga.
A game would be nice.
A traditional offering is Kava Root and Tobacco.
We'll try to find both in the local market.
Sure.
Yeah.
What.
.
That's fine, too.
We arrived in the market and began our search for the intoxicating Kava Root.
The eye-catching local fashion stopped us in our tracks.
Oh, my God.
Look at you.
Full dental hygienist.
I do need my teeth cleaned.
I was also puzzled by the variety of unusual-looking souvenirs.
What is this? - A cannibal fork? - Yes.
And what would somebody eat with this? Ma'am, I don't eat enough brains that I think I need this in my life.
Cannibal weapons were everywhere, and though they were old, they still seemed incredibly effective.
Does this thing work? It really does.
This thing works great.
Sorry, buddy.
Before the entire crew could get tribal on each other, I was fortunate enough to find the Kava Root I was looking for.
This is Kava.
The longer it is, the longer it's been growing.
This is like ten or 11 years growing in the ground.
How do you know so much about Kava? I used to be a Kava dealer when I was younger.
Did some time for it in juvie.
With our shopping done, we left the paved roads behind and headed 60 miles deep into the island's interior.
My plan was to retrace Baker's journey by first visiting another former cannibal village called Sautabu, where he preached just days before his brutal demise.
The cannibals there cooked their victims in an isolated cave, which is now rumored to be haunted with a powerful supernatural presence.
After two hours of driving, we arrived in the village, where a local Ambassador granted us a meeting with the tribe's powerful Chief.
Though cannibalism isn't practiced any more, tribal law still rules, and I'd need his permission to explore the cave.
Luckily, he shared a drink with me signaling his approval.
We were immediately led out of the hut, and while my team celebrated our acceptance with the locals, I spoke with the Chief's Ambassador to learn more about the local paranormal activity.
Tell me about this.
.
This cave that's near the village.
The tribe agreed to allow a small group of us to explore the hidden cave, and Tristant, Katy, Dave, and I immediately headed out on foot.
A short hike later, we arrived at the foreboding entrance.
Guys, I think we're here.
That's not very inviting.
Alright, let's check it out.
Here we go.
This is not what I thought my trip to Fiji was going to be like.
Oh, my God, look at this.
Look at this place.
Oh, wow.
Huge! So we know that Reverend Baker actually came to this cave right before he went on to Nabutautau.
We know that a lot of people were killed down here in tribal ceremonies.
Guys, check this out.
This must be the cannibal oven.
Oh, my God, there's a bone in it.
Look at that.
There's still scorching and.
.
What look like they might be blood marks on the wall.
Let's definitely get an EVP session going here.
Who knows how many people were cooked in this oven? Is there anybody here? We know that people were.
.
Butchered and cooked inside this cave.
Tell us your name.
- Did you hear that? - Yeah.
All right something moving around back there.
It sounded like a cry.
It did.
It sounded vocal.
Hello.
Oh, right over here.
I see a light.
I see a light! We know that people were.
.
Butchered and cooked inside this cave.
Tell us your name.
Oh, right over here.
I see a light.
I see a light! Dave, come here.
Come here.
I just saw a pinprick of light for a split second.
It was not a reflection.
It was not something coming off the water down there.
It looked like something incandescent.
And I'm pretty sure I got it on this.
I don't even know if it's in focus.
I got it for half a second.
Whatever that was was coming from the direction we came in.
Let's grab the audio recorder and start making our way back out and see if we see it again.
We continued to search the cave, but never found the source of the mysterious light.
We hiked out to the surface.
Cannibal cave, check.
Let's go.
And got back on the road.
This final leg of our journey took us to the heart of the island to the upper village of Nabutautau, where Baker was killed.
Three hours of hard driving later, we arrived in Nabutautau just as night was falling.
Accompanied by our liaison from Sautabu, we sat down with the Chief, who had a special connection to Reverend Baker.
After hearing the Chief's story and getting his blessing, we raced to begin our investigation.
The team quickly unloaded our gear and calibrated our equipment.
Our search would take us through multiple areas.
We'd largely avoid the lower village, home to current residents of Nabutautau, and focus our time on the ridge above, where the allegedly haunted village sits in silence.
We'd focus I.
R.
cameras on huts where noises had been heard, building our base camp in a wide clearing.
We'd then strike out into the thick jungle, searching for the overgrown remains of the Chief's hut where Baker last slept, as well as the Execution Stone where the missionaries were murdered.
It's a really strange investigation.
They got more than a hundred people in this village who believe this whole place is haunted by these missionaries who were killed here.
Now, the Chief's great-great-grandfather is the one who killed Baker, and they obviously feel extremely guilty about what happened, and I wonder if they think their town is cursed because of what they did.
At the same time, though, I don't think guilt can account for a lot of things they're reporting.
This Chief said they've cannibalized hundreds of people, and this is years and years of this.
It's not just one event.
All right, guys, let's check this place out.
Still in pretty good shape.
A lot of spider webs.
An old cooking pot here.
Hopefully not used to cook people.
I don't like it in here.
Look at this.
Looks like a stone altar.
Wow.
Maybe used for some sort of ceremony? Josh? What do you got? What the (Bleep) Is this? Is that blood? It's all over it.
Maybe this thing was used to butcher something or a sacrifice? But there's no other butchering mark.
There's no bones.
There's no nothing.
It's like that just appeared on the rock.
I'm freaking out.
All right, let's get a sample of it for analysis.
Than get your hand cleaned after we get out of this place.
Come on.
What the (Bleep) Is that? Tristant for Josh and Ryder.
Yeah? What's up, Tristant? Hey, guys, uh, I'm seeing some really strange, uh, lights.
- They almost look like eyes.
- They're at the top of the hill.
Um, up by I.
R.
camera number 2.
All right, we're not that far from camera 2.
We're gonna hustle over there and check it out.
Okay, copy that.
Let me know.
All right guys, come on.
Oh, I got something.
I got something.
What do you see? I think I see what Tristant saw.
Hey, Tristant, come in.
I think we figured out your mystery here.
Oh, yeah? What do you got up there? Looks like a couple of horses that were positioned in such a way that their eyes looked like they were floating over the hill.
Okay.
Copy that.
False alarm.
They may be cannibal horses, though.
I haven't determined that yet.
Keep your distance, just in case.
- Let's keep moving.
- All right.
Can we believe people ate other people here? 1867 is when Reverend Baker and his students were eaten.
It's not that long ago, you know? Uh, I guess not in the grand scheme of things.
We have to head up North a little bit and look for that old abandoned village.
See what's out there.
Definitely.
Whoa! Did you see that? Whoa! Did you see that? - What? - Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
What? What do you see? There's literally, like, a shape that just went through there.
Like.
.
Oh, God.
It looked like a figure standing there.
I guess it could have been a shadow, but it wasn't moving.
That was the weird thing.
I'm seeing nothing in the astroscope right now.
Hello? Anybody out there? Yeah, we'll take pictures to see if it picks up anything.
I'm not picking up anything on the visual camera.
Want to keep going? Yeah, now let's keep going.
Guys, there's a huge, huge rock up here.
I can see it on the thermal.
Is that a placard up there? Yeah, there's two plaques.
"Obedience all the way to death".
The reverend Thomas Baker and his Fijian assistants "met their death in this very place".
Right around here should be the.
.
The stone where he was decapitated and the axe which they keep here.
Ryder you check that side, I'll check over here.
Okay.
Pretty powerful stuff.
Katy, this looks like where the villagers told us the Chief lived.
This is definitely a natural fortification.
High stone walls, one entrance.
This is it.
A perfect bench.
This must have been where the Chief sat.
That must mean that the bed that Reverend Baker last slept in is.
.
Right over here.
Oh, yeah, in that clearing.
Well, this is a pretty significant spot.
We should do isolation sessions in this area.
Definitely.
I'll go first.
Yeah.
All right.
Good luck.
This is Richie.
First isolation session at the Chief's spread.
Reverend Baker.
.
If you're out there.
.
Give me a sign.
Hey, Richie, how you doing, buddy? I don't see anything, but I have the chills right now.
You want to come back? Hell, yeah, I do.
On my way.
This is Katy's isolation session.
Audio recorder.
All right, guys, I'm in position and going dark.
Okay, Katy, we're.
.
Richie and I are out here at the entrance.
Call us if you need anything.
Otherwise, good luck in there.
All right.
Thanks, guys.
Is there anyone here with me? It's extremely scary.
I'm at Reverend Baker's last resting place.
To be left.
.
In a complete jungle.
.
All around me.
If you feel you were wronged.
.
Please let me know.
Katy for Richie and Dave.
Go, go, go.
I.
.
I have to leave.
All right.
We're coming to you.
Let's go.
- Oh, my God.
- What the hell? - You guys.
- What the hell's going on? You guys, I just felt something touch my neck.
There's nothing else moving.
There's no wind here.
I'm not picking anything up in the astroscope.
It was just in front of that stone up there.
Hopefully it got picked up in the voice recorder.
I'm sure it did.
It had to.
You okay? It was one of the scariest things to happen to me.
Let's, you know, leave the voice recorder running and head back to base camp.
All right.
Ryder.
Ryder! - What do you got? - I found it.
That's the actual axe that was used to kill him.
Wow.
They keep it here as a remembrance of what their ancestors did.
This is the spot where he was killed.
We should definitely do an EVP session here.
Yeah, absolutely.
We know that this was the site.
.
Of a murder.
We've heard that this area.
.
Contains a powerful energy.
Are you able to demonstrate that energy for us? I'm, like, I'm.
.
I'm freaking out right now.
Are you here with us right now? Were you killed by this axe? - Oh, my God.
Something's right there.
- What do you see? - I hear it.
- I hear it.
Somebody or something is walking through the woods right now.
I hear it clear as day.
Does it sound like it's getting closer to you? It sounds like.
.
Oh, my God (Bleep).
The axe.
Whoa.
Somebody or something is walking through the woods right now.
I hear it clear as day.
Does it sound like it's getting closer to you? - It sounds like.
.
- Oh, my God (Bleep).
The axe.
Whoa.
Did you just move that? No, I didn't touch it.
I didn't touch it.
I'm sure I was 2 meters away from it.
I didn't touch it at all.
I suppose it could've just slipped off the rocks, but neither one of us was near it.
What the (Bleep) Was that? Was that you trying to manifest yourself? Okay.
Well, we got a lot of activity.
All the sounds are coming from down here in this section of the forest.
I say we leave the digital recorder running here.
In case something else moves, we follow the sounds.
Let's get out of here.
Let's go.
We continued to track through the remains of the old village for several hours, but never located the source of the sounds Ryder and Kyle had heard.
With the sun on the rise, we packed up our gear and flew back to Los Angeles to review our findings.
We analyzed the liquid found on the sacrificial altar.
Josh, what the (Bleep) Is this? Is that blood? And while it was ultimately inconclusive, it did show markers for human blood.
We know this is an abandoned village.
There are no sacrifices currently being done there.
Pretty creepy piece of evidence, and kind of hard to know quite what to do with it.
Along with this, we had a number of really compelling personal experiences throughout the night.
This is from Katy's isolation session in the woods.
Check this out.
If you feel you were wronged.
.
Please let me know.
She's obviously reacting to something, so we went back and went through this frame by frame, and if you look just before she reacts, you can actually see that her hair is moved.
Oh, yeah.
It looks like her hair gets brushed aside right before she reacts to it.
Like something's there.
Something touches her hair.
And along with that, we dug into the audio recordings from her isolation session.
Listen to this.
If you feel you were wronged.
.
Please let me know.
There's a breathy voice under there.
You know, often with these personal experiences, you have to set them aside.
But here we have corroborating evidence.
We can see that something touches her, and we can actually hear it as well.
If you feel you were wronged.
.
Please let me know.
Really intriguing stuff, and actually, during our EVP session, we also had some weird experiences.
It sounds like.
.
Oh, my God.
(Bleep).
The axe.
Whoa.
Did you just move that.
No, I didn't touch it.
I didn't touch it.
- I'm sure.
.
- None of us were anywhere near that axe.
It just went down.
In going back through the recording of the question that was asked, right before this, we hear a response.
Were you killed by this axe? That sounds like a scream.
It sounds exactly like a scream.
It sounds vocal.
It doesn't sound like an animal.
It sounds like somebody's letting out a terrified scream.
Were you killed by this axe? I felt a really dark energy when we were there.
Put that together with all this evidence, and it is really a strong case.
This is a place where there was, you know, a real tragedy, and it does seem like that continues to echo today.
Fiji is a tropical paradise with a troubled past.
The modern villagers here are steeped in tradition and as hospitable as any people we've ever met.
But deeper in the volcanic interior, there are cannibal secrets nearly forgotten.
My God, there's a bone in it.
In a village where missionaries were savagely consumed, one can still feel the touch of history.
The sound of torment.
And bear witness to the fact that the dead may be consumed, but they cannot be confined.
Oh, my God (Bleep).
The axe.
In every society there exists a Boogeyman, a terrifying creature rumored to lurk in the darkness.
In the islands of the Philippines, that creature is the Kapre, a towering forest monster with a chilling reputation.
The Kapre is a hulking primate-like monster that attacks anyone who disturbs its territory.
Sightings occur in the lands of the Native Aeta people, the oldest inhabitants of the Philippines who reside in the shadow of the deadly Mount Pinatubo Volcano.
With several locals claiming to have been chased by the beast, and with some tribal members having gone missing altogether, these jungle residents were on high alert.
The Kapre has been sighted in the Philippines for generations.
According to eyewitness reports, it is a lumbering ape-like creature.
It is rumored to lurk in tropical forests and thought to nest in large Acacia trees.
The Kapre is massive, walking on two broad feet and moving through the jungle under cover of night.
His powerful arms shake the surrounding trees and can deliver a bone-crushing blow to his victims.
Witnesses also recall the creature's piercing eyes and unusually foul stench.
With terrified locals clamoring for answers, I assembled the team and packed up our gear in pursuit of a living, breathing nightmare.
We flew 7,300 miles West across The Pacific from Los Angeles to Manila.
Upon arrival, we headed to baggage claim, where we loaded up the largest cart in the world.
I might have overloaded this luggage cart just a little.
Come on, cart.
Don't get crushed in the front.
Aah! The first stop in our investigation will be the local university, but after our long flight, we were ready to eat, so we made a brief stop in Manila's massive downtown shopping district.
- Oh.
Ryder, they got Balut.
- My favorite.
Yeah, we tried that once before.
I remember I think we really enjoyed them.
Yeah, it was a long time ago, but I think it went really well.
It did.
Oh, Balut.
What is it? It is an overdeveloped egg.
So this is the head.
There's a beak in my hand.
I felt it.
It's hard.
I don't think it'll go down.
What do you think? You want to go back for seconds? Oh no.
No.
No.
I remember enjoying it so much that I don't ever have to try it again.
- You sure? - Oh.
Yeah, I'm gonna throw up.
Okay, we got to get across town to interview a Professor at the university.
Right.
We should probably try to find some wheels.
Okay.
The closest thing to cabs in Manila are motorcycles with flimsy sidecars bolted on.
With our first interview several miles away, we crossed our fingers and climbed aboard.
This is probably not legal.
Okay, Sir, this is it.
We'll pull over.
We eventually reached the university.
There we had arranged to meet with a Professor who was an expert on the history of the Kapre.
So describe a Kapre for me.
What is this creature? Are there people who still believe in the story of the Kapre? We grabbed a 4x4 and followed the Professor's advice to search the lands of the Native Aeta people.
This indigenous population lived on the edge of the jungle a hundred miles North of Manila.
Along the way, we couldn't help but notice the colorful assortment of watering holes.
A lot of reputable bars here, though, still.
Eruptions.
Must be about the volcano.
Oh, After School.
Probably a studying place for the kids.
The Drill Shack.
That must be a hardware store.
Hey, Ryder, there's an opening over there for a massage therapist.
You have a pleasing personality.
Not that pleasing.
I was also amazed to see a one-of-a-kind bar.
Stargate? There's a Sci-Fi-themed strip club in this town? But I was surprised when I couldn't get in.
Oh, God! Continuing North on the muddy back country roads, we stopped to talk to a local who claimed to have recently seen the Kapre.
So tell what you saw.
He was, uh, walking the forest at night.
.
And there was this big shadow that's suddenly, like, following his path, and he was very scared because he saw it was a Kapre.
And what did the Kapre look like? The creature was very big.
It was dark.
It was hairy.
It had a very distinct odor.
The eyewitness then directed me to another man, who has also come face to face with the creature.
It was very late at night.
He was coming home from work, and on that road are abandoned buildings.
And about 5 to 10 meters away, he looked at an Acacia tree.
He saw a Kapre sitting in it.
This thing that you saw, you think it's a dangerous creature? He believes that the Kapre is very dangerous because it can run after people.
It can attack people.
In some cases, it can ever kill people.
Both sightings occurred near Angeles City.
After the deadly eruption of the still-active Pinatubo Volcano in '91, the American base here was evacuated, and the troops never returned.
Today, relics of this bygone era are everywhere.
The Aeta people have lived in the surrounding jungles for generations, and could help me separate fact from fiction.
That is, if I could exit the vehicle.
I literally cannot get out of the car.
The seat belt will not release, Tristant.
Well, guess I'm just gonna have to be seeking the truth from here.
What was that? Do you guys hear that? Does anybody have any scissors? No, we don't, Josh.
Sorry.
- Let's go to lunch.
- Let's go get some lunch! Okay, seriously, though, can somebody get me the (Bleep) Out of this car? Ah.
I got it.
Free from my nylon shackles, I was granted an audience with the tribe's leader, and asked him to share his knowledge with me.
- What is the Kapre? - Is a big animal.
- Have you seen a Kapre? - Yes, I have seen before.
- You have? - Yes.
And where have you seen it? In the jungle.
Are there many Kapre or just one? Oh, so many, so many.
And can you show me where the Kapre is? Yes, I can show you.
- You can? - Yeah.
Before you go in the jungle, you join us for the food and ceremony.
Of course.
We would love to.
Thank you very much.
Thank you.
We took the Chief up on his invitation, and we were treated full-on to an Aeta dance party.
Before long, we joined in on the fun.
Katy, I think some of these guys like you.
In the morning, we pressed on into the Aeta land in pursuit of the Kapre.
The Chief told us that recent sightings had taken place in the dense jungles as well as a canyon that cuts through the heart of his people's land.
Ryder and I traded in our clunky SUV for a more stripped-down all-terrain vehicle.
Hoo! Boy, she rides smooth, doesn't she? Hang on! (Bleep), am I driving a pillow? I mean, it is smooth! While our jeep chugged through the watery makeshift road, Dave and Richie made their own sweep via motorcycle.
Josh for Dave, any luck? No, Josh.
No luck over here.
How are you guys doing? Yeah, we got nothing here so far.
We're just getting hemmed in by these high walls.
It's like a flooded slot canyon in here.
No sign of anything.
Let's get the thermal out and see if we can detect anything in here.
Anything on thermal? No, nothing yet.
- I found something! Stop! Stop! Stop! - What do you got? I just picked up a heat signature.
- I found something! Stop! Stop! Stop! - What do you got? I just picked up a heat signature right up there in the woods! - What do you see? - Right up here.
Pretty large in shape.
Looks like it scurried right up this hill right here.
I only saw it for a second.
I didn't get much detail.
It went right up in here.
It's basically just vertical.
There's no way we're getting up this thing.
It just goes straight up.
Having had a close encounter, we rendezvoused with the team in a nearby jungle clearing and prepared to continue our search after dark.
We're on the lookout for something tall.
.
7 to 9 feet.
Eyewitnesses say it's bipedal most of the time.
I mean, that would make it a primate.
No large primates here in the Philippines.
And all the witnesses have said it's really hairy.
I think the villagers and anyone that's seen it has been so scared they just ran away.
They're very superstitious people.
Shh, shh, shh, shh, shh.
I just heard something there.
Didn't you? Yeah, I definitely did.
It was like rustling right over here.
Let's get back in there and see what it is.
Very carefully.
Oh.
I got something on thermal.
- What is it? - Oh, it's a structure.
It's some of these old abandoned military buildings.
- Look at this.
- Oh, wow.
Check this out.
Wasn't there a witness that said they saw the Kapre by abandoned buildings in the jungle? Yeah.
We've read a number of reports that say that they think this thing lives in these old buildings.
Once Mount Pinatuba erupted, the whole thing was abandoned.
Wow, look at this place.
Ooh.
There is nothing left in here, though.
These are just the shells of buildings.
There's certainly no signs that any large animal's taking shelter in here.
Let's keep moving through them, though.
Okay.
They say this thing is dark and tall and pretty scary, but you say there's a lot of other things out here that I should be scared of, right? Yeah, namely the Spitting Cobra.
I've read that it's known to have killed some people within 30 seconds.
With most people it takes.
.
Within an hour you stop breathing.
Richie, sometimes you're really fun to hang out with, and sometimes you're a total downer.
Hey, guys, you smell that? Oh, yeah.
It reeks.
It does reek.
It's like the most pungent.
.
Sick, stale air right here.
Kind of smells like wet dog.
It does kind of smell like wet dog.
All right, well, we definitely know that the smell is a telltale sign, so.
.
I'm terrified that something's going to jump out.
Look at this.
This is weird.
What do you see? It's like a bed.
Yeah.
Something big has been lying down on it.
Yeah, something big has been lying down right here.
Yeah, it's definitely all.
.
It's all matted down.
You know, this could be some sort of a nest.
Shh, shh, shh, shh.
- I hear footsteps.
- I hear footsteps too.
Definite footsteps.
Shh, shh.
Something is right ahead of us, right through here.
I don't think there's any other way around.
It's really.
.
Oh, my God! There's something right.
.
- Come here.
- You saw something? There's something right there.
Look through my camera.
There's something right in here.
What do you see? Something was moving.
There is something back here.
Let's try to chase it down.
All right.
Let's go slowly because we make so much noise when we move, I won't be able to hear it any more.
- What was that? - Shh, shh, shh.
What the hell was that? Adam, you hear that? Yeah, it sounded like it came from over there, from that other building.
What the hell was that? That just sounded like somebody bellowing.
Yeah.
Over this way, yeah.
Yeah.
Straight down there.
Alright, let's get over there.
Let's go.
Oh, geez.
Careful.
Whew.
Slopes down here.
Careful.
Seeing some residual traces of heat in the ground.
Looks like something walked through here for sure.
I have no idea where it took off to.
Let's keep looking.
Come on.
Guys, check this out.
Look at this thing.
Huge suspension bridge.
Spans the river.
- Wow.
- Looks old.
Oh, look at the middle you see that? Oh, yeah.
It's collapsed.
It fell in the river.
Totally buckled somehow.
I see it on the thermal! What do you have? I definitely see an animal on the other side of this bridge.
I got it clear as day on the thermal.
It's just sitting there.
It must have scurried across ahead of us.
Come on.
Let's get over this thing.
Okay.
Ooh.
- It's starting to sink.
- Really bad.
I got a good look in the center section.
It's almost vertical.
(Bleep) - Wow.
- Watch out! - Whoa.
- God.
Try to stay against this vertical tension wire and off that chicken wire.
You're not gonna be able to walk on the floor boards for much longer.
Careful.
Hang on to whatever you can.
A couple more feet.
We're almost in the river floor.
We got an opening over here.
We can jump out.
Oh, God.
Get me away from that bridge.
- You guys okay? - Yeah.
Let's figure out where that thing went.
You ready? - Okay.
- All right, come on.
Huge tree.
They say this thing likes to hang out near trees so.
.
Keep your eyes open.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! - Whoa, whoa! Back up, back up! They say this thing likes to hang out near trees so.
.
Keep your eyes open.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! - Whoa, whoa! Back up, back up! Dave, did you see it on the astroscope? Whoa, whoa.
Back up, back up, back up.
Yeah, I saw that.
Whatever it is, it looks big, and it looks pissed off.
It's moving off.
It's going back into the woods.
Okay, nice and slow.
We're gonna follow it.
- Come on.
- Okay.
Oh, wow.
Look at that.
Let's see if we can make our way in.
I'm not seeing any Kapre in this house.
Doesn't look like any sign of any animals burrowing in here.
Snake! Snake, snake, snake! - Where? - I'm out of here! I'm out of here! Richie, what the (Bleep)? - Where? - Right over there.
It's coming.
Okay, up, up, up, up.
(Bleep) I got left behind in a snake house.
All right, well, let's press on.
All right, come on.
Trail branches off to the right.
That thing can't be far ahead of us.
Oh! Something in the tree! There's something in the tree, come here.
- What do you see? - Get over here! Check this out.
- Right up here in these branches.
- What did it look like? Did you see a shape? I just got a brief hit on the thermal, and then it tucked itself right behind this tree.
It is not still in the tree.
I would see it.
It must have come down to the ground.
I don't see it over here.
You see anything? No, no.
I'm not seeing it this way.
It might have gone off down here, or it might have gone down there.
Whatever it was, it took off in a hurry, though.
Ryder for Josh.
We got a little weather setting in.
A lot of rain in our area.
How about you guys? Yeah, we're starting to see a few drops down here as well.
Definitely seek shelter if you can, and if not, at least bag up the electronics.
- Uh, it's about to dump.
- Yeah, I hear it coming down.
The rains arrived and brought a close to our investigation, as we packed up our gear and hiked away from the flood-prone canyons.
The next day, the team and I boarded a flight bound for Los Angeles and then sat down with naturalist Mike Dee, and began with our thermal hit from the overnight investigation.
Oh! Something in the tree! There's something in the tree! Come here.
Get over here.
It's obviously there's something there.
Uh, Philippine Tarsier are something that come to mind.
They're nocturnal.
It's probably one of the most unusual primates that one would ever hope to see.
And that may be what we're seeing.
It's certainly a possibility that that's what we're seeing here.
Tarsiers are one of nature's oddest primates, and while they can appear monstrous, their diminutive size makes them an unlikely candidate to be mistaken for the Kapre.
We actually had a pretty close encounter with something uh, that was inside the tall grass.
- Mm-hmm.
- Check this out.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! - Whoa, whoa! Back up, back up! See that? Something moving back there.
You can see it move the bushes, and you can see it actually on the thermal imagery right here.
What do you think this could be? Based on the, uh, the height the grass is.
.
It's probably a wild pig.
Wild pigs are dangerous in their own right, clocking in at over 200 pounds with razor-sharp tusks.
We may even have seen one's tail in the tall grass, but again, too short to be a Kapre.
But what of the much larger animal we saw during our day sweep on the thermal imager? Could that also be ID'd? I found something! Stop! Stop! Stop! What do you got? Got a large heat signature right up there in the woods! - See that up there? - Yeah.
What do you think that is? To me, in my opinion, it looks large.
.
Like a fifty, sixty pound animal.
And with it reaching out, it looks like the arm is reaching out.
It does in some ways fir the description of what they're talking about.
- Mm-hum.
- It does look large.
It looks sort of like a primate.
It's intriguing that it could fit the eyewitness description, but that animal is going to have to remain a mystery.
The jungle of the Philippines are spectacular.
But they're also finite.
With air bases, active volcanoes, and traditional villages in the area.
It seems doubtful that something as massive as the Kapre, could remain hidden forever.
For now though, there's still considerable room for wildlife.
Whoa, whoa! Whoa! Back up, back up! And for something large that's retreating up in to the hills.
- I found something! Stop! Stop! Stop! - What do you got? What it is we can't say for sure.
But very soon it may just be forced to show its self.
.
My team journeys across Fiji looking for the ghosts of men devoured by a cannibal tribe.
Deep in the island's interior, at a former cannibal village, this tropical paradise turns into a paranormal nightmare.
If you feel you were wronged, please let me know.
Next, my team blazes through the wilderness of the Philippines in search of a deadly monster.
In the crumbling remains of a former military base, we discover that this mythical creature is more than just a legend.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Back up, back up! Hold on! I'm Josh Gates.
In my travels, I've seen some unexplainable things, and I've done some things I can't quite explain.
Now I've pulled together a team armed with the latest technology in search for answers to the world's strangest mysteries.
I'm not sure what's out there waiting for me, but I know what I'm looking for.
.
The truth.
Just a few generations ago, an English Missionary named Thomas Baker and his followers attempted to convert a remote tribe in Fiji to Christianity.
Despite meeting their Chief and spending the night in their village, the next morning, they were murdered, ripped limb from limb, and devoured by the cannibal villagers.
Now, the modern-day descendants of the tribe believe the ghosts of the reverend and his disciples remain, and are haunting the cursed village of Nabutautau.
The villagers are really insistent that this place is haunted.
They claim they hear the sounds of screaming, crying.
They see apparitions moving around in the jungle at night.
It's pretty terrifying stuff.
For years, the locals have tried to put the spirits to rest by asking Reverend Baker's descendants for forgiveness, and performing rituals of exorcism.
However, nothing has silenced the unexplained supernatural activity in the village.
And so, despite the risks ahead, we've packed up our gear and set out in search of a paranormal cannibal village hidden deep in the South Pacific.
From our headquarters in Los Angeles, my team and I flew 5,500 miles Best airport ever.
We made quick work of exiting the airport, picked up a car, and hit the road.
Okay, everybody, welcome to Fiji.
Yeah! We're going to a cannibal village.
Boo! Can't win 'em all.
We began by driving 120 miles east across the island to the city of Suva.
At the Fiji museum, we got a grisly look at the history of cannibalism, including Reverend Baker's actual shoe.
The one part of him too tough for the villagers to consume.
To learn more about this unimaginable tradition, I spoke with a local archaeologist.
Talk to me a little bit about the history of cannibalism here in Fiji.
In just that one village? And tell me a little bit about Reverend Baker and what became of him.
All right, since this is still an active village.
We're going to bring some gifts.
Perfect, like a bouquet of flowers, maybe some Jenga.
A game would be nice.
A traditional offering is Kava Root and Tobacco.
We'll try to find both in the local market.
Sure.
Yeah.
What.
.
That's fine, too.
We arrived in the market and began our search for the intoxicating Kava Root.
The eye-catching local fashion stopped us in our tracks.
Oh, my God.
Look at you.
Full dental hygienist.
I do need my teeth cleaned.
I was also puzzled by the variety of unusual-looking souvenirs.
What is this? - A cannibal fork? - Yes.
And what would somebody eat with this? Ma'am, I don't eat enough brains that I think I need this in my life.
Cannibal weapons were everywhere, and though they were old, they still seemed incredibly effective.
Does this thing work? It really does.
This thing works great.
Sorry, buddy.
Before the entire crew could get tribal on each other, I was fortunate enough to find the Kava Root I was looking for.
This is Kava.
The longer it is, the longer it's been growing.
This is like ten or 11 years growing in the ground.
How do you know so much about Kava? I used to be a Kava dealer when I was younger.
Did some time for it in juvie.
With our shopping done, we left the paved roads behind and headed 60 miles deep into the island's interior.
My plan was to retrace Baker's journey by first visiting another former cannibal village called Sautabu, where he preached just days before his brutal demise.
The cannibals there cooked their victims in an isolated cave, which is now rumored to be haunted with a powerful supernatural presence.
After two hours of driving, we arrived in the village, where a local Ambassador granted us a meeting with the tribe's powerful Chief.
Though cannibalism isn't practiced any more, tribal law still rules, and I'd need his permission to explore the cave.
Luckily, he shared a drink with me signaling his approval.
We were immediately led out of the hut, and while my team celebrated our acceptance with the locals, I spoke with the Chief's Ambassador to learn more about the local paranormal activity.
Tell me about this.
.
This cave that's near the village.
The tribe agreed to allow a small group of us to explore the hidden cave, and Tristant, Katy, Dave, and I immediately headed out on foot.
A short hike later, we arrived at the foreboding entrance.
Guys, I think we're here.
That's not very inviting.
Alright, let's check it out.
Here we go.
This is not what I thought my trip to Fiji was going to be like.
Oh, my God, look at this.
Look at this place.
Oh, wow.
Huge! So we know that Reverend Baker actually came to this cave right before he went on to Nabutautau.
We know that a lot of people were killed down here in tribal ceremonies.
Guys, check this out.
This must be the cannibal oven.
Oh, my God, there's a bone in it.
Look at that.
There's still scorching and.
.
What look like they might be blood marks on the wall.
Let's definitely get an EVP session going here.
Who knows how many people were cooked in this oven? Is there anybody here? We know that people were.
.
Butchered and cooked inside this cave.
Tell us your name.
- Did you hear that? - Yeah.
All right something moving around back there.
It sounded like a cry.
It did.
It sounded vocal.
Hello.
Oh, right over here.
I see a light.
I see a light! We know that people were.
.
Butchered and cooked inside this cave.
Tell us your name.
Oh, right over here.
I see a light.
I see a light! Dave, come here.
Come here.
I just saw a pinprick of light for a split second.
It was not a reflection.
It was not something coming off the water down there.
It looked like something incandescent.
And I'm pretty sure I got it on this.
I don't even know if it's in focus.
I got it for half a second.
Whatever that was was coming from the direction we came in.
Let's grab the audio recorder and start making our way back out and see if we see it again.
We continued to search the cave, but never found the source of the mysterious light.
We hiked out to the surface.
Cannibal cave, check.
Let's go.
And got back on the road.
This final leg of our journey took us to the heart of the island to the upper village of Nabutautau, where Baker was killed.
Three hours of hard driving later, we arrived in Nabutautau just as night was falling.
Accompanied by our liaison from Sautabu, we sat down with the Chief, who had a special connection to Reverend Baker.
After hearing the Chief's story and getting his blessing, we raced to begin our investigation.
The team quickly unloaded our gear and calibrated our equipment.
Our search would take us through multiple areas.
We'd largely avoid the lower village, home to current residents of Nabutautau, and focus our time on the ridge above, where the allegedly haunted village sits in silence.
We'd focus I.
R.
cameras on huts where noises had been heard, building our base camp in a wide clearing.
We'd then strike out into the thick jungle, searching for the overgrown remains of the Chief's hut where Baker last slept, as well as the Execution Stone where the missionaries were murdered.
It's a really strange investigation.
They got more than a hundred people in this village who believe this whole place is haunted by these missionaries who were killed here.
Now, the Chief's great-great-grandfather is the one who killed Baker, and they obviously feel extremely guilty about what happened, and I wonder if they think their town is cursed because of what they did.
At the same time, though, I don't think guilt can account for a lot of things they're reporting.
This Chief said they've cannibalized hundreds of people, and this is years and years of this.
It's not just one event.
All right, guys, let's check this place out.
Still in pretty good shape.
A lot of spider webs.
An old cooking pot here.
Hopefully not used to cook people.
I don't like it in here.
Look at this.
Looks like a stone altar.
Wow.
Maybe used for some sort of ceremony? Josh? What do you got? What the (Bleep) Is this? Is that blood? It's all over it.
Maybe this thing was used to butcher something or a sacrifice? But there's no other butchering mark.
There's no bones.
There's no nothing.
It's like that just appeared on the rock.
I'm freaking out.
All right, let's get a sample of it for analysis.
Than get your hand cleaned after we get out of this place.
Come on.
What the (Bleep) Is that? Tristant for Josh and Ryder.
Yeah? What's up, Tristant? Hey, guys, uh, I'm seeing some really strange, uh, lights.
- They almost look like eyes.
- They're at the top of the hill.
Um, up by I.
R.
camera number 2.
All right, we're not that far from camera 2.
We're gonna hustle over there and check it out.
Okay, copy that.
Let me know.
All right guys, come on.
Oh, I got something.
I got something.
What do you see? I think I see what Tristant saw.
Hey, Tristant, come in.
I think we figured out your mystery here.
Oh, yeah? What do you got up there? Looks like a couple of horses that were positioned in such a way that their eyes looked like they were floating over the hill.
Okay.
Copy that.
False alarm.
They may be cannibal horses, though.
I haven't determined that yet.
Keep your distance, just in case.
- Let's keep moving.
- All right.
Can we believe people ate other people here? 1867 is when Reverend Baker and his students were eaten.
It's not that long ago, you know? Uh, I guess not in the grand scheme of things.
We have to head up North a little bit and look for that old abandoned village.
See what's out there.
Definitely.
Whoa! Did you see that? Whoa! Did you see that? - What? - Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
What? What do you see? There's literally, like, a shape that just went through there.
Like.
.
Oh, God.
It looked like a figure standing there.
I guess it could have been a shadow, but it wasn't moving.
That was the weird thing.
I'm seeing nothing in the astroscope right now.
Hello? Anybody out there? Yeah, we'll take pictures to see if it picks up anything.
I'm not picking up anything on the visual camera.
Want to keep going? Yeah, now let's keep going.
Guys, there's a huge, huge rock up here.
I can see it on the thermal.
Is that a placard up there? Yeah, there's two plaques.
"Obedience all the way to death".
The reverend Thomas Baker and his Fijian assistants "met their death in this very place".
Right around here should be the.
.
The stone where he was decapitated and the axe which they keep here.
Ryder you check that side, I'll check over here.
Okay.
Pretty powerful stuff.
Katy, this looks like where the villagers told us the Chief lived.
This is definitely a natural fortification.
High stone walls, one entrance.
This is it.
A perfect bench.
This must have been where the Chief sat.
That must mean that the bed that Reverend Baker last slept in is.
.
Right over here.
Oh, yeah, in that clearing.
Well, this is a pretty significant spot.
We should do isolation sessions in this area.
Definitely.
I'll go first.
Yeah.
All right.
Good luck.
This is Richie.
First isolation session at the Chief's spread.
Reverend Baker.
.
If you're out there.
.
Give me a sign.
Hey, Richie, how you doing, buddy? I don't see anything, but I have the chills right now.
You want to come back? Hell, yeah, I do.
On my way.
This is Katy's isolation session.
Audio recorder.
All right, guys, I'm in position and going dark.
Okay, Katy, we're.
.
Richie and I are out here at the entrance.
Call us if you need anything.
Otherwise, good luck in there.
All right.
Thanks, guys.
Is there anyone here with me? It's extremely scary.
I'm at Reverend Baker's last resting place.
To be left.
.
In a complete jungle.
.
All around me.
If you feel you were wronged.
.
Please let me know.
Katy for Richie and Dave.
Go, go, go.
I.
.
I have to leave.
All right.
We're coming to you.
Let's go.
- Oh, my God.
- What the hell? - You guys.
- What the hell's going on? You guys, I just felt something touch my neck.
There's nothing else moving.
There's no wind here.
I'm not picking anything up in the astroscope.
It was just in front of that stone up there.
Hopefully it got picked up in the voice recorder.
I'm sure it did.
It had to.
You okay? It was one of the scariest things to happen to me.
Let's, you know, leave the voice recorder running and head back to base camp.
All right.
Ryder.
Ryder! - What do you got? - I found it.
That's the actual axe that was used to kill him.
Wow.
They keep it here as a remembrance of what their ancestors did.
This is the spot where he was killed.
We should definitely do an EVP session here.
Yeah, absolutely.
We know that this was the site.
.
Of a murder.
We've heard that this area.
.
Contains a powerful energy.
Are you able to demonstrate that energy for us? I'm, like, I'm.
.
I'm freaking out right now.
Are you here with us right now? Were you killed by this axe? - Oh, my God.
Something's right there.
- What do you see? - I hear it.
- I hear it.
Somebody or something is walking through the woods right now.
I hear it clear as day.
Does it sound like it's getting closer to you? It sounds like.
.
Oh, my God (Bleep).
The axe.
Whoa.
Somebody or something is walking through the woods right now.
I hear it clear as day.
Does it sound like it's getting closer to you? - It sounds like.
.
- Oh, my God (Bleep).
The axe.
Whoa.
Did you just move that? No, I didn't touch it.
I didn't touch it.
I'm sure I was 2 meters away from it.
I didn't touch it at all.
I suppose it could've just slipped off the rocks, but neither one of us was near it.
What the (Bleep) Was that? Was that you trying to manifest yourself? Okay.
Well, we got a lot of activity.
All the sounds are coming from down here in this section of the forest.
I say we leave the digital recorder running here.
In case something else moves, we follow the sounds.
Let's get out of here.
Let's go.
We continued to track through the remains of the old village for several hours, but never located the source of the sounds Ryder and Kyle had heard.
With the sun on the rise, we packed up our gear and flew back to Los Angeles to review our findings.
We analyzed the liquid found on the sacrificial altar.
Josh, what the (Bleep) Is this? Is that blood? And while it was ultimately inconclusive, it did show markers for human blood.
We know this is an abandoned village.
There are no sacrifices currently being done there.
Pretty creepy piece of evidence, and kind of hard to know quite what to do with it.
Along with this, we had a number of really compelling personal experiences throughout the night.
This is from Katy's isolation session in the woods.
Check this out.
If you feel you were wronged.
.
Please let me know.
She's obviously reacting to something, so we went back and went through this frame by frame, and if you look just before she reacts, you can actually see that her hair is moved.
Oh, yeah.
It looks like her hair gets brushed aside right before she reacts to it.
Like something's there.
Something touches her hair.
And along with that, we dug into the audio recordings from her isolation session.
Listen to this.
If you feel you were wronged.
.
Please let me know.
There's a breathy voice under there.
You know, often with these personal experiences, you have to set them aside.
But here we have corroborating evidence.
We can see that something touches her, and we can actually hear it as well.
If you feel you were wronged.
.
Please let me know.
Really intriguing stuff, and actually, during our EVP session, we also had some weird experiences.
It sounds like.
.
Oh, my God.
(Bleep).
The axe.
Whoa.
Did you just move that.
No, I didn't touch it.
I didn't touch it.
- I'm sure.
.
- None of us were anywhere near that axe.
It just went down.
In going back through the recording of the question that was asked, right before this, we hear a response.
Were you killed by this axe? That sounds like a scream.
It sounds exactly like a scream.
It sounds vocal.
It doesn't sound like an animal.
It sounds like somebody's letting out a terrified scream.
Were you killed by this axe? I felt a really dark energy when we were there.
Put that together with all this evidence, and it is really a strong case.
This is a place where there was, you know, a real tragedy, and it does seem like that continues to echo today.
Fiji is a tropical paradise with a troubled past.
The modern villagers here are steeped in tradition and as hospitable as any people we've ever met.
But deeper in the volcanic interior, there are cannibal secrets nearly forgotten.
My God, there's a bone in it.
In a village where missionaries were savagely consumed, one can still feel the touch of history.
The sound of torment.
And bear witness to the fact that the dead may be consumed, but they cannot be confined.
Oh, my God (Bleep).
The axe.
In every society there exists a Boogeyman, a terrifying creature rumored to lurk in the darkness.
In the islands of the Philippines, that creature is the Kapre, a towering forest monster with a chilling reputation.
The Kapre is a hulking primate-like monster that attacks anyone who disturbs its territory.
Sightings occur in the lands of the Native Aeta people, the oldest inhabitants of the Philippines who reside in the shadow of the deadly Mount Pinatubo Volcano.
With several locals claiming to have been chased by the beast, and with some tribal members having gone missing altogether, these jungle residents were on high alert.
The Kapre has been sighted in the Philippines for generations.
According to eyewitness reports, it is a lumbering ape-like creature.
It is rumored to lurk in tropical forests and thought to nest in large Acacia trees.
The Kapre is massive, walking on two broad feet and moving through the jungle under cover of night.
His powerful arms shake the surrounding trees and can deliver a bone-crushing blow to his victims.
Witnesses also recall the creature's piercing eyes and unusually foul stench.
With terrified locals clamoring for answers, I assembled the team and packed up our gear in pursuit of a living, breathing nightmare.
We flew 7,300 miles West across The Pacific from Los Angeles to Manila.
Upon arrival, we headed to baggage claim, where we loaded up the largest cart in the world.
I might have overloaded this luggage cart just a little.
Come on, cart.
Don't get crushed in the front.
Aah! The first stop in our investigation will be the local university, but after our long flight, we were ready to eat, so we made a brief stop in Manila's massive downtown shopping district.
- Oh.
Ryder, they got Balut.
- My favorite.
Yeah, we tried that once before.
I remember I think we really enjoyed them.
Yeah, it was a long time ago, but I think it went really well.
It did.
Oh, Balut.
What is it? It is an overdeveloped egg.
So this is the head.
There's a beak in my hand.
I felt it.
It's hard.
I don't think it'll go down.
What do you think? You want to go back for seconds? Oh no.
No.
No.
I remember enjoying it so much that I don't ever have to try it again.
- You sure? - Oh.
Yeah, I'm gonna throw up.
Okay, we got to get across town to interview a Professor at the university.
Right.
We should probably try to find some wheels.
Okay.
The closest thing to cabs in Manila are motorcycles with flimsy sidecars bolted on.
With our first interview several miles away, we crossed our fingers and climbed aboard.
This is probably not legal.
Okay, Sir, this is it.
We'll pull over.
We eventually reached the university.
There we had arranged to meet with a Professor who was an expert on the history of the Kapre.
So describe a Kapre for me.
What is this creature? Are there people who still believe in the story of the Kapre? We grabbed a 4x4 and followed the Professor's advice to search the lands of the Native Aeta people.
This indigenous population lived on the edge of the jungle a hundred miles North of Manila.
Along the way, we couldn't help but notice the colorful assortment of watering holes.
A lot of reputable bars here, though, still.
Eruptions.
Must be about the volcano.
Oh, After School.
Probably a studying place for the kids.
The Drill Shack.
That must be a hardware store.
Hey, Ryder, there's an opening over there for a massage therapist.
You have a pleasing personality.
Not that pleasing.
I was also amazed to see a one-of-a-kind bar.
Stargate? There's a Sci-Fi-themed strip club in this town? But I was surprised when I couldn't get in.
Oh, God! Continuing North on the muddy back country roads, we stopped to talk to a local who claimed to have recently seen the Kapre.
So tell what you saw.
He was, uh, walking the forest at night.
.
And there was this big shadow that's suddenly, like, following his path, and he was very scared because he saw it was a Kapre.
And what did the Kapre look like? The creature was very big.
It was dark.
It was hairy.
It had a very distinct odor.
The eyewitness then directed me to another man, who has also come face to face with the creature.
It was very late at night.
He was coming home from work, and on that road are abandoned buildings.
And about 5 to 10 meters away, he looked at an Acacia tree.
He saw a Kapre sitting in it.
This thing that you saw, you think it's a dangerous creature? He believes that the Kapre is very dangerous because it can run after people.
It can attack people.
In some cases, it can ever kill people.
Both sightings occurred near Angeles City.
After the deadly eruption of the still-active Pinatubo Volcano in '91, the American base here was evacuated, and the troops never returned.
Today, relics of this bygone era are everywhere.
The Aeta people have lived in the surrounding jungles for generations, and could help me separate fact from fiction.
That is, if I could exit the vehicle.
I literally cannot get out of the car.
The seat belt will not release, Tristant.
Well, guess I'm just gonna have to be seeking the truth from here.
What was that? Do you guys hear that? Does anybody have any scissors? No, we don't, Josh.
Sorry.
- Let's go to lunch.
- Let's go get some lunch! Okay, seriously, though, can somebody get me the (Bleep) Out of this car? Ah.
I got it.
Free from my nylon shackles, I was granted an audience with the tribe's leader, and asked him to share his knowledge with me.
- What is the Kapre? - Is a big animal.
- Have you seen a Kapre? - Yes, I have seen before.
- You have? - Yes.
And where have you seen it? In the jungle.
Are there many Kapre or just one? Oh, so many, so many.
And can you show me where the Kapre is? Yes, I can show you.
- You can? - Yeah.
Before you go in the jungle, you join us for the food and ceremony.
Of course.
We would love to.
Thank you very much.
Thank you.
We took the Chief up on his invitation, and we were treated full-on to an Aeta dance party.
Before long, we joined in on the fun.
Katy, I think some of these guys like you.
In the morning, we pressed on into the Aeta land in pursuit of the Kapre.
The Chief told us that recent sightings had taken place in the dense jungles as well as a canyon that cuts through the heart of his people's land.
Ryder and I traded in our clunky SUV for a more stripped-down all-terrain vehicle.
Hoo! Boy, she rides smooth, doesn't she? Hang on! (Bleep), am I driving a pillow? I mean, it is smooth! While our jeep chugged through the watery makeshift road, Dave and Richie made their own sweep via motorcycle.
Josh for Dave, any luck? No, Josh.
No luck over here.
How are you guys doing? Yeah, we got nothing here so far.
We're just getting hemmed in by these high walls.
It's like a flooded slot canyon in here.
No sign of anything.
Let's get the thermal out and see if we can detect anything in here.
Anything on thermal? No, nothing yet.
- I found something! Stop! Stop! Stop! - What do you got? I just picked up a heat signature.
- I found something! Stop! Stop! Stop! - What do you got? I just picked up a heat signature right up there in the woods! - What do you see? - Right up here.
Pretty large in shape.
Looks like it scurried right up this hill right here.
I only saw it for a second.
I didn't get much detail.
It went right up in here.
It's basically just vertical.
There's no way we're getting up this thing.
It just goes straight up.
Having had a close encounter, we rendezvoused with the team in a nearby jungle clearing and prepared to continue our search after dark.
We're on the lookout for something tall.
.
7 to 9 feet.
Eyewitnesses say it's bipedal most of the time.
I mean, that would make it a primate.
No large primates here in the Philippines.
And all the witnesses have said it's really hairy.
I think the villagers and anyone that's seen it has been so scared they just ran away.
They're very superstitious people.
Shh, shh, shh, shh, shh.
I just heard something there.
Didn't you? Yeah, I definitely did.
It was like rustling right over here.
Let's get back in there and see what it is.
Very carefully.
Oh.
I got something on thermal.
- What is it? - Oh, it's a structure.
It's some of these old abandoned military buildings.
- Look at this.
- Oh, wow.
Check this out.
Wasn't there a witness that said they saw the Kapre by abandoned buildings in the jungle? Yeah.
We've read a number of reports that say that they think this thing lives in these old buildings.
Once Mount Pinatuba erupted, the whole thing was abandoned.
Wow, look at this place.
Ooh.
There is nothing left in here, though.
These are just the shells of buildings.
There's certainly no signs that any large animal's taking shelter in here.
Let's keep moving through them, though.
Okay.
They say this thing is dark and tall and pretty scary, but you say there's a lot of other things out here that I should be scared of, right? Yeah, namely the Spitting Cobra.
I've read that it's known to have killed some people within 30 seconds.
With most people it takes.
.
Within an hour you stop breathing.
Richie, sometimes you're really fun to hang out with, and sometimes you're a total downer.
Hey, guys, you smell that? Oh, yeah.
It reeks.
It does reek.
It's like the most pungent.
.
Sick, stale air right here.
Kind of smells like wet dog.
It does kind of smell like wet dog.
All right, well, we definitely know that the smell is a telltale sign, so.
.
I'm terrified that something's going to jump out.
Look at this.
This is weird.
What do you see? It's like a bed.
Yeah.
Something big has been lying down on it.
Yeah, something big has been lying down right here.
Yeah, it's definitely all.
.
It's all matted down.
You know, this could be some sort of a nest.
Shh, shh, shh, shh.
- I hear footsteps.
- I hear footsteps too.
Definite footsteps.
Shh, shh.
Something is right ahead of us, right through here.
I don't think there's any other way around.
It's really.
.
Oh, my God! There's something right.
.
- Come here.
- You saw something? There's something right there.
Look through my camera.
There's something right in here.
What do you see? Something was moving.
There is something back here.
Let's try to chase it down.
All right.
Let's go slowly because we make so much noise when we move, I won't be able to hear it any more.
- What was that? - Shh, shh, shh.
What the hell was that? Adam, you hear that? Yeah, it sounded like it came from over there, from that other building.
What the hell was that? That just sounded like somebody bellowing.
Yeah.
Over this way, yeah.
Yeah.
Straight down there.
Alright, let's get over there.
Let's go.
Oh, geez.
Careful.
Whew.
Slopes down here.
Careful.
Seeing some residual traces of heat in the ground.
Looks like something walked through here for sure.
I have no idea where it took off to.
Let's keep looking.
Come on.
Guys, check this out.
Look at this thing.
Huge suspension bridge.
Spans the river.
- Wow.
- Looks old.
Oh, look at the middle you see that? Oh, yeah.
It's collapsed.
It fell in the river.
Totally buckled somehow.
I see it on the thermal! What do you have? I definitely see an animal on the other side of this bridge.
I got it clear as day on the thermal.
It's just sitting there.
It must have scurried across ahead of us.
Come on.
Let's get over this thing.
Okay.
Ooh.
- It's starting to sink.
- Really bad.
I got a good look in the center section.
It's almost vertical.
(Bleep) - Wow.
- Watch out! - Whoa.
- God.
Try to stay against this vertical tension wire and off that chicken wire.
You're not gonna be able to walk on the floor boards for much longer.
Careful.
Hang on to whatever you can.
A couple more feet.
We're almost in the river floor.
We got an opening over here.
We can jump out.
Oh, God.
Get me away from that bridge.
- You guys okay? - Yeah.
Let's figure out where that thing went.
You ready? - Okay.
- All right, come on.
Huge tree.
They say this thing likes to hang out near trees so.
.
Keep your eyes open.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! - Whoa, whoa! Back up, back up! They say this thing likes to hang out near trees so.
.
Keep your eyes open.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! - Whoa, whoa! Back up, back up! Dave, did you see it on the astroscope? Whoa, whoa.
Back up, back up, back up.
Yeah, I saw that.
Whatever it is, it looks big, and it looks pissed off.
It's moving off.
It's going back into the woods.
Okay, nice and slow.
We're gonna follow it.
- Come on.
- Okay.
Oh, wow.
Look at that.
Let's see if we can make our way in.
I'm not seeing any Kapre in this house.
Doesn't look like any sign of any animals burrowing in here.
Snake! Snake, snake, snake! - Where? - I'm out of here! I'm out of here! Richie, what the (Bleep)? - Where? - Right over there.
It's coming.
Okay, up, up, up, up.
(Bleep) I got left behind in a snake house.
All right, well, let's press on.
All right, come on.
Trail branches off to the right.
That thing can't be far ahead of us.
Oh! Something in the tree! There's something in the tree, come here.
- What do you see? - Get over here! Check this out.
- Right up here in these branches.
- What did it look like? Did you see a shape? I just got a brief hit on the thermal, and then it tucked itself right behind this tree.
It is not still in the tree.
I would see it.
It must have come down to the ground.
I don't see it over here.
You see anything? No, no.
I'm not seeing it this way.
It might have gone off down here, or it might have gone down there.
Whatever it was, it took off in a hurry, though.
Ryder for Josh.
We got a little weather setting in.
A lot of rain in our area.
How about you guys? Yeah, we're starting to see a few drops down here as well.
Definitely seek shelter if you can, and if not, at least bag up the electronics.
- Uh, it's about to dump.
- Yeah, I hear it coming down.
The rains arrived and brought a close to our investigation, as we packed up our gear and hiked away from the flood-prone canyons.
The next day, the team and I boarded a flight bound for Los Angeles and then sat down with naturalist Mike Dee, and began with our thermal hit from the overnight investigation.
Oh! Something in the tree! There's something in the tree! Come here.
Get over here.
It's obviously there's something there.
Uh, Philippine Tarsier are something that come to mind.
They're nocturnal.
It's probably one of the most unusual primates that one would ever hope to see.
And that may be what we're seeing.
It's certainly a possibility that that's what we're seeing here.
Tarsiers are one of nature's oddest primates, and while they can appear monstrous, their diminutive size makes them an unlikely candidate to be mistaken for the Kapre.
We actually had a pretty close encounter with something uh, that was inside the tall grass.
- Mm-hmm.
- Check this out.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! - Whoa, whoa! Back up, back up! See that? Something moving back there.
You can see it move the bushes, and you can see it actually on the thermal imagery right here.
What do you think this could be? Based on the, uh, the height the grass is.
.
It's probably a wild pig.
Wild pigs are dangerous in their own right, clocking in at over 200 pounds with razor-sharp tusks.
We may even have seen one's tail in the tall grass, but again, too short to be a Kapre.
But what of the much larger animal we saw during our day sweep on the thermal imager? Could that also be ID'd? I found something! Stop! Stop! Stop! What do you got? Got a large heat signature right up there in the woods! - See that up there? - Yeah.
What do you think that is? To me, in my opinion, it looks large.
.
Like a fifty, sixty pound animal.
And with it reaching out, it looks like the arm is reaching out.
It does in some ways fir the description of what they're talking about.
- Mm-hum.
- It does look large.
It looks sort of like a primate.
It's intriguing that it could fit the eyewitness description, but that animal is going to have to remain a mystery.
The jungle of the Philippines are spectacular.
But they're also finite.
With air bases, active volcanoes, and traditional villages in the area.
It seems doubtful that something as massive as the Kapre, could remain hidden forever.
For now though, there's still considerable room for wildlife.
Whoa, whoa! Whoa! Back up, back up! And for something large that's retreating up in to the hills.
- I found something! Stop! Stop! Stop! - What do you got? What it is we can't say for sure.
But very soon it may just be forced to show its self.