Rendlesham Forest photo album
Here are some photographs I took in and around Rendlesham Forest on a grey day
in 1983 November, nearly three years after the famous UFO sighting. At that
time Woodbridge air base was still in use by the US Air Force. It has since
closed. The original East Gate is long gone, replaced by high security fencing.
All photographs are © Ian Ridpath
1. East Gate. This gate, also known as the “Back Gate”, of Woodbridge Air Force base, faces east towards Rendlesham Forest. The small
lodge used by the security guards is seen to the left of the road, near the
centre of the frame. At some time in the years after this photograph was taken,
the road layout inside the gate was changed. A traffic island was installed and
the access road divided to pass either side of it, as can be seen on more
recent photographs. The main runway of RAF Woodbridge is towards the right of
this picture, behind the white Ministry of Defence sign. An aerial view of the
area today can be seen
here.
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2. The view from East Gate. Looking east from East Gate along the access road towards the forest. The
Woodbridge runway and perimeter fence are to the left. When the security guards
first ventured out in search of the object they thought had crashed on Night
One of the event, they went along this road to the point where it meets a local
road, turned right along that road and then first left along a narrow track
into the forest (see here for an aerial view of the route). Much of the forest had been cleared when this
photograph was taken in November 1983, so the view in this picture is far more
open than it would have been at the time of the UFO sighting. New trees have
now grown in place of those felled for timber. Note that the Orford Ness
lighthouse cannot be seen directly from East Gate; it becomes apparent once you
get further into the forest and the land begins to fall away to the east.
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3. Still standing. Although many of the trees in the area of the alleged UFO landing site were felled as part of normal forestry operations in the two or three years
following the events of 1980 December, this stand remained at the forest’s eastern edge when I visited in 1983 November. This view was taken facing east
and the trees include those in my nocturnal shot. For a different perspective on these same trees, giving a better idea of their
height and distance apart, see Photo 4, below.
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4. Forest edge. The remaining stand of trees at the forest edge, seen from the south. The
supposed UFO landing site was among trees like these, in this same area near
the eastern forest edge. From this viewpoint, the farmer’s field and Orford Ness lighthouse are off to the right. The UFO is said to have
zig-zagged between these trees, an impressive achievement for a craft
supposedly the size of a car.
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5. Vince’s house. Forester Vince Thurkettle lived in this bungalow near Tangham House (marked on
some maps as Tangham Farm) at the time of the Rendlesham Forest UFO event, a
kilometre from the alleged landing site. The bungalow has now been sold off to
private owners and considerably modified. It lies next to the current Forest
Centre Office.
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© Ian Ridpath. All rights reserved
