Destination Truth

Destination Truth – Ghost Fleet/Japanese River Monster S04E04

Published October 5, 2010 | By RottenOne

Ghosts of Truk Lagoon

Josh and team head out to an underwater graveyard that was the scene of a decisive battle between the US and Japan during World War II. The water is now littered with wrecked vehicles such as planes, tanks and trucks that many of the locals claim are still running. Not only do they hear the sounds of the engines, but many claim to still hear shots as though the war is still being fought. Many of the local people feel that the island has paranormal activity and there seems to be no shortage of people with eyewitness accounts. Scuba divers seem to both love and fear the wreckage out there.

Josh starts things off in typical style by renting a 4-wheel drive Jeep that is more than likely going to asphyxiate them all. It’s pretty much leaking exhaust fumes from every point. If Mike makes it, it’ll certainly be a trip to remember.

The team scouts several locations and then jumps in the water to see what they can see and hear. I have to say the dive is both amazing and creepy. There are dozens of vehicles just sitting in the water. It’s somewhat eerie to see a complete truck or tank just sitting on the reef floor. It does look like they could be turned on at any moment and driven out of there. And strangely, as Josh heads into one of the areas where several of the trucks are sitting, he hears what sounds like an engine running. There is definitely something there and you can hear an engine hum very distinctly. Of course I have to ask, is there some other explanation? Is it the sound of the water rushing alongside the container, or a vibration that’s giving off the noise? It seems very repeatable so more than likely there’s a natural cause. But none the less, having that sound coming from those vehicles would give me the creeps.

But that’s not all, as Josh continues his investigation he comes across multiple sets of human remains. There is no doubt about the destruction and loss of life that took place here. Further, there are still unexploded ordinances lying around. Josh and team swim right up on them and then make a hasty retreat before things go completely wrong.

Finally, they attempt an underwater EVP session to see if the can communicate with the soldiers. This actually seems pretty strange but who knows what kind of results they’ll get. I guess the worst thing that can happen is that they’ll get a response. (By the way, did anyone else think there was a voice saying "Hai" the word for yes in Japanese when Josh asked if anyone was there? That seems to have been glossed over in my opinion)

And with evidence in hand they head back to see they’ve captured. Alas, they yet again bring in Jason and Grant of Ghost Hunters to look over the evidence. Will this ever stop? Go away you two!

But what evidence did they find? There is the sound of the engine and perhaps even a voice. There looks to be someone walking around on the FLIR but that is dismissed as a real person who got in the way. And that makes me ask, are people just walking around while they film this? Isn’t there some sectioned off area where people can’t just wander into? You would think it would be harder just to "stumble" onto an investigation.

It’s hard to tell what Josh captured. The engine sound could easily be a naturally occurring phenomenon. Sure, it’s creepy and just happens to be in the same location as the trucks, but it’s really hard to say if it’s paranormal.

Japanese Kappa Monster

The Kappa Monster, which looks like Leonardo from the Teenage Mutant Ninja turtles has gone from being scary lake creature to iconic decoration on lunch boxes and popular plush toy. But it used to be a scary thing right? It used to terrorize the landscape, steal children and drag people to a watery end? Actually, yes it did. Apparently the Kappa is a rather dangerous creature that is still attacking people.

After checking out the merchandising of the Kappa in downtown Tokyo, Josh heads out to look for it. And after paddling their way up the river, they have to make a few river crossing. Not an easy thing to do with all that equipment. But never fear, Josh plunges headlong into the river and builds a pulley system to help ferry things across. That Josh, he’s mighty McGyver-esque.

During the investigation they get several things swimming in the water and Josh even feels something brush up against him. There is no attack by any means so I think we have to conclude they just saw some fish swimming in the stream. Big fish perhaps, but fish all the same.

As the investigation continues they come across a cave and decide to wander on in. Those crazy kids! Alas, there is nothing to be found and the team continues to follow the river and what looks a well worn path to see if they can spot the Kappa.

In the end though, they don’t find much. There are certainly plenty of fish roaming around in the water, but there’s very little out there in the way of wildlife. Normally they stumble across something that growls at them and tramples down the grass, but not this time. They’re not sure what people are seeing, but they don’t come away with any evidence that supports a Turtle-Demon creature. Has the legend simply taken over the imagination? At least for now the Kappa will have to be content to live in infamy on a school lunchbox.

Out of these two investigations I really liked the investigation at Truk Lagoon. I wish it would have actually been an hour episode just on that. I think there is so much more history and underwater sites they could have explored and talked about (especially since that Kappa thing was a bust). Too bad they have such a tight schedule to keep. And did anyone else notice all the high tech gadgets for this investigation, especially the product placement of the iPad? That was really cool!

Destination Truth – Ghosts of Haboro/Mngwa – S04E03

Published September 24, 2010 | By RottenOne

Josh and team head off to Japan to investigate the Ghosts of Haboro. This is a former mining town that may have turned into a ghost town. From the stories people tell, working here was no picnic. Many of the workers were slave labor who were literally worked to death. Many died from cave-ins and others from asphyxiation. They pretty much lived in squalor and there was little concern for their well being.

Many people report seeing spirits and hearing voices. Some are conversations while others are screams. The place is completely abandoned now and as you might expect most people think Josh and his team are crazy for going up there and quite possibly won’t make it back.

And there’s also bears up there. No Josh, you don’t get to investigate a haunted ice cream parlor. Although that would be cool!

Not stopped by the threat of real bears, Josh heads to the local outfitter to get anti-bear supplies. Leave it to Josh to go for the bat as his repellent of choice. I have to agree, sometimes the simple solution is the best.

But then it’s onto base camp and what a location it is. An incredibly dreary and run down set of buildings. The roofs are caving in, the floor is rotted out as we see by Josh falling through it, no electricity and no one around. Seems like this is the perfect place for filming a Halloween movie.

There’s lots of bangs and pops in the buildings, but keep in mind it’s raining and very cold. That could easily be the sound of rain and pooling water as well as boards creaking because of cold and stress. It could also be ice breaking off and hitting the floor.

Josh gets a hit on the thermal imager on the same floor as the girl who died. Is she looking out the window? Are we seeing some animals? It seems to have some body heat so I’m more inclined to think it’s an animal, but that is just my guess.

Bobby, Dan and Shawn are doing their own investigation when they hear what sounds like a girl sighing, perhaps even letting out a shriek. Hard to say what that noise is. Could be the wind, could be an animal, could something from the spirit world. There is a noise however.

I will say that this trio seems a little skittish. When they get worked up the bleeps go flying and so do the "Dudes!" I’m sure they’ll calm down as the season progresses. Being in a place like that can certainly freak you out.

We do have to stop for a moment and ask about all those stuffed animals in the school. What the hell is that all about? Who puts a bear in the middle of a classroom?

With their evidence in hand they head back and unfortunately head over to the Ghost Hunters for analysis. Jason and Grant don’t look at evidence on their own show, why are they looking at what Josh has? And do they really offer anything of value? "There’s definitely something there", thanks for nothing Jason. And just say NO to the K2 meter!

I think the evidence is pretty light and really doesn’t solidify the claims of what goes on out there. No doubt bad things happened and people lost their lives in a tragic way. The place is certainly run down and gives off plenty of noises and just the isolation alone will scare you. While spirits could be out there, I don’t think they showed up for this episode.

And anyone else notice they had no car trouble?

Mngwa

Africa is home to the Mngwa, a sabertooth cat looking creature that has been scaring the villagers for who knows how long. There are cave paintings and stories of it coming out of the plains and attacking people.

The good car vibe doesn’t last and their rugged 4×4 needs a bit of a push to get going before the investigation can start. But once they’re off, it’s out into the plains of Africa where the real wild animals roam.

Josh meets up with a guide who gives them directions on where they need to meet the nomadic tribesman who can tell them more about the mysterious Mngwa. Of course, directions is a loose term and Josh proves his map navigation skills could use a bit of work. After finding the big tree and circling the giraffes he finally runs into the tribesman who relay the story of a recent attack. They also get some lessons in how to defend themselves with bow and arrow. I think the team needs a little more archery practice. At least they didn’t shoot the truck, or themselves.

They get the investigation underway with a little help from the tribesman who have to help kickstart the truck again. And with the engine running they take Old Reliable out to scope out the area and see what animals are in the vicinity. Let me think for a minute, let’s take the truck that has a hard time starting out into the plains of Africa, at night, with the wild animals.

Luckily the team doesn’t get eaten but they come across plenty of animals and a set of huge footprints. Things get a little dicey as Shawn and Bobby gets themselves surrounded by animals in the tall grass. But Josh blazes a trail and gets them out of harms way.

They really didn’t come up with much, but what about those footprints? It turns out they’re probably from a lion, but a damn big one!

The story of the Mngwa has been handed down from one generation to the next, but it most likely is a case of mistaken identity. As we see, animals can grow to a massive size and when they catch you unaware, the stuff of legends is born.

Destination Truth Spirits Of Angkor Wat/Canadian Lake Monster S04E02

Published September 20, 2010 | By RottenOne

Well that didn’t take long, we hit the second episode and Josh is already driving a car with the wheels ready to fall off. He even has bad luck with Jeeps. That’s saying something!

Angkor Wat

Josh and team head to Cambodia to investigate the spirits that seem to inhabit the ruins of Angkor Wat. People report screams, see lights and lots of other experiences in the temple. One person even claims to have been attacked by a spirit. After talking with several eyewitnesses Josh and team do the first overnight paranormal investigation.

To start the investigation off right, Josh heads out for a spa treatment and dips his feet into a pool of pedicure loving fish. They were slightly sidetracked while on their shopping spree looking for fruit offerings for the spirits.

They also need to get incense and candles from two different shrines. It’s basically a motorcycle trek around Cambodia as they find the appropriate offerings. But with the right pieces in hand they set out for the night.

As Josh leads his team out, they’re confronted with a choice – the door on the left, the one in the center, or the one on the right. Did we all guess this was a choose your own adventure beginning?

The investigation starts off with Dan and Bobby doing an EVP session in the ceremonial pool. As they’re talking you can clearly hear a wailing sound. Now my first thought is that it’s animal; some sort of large cat. There is a chance it could be the wind too. Certainly seems like it could go whipping around and generate that sorts of sound. Either way, they’re outside, so it could be any manner of noise that’s just being amplified by the acoustics.

One thing that’s interesting is what looks like a figure walking near the columns. It certainly looks like a figure, but again, how can you be sure it’s not a reflection. It’s hard to say what that really is, but there looks to be something walking around out there.

Josh also sees some lights flickering in the area. You can’t really tell what those are since they don’t actually show up on the camera. He could be seeing the eyes of an animal or the reflection of some bugs. Josh is certainly excited about it, whatever it is, so once again, it seems like something is hovering out there.

Josh and team did manage to capture two EVPs, but like so many others it seems there’s something there but who knows what it is. When asked if someone is there they get a "Keep Off" as the reply. And when asked if they should leave, they get a "Yes". Is someone speaking from the other side? Maybe, but they need to speak up a little.

A really interesting place, but it seems like animals are the explanation behind most events. There is some howling, but considering the outdoor environment, plenty of natural explanations exist.

Ogo Pogo

Everyone seems to have a lake monster and Canada is no exception. For them, they have the Ogo Pogo which seems to be a Loch Ness style creature that inhabits the lake. Josh and team head out in search of an explanation.

And even in Canada they run into car trouble. At first glance the car seems respectable and reliable. But that’s on flat ground. When it comes to the hills things get a little rougher. Their little mule just can’t take any more and after making an abundance of clunking sounds it finally overheats. Josh and team resort to showing a little leg while trying to hitch a ride. It was the I love Canada hat that proves they’re not a threat.

After being rescued by some passers-by, they meet up with local residents who tell of their own encounters with the creature. It seems to appear off Rattlesnake Island (such a cool name) so Josh and team go up in a plane to scope out the area. Canada has better planes than cars so there’s no incident, but they do manage to see some splashing around in the water. They team flies into action to try and locate the source by landing near the island. Wasting no time, Josh puts on the wetsuit and dives right in. As you might expect he finds a creepy cave and heads right in. As you also might expect he sees a large shadow while in the murky water and the team send in a robotic drone to try and find it.

Alas they don’t find the source of the shadow so who knows what it was. Considering the murky water it could have been any manner of debris.

The team makes camp and then heads out into the water with sonar to pick up the trail. They get a reading that something is underneath the boat, but once again nothing seems to come of it. The object doesn’t move and keeps pace with them. They toss out the evidence and move on.

While scanning the water they do see big ripples in the water and give chase. Unfortunately, once again it turns out to be nothing.

There is an incident with the ROV being pulled, but it may have gotten tangled in something or been nibbled on by a fish. It wasn’t a sea creature, I’m pretty sure of that.

In the end they capture very little evidence. They have some close calls, but don’t come away with anything that really supports the claim of a large sea beast lurking in Canada. There’s something in the water but they could be seeing schools of fish or some other perfectly reasonable, albeit large, fish.

For now, Ogo Pogo is still a mystery and remains as elusive as Josh getting a decent rental car.

Destination Truth – Pompeii – Nandi Beast S04E01

Published September 11, 2010 | By RottenOne

Pompeii

The first episode of Season 4! I have to say I’m very excited.

It’s good to see that some things haven’t changed, Josh still gets crap cars from the rental agencies. I thought it was a VW Thing for a minute, but it’s actually something quite a bit uglier than that.

But the little orange Skittle does get them pretty close to Pompeii where the locals claim they hear screaming and cries. The POS car doesn’t take them all the way and they need to switch to two-wheeled transportation. Did anyone else expect Josh to start hollering while riding the motor scooter?

And wouldn’t you know, in order to appease the spirits you need to make an offering which means you need to climb down into an active volcano to find the "bomba". And who else would go after it but Josh? Did he even hesitate to climb down? Yes josh, that was a pretty crazy thing to do, but we’re all still envious.

Pompeii is just scary. If there is a place where souls would be trapped, Pompeii would be the place. Hundreds if not thousands of people were simply frozen in time. They really are walking over people and remains are clearly visible.

Did they capture any evidence? It’s hard to say. I have simply come to ignore the EVPs. Perhaps they sound different in person, but I still hear nothing but garbled sounds. And quite frankly, like seeing pictures in a random sequence of dots, I think people hear voices in the static. I’m not disputing them, I’m just saying as the armchair investigator I don’t pay attention to those. I really think that’s the kind of evidence you just need to throw out.

The thermal imager? I don’t think there is enough to get too excited about. It’s merely a flash on the screen. I admit, it looks like a human form, but that’s not saying much. Perhaps it’s something ducking behind the trees, but who knows. Maybe if there was more movement. Maybe if it were more clearly defined. I really can’t agree that it’s a Class A piece of evidence.

Pompeii is a pretty wild place to start things off. I don’t think the evidence proves much, but I’m not going to be the one that says nothing is going on out there.

There are however two things that bother me with this episode. First, I really hope Josh doesn’t make a habit of using the K2 meter. Personally, I think that thing is a worthless piece of junk.

Second, please stop going to the Ghost Hunters for the evidence review. I know this is a cross promotion deal with Syfy but I cringe every time it happens. Destination Truth doesn’t need the Ghost Hunters for ratings.

Nandi Beast

In deep dark Africa we have the hunt for the Nandi Bear, which ironically sounds like it should be the name of a kid’s toy. And apparently the DT team thinks so too, since they create the Talkie Bear. I think there might be a market for that thing. Need to do something about the rather obvious antenna though.

And let’s not forget that even though you are handing wild creatures, you should take some time to enjoy golf whenever you get the chance. I don’t think Josh missed his calling as a pro golfer, but compared to the rest of the clan, I think he did quite well.

After gather their background information, they are told the Nandi Bear is real to the natives and they claim its been around for generations and that their town elders and ancestors have killed one or two in the past. Josh and team head out into the woods to see what they can find.

Of course they come across plenty of wild animals. And what do they do when they come across a mysterious cave in the woods in the middle of the night? Damn right! Climb right in and see who’s home!

While they don’t find anything in the caves something does breach the perimeter and set off the alarms. Quite a bit of drama ensues as the team races back to check on Vanessa. She isn’t mauled, so the team heads out in the woods to search around for whatever caused the alarms to go off.

They don’t really come away with anything but their trap camera does record a hyena wandering around the place. And is looks remarkably similar to the Nandi Bear. I will have to agree with Josh that the story is the stuff of legend and that the original Nandi Bear was probably an oversized or perhaps even now extinct hyena. A great brute of a creature was probably killed at some point so they assumed there was a pack of them just waiting to devour the villagers. From the there, the story simply grew. There is plenty to worry about in that forest, but the Nandi Bear probably isn’t one of them.

Destination Truth is back on the air with some new faces and the same old cars. And here we have two new episodes where Josh goes up in a helicopter and manages to come back safely without a single incident. Maybe he only has issues with cars and planes. Motorcycles and helicopters don’t seem to cause him problems.

This was a fun episode and two really neat locations. Pompeii is like Pavalia, just thinking of those tragic events is depressing. And Africa holds so many mysteries and so many wonders. Just remember to bring you wicker basket and keep it on your head. Maybe the Nandi Bear isn’t really out there trying to eat out your brains, but who knows what is…

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The paranormal. The strange. The unusual. The bizarre. The unexplained. The mysterious. The truth.

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Destination Truth – Ghost Fleet/Japanese River Monster S04E04

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Destination Truth – Ghosts of Haboro/Mngwa – S04E03

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Destination Truth Spirits Of Angkor Wat/Canadian Lake Monster S04E02

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Destination Truth – Pompeii – Nandi Beast S04E01

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