Beyond the Human

What if Sasquatch isn't an animal? And what if the strange stories surrounding Bigfoot, from mysterious lights and disappearing footprints to poltergeist activity and telepathic encounters, aren't separate phenomena at all?
In our first cryptohominid episode, we explored the possibility that Bigfoot and other hidden hominoids could represent undiscovered or relict primates. But not all reported encounters fit neatly within a biological explanation. In this episode of Beyond the Human, we turn to the high-strangeness side of the cryptohominid phenomenon, examining reports that challenge the boundaries between cryptozoology, UFO encounters, and the paranormal.
We begin by tracing the cultural history of wild-man traditions, from figures like Enkidu in The Epic of Gilgamesh to the woodwose of European folklore, before considering Indigenous traditions surrounding beings such as the Anishinaabe Sabe. What do these different cultural understandings of wild and human-like beings reveal about the ways people have understood the boundary between humanity and the nonhuman world?
Then, we examine some of the stranger evidence and behaviors associated with Sasquatch encounters: mysterious trackways that abruptly end, unusual footprints, unexplained lights, strange vocalizations, and reports of apparent gift-giving between Bigfoot and human experiencers. We take a closer look at the Owl Moon Lab, where a set of unusual footprints became the starting point for a series of increasingly bizarre reports involving apparent gifts or apports, unexplained handprints, property disturbances, possible cloaking, and other paranormal activity.
From there, we explore the reported connection between Bigfoot and UFOs, including the remarkable 1973 Pennsylvania Bigfoot-UFO flap, when sightings of both phenomena spread across multiple counties in western Pennsylvania. Drawing on the research of Stan Gordon, we examine reports of strange creatures, unusual aerial objects, and encounters in which the two appeared together. Finally, we consider reports of telepathic communication, or “mindspeak”, and theories that Sasquatch may be an interdimensional phenomenon.
Are these accounts evidence of something beyond an undiscovered animal, or are we seeing folklore, human perception, and unrelated anomalous experiences becoming entangled? Perhaps the biggest challenge is not explaining any single Bigfoot encounter, but understanding why so many different kinds of strange experiences seem to cluster around the same phenomenon—and whether we can meaningfully separate them at all.

Topics discussed in this episode:
(6:30) - Roots of Supernatural Sasquatch
(20:24) - Evidence for High Strangeness Bigfoot
(43:17) - Owl Moon Lab Case Study
(56:49) - UFO-Sasquatch Connection
(1:08:52) - Telepathy and Interdimensionality
(1:12:58) - What Do We Think?

Show Notes:
Where the Footprints End Vols. 1 and 2
Timothy Renner
Joshua Cutchin
Sabe (Honesty) | The Seven Sacred Laws (Anishinabemowin)
Ron Morehead, Sierra Sounds
A Flash of Beauty: Bigfoot Revealed
A Flash of Beauty: Paranormal Bigfoot
The Owl Moon Lab: A Shared Paranormal Experiment
Stan Gordon
Silent Invasion: The Pennsylvania UFO-Bigfoot Casebook

Today on Headlines from the Beyond: What was in the latest release of UAP documents? We discuss the most interesting revelations in the 473 documents recently released to the public, including recent sightings of a black triangular craft by federal agents, findings at Skinwalker Ranch, and an old NASA protocol for crashed objects.

Then, West Virginians can get the coolest license plate in all 50 states! Their newly available cryptid plate features nine iconic cryptids from the state. We think every state needs one.

Finally, a newly published study from the University of Virginia Medical School's Division of Perceptual Studies suggests that the manner of an individual's death may be related to how long it takes for their spirit to be reincarnated.
Three stories, one briefing on the strange, the storied, and the extraordinary.
Stay connected with us between episodes—follow ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Beyond the Human on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and subscribe to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Field Notes from the Beyond⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Substack.

Three stories, one briefing on the strange, the storied, and the extraordinary.
Stay connected with us between episodes—follow ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Beyond the Human on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and subscribe to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Field Notes from the Beyond⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Substack.

Show Notes
Department of War Publishes Seventh Release of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena Files on WAR.GOV/UFO 
West Virginia DMV Unveils Mysterious New "Cryptid" License Plate
Surprising Pattern Emerges in Reincarnation Reports

Today on Headlines from the Beyond: What have astronomers detected coming from a planet 63 light-years from Earth? Researchers have detected radio emissions from Beta Pictoris b that appear to be produced by auroral activity, providing the first direct evidence of a magnetic field on an exoplanet. We explain what the discovery actually tells us—and why, despite the extraterrestrial implications, these signals are not evidence of an alien transmission.
Then, a new UAP disclosure initiative could give military personnel, government employees, and contractors a way to report previously protected UAP-related information without violating nondisclosure agreements. We look at the Department of War’s PURSUE initiative, what its new disclosure provisions actually allow, and whether it could remove some of the legal barriers that UAP disclosure advocates have long argued prevent potential whistleblowers from coming forward.
Finally, science has added some remarkable new animals to the catalog of life. The Tilcayo tiger cat, Leopardus tilcayo, was recently recognized as a distinct species in Bolivia—the first new living cat species described in more than a century. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, researchers formally described the Likweli, Colobus congoensis, only the fifth new African monkey species identified in 75 years. And genetic research has revealed a distinct population of southeastern gentoo penguins on the Kerguelen Islands. What do these discoveries tell us about how much life remains undocumented—and whose knowledge counts when scientists decide what constitutes a “new” species?
Three stories, one briefing on the strange, the storied, and the extraordinary.
Stay connected with us between episodes—follow ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Beyond the Human on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and subscribe to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Field Notes from the Beyond⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Substack.

Show Notes:
Radio Waves Coming From an Alien Planet May Be a Cosmic First
Ceballos, Kevin N. Ortiz, Edo Berger, and Yvette Cendes. "Discovery of radio emission from the exoplanet $\beta $ Pictoris b." arXiv preprint arXiv:2609.16720 (2026).
Department of War Issues Legal Waiver to Authorize Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) Disclosures to PURSUE 
‘We are not alone:’ Coalition of UFO whistleblowers call on Trump to let them publicly reveal secrets-
New Species of Cat Discovered for First Time in a Century
Tilcayo Tiger Cat Facts
New monkey species with orange lips found 'hiding' in DR Congo forest
Hart, John A., Junior D. Amboko, Julia L. Arenson, Emma R. Horton, Kathryn F. Coates, Jean-Pierre I. Kapale, Mardoché B. Koko et al. "Likweli: A remarkable new species of Colobus monkey from the Lomami National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo." PLoS One 21, no. 7 (2026): e0349857.
First new penguin species in a century found on Kerguelen Islands
Noll, D., Younger, J., Pertierra, L.R. et al. Integrative evidence reveals adaptive divergence and speciation in gentoo penguins. Commun Biol 9, 798 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-026-10081-7

What happened in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, in April 1941 more than six years before the infamous Roswell incident?
On this special episode of Beyond the Human, we’re joined by author Paul Blake Smith, whose new book The UFO Bombshell Before Roswell: Missouri’s 1941 Crash and Coverup explores one of the lesser-known alleged UFO crash stories in American history.
Smith takes us through the crash, the evidence he uncovered while researching the case, and why he believes the incident deserves a place in the larger history of UFO crashes and government secrecy. We discuss the unusual circumstances surrounding the reported crash, the potential involvement of local and military figures, and why this incident has produced far fewer whistleblowers and deathbed revelations than cases like Roswell.
We also explore Smith’s research into Franklin D. Roosevelt’s activities around the time of the crash and his theories about possible Masonic connections to the events and subsequent cover-up. Finally, we look beyond Missouri to the alleged 1933 Magenta UFO crash in Italy, including claims about Vatican knowledge of the incident and its possible connection to the MO41 story.
What can the Cape Girardeau case, and the stories that have grown around it, tell us about the history of UFO crash narratives, secrecy, and the ongoing search for answers about UAPs?
Show Notes
Paul Blake Smith's website
Buy The UFO Bombshell Before Roswell

What can years of systematic field research actually tell us about Sasquatch?
In this episode of Beyond the Human, we’re joined by Michael Mayes, author of Valley of the Apes: The Search for Sasquatch in Area X and Shadow Cats: The Black Panthers of North America, and former Chairman of the Board of Directors for the North American Wood Ape Conservancy (NAWAC).
As the second interview in our cryptohominid series, Mayes takes us deeper into the evidence emerging from NAWAC's long-term research in Area X. Drawing on the experiences documented in Valley of the Apes, we explore why encounters appear to increase with time spent in the field and what researchers can learn by developing a detailed understanding of an environment and the animals that inhabit it.
We take a closer look at some of NAWAC's most intriguing findings, including Tag 7 and the remarkable range associated with the animal, as well as the group's efforts to document and communicate its research. Mayes also discusses the challenges of publishing research on a subject that remains controversial within mainstream science.
We also turn to the larger questions raised by the research: what would constitute convincing evidence for a biological cryptohominid, and how should researchers respond when years of fieldwork produce compelling observations but no physical specimen?
Finally, we discuss the reception of Valley of the Apes, the divide between academic and popular paranormal research, and what it might take to build a more productive relationship between the two.
From long-term fieldwork and animal behavior to the limits of evidence and the challenges of studying controversial phenomena, this conversation asks a deceptively simple question: after years of looking, what do we actually know about Sasquatch?
Show Notes:
Michael Mayes' website
Valley of the Apes: The hunt for Sasquatch in Area X
Shadow Cats: The Black Panthers of North America
North American Wood Ape Conservancy