Stalin's Monkey Army and Dyatlov Pass

Numerous nations, to include Nazi Germany and the United States, have been known to engage in outlandish scientific experimentation during times of war. Stalin’s Cold War-era Soviet Union was no exception. After decades of unsuccessful research into psychic powers and beam radiation technology, Stalin yearned for something more tangible and practical. Among these endeavors reminiscent of B-movie science-fiction, was Stalin’s attempt in the 1920s to create a human-chimpanzee hybrid in order to invigorate the Red Army and deploy soldiers who could withstand harsh conditions with a lesser requirement for food, shelter, and clothing.

It is widely understood that separate species can be bred together in captivity to create hybrids. Among the more common examples are mules (horse+donkey), zorses (zebra+horse), and ligers (lion+tiger). Stalin turned to reproduction research scientist Dr. Ivanov, the very man who first successfully bred mules with zebras as well as mice with rats. Dr. Ivanov wished to acquire the strengths of man’s closest relative, the chimpanzee. Attempts to inseminate chimps with human sperm as well as inject human females with ape sperm were initially unsuccessful. In 1929, the last remaining ape test subject at the research lab died, supposedly taking Stalin’s dream with it.

Obviously, tales of “ape men” date back thousands of years across the entire globe, so the idea of a human-chimp hybrid is not unique. A research psychologist at the University of Albany, Dr. Gordon Gallup, cited a supposedly successful experiment at the Yerkes Primate Center, wherein a female chimpanzee was impregnated with human sperm in the 1920s; the same time that Stalin was trying to create his Monkey Army. Unfortunately, it is believed that this hybrid was killed several days after its birth. Other studies have recounted stories of a similarly impregnated chimp in China, which died of neglect during the Cultural Revolution. Of course, neither of these reports is accepted as fact by mainstream scientists. Perhaps we will never know what became of Stalin’s Monkey Army.

On February 26^th, 1959, a rescue team searching for missing hikers in Russia’s Ural Mountains stumbled upon an abandoned camp site, which became the harbinger for one of the 20^th Century’s most enduring mysteries. The camp site was established in an open area, far from the tree line. The tent was completely torn apart; which is not something that experienced hikers/skiers would do to their only form of shelter. Following footprints, rescuers discovered two of the hikers' naked barefoot bodies next to the remnants of a fire. Three other bodies of the original hiking group were found along the way, appearing to be headed toward the damaged camp site. Originally, medical examiners listed the causes of death as hypothermia. Two months later, the bodies of the remaining hikers were discovered 250 feet away from the camp, buried under several feet of snow. These corpses were clad in some of the clothing that had been removed from the original bodies. Some had suffered broken ribs and/or crushed skulls. One corpse in particular, had its tongue ripped out. Oddly, none of the bodies exhibited signs of any external wounds.

Unfortunately, the level of secrecy in the Cold War Soviet Union permitted no answers. All files germane to the mystery at Dyatlov Pass were kept confidential and all citizens were barred from the area for three years. Upon declassification of the file, several pieces of evidence were missing. During the subsequent search for answers, several theories were conjured. Of particular concern were the high levels of radiation found in the area and on the clothes removed from the hikers’ bodies. Some who attended the funerals stated that the bodies bore a strange orange tint and that all had grey hair. Some claim that the hikers stumbled onto a Soviet test site for exotic weapons and may have been inadvertently subjected to a thermobaric bomb. However, it is unlikely that such tests would have been conducted domestically, since several far more remote sites were available. Avalanche was ruled out as a possibility since the bodies displayed no external wounds and rescuers had followed footprints left behind by the deceased hikers. Similarly, researchers also abandoned the idea that the hikers had been attacked by local residents. One of the prevailing theories, perhaps manifested from knowledge of Stalin’s Monkey Army, suggests an Alma or Almasti, the equivalent of a Russian Sasquatch. Advocates of this theory point to the location of the final campsite; in the open, far from the forest. The internal injuries evident among the bodies may indicate the embrace of a gigantic powerful creature. Additionally, original researchers note that near the camp a message had been written on a scrap piece of paper. When translated into English it read “From now on, we know that snowmen exist.”