A SUPERNATURAL investigator is on the hunt for information about the ‘Wolfman of Merionethshire’.

Historical researcher John West is collecting data about a supposed beast which stalked the hills of Meirionnydd in the late 19th/early 20th century.

Writing in a recent edition of Psychic News, John, who also works as a broadcaster in East Anglia, recounted the tale of the werewolf of west Wales.

In his article, John tells the story of Miss St Denis, an amateur artist who was staying at a Merionethshire farm, unnamed but “close to a village, a small railway station, and several disused slate quarries”.

“On one occasion, she was painting when she noticed the figure of a man sitting on one of the nearby railway tracks,” John writes. “He was staring at her intently.

“She felt surprise at this as the station was hardly used.

“Indeed, this was the first time she had seen another soul there in the evening, apart from the station master who had already left for home.

“She began to feel uneasy as the man continued to stare at her.

“She deliberately coughed but he did not react.

“A second cough also failed to bring any reaction.

“She then called out ‘can you tell me the time please?’ but the figure still did not respond.”

At this juncture, the account takes an ever more sinister turn.

“Miss St Denis decided to pack her things and made her way out of the station,” the student of the paranormal continued.

“Glancing back, she was horrified to see that the man was now following her.

“She quickened her pace and started to whistle in order to appear unconcerned.

“It was now twilight and the path had taken her to a remote spot surrounded by cliffs and disused quarries.

“Realising that a cry for help would go unheard she decided to confront her stalker.

“She spun round and shouted ‘What do you want? How dare you?’

“He didn’t respond.

“As he drew nearer she was now able to see him clearly as the last rays of sunlight fell on the path.

“He was not a man after all.

“The ‘Thing’ appeared to be covered in grey hair and, although human in form, had a wolf’s head.

“It sprang forward with a look of ferocity on its face.

“The terrified woman quickly grabbed a torch from her pocket and shone it at the beast.

“The Thing shrank back, its paws trying to hide the light from its face.

“It then faded away leaving her alone in the darkness.”

According to John, the “shaken but unhurt” Miss St Denis asked locals for an explanation.

A collection of bones, some human and some animal, had been discovered in a slate quarry near to where the apparition had vanished and that nearby residents shunned the area after dusk as it had a “bad reputation”.

Miss St Denis’ account was then included in Elliot O’Donnell’s 1912 book Werewolves.

John has an open mind about what happened.

“Visit Meirionnydd today and may yet hear folk-tales of ghostly wolf-like creatures being seen at dusk on the hills and paths,” he said.

“Of course, you could dismiss such stories as nothing more than local gossip and leg pulling.

“But, on the other hand, would you really want to take the chance and walk the lonely and forbidding hills as the sun sets?”

Have you experienced anything unworldly or supernatural in Dwyfor Meirionnydd? Please email [email protected] if so