When we first started caching, this was one of the first areas we cleared out. InspectorCacheIt227 is a bit of an expert on cryptids. In fact, he wears a hat that says "Bigfoot Expert" on it. The fact that he won it in a raffle at a Sasq-cache event is irrelevent. What is relevent is that we felt that this area, formerly teaming with cryptids, needed a refresh. Some of these cryptids may be familiar while some may be brand new to you. Good luck tracking them all.
As always, be aware of all hazards of the parkway. There was no poison oak at any of the hide location at the time of placement, but it is around the area. This is the only place I have ever had a tick try to inbed itself (I felt it and pulled him out before he was fully in) and I spotted a friendly snake while hiding these, but rattlesnakes are in the area as well.
This hiding place was too close to 2 other caches, so I moved the stump up the hill a bit until it was clear of both. You should be able to see it from the trail.
MONGOLIAN DEATH WORM
The Mongolian death worm (Mongolian: олгой-хорхой, olgoi-khorkhoi, "large intestine-worm") is a creature alleged to exist in the Gobi Desert. Investigations into the legendary creature have been pursued by amateur cryptozoologists and credentialed academics alike, but little evidence has been found to support its existence. It can be considered a cryptid or a mythological animal.
Tales of the creature first came to Western attention as a result of Roy Chapman Andrews's 1926 book On the Trail of Ancient Man. The American paleontologist described second-hand tales of the monster that he heard at a gathering of Mongolian officials: "None of those present ever had seen the creature, but they all firmly believed in its existence and described it minutely."
In 1983, a specimen of Tartar sand boa (Eryx tataricus) was shown to locals who claimed to have seen "olgoi-khorkhoi" and they confirmed that this was the same animal.
Appearance
In On the Trail of Ancient Man, Andrews cites Mongolian prime minister Damdinbazar, who in 1922 described the worm:
"It is shaped like a sausage about two feet long, has no head nor leg and it is so poisonous that merely touching it means instant death. It lives in the most desolate parts of the Gobi Desert."
In 1932, Andrews published this information again in the book The New Conquest of Central Asia, adding: "It is reported to live in the most arid, sandy regions of the western Gobi." Andrews, however, did not believe in the creature's existence.
The worm is said to inhabit the western or southern Gobi. In the 1987 book Altajn Tsaadakh Govd, Ivan Mackerle cites a Mongolian legend which described the creature as travelling underground, creating waves of sand on the surface which allow it to be detected. It is said it can kill at a distance, either by spraying a venom at its prey or by means of electric discharge. It primarily lives and burrows underground, only rarely coming to the surface. Some reports suggest the creature emerges after rainfall and lives near sources of water.