YEAR: 1998

SEASON: Fall

MONTH: November

DATE: first week

STATE: Washington

COUNTY: Lewis County

LOCATION DETAILS: On Chambers Lake spur road off FSR 21

NEAREST TOWN: Packwood / Randle

NEAREST ROAD: Gifford Pinchot Forest Service Road 21

OBSERVED: I am reporting two vocalization experiences from the past. Both occurred within a mile of each other yet were decades apart. Having read the report from a hunter near a lake outside of Packwood I wanted to submit this as his encounter and mine are very similar and may be the same creature.

The first encounter was in the mid 70's. The location was Chambers Lake SE of Packwood and close to The Goat Rocks Wilderness. It was early spring with the access road to the lake buried in heavy snow. We had walked in approximately 3 miles leaving my dads car at the creek. There were no human tracks leading into the area. Only the weather worn tracks of what looked like a forestry snowcat.

We fished for brook trout from the logs near the camping area. We had caught several when we heard the sound of shifting rock on the slope across the lake from our location. As the slope was buried in several feet of snow it had to be something large to displace the rocks.

Maybe ten minutes later something let out a horrible screaming howl from the tree line that borders the lake directly below the slope. It was incredibly loud and forceful. It scared both my dad and I. It then sounded like it was tearing up the brush and limbs. So my dad said we needed to leave.

My father was a judge and not easily intimidated but he was visibly frightened. He grabbed our rods and took out his pistol. He said 'come on' and started walking without even reeling in the lines. We hiked up the snow covered access road and down the logging road. My dad kept looking back behind us as we could still here the thrashing sounds until we were 1/2 mile away.

We finally got to the car and left

The second encounter was in 1998. It occurred approximately 1 mile from the lake. My friend and I had just arrived to hunt elk in the area between Chambers and Walupt Lake. It was November.

We were truck camping on a gravel site that overlooks the valley. It is on the same ridgeline that leads to the slope behind Chambers Lake. It was evening and we were sitting beside a fire discussing the next days hunt.

Suddenly there was that same horrific screaming howl coming from the treeline approximately 100 yards from our truck. The creature was very loud and was moving closer as it vocalized. We could hear what sounded like logs or limbs being thrown in our direction. We quickly got into the truck and spent the night in the cab. We did not here further vocalizations but also didn't go out to listen either.

Let me note that I am a lifelong hunter with extensive knowledge of animal behavior and identification. I am also a well educated naturalist that could identify most every Cascade animal by sound. This was not a bear, cougar, elk, porcupine, wolf, coyote or bobcat. I would doubt it was a human as it was obvious that we were hunters and the distance was within east range for either of us.

This was the exact same noise I heard with my father two decades earlier and within a mile of the first encounter. In subsequent years I have hiked the game trails along that ridgeline and they connect between both locations with well worn paths. In fact the truck was parked across the path as it transects the gravel site.

It appears as if this is a creature that lives in that area and doesn't want people infringing on its territory / food supplies (we were fishing and hunting during these events).

I spoke with the BFRO investigator a couple years back as he investigated a neighbors sighting near Eatonville. But felt I should submit this report in the event that others may have run into this creature near Chambers Lake. By its behavior I would be surprised if these were singular events.

ALSO NOTICED: Both encounters within a mile of each other. Both demonstrated territorial behavior and use of vegetation

Both were reactions to game gathering activities

OTHER WITNESSES: My father during the first encounter
My hunting partner during the second encounter

OTHER STORIES: Not personally but in my research have found that this area between Mt Rainier, Mt Adams and the Upper Cispus River have had native American history of sasquatch

TIME AND CONDITIONS: Evening
Clear and cold (35 degrees)

ENVIRONMENT: Sub alpine
Mixed Jack Pine, White Cedar, Douglas Fir, huckleberry, bear grass and sedges

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Scott Taylor:

As the witness stated in his report, I have met and talked with him in the past. He is a lifelong outdoorsman, and lived in the area his whole life. As a hunter and fisherman myself, when I talked with him, both in-person and over the phone recently, he knows what he is talking about when it comes to the wildlife of Washington State.

While I have not actually been to Chambers Lake, I attempted to get there late spring in 2012. Several of us were scouting for an expedition location. We got stuck in a patch of snow that was a bit deeper than I thought. There were hikers going in there, who parked below the snow, and they helped us dig out. One of our party, a female, was off in the woods about 100 yards away, when as she stood up, she saw a sasquatch watching her from about 75 yards away. She intentionally looked away, and then back, and it was gone, verifying that it was indeed there.

I have been to the gravel pit that this witness refers to several times. Our family has an annual camping trip at the nearby lakes (Walupt, Horseshoe, or Takhlakh Lakes), so I am well familiar with the area. There are sasquatch sightings all over that area, and many reports over the years.

This year, it is my intention to go camping at Chambers Lake to see what activity there may be. At this time, it is inaccessible due to snow.

In addition to the accounts related in the report, this witness mentioned that in June of 2003, he was camping there with his daughters. At night, something was raining pinecones down on their tent. This would have been too early for squirrels to be harvesting pinecones so that would not be the cause. This behavior, throwing pinecones, pebbles, or sticks is consistent with other reports of sasquatch interaction.

Due to the experiences this witness has had, he no longer hunts this area.

About BFRO Investigator Scott Taylor:

Scott Taylor is a retired aerospace manager. He lives in Mason County, Washington. He had his first bigfoot encounter in October 2005 where he was stalked and later heard vocalizations.

Scott has attended official BFRO Expeditions in the Washington Cascades in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. He also attended 2007 Central Oregon Cascades and 2007 Utah. He now organizes BFRO expeditions in Washington and has participated in bigfoot conferences over the past 17 years.

Scott will be leading a Washington BFRO expedition in 2025 (July 17-20) which is open to non-members. For more details and registration information for that trip click here.