The Witch of Westcreek: More than Tall Tales? (Patreon)

Clara Kane, Senior Correspondent

Westcreek, a small town barely on the maps, transforms each Halloween into a haven of Halloween festivities. Yet beneath the cheery surface lies an urban legend that has persisted for decades. The tale of an enormous witch who appears in the month of October, stalking unseen amidst the suburban homes, and is supposedly behind the disappearances that have plagued Westcreek over the decades

Residents whisper about the “Witch of Crescentwood”; a horrifying, skeletal woman of bones and black rags, her wide-brimmed hat casting long shadows over the quiet streets, who is said to make her home at an old manor at the edge of town.

Local records show strange disappearances occurring every seven to ten years, always between October 1st and November 1st. Most victims are reported as missing during trick-or-treating hours. Official explanations range from abductions to runaways, but no suspects have ever been caught, and in several cases, entire homes vanished overnight.

Paranormal enthusiast Gina Bartlett, who has been collecting stories since the 1980s, believes there’s a sinister connection. “Look at the pattern. Every Halloween, sightings spike. People describe a woman who’s far too large to be human, sitting on rooftops like a cat watching mice."

One of the more recent eyewitness accounts comes from 67-year-old Thomas F., who last Halloween claimed to have seen “a woman bigger than the house” sitting on his neighbour's home. "She was smiling down at me. I thought it was some kind of weird decoration until it blew a kiss at me, and that’s when the lights went out.” Thomas recalls. Neighbours dismissed the older man's ravings entirely. Yet the neighbour’s daughter, set to travel to college in the summer, was found missing from her family home the next morning.

Earlier this month, a chilling photo online that appears to show an enormous figure in the background of a woman in her twenties. The woman in question is Catelyn Bailey, who went missing on the night of October 12th. This was the last photo seen of her before she vanished. Sceptics claim it’s a manipulated image at worst, and inconclusive at best, but believers point to eerie consistencies with decades-old reports - especially one sighting that depicted the towering terror wearing striped leggings. Yet the leggings in question could simply be shadows or even oddities with the photo itself.

Authorities have declined to comment on the authenticity of the image but have increased patrols in the neighbourhood for Halloween this year.

If this woman or creature is real, she leaves no giant footprints, no broken rooftops, and no footage of this enormous figure has ever been captured. But the consistency of reports, the timing of disappearances, and the unsettling photo have reignited old fears. Some families now refuse to venture out after dark, while others have taken to leaving offerings on their rooftops and doorsteps.

“She’s real,” Bartlett insists. “And if the cycle continues, this Halloween may not be any different.”