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@NatFoot You might want to look at blue force for a possible nylon sling. Tactical Slings | AR-15 Slings | AR Slings | AK Slings | AR 15 Slings (blueforcegear.com)

The same can be said of Tom Messick in the Missing 411 documentary. There is no conventional explanation. I've hiked and backpacked for many years and hiking on trails does not provide enough experience, if any, of what to do if lost or how to navigate in the wilderness. The only way is to force yourself to go off trail and learn how to navigate without benefit of a trail. Essentially, get lost in a controlled environment and force yourself to find a destination. Not enough people do that and when they find themselves lost, they panic, and do not the experience how to extract themselves from their situation. I also think that while GPS and electronics are a phenomenal tool, most people, especially younger folks, don't have a clue how to navigate using a map, compass, the sun, or terrain association. If they're lost, they're toast.

I suspect that many of the Missing 411 cases (in David Paulides books and YouTube videos) probably have conventional explanations and are not mysterious. When you watch some of those videos, at first glance they sound mysterious. But once you start digging, you realize that he is not disclosing all the facts and evidence available or that some evidence and information has not been publicly released. He might also not get some facts correct (like in the McGrogan case above on the initial route taken). Nonetheless, there are some Missing 411 cases that are hard to explain. I watched that documentary titled Vanished and find it hard to come up with a conventional explanation (that explains all the evidence) for the missing men in Mt. Shasta and in Mesa Verde NP. Truly bizarre. Thus, I don't dismiss all his work. If you have not watched Vanished, I recommend watching that documentary.

@Kiwakwe Glad you like my write-ups on some of these missing cases. I try to understand what these guys do wrong and follow their routes in maps to see if I can learn something. I go backpacking, so I want to learn from mistakes from others and try to avoid them. Another case that I looked at earlier this month was the case of Dr. James McGrogan. Per Paulides, in the YouTube video linked below, the case is mysterious. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TlGc4slOMo However, when I look at the route he took and the alternative explanation offered by the SAR member post below, the case does not look mysterious at all. The map extract I posted below shows the expected route of Dr. McGrogan: going up the Middle Creek trail (off the Spraddle Creek Road/Trail) and up to Eiseman Hut. His body was found at bottom of Booth Falls (off the Booth LakeTrail) - I placed a waypoint on the map below. The explanation given by the SAR member (posted below and extracted from the comment section of Strange Outdoors), suggests that he missed the turn toward Eiseman Hut and instead continued towards Bald Mountain. Once on Bald Mountain, he saw the Vail city lights to the south and thought he could drop down into the drainage below and hike out the Booth Lake Trail. It was a treacherous and dangerous move (winter or summer), and he fell and died. I noticed that Paulides shows Dr. McGrogan going up to Eiseman Hut via different route (further west) and further away from Bald mountain (at 13 min 12 sec on his video). That is not the trial I show below. I based my information on the report below from the Post Independent that says that Dr. McGrogan went up the Spraddle Creek Trailhead. https://www.postindependent.com/news/local/missing-ind-hikers-body-found-just-1-5-miles-from-the-booth-falls-trailhead/ The Strange Outdoor write-up with the SAR comment post is linked below. https://www.strangeoutdoors.com/mysterious-stories-blog/2017/11/28/james-mcgrogan

Knower. Multiple-witness. Boatload of non-visual "events", some cautiously interactive. I found a track line in '74 and had my first sighting in '76, extended, unambiguous. I already took for granted that they were there, just never expected to see one. I didn't really do anything in the way of research 'til about 2007 when weird stuff was happening on a mountain I was trying to hunt. Trying to sort that out lead me to getting involved with a regional group about 2010. I'm deliberately not naming them. Eventually the group founder and I became like siblings. By 2015 or so I was investigating reports for the site and by 2016 or so I was assisting with forum moderation. The group had somewhat stagnated and I was unwilling to stagnate with them. I was providing most of the research reports, doing a lot of work, and not getting anything back. That was the situation when I went on the BFRO expedition ... looking for new horizons. About 2 years ago, the group founder and I parted ways on bad terms over political differences, nothing to do with bigfoot, but that chapter is closed. I've been researching one location since about 2007 and another since 2011 plus poking into other areas farther away as it fits into my time/schedule. I don't precisely "research bigfoot", rather, I do a lot of hunting, fishing, backpacking (with a significant amount being off-trail, cross country wilderness treks) with my senses alert. I run audio essentially full time. I watch for tracks when I'm hiking and fishing. There is a lot more going on than most people realize, it's just subtle, and yet there is also a lot less going on than some others claim .. IMHO. I guess the short way of saying that is I was fairly well immersed in the topic, in the community, etc already. MIB

Bob Barhite is a friend of mine, and he has run good expeditions that I have attended. I'm not sure they can have the same good experiences as his expeditions in Iowa or Wisconsin have provided, but they do a good job of scouting areas beforehand. In Minnesota, you are very likely to run into many of my friends and you will enjoy the experience. I recommend it if you have not done one. I am unlikely to do official BFRO expeds anymore because of the non-disclosure agreement. I want to be able to share location, should I have more encounters. The first time fee is higher to discourage the less enthusiastic participants. It'll be cheaper as a repeat attendee at future expeditions. The fee never bothered me. I like to think of it as an affordable vacation with great friends.

That Paulides describes a 20 year old as an experienced hiker is strange. Most people of that age cannot have accumulated enough experience to be called that unless they had done the Pacific Crest trail or something like that. Good experience takes years to get for the typical weekend hiker.

That is a good question. I went on one in 2017. It met my expectations. I feel I got good value for what I spent. Whether you would feel the same .. is anyone's guess. Each trip is going to be different, not just different organizers in a different location, but also different attendees. MIB

I think audio is fascinating. Good luck!

It was probably a love sick female making googly eyes at you!

No . You are thinking of Mountain Monsters. It also returns the same night with a tribute to their fallen leader Trapper.

There's a new NAWAC podcast that's just been released (maybe two days ago) if anyone is interested.