Incident #1000693
Cougar, Skamania Cty, Washington
about 1955
Account
Paul McGuire was with a group of about 10 young boys from a YMCA camp at Spirit Lake on Mount St. Helens who hiked to Coldwater Lookout, above and West of St. Helens Lake. On the way down, at the lowest meadow above the lake, they saw about 200 yards away across the meadow what they thought was an albino bear standing upright and waving its front limbs slowly up and down in a flapping motion. The couusellor, Don Mosby? started across the meadow to investigate and the "bear" ran away on its hind legs, leaping over fallen logs like a champion hurdler, then disappeared in the brush. Boys fled also. Creature was covered with longish dirty white hair, and was taller than a man.
When
- Year
- about 1955
- Season
- summer
- Time of Day
- day
- Duration
- considerable
Where
- State / province
- Washington
- County
- Skamania Cty
- Nearest Town
- Cougar
- Direction from Town
- North Northeast
- Distance from Town
- 16
- Population of Town
- 50
- Elevation/Altitude
- 50
- Latitude
- 461744
- Longitude
- 1221035
What was seen
- Individuals
- one large, sex unknown
- Total Individuals
- 1
- Population Status
- wild
- First Seen
- in
- Terrain Object
- open
- Near or/at
- trees
- Shot Hit
- No
Witnesses
- Witness(es) Sex
- Male and child
- Report type
- 1st person
Setting
- Terrain
- alpine, hillside
- Exact Terrain
- meadow
- Slope
- easy
- Slope Faced
- North
- Cover
- heavy
- General
- none
- General undergrowth
- none
Weather and light
- Lighting
- daylight
- Visibility Index
- 6
Source
- Source
- Paul McGuire writing to John Green
- Source Type
- letter
- Source Date
- ABOUT 1970
- Source reliability
- 6
- Incident reliablility
- 6
- Jwg file date
- ABOUT 1970
- Incident type
- 1
Creature description
- Hair Covered
- yes
- Height
- large
- Posture
- erect
- Hair Length
- long
- Hair Colour
- white
- Movement
- other
- Later Movement
- fled, jumped, entered woods
- Running Stride
- long
- Running Speed
- fast
- Arms Action
- gesturing
- Reaction
- fled from
- Other Unusual Y/N
- Yes
- Describe Unsual
- When first seen was waving arms up and down as if trying to fly. When it ran it leaped over fallen logs like a hurdler.
- Position when first seen
- erect
Witness
- Wildlife Familiarity
- slight
- Sex
- MC
- Witness Saw with
- naked eye
- Observer Was
- hiking
- Moving Y/N
- Yes
- Position
- upright
- Making Noise Y/N
- Yes
- Closest horizontal distance
- 200 yards
- Least vertical distance
- nil
- Action on sighting
- stayed still, approached, fled
- No of witnesses
- 9
- Age
- under 10