California is the third largest state in the U.S. and contains a plethora of different
terrains, from deserts to beaches to forests and mountains.
It's also the most populous state in the country, containing a whopping 39 million people, which
is more than the 21 least populous states combined.
Naturally there's bound to be stories about unidentified creatures existing in some of
The Golden State's vast landscapes.
Some of them have been proven to be hoaxes but others remain more mysterious.
So today I'm counting down 6 of California's strangest cryptids.
In the summer of 1925, a bizarre carcass washed up on Moore's Beach in Santa Cruz, CA.
It was about 30 to 50 ft long with a large duck-billed head.
It's neck was long and slender and its body tapered off into a fin-like appendage.
The carcass was examined by a scientist named E.L. Wallace who proclaimed it was likely
related to a plesiosaur, a type of marine reptile that thrived during the Jurassic period.
A scientific analysis by the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco revealed that
the creature was actually a Baird's beaked whale, which is a type of whale found in the
Northern Pacific.
The animal's long neck was actually just a twisted strand of blubber still attached to
its neck.
Further investigation reveals that there aren't any records of a scientist named E.L. Wallace
ever existing and that his involvement was likely a complete fabrication.
The Santa Lucia Mountains stretch for 105 miles and form the eastern boundary of the
Big Sur region in California's central coast.
Offering some of the most scenic views in the state, the mountains are also home to
legends about mysterious humanoids known as Dark Watchers.
These watchers are seen standing on the hills, ridges and peaks of the mountains and staring
at those who wander into their territory.
Sometimes they are also spotted looking up at the sky.
They have no discernible facial features and appear as silhouettes, resembling shadow people,
but can sometimes be seen wearing a cloak and hat.
Stories of these beings have been said to have originated with the Chumash Native Americans,
however no written accounts of such creatures exist from them so it's possible that this
isn't true.
Either way, eyewitness accounts of these watchers go back for decades.
They were even mentioned in a short story by John Steinbeck in 1938.
In 1922, August Rubel move to Santa Paula in Ventura County and in two years he'd built
his very own dairy farm.
According to legend, he was involved with the OSS, the Office of Strategic Services,
which was a precursor to the CIA.
The dairy farm was a cover for a secret facility that was involved in all kinds of experiments,
including genetic experiments on humans.
The dairy farm eventually closed and was abandoned but rumors about what was inside abounded.
There was talk that beneath the farm there's an extensive network of tunnels and secret
rooms.
Starting in the 1950s, people in the area have reported sightings of an 8 ft. tall humanoid
covered in fur with the head of a goat and the horns of a ram.
Dubbed the Billiwhack Monster, it's mostly been spotted by high school students and children.
Some people theorize it could be the result of the alleged human experiments that took
place at the farm, but it's probably just a local urban legend, repeated generation
after generation by kids in the area.
In November 2007, surveillance footage outside of the home of a Fresno resident made headlines
when it appeared to show two bizarre creatures walking across a lawn.
They appeared to have no arms or torso, and walked in an unusual manner, unlike any known
animal.
The video is extremely grainy and blurry so it's impossible to make out any distinct features
but that hasn't stopped people from speculating that it could be an alien or even a Native
American spirit.
4 years after the initial sighting, another video surfaced, this one was purported to
have been filmed by a surveillance camera in Yosemite National Park, near Fresno.
It's a lot clearer than the first video and depicts two of the creatures making their
way across a path.
They appear to be wearing or made of some kind of white fabric and once again their
leg motions are extremely unusual.
So what are these strange beings?
Are they some kind of unknown lifeform or just puppets on a string?
To me it looks like something that could easily be created with CGI but neither of the two
videos contains enough information to know for sure.
Whatever the case may be, it's not something I'd ever want to see walking around my backyard.
The Yucca Man is a Bigfoot-like cryptid said to live in the Mojave Desert.
The first sighting occurred in 1971 in the 29 Palms area, when an guard at a Marine base
claimed that a large hairy humanoid approached him and knocked him unconscious.
When he woke up, the large creature was gone but the officer's gun had been folded nearly
in half.
That same night, there were other reports in the area of people spotting something similar.
One report claimed the humanoid was 12 ft. tall and being accompanied by a smaller creature.
Sightings of the Yucca Man, who was named after the tree of the same name, have continued
for years.
It's become a popular campfire story for people camping out in Joshua Tree National Park.
After all, it's not hard to imagine something living in secret in the vast, unwelcoming
desert terrain.
There's no physical evidence to support any of the stories but it's interesting to me
how different parts of the country, and different parts of the world for that matter, have stories
about giant ape-like creatures.
Is it possible that these huge, lumbering animals could go undiscovered for so long
or are stories of the Yucca Man and Bigfoot just ancestral memories of giant prehistoric
apes, passed down over thousands of years?
After all, we know that early humans lived along side colossal apes such as Gigantopithecus.
Before I get to number one, here are some cryptids that didn't quite make the cut.
Charles Wetzel of Riverside was driving home on the night of November 8, 1958.
His car was headed down Main St. and as he approached that part of the street that crosses
the Santa Ana River, he noticed that the river was overflowing on to the street, so he slowed
his car down.
His radio started to malfunction, until eventually he could only hear static.
Out of nowhere a strange creature leapt out in front of his car.
He described it as having a head like a scarecrow, scaly skin, legs that stuck out sideways from
its body and very long arms.
The monster began clawing at Wetzel's windshield and and screeching loudly.
Wetzel grabbed the .22 caliber pistol that he kept under the car seat and thought about
shooting the creature but decided against it.
After all, if he broke the glass, the monster could easily reach inside.
So instead he stepped on the gas and began to drive away, running the monster over in
the process.
He contacted the Riverside Police and they noticed scratch marks on his car but they
were unable to find anything when they went back and searched the area.
The next night, another motorist reported a similar sighting.
I was unable to find any newspaper articles that corroborated this story, however I did
find the obituary of a man named Charles Wetzel from Riverside who died in 2008 at the age
of 53.
The Charles Wetzel in the story was 24 when the encounter happened in 1958, so they are
probably the same person.
Unfortunately, there's just not enough information to really say anything definitive about this
case but it's pretty creepy nonetheless.
Anyway I hope you all enjoyed this video.
I'm looking forward to exploring the world with you guys and seeing what mysteries we
can find.
If you have any ideas for subject matter you'd like me to cover, please let me know.
Maybe your town has an urban legend or an unsolved crime or maybe just some weird places
that you think would be interesting to talk about.
Feel free to reach out and as always...
If you liked this video, please subscribe to Crypticc for more.