Incident #1000901
Bellingham, Whatcom Cty, Washington
May 1978
Account
Jeff Watson and William Marshall, security guards at Bellingham Airport, heard crashing sounds in the woods on airport property opposite an animal shelter (apparently South of the runways). The noise was moving West, so they drove to the end of the South runway, to see if anything would cross the open area South of the runway. Spotlight immediately picked up an 8-foot, black, manlike animal 150 yards away, in high grass, heading West. It stopped still for three or four minutes, then turned back into the woods. Sheriff's office contacted, and deputies and state troopers attended, confirming smell and crushed grass. Watson, regular night patrolman at the airport, had been hearing yells and smelling a foul smell for about a month, but the source was never seen to cross a runway. Location is only 2 miles from the Nooksack River delta where there have been many previous reports.
When
- Observation Date
- MAY 29 1978
- Month
- May
- Year
- 1978
- Season
- spring
- Time of Day
- before 3 a.m.
- Duration
- 3 to 5 minutes
Where
- State / province
- Washington
- County
- Whatcom Cty
- Nearest Town
- Bellingham
- Direction from Town
- Northwest
- Distance from Town
- 2
- Population of Town
- 45000
- Elevation/Altitude
- 1.5
- Latitude
- 484711
- Longitude
- 1223237
What was seen
- Individuals
- one large, sex unknown
- Total Individuals
- 1
- Population Status
- rural
- First Seen
- in
- Terrain Object
- open
- Near or/at
- bushes
- Shot Hit
- No
- Tracks
- not found
Witnesses
- Witness(es) Sex
- Male
- Report type
- 1st person
Setting
- Terrain
- plain
- Exact Terrain
- clearing
- Slope
- level
- Nearby Water
- ocean, inlet
- Distance to Water
- half mile
- Substratum
- fine material
- Cover
- heavy
- Tree size
- mostly small
- Tree condition
- mostly new
- Tree type
- mixed
- Unnatural Conditions
- cleared
- General
- none
- Undergrowth
- heavy
- Undergrowth size
- low
- Undergrowth type
- berry bushes
- Unnatural
- cleared
- General undergrowth
- grass
- Species
- alder, cottonwood, fir, hemlock
Weather and light
- Lighting
- spotlight
- Visibility Index
- 5
Source
- Source
- Dennis Gates intvs. with Jeff Watson and William M
- Source Type
- colleague
- Source Date
- MAY 30 1978
- Source reliability
- 7
- Incident reliablility
- 6
- Jwg file date
- JUN 1978
- Incident type
- 1
Creature description
- Hair Covered
- yes
- Height
- 8 ft
- Posture
- erect
- Hair Colour
- black
- Movement
- walking
- Direction
- West
- Later Movement
- stopped still
- Movement re observer
- across observer front
- Sound
- scream
- Odour
- strong
- Reaction
- avoided
- Additional Movement
- turned around, entered woods
- Position when first seen
- erect
Witness
- Sex
- Male
- Interviewer
- Dennis Gates
- Interview date
- JUN 08 1978
- Witness Saw with
- binoculars
- Observer Was
- in car
- Moving Y/N
- Yes
- Position
- seated
- Making Noise Y/N
- Yes
- Closest horizontal distance
- 200 yards
- Least vertical distance
- nil
- Action on sighting
- studied
- No of witnesses
- 2
- Age
- 21 to 30