Richard Steinwinkler’s Yeti Sighting That Was Caught On Camera
Richard Steinwinkler/Adventure Club of EuropeAn alleged photograph of a Yeti taken by Richard Steinwinkler in May 1951.
The same year that Shipton came across strange footprints in the Himalayas, fellow mountaineer Richard Steinwinkler, a member of the Adventure Club of Europe, had his own bizarre encounter in the Asian mountain range.
Late one night in May 1951, Steinwinkler reached a remote plateau — and spotted something unexpected. As reported by the Adventure Club of Europe, Steinwinkler later recalled, “I was looking for a suitable place to rest, as I suddenly saw in the corner of my eye, a large figure disappearing behind an overhang. Instinctively I thought immediately: The Yeti.”
Until that moment, Steinwinkler had thought the Yeti was a “made-up fantasy,” but he was so intrigued by what he’d seen that he decided to follow the creature. However, when he made it to the overhang, there was nothing there. Then, he looked down.
“If in front of me a huge footprint in the clay would not have appeared,” Steinwinkler said, “I would have thought everything was just imagination.”
Steinwinkler spent the next few hours following the tracks the creature left behind, eventually arriving at a slope that gave him a vantage point over another nearby plateau. There, he saw the Yeti.
“About 50 meters away, about four meters [13 feet] tall, he ran around on two legs and it was difficult to identify as long as he was moving,” said Steinwinkler. “My only thought was, I hope he doesn’t notice me. All the curiosity, all the euphoria was suddenly gone. There was only reverent fear. With shaky fingers, I reached for my camera and took several photographs. Then I crept slowly back. This was my first and last encounter with the Yeti.”
Steinwinkler shared his photos with others when he returned to Europe, but he faced ridicule from those who doubted the authenticity of the images. Still, he defended his Yeti sighting.
“I know that the Yeti exists,” Steinwinkler said. “But I am not saying that it is the mythical creature that people have been talking about for thousands of years. Perhaps it is a completely unknown animal species. Something ape-like or bear-like. I consider it naive that we humans have already discovered everything that is out there.”
