“Operation Yowie” an on-going investigation begun in 2000, for the purpose of finding absolute proof of these elusive hominids, is currently searching areas inland from Wollongong and as far south as the Nowra district, where encouraging traces of possible Yowie activity has been found.
Leader of the investigation is Australia’s foremost “Yowie Man”, Rex Gilroy, currently celebrating 50 years of research into what he maintains are surviving remnant groups of Homo erectus, our immediate ancestor. “Yowie Man” Rex, together with his wife and fellow researcher, Heather, operate the “Australian Yowie Research Centre” [PO Box 202 Katoomba NSW 2780; Ph 02 4782 3441; Email:To Contact Rex & Heather:
New Email From September 2011rrandhgilroy1044@gmail.com], which they established in 1972 for the purpose of gathering all manner of information and evidence for scientific assessment and sharing with other serious researchers worldwide.
“The name Yowie was used by Aboriginal tribes on the south and north coasts inland across the Blue Mountains to the central west. It means “hairy man” and alluded to the marsupial hide garments worn by them. This dismisses the “big hairy Gorilla-like monster” of popular myth.
The fact is that Homo erectus was a tool-making fire-making race of hominids and our immediate ancestor, whose fossil remains occur from southeast Asia to Africa dating back a million and more years:, says “Yowie Man” Rex.
Since 2000 the Gilroy research teams have not only recovered fossil hominid footprints of pre-Aboriginal age over a wide area of eastern Australia, including the NSW south coast, but also uncovered apparent recent campsites at which have been found recently-manufactured Homo erectus-type stone tools, ranging from perhaps a few weeks to several months, even a few years. Fossil skull-types of Homo erectus have also turned up in areas of the south coast and Blue Mountains, where old Aboriginal traditions say, were or still are, “hairy man” habitats.
“Early settlers of the NSW south coastal districts, such as in the Nowra-Wollongong region, claimed sightings of male and female primitive animal hide clad hominids hereabouts dating back to the 1840s. Reports continue to the present day.
In March this year a 1.6 metre tall, animal hide clad female was reported to me having been seen in the dense scrub by a property owner somewhere inland from Dapto. Perhaps Illawarra Mercury readers have other reports to pass on, if so, then my wife and I would be pleased to hear from them”, added Rex.
The author of two books on the Yowie mystery, Rex Gilroy prefers to keep an open mind on the issue and search for good evidence.
He has launched a campaign to debunk hoaxers who are perpetrating the “hairy monster” myth, and has the approval of Aboriginal people. “My aim is to gather good physical evidence to place before understandably sceptical scientists, for the continued existence of these relict hominids”, concluded “Yowie Man” Rex Gilroy.
