How To Capture Physical Evidence Of A Cryptid Or Unknown Land Animal

At Puget Sound Monster Club, “monster hunting” does not mean killing anything. It does not mean trapping something. It does not mean being a danger to wildlife, to other people, or to yourself.

Here, hunting means one thing: capturing physical evidence of a monster, cryptid, or unknown animal. Proof you can photograph, measure, cast, collect, map, and compare.

We all like a scary monster encounter story. But a story is still a story. If you want to hunt monsters, you have to hunt data.

And yes. That makes you the nerdiest kind of monster hunter. The best kind.

Focus On Land-Based Creatures

This guide is for land-based creatures. If it walks, crawls, climbs, or runs, we’re in business.

This guide does not cover aquatic creatures. Sea serpents, river beasts, lake monsters. That’s a separate post.

Also, quick reality check: a lot of “cryptid encounters” are just normal wildlife seen in bad light by stressed humans with reptile brain. That’s fine. We still investigate. In fact, that’s the point. The goal is not to “believe” harder. The goal is to document what’s actually out there.

Leads Aren’t Evidence

Witness accounts, folklore, secondhand stories, spooky campfire tales. None of that is evidence.

It’s a lead.

A lead can be useful. It can tell you:

• where to look
• when to look
• what kind of habitat to check
• what kind of sign you might find (tracks, calls, scat, hair, claw marks)

But it only becomes real when you can collect something physical and measurable.

Here’s how I think about it:

• Lead: “Something tall and shaggy crossed the road at 2 AM near the old quarry.”
• Evidence: Footprints photographed with scale, measured stride, and a cast. Plus a trail cam capture two nights later. Plus hair snagged on a barbed fence that gets tested.

One is a story. The other is a case file.

The PSMC Evidence Ladder

This is how we rank the physical evidence we find. You can put this ladder in every Field Report you publish.

Level 1: Documented sign

You found something, and you documented it properly.

• Clear photos of tracks or trackways with scale
• Measured length, width, depth, direction of travel
• Photos of claw marks, hair snags, bedding, disturbed vegetation with context
• Location recorded (GPS pin, map point, or exact trail marker)
• Field notes that match the photos

Level 2: Repeatable pattern

One weird track is interesting. A consistent pattern is where it gets serious.

• Similar sign found across multiple days or weeks
• Multiple sign types in the same area (tracks + scat + bedding)
• Two people documenting similar sign independently
• A “hot spot” that keeps producing evidence (same crossing, same trail junction)

Level 3: Collectable physical trace

Now we’re talking. Physical trace can be tested or examined.

• Hair collected with gloves and stored clean
• Scat sample collected responsibly and labeled
• Tissue or swabbed residue (only when appropriate)
• Everything documented and logged so contamination is minimized

Level 4: High-quality media capture

Trail cam footage or clear handheld video that shows enough detail to evaluate.

• Visible anatomy and movement
• Size reference in frame when possible
• Original files preserved (not re-compressed)
• Metadata intact (date/time, device info)

Level 5: Verification

This is where the conversation changes.

• DNA results or expert confirmation (qualified tracker, wildlife biologist, lab)
• Full evidence package: raw files, measurements, notes, collection details
• Ideally: the evidence can be replicated by another team returning to the location

PSMC rule: If it can’t be measured, photographed with scale, collected cleanly, or replicated, it stays a lead. As for DNA, unless you have a lab handy, this will be hard for us amateurs to use. It might make sense to find a friend at the local college, university or DNR.

Don’t Be A Villain In The Woods

You’re not out there to harass or harm wildlife. You’re out there to document signs of life.

A few basics:

• Don’t chase animals.
• Don’t corner animals.
• Don’t approach dens, nests, or babies.
• Don’t bait in ways that endanger the animal or the public.
• Leave no trace. Pack out everything.

Also, the Pacific Northwest has a special talent for turning a casual walk into an emergency. Weather changes fast in the mountains. Terrain gets steep fast. A “short hike” turns into a “why is it dark already” situation in the winter.

Go prepared. Tell someone where you’ll be. Bring the boring stuff. It’s what keeps you safe.

Legal Basics For Amateur Cryptozoologists

Police officers and park rangers don’t like monster hunters running around in places they shouldn’t be.

• Don’t trespass. Private land is private land.
• Respect closures, gates, and posted signs.
• Be extra respectful around tribal lands and protected areas. If you’re not sure, don’t assume.
• If you stumble onto something that looks like a crime scene, stop. Leave. Report it. Really, crazy shit happens in the woods.

And one more: be careful with posting exact locations online. If you find a sensitive area, you might accidentally send a crowd into a fragile habitat. Or into someone’s backyard. Don’t do that.

Pick A Target & Realistic Goal

A lot of people start monster hunting like this:

“I’m going to prove Bigfoot exists tonight.”

That’s not a plan. That’s a dream.

Try this instead:

1. Pick a target (or at least a category). Example: “unknown large bipedal,” “unknown canine,” “unusual predation patterns.”
2. Pick one evidence goal for the day. Example: “collect Level 1 trackway documentation.”

If you hit Level 2 eventually, great. But if you can reliably collect Level 1 evidence, you are already ahead of 95% of the InterWebs.

Lead Intake: Turn A Story Into An Investigation

When someone sends you a “my cousin saw something” message, don’t argue. Don’t roll your eyes. Don’t immediately repost it.

Ask questions. Convert it into something field-useful.

PSMC Lead Intake (copy/paste this):

1. Exact location (nearest road/trail/landmark). Not “near Enumclaw.” Be specific.
2. Date and time.
3. Weather (clear, raining, fog, snow, wind).
4. What was seen or heard. Describe shape, movement, sound, behavior. Not vibes.
5. Distance and lighting. How far? Headlights? Moonlight? Flashlight?
6. Any physical sign observed (tracks, broken branches, smells, scat).
7. Were photos taken? If so, original file or screenshot?

Now you have something you can act on.

Monster Evidence Kits

You do not need a $3,000 thermal rig to do good work. You just need a little discipline.

Starter Kit (cheap but effective)

• phone camera
• measuring tape
• a small ruler or scale card for photos
• notebook and pen
• zip bags (for evidence collection)
• disposable gloves
• power bank
• headlamp

Field Kit (the sweet spot)

• trail cam
• audio recorder (even a basic one)
• plaster and a small mixing container for casting tracks
• compass or GPS app
• extra batteries and SD cards
• flagging tape (use sparingly and remove it)

Nerd Kit (optional upgrades)

• better microphones and wind protection
• multiple trail cams for coverage
• thermal monocular if you already know what you’re doing
• sterile swabs and proper sample tubes (if you’re serious about trace)

Field methods that produce evidence

1) Tracks and trackways

If you want physical evidence, start with tracks. They’re common, they’re measurable, and they can be documented in a way that holds up better to scrutiny.

How to photograph a track the right way:

• Take a wide shot showing the environment.
• Take a medium shot showing the track in context.
• Take a close-up with a scale (ruler, coin, scale card).
• Take a straight-down photo if possible.
• Photograph the trackway, not just one print. Direction and stride matter.

What to measure:

• length and width
• depth (helps estimate weight and ground conditions)
• stride and straddle if you can see multiple prints
• direction of travel

If you only take one blurry photo and then step on the print, I cannot defend you in monster court.

2) Casting tracks

Casting is powerful because it creates a physical object you can examine later.

Basic flow:

• clear debris carefully (don’t disturb edges)
• build a small boundary around the track if needed
• mix plaster to a pancake batter consistency
• pour slowly from the side
• let it set
• label it immediately (date, location, collector)

Do a practice cast at home first. Seriously. Your first cast should not be on your “best track ever.”

3) Hair, scat, and trace evidence

This is where people mess up by contaminating everything.

If you collect trace:

• wear gloves
• use clean bags or containers
• don’t touch it with bare hands
• label it like you mean it

Label should include:

• date/time
• GPS or location
• collector name
• conditions (wet/dry, temp, snow, mud type)
• where it was found (fence line, trail edge, bedding site)

Also, be smart. Don’t collect random biological material without thinking. If you’re not going to store it right or do anything with it, focus on Level 1 and Level 2 documentation first.

4) Trail cams

Trail cams can be amazing. They can also produce 400 photos of a leaf.

Placement tips:

• pinch points: creek crossings, trail junctions, narrow gaps in brush
• game trails, not human trails
• avoid facing directly into sunrise/sunset
• clear small branches that will sway and trigger false shots
• set height based on target (and consider angle)

And please: check your batteries and SD cards before you hike in. That mistake will haunt you more than any cryptid.

5) Audio evidence

Audio is so underrated. If you want to document unknown animals, audio is a big deal. Especially at night, especially in valleys and along ridgelines where sound carries.

Audio gets stronger when:

• you record the same call pattern on multiple nights
• you have matching field notes (time, weather, location)
• you can show it’s not wind, birds, frogs, or human noise

Again, you’re building a case file, not a highlight reel.

Your documentation protocol

Evidence is only as good as your documentation. This is the boring part. And you need to treat it as the sacred part.

The PSMC “Four Photos” rule

1. wide environment shot
2. medium context shot
3. close-up
4. close-up with scale

Field notes template

• date/time
• exact location (pin, trail marker, nearest road)
• weather and ground conditions
• what you observed (describe first)
• what you think it might mean (interpret second)
• what you did (measured, photographed, cast, collected)
• any nearby animal sign (deer scat, bear prints, human boot tracks)

If you do this every time, your reports start to look like real work. Because they are.

Debunking and false positives

A monster hunter who never considers normal explanations is just doing cosplay with extra steps.

Common false positives in the PNW:

• bear tracks that look weird in mud
• dog prints stretched by slope and melt
• cougar sounds that do not sound like cougar sounds
• wind gusts that sound like voices
• “tree structures” that are just rotting blobs

Try this mindset:

1. assume it’s normal wildlife first
2. document it anyway
3. then see if the evidence keeps refusing to fit the normal box

If it can’t be debunked by natuarl means and reasoning, congratulations. You might have something. Now you have a reason to return.

What to do with your evidence

When you get home, don’t just dump photos into a folder called “monster stuff.”

Build a case file:

• Location folder
• Date folder
• Subfolders: Photos, Audio, Video, Notes, Maps, Samples

Name files like you’re a professional:

• 2026-01-07_location_trackway_01.jpg
• 2026-01-07_location_audio_ridge_0212am.wav

Then publish a Cryptid Field Report. Keep it consistent so readers trust the format.

The PSMC Field Report format

• mission objective (Level 1? trail cam placement? audio sweep?)
• location (general, not doxxing-sensitive)
• conditions (weather, ground)
• timeline (what happened when)
• evidence ladder rating
• evidence gallery with captions and measurements
• debunking notes (what you ruled out)
• next steps (what you’ll do next time)

This is how you build credibility over time. Not by yelling “IT WAS REAL” louder than the next guy.

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How do you document your monster evidence? Let me know in the comments.

Thanks for reading Puget Sound Monster Club. Much appreciated and take care!

Further Reading

Tracking, tracks, and “sign”

• Moskowitz, David. Wildlife of the Pacific Northwest: Tracking and Identifying Mammals, Birds, Reptiles, Amphibians, and Invertebrates. Fantastic PNW-specific track/sign help and ID confidence building. Hachette Book Group
• Elbroch, Mark & Casey McFarland. Mammal Tracks & Sign: A Guide to North American Species. The “if you only buy one tracks book” heavyweight. Simon & Schuster
• Murie, Olaus J. & Mark Elbroch. Peterson Field Guide to Animal Tracks (3rd ed.). Great for quick ID in the field and learning what details matter. Google Books
• National Park Service (Mount Rainier). “Tracking Carnivores” guide. A very usable, field-friendly PDF for track basics and context (PNW relevant). National Park Service

Camera traps and passive documentation

• WWF. Camera-trapping for Conservation: A Guide to Best-Practices (WWF Conservation Technology Series). Solid overview of planning, placement, and responsible use. wwf.org.uk
• Meek et al. “Recommended guiding principles for reporting on camera trapping research.” If you want your evidence to feel publishable, these reporting standards help. PMC
• Conservation Northwest. “Wolf Remote Camera Traps: Scouting Guidelines and …” (PDF). PNW-grounded scouting + placement guidance from an org that does this for real. conservationnw.org
• Peer-reviewed placement note: Random vs. game-trail placement can change what you detect (and bias your results). Worth reading if you’re designing a “monster stakeout.” Smithsonian National Zoo

Managing and sharing evidence like a grown-up

• GBIF. Best Practices for Managing and Publishing Camera Trap Data. A practical guide for metadata, structure, and making your dataset useful (even if you never publish it). GitHub
• eMammal (Smithsonian). Training + a real camera-trap data management/archive system (great model for how to organize PSMC “case files”). emammal.si.edu
• Wildlife Insights. Another legit platform for managing/analyzing/sharing camera trap images at scale (good inspiration for workflows). wildlifeinsights.org
• iNaturalist: “verifiable observation” / Research Grade basics. Useful mindset: date + location + media + wild organism standards. iNaturalist Help

Non-invasive DNA and sample handling

• Long et al. (eds.). Noninvasive Survey Methods for Carnivores. The bible for hair/scat/camera-based detection and how scientists reduce false positives. Island Press
• USDA Forest Service. “Noninvasive genetic sampling: animal scat sample collection protocol.” (PDF) Practical contamination-avoidance and field handling basics. US Forest Service

Evidence handling and documentation standards

• U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory. Great for understanding what “real” wildlife forensics looks like. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• NIST. “Wildlife Forensics General Standards” (PDF). A nerdy-but-useful look at evidence handling discipline (labeling, handling, minimum standards). NIST

Ethics and “don’t be that guy”

• Leave No Trace: Seven Principles (official). Good to link in a “Monster Hunting for the Rest of Us” post so readers don’t trample habitats chasing a legend. Leave No Trace

Sasquatch-specific reading

• Meldrum, Jeffrey. Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science. A pro-Sasquatch argument written by an anatomist; useful as a claims overview even if you stay skeptical. Macmillan Publishers
• Radford (Skeptical Inquirer): Bigfoot evidence evaluations. A skeptical framework for footprint claims, pattern problems, and why “cool story” isn’t data. Skeptical Inquirer