Trinity National Forest Pterodactyl Sighting

There seems to be nothing wrong with the short report that has multiplied across the world wide web: A couple was driving through Trinity National Forest, in Northern California, in the early 1960's, when they saw "the silhouette of a giant 'bird' that they estimated to have a wingspan of 14 feet." On reflecting on their encounter, the couple were reported to have compared the flying creature with a "pterodactyl." The main problem with that brief account, aside from its brevity, is the lack of any name of any eyewitness or any name of any newspaper article to go with it; there is not even an obvious indication of what web page was originally responsible for that report.

Live Pterosaurs in the Western United States

"Eyewitness accounts include locations in the West, including California and Washington State."

A couple in Sun Valley noticed something in the sky. The woman said that it was a bat, but the man saw a “bright radiation like light coming from the belly of this Pterodactyl looking animal.” As the creature flew right over the couple, the man was convinced that it was no bat. He reported, “ it was bigger with large wing span and when it flapped its wings it was kind of a slow lazy flap kind of gliding through the air.”