[Long Cut]

Oh, as for footsteps in or out of the field, look again at the pictures...most all the circles are done over rows cut in the field, which can be seen a horizontal lines running across the entire crop. The makers use those for access, just as the farmers do.

I believe that the non-breaking of the stalks has to do with the type of crop and the soil involved. I'd have to look that up. If the soil is loose and moist, with the right kind of plants, it might be likely that many would not break.

[TigersEye]

The makers use those for access, just as the farmers do.

Don't farmers leave footprints in mud and dirt? I always did when I was hunting pheasant.

I'd have to look that up. ... it might be likely that many would not break.

That's it. It still lacks a full explanation. Which makes it interesting. Occam's Razor is true, it's overwhelmingly likely that they are all made by men. But some have striking and difficult to explain characteristics. Bending the stalk of any plant to the ground without damaging its vascular structure (as was convincingly shown in that program) is ... difficult. I garden a lot and I collect wild medicinal plants so I have a wide pool of experience to draw on concering plant structure/durability/flexibility. And then there's the structural change on the cellular level (shown clearly in a magnified photo) that is not the result of bending and didn't rupture the cells.

Occam's Razor? The show was a hoax. But a good one.