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(eerie music)
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- [Narrator] There are places in the world
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where the boundary between the known
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and the unknown is very thin.
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Places whose natural and wild beauty
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hide secrets too
incredible to be believed,
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until those secrets begin
to reveal themselves.
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When that happens, people react in wonder,
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curiosity, and sometimes in horror.
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Humanity often commemorates these places
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by creating monuments, such as Stonehenge.
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Scholars suggest that it was a place
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from which to observe the heavens,
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a place of burial, a place of either
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human sacrifice or healing.
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The Nazca lines etched into
the earth of southern Peru
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carry the qualities of sacred symbolism.
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The desert southwest has kept
its own disturbing secrets
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from the alleged crashes
of craft from other worlds,
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to the all too real
testing of atomic weaponry.
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Then there's the Bermuda Triangle,
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a region of the Atlantic Ocean
in which hundreds of ships
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and approximately 75 planes
have simply gone missing,
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along with passengers and crew.
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Both scientific and supernatural causes
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have been proposed for these catastrophes,
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but theories do little to ease the pain
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of those who lost loved
ones in the Triangle.
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There are places in the
world whose mysteries
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call us to come and see for ourselves,
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whatever the human toll might be.
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Places like the Chestnut Ridge.
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The Chestnut Ridge located
in southwestern Pennsylvania
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lies on the western edge of
the Appalachian mountain range.
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The ridge rises in southern Indiana County
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and rolls to the southwest by way of towns
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like Blairsville, Derry,
Latrobe, Connellsville,
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Mount Pleasant, and Uniontown
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all the way into West Virginia where it
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gradually comes to rest near Morgantown.
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Villages along the ridge were founded
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as far back as 1770.
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The rich limestone clay
soil rewarded the efforts
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of early farmers, and soon the communities
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could support iron furnaces,
whiskey distilleries,
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and general stores.
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One family by the last name of Keck
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settled in the area to bottle and sell
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spring water and soft drinks.
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They had no way of knowing
that their town, Kecksburg,
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would one day become world famous,
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but not for ginger ale.
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- Then I was 16 years old
when the incident happened
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near Kecksburg, Pennsylvania,
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and I got involved with that that evening
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as it was breaking on the news
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and I've been out in the
field ever since that time
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investigating UFOs and
cryptozoatic phenomenon
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here in Pennsylvania.
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Kecksburg, Pennsylvania
is a small rural community
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in Mount Pleasant township
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in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania,
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approximately 40 miles
southeast of Pittsburgh.
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- [Narrator] Like many of the small towns
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in Westmoreland County, Kecksburg
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sits within the shadow
of the Chestnut Ridge.
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The ridge is dotted end to
end with these tiny villages,
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many of them founded
well over a century ago.
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Each of them bears their own
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strange history of
sightings and encounters
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with things not of this world.
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Many wonder what it is about this
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particular stretch of land
that beckons such mysteries.
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For decades, researchers
of the strange and unknown
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have journeyed back
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to the Chestnut Ridge
in search of answers.
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Their quest isn't solely
confined to present day.
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For over a century,
mysterious circumstances
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have shrouded the ridge
in a fog of unease.
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- I've been involved in the paranormal
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since I've been about 10 years old,
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and then I got into the field
in 1997 investigating cases.
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But my main base of
operation in Pennsylvania
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is the southwestern part of the state,
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namely this particular
area where we're at here.
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Westmoreland, Fayette County,
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Armstrong, Indiana, Washington.
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Probably about 80% of my
investigations and cases
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that I've worked on have been
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here in the Chestnut Ridge area.
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- There's been a long history of
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various phenomena along
the Chestnut Ridge,
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especially along the
Westmoreland County side
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and Derry township.
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We have many reports from
those small communities
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such as Derry and New Derry
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and Hillside, Superior, and Brenizer
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and all throughout that
area and many sightings
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around the Keystone State Park.
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- Without a doubt there's
an atmosphere to this area.
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You can drive these
back roads and you just
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get a weird feeling in some
of these places you go into.
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Some are very dark, and secluded.
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They just give off a really ominous vibe.
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- Something very strange has been going on
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along the Chestnut Ridge
for many, many years
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and in fact the earliest firsthand account
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I have of a Bigfoot
encounter where I actually
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interviewed the witness goes back to 1931
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near Indian Head in Fayette County.
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And of course Fayette
County is one of those areas
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that has year after year
phenomena being reported.
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- The newspaper article
that I found that date back
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to the 1800s, late 1800s,
that talk about people
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experiencing wild men of the forest,
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or even gorillas or monkeys in this area.
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It's not just Bigfoot related,
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there's all kinds of
weird phenomena from UFOs,
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strange lights in the
sky, cryptic creatures,
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haunted locations, just a really
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concentrated area right here.
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There's a lot of weird
activity that goes on.
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- There's been a lot of history of
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all kinds of strange phenomena
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that's happened all around this area
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and through Mount Pleasant Township
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and throughout the community around here.
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- The UFO sightings in this
area have been rampant,
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as I said earlier it's a
very high volume of reports.
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Even all the way up to
Kecksburg in the 1960s.
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- [Narrator] There probably was a time
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when the residents of
Kecksburg felt far removed
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from the tension of the Cold War,
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and obsession over UFOs.
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All the televisions, movie
theaters, and drive-ins
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were full of nuclear wars or countered by
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fantastical aliens in flying saucers,
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this tiny burg remained
blissfully detached
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from the near hysteria that was gripping
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other areas of the country.
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In late 1965, that sense of
security would be shattered.
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- I'll remember it all my life you know?
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It's something I'll never forget.
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(beeping)
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That night we was actually
out playing football
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and we didn't actually know about it
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until we walked back in the house
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and Mom and Dad said that
there was a thing on the radio
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that something crashed in Acme.
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My mom looked out the window
and she seen all the vehicles
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and stuff on the road.
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She says this is right behind
the house, that ain't in Acme.
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- I remember that evening
just like it was yesterday.
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It was Thursday evening December 9, 1965.
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I was listening to a radio
station in Pittsburgh.
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There was a breaking news story
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coming on the radio about
this brilliant fireball,
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this fiery object was seen
from the tip of Ontario, Canada
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over Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
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- [Narrator] That night,
a radiant fireball
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was seen streaking through
the skies over Detroit
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and Windsor, Ontario moving
in a southeasterly direction,
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allegedly dropping hot metal debris
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over Michigan and northern Ohio
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before hitting the ground near Kecksburg.
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All sorts of explanations were proposed.
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Some thought they were
witnessing an airplane accident.
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Others thought a missile
test had gone awry,
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or that a satellite was
reentering the atmosphere.
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The most common assumption
was that a meteor
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was the brilliant light in question.
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None of those however seemed to square
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with what was happening
near the Chestnut Ridge.
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Local witnesses reported
feeling the impact
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of the object's crash landing,
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seeing a wisp of blue smoke
rising from the woods,
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and some even claimed to discover
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what it was that had fallen to Earth.
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An object shaped like an acorn,
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approximately the size of a small car
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with hieroglyphic like
writing around its base.
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The ravine in which it fell quickly became
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the center of curiosity and controversy.
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- And it got more exciting during evening
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as reports were coming
in that the military
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was now arriving in the Kecksburg area
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to search for an
unidentified flying object.
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- We started watching
out the windows and stuff
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and I seen people coming
in and out and going
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down in the hollow in the
field, down to where it was at.
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And then we started seeing people come in,
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seeing cars lining our driveway.
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People going up and
down through the fields
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and people coming to the house, using the,
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they used our house as a command post.
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- People actually believe that they saw
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a small military presence
within maybe the first hour
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after the object fell, but it
was during the next few hours
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during the evening that the military
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began to arrive on the scene.
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And many people throughout this area
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reported seeing what looked
like a military convoy,
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military trucks coming in from
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different roads into the Kecksburg area.
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So what we learned was the fact that
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as reports of this object coming down
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in the Kecksburg area began to
circulate on Pittsburgh area
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00:11:33,749 --> 00:11:37,675
radio and TV, hundreds of
people descended on the small,
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00:11:37,675 --> 00:11:39,400
rural community to try and get a look
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at the object down in the woods.
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- [Narrator] An alarming scene was
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00:11:42,744 --> 00:11:45,101
beginning to unfold around the crash site.
213
00:11:45,101 --> 00:11:47,596
Residents of Kecksburg
claimed that armed soldiers
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were present, and were preventing people
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00:11:49,907 --> 00:11:52,625
from approaching the wooded ravine.
216
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In one instance a witness reported
217
00:11:54,470 --> 00:11:56,096
that a member of the military instructed
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00:11:56,096 --> 00:11:58,960
two neighborhood boys to
deliberately misinform
219
00:11:58,960 --> 00:12:02,638
curiosity seekers, and the
youngsters gladly complied
220
00:12:02,638 --> 00:12:07,103
by giving people false
directions to the impact site.
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00:12:07,103 --> 00:12:09,820
Things took a decidedly
more serious turn though
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the closer one came to the downed object.
223
00:12:13,834 --> 00:12:16,272
A well known jazz musician
from the Pittsburgh area
224
00:12:16,272 --> 00:12:18,153
claimed that US soldiers
aimed their rifles
225
00:12:18,153 --> 00:12:21,663
at him and his friends,
ordering them off a country lane
226
00:12:21,663 --> 00:12:24,532
as an army flatbed truck
hauling a tarp covered
227
00:12:24,532 --> 00:12:28,820
acorn shaped object made
its way out of a field.
228
00:12:28,820 --> 00:12:30,340
Others who were teenagers at the time
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00:12:30,340 --> 00:12:32,211
reported that the military response
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00:12:32,211 --> 00:12:35,044
left them fearing for their lives.
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00:12:36,256 --> 00:12:39,915
- Some of the local residents
who saw this object come down
232
00:12:39,915 --> 00:12:43,626
that afternoon, they went
down into the wooded ravine
233
00:12:43,626 --> 00:12:45,740
to see what had fallen from the sky
234
00:12:45,740 --> 00:12:47,890
and they came across this large, metallic,
235
00:12:47,890 --> 00:12:50,870
acorn shaped object
semi-buried in the ground.
236
00:12:50,870 --> 00:12:52,645
There was actually two
important locations.
237
00:12:52,645 --> 00:12:56,096
One was on top of the hill,
what is now called Meteor Road
238
00:12:56,096 --> 00:12:57,754
which is where hundreds of people
239
00:12:57,754 --> 00:12:59,711
were jamming the road that night.
240
00:12:59,711 --> 00:13:02,561
That's where most reporters
were, that's where some military
241
00:13:02,561 --> 00:13:05,203
other authorities were.
242
00:13:05,203 --> 00:13:09,740
Far on the opposite side of
the woods was an old dirt road,
243
00:13:09,740 --> 00:13:12,748
a farm lane which a number of
people found themselves on.
244
00:13:12,748 --> 00:13:15,743
That was closest to the
crash site, the impact site,
245
00:13:15,743 --> 00:13:17,719
and that's where a lot
of the military presence
246
00:13:17,719 --> 00:13:20,549
and other authorities were
on that lane over there.
247
00:13:20,549 --> 00:13:24,262
- There was people in black suits came in,
248
00:13:24,262 --> 00:13:27,696
and those people there, they was actually,
249
00:13:27,696 --> 00:13:30,275
seemed like they was
in charge of everybody.
250
00:13:30,275 --> 00:13:32,818
We seen some people
coming down in white suit
251
00:13:32,818 --> 00:13:34,310
carrying a big box.
252
00:13:34,310 --> 00:13:37,341
One had a NASA patch on his arm,
253
00:13:37,341 --> 00:13:40,782
and they took this box down
into where that was at.
254
00:13:40,782 --> 00:13:43,078
I seen him go down in with the box.
255
00:13:43,078 --> 00:13:46,395
Never seen it come back out,
but I seen the truck go down in
256
00:13:46,395 --> 00:13:50,311
and I seen it come back out
you know with something on it.
257
00:13:50,311 --> 00:13:52,111
- There was a lot of talk
around this community
258
00:13:52,111 --> 00:13:54,737
that people had seen a
large military flatbed
259
00:13:54,737 --> 00:13:57,467
tractor trailer truck
carrying a large tarped object
260
00:13:57,467 --> 00:13:59,114
out of the area late that night,
261
00:13:59,114 --> 00:14:01,088
but that never was in the news.
262
00:14:01,088 --> 00:14:04,570
- Next day, me and my brother
went down in the woods.
263
00:14:04,570 --> 00:14:07,901
We seen where they had covered up a whole
264
00:14:07,901 --> 00:14:10,994
different kind of dirt you know and seen
265
00:14:10,994 --> 00:14:13,719
how the trees was broke
off and walked over
266
00:14:13,719 --> 00:14:16,900
to the other side of the hill
when it was all burnt off.
267
00:14:16,900 --> 00:14:19,805
There was some guy over
there with a Geiger counter.
268
00:14:19,805 --> 00:14:21,991
At the time we thought
he was a treasure hunter.
269
00:14:21,991 --> 00:14:24,358
We was kids, we didn't know any better.
270
00:14:24,358 --> 00:14:26,915
He asked us what we was doing down there.
271
00:14:26,915 --> 00:14:28,196
Told him well we live here,
272
00:14:28,196 --> 00:14:29,775
you know we're down here all the time.
273
00:14:29,775 --> 00:14:31,870
He says well, you know there's
274
00:14:31,870 --> 00:14:34,383
a chance of radiation down in here.
275
00:14:34,383 --> 00:14:35,931
Well what the heck is radiation?
276
00:14:35,931 --> 00:14:38,704
You know we didn't know, so we sort of
277
00:14:38,704 --> 00:14:40,656
ignored him and went on our way.
278
00:14:40,656 --> 00:14:43,845
- So early the next morning I
went to the local news stand
279
00:14:43,845 --> 00:14:45,218
to see if there was any other stories
280
00:14:45,218 --> 00:14:47,367
about what we'd seen last
night in the local papers
281
00:14:47,367 --> 00:14:49,075
and there it was in all the local papers.
282
00:14:49,075 --> 00:14:50,724
The Pittsburgh Press, the Post-Gazette.
283
00:14:50,724 --> 00:14:53,420
The Greensburg Tribune
Review had two editions
284
00:14:53,420 --> 00:14:57,079
and the early morning edition
had Army ropes off area,
285
00:14:57,079 --> 00:14:59,804
unidentified flying object
falls near Kecksburg.
286
00:14:59,804 --> 00:15:02,323
The later edition of the paper
had several different stories
287
00:15:02,323 --> 00:15:03,747
including one that caught my attention
288
00:15:03,747 --> 00:15:05,811
which said searchers fail to find object
289
00:15:05,811 --> 00:15:09,295
and it went on to say that
yes, there was a search
290
00:15:09,295 --> 00:15:12,679
in the early morning hours but
they found absolutely nothing
291
00:15:12,679 --> 00:15:14,244
and that the official explanation was that
292
00:15:14,244 --> 00:15:16,865
it was people's imagination.
293
00:15:16,865 --> 00:15:18,317
They had seen a bright meteor in the sky
294
00:15:18,317 --> 00:15:20,789
but nothing had fallen to the ground,
295
00:15:20,789 --> 00:15:25,756
and that's officially where
the case remains today.
296
00:15:25,756 --> 00:15:27,900
- I can picture it you know in my head,
297
00:15:27,900 --> 00:15:30,233
the people coming in, people
298
00:15:33,188 --> 00:15:36,220
keeping quiet about
things and people I know
299
00:15:36,220 --> 00:15:40,136
that was there and seen it and denied it.
300
00:15:40,136 --> 00:15:41,786
I'll never forget that, you know?
301
00:15:41,786 --> 00:15:43,036
It's something,
302
00:15:45,316 --> 00:15:47,708
something that sticks with you.
303
00:15:47,708 --> 00:15:50,061
- Kecksburg to me seems like
it was almost the catalyst
304
00:15:50,061 --> 00:15:52,331
for people becoming comfortable enough
305
00:15:52,331 --> 00:15:54,961
to share their experiences
and the newspaper media
306
00:15:54,961 --> 00:15:59,512
following these encounters
and are reporting on them.
307
00:15:59,512 --> 00:16:01,237
- [Narrator] The Kecksburg
experience turned the eyes
308
00:16:01,237 --> 00:16:02,699
of those who lived in the area
309
00:16:02,699 --> 00:16:05,464
to the skies over the Chestnut Ridge,
310
00:16:05,464 --> 00:16:08,408
and what they saw over and over again
311
00:16:08,408 --> 00:16:12,249
was more mysterious
than they ever expected.
312
00:16:12,249 --> 00:16:14,832
What they saw was unidentified.
313
00:16:16,666 --> 00:16:19,610
In the spring of 1966, a woman in Latrobe
314
00:16:19,610 --> 00:16:21,299
was awakened from sleep by her dog
315
00:16:21,299 --> 00:16:23,789
which had become highly agitated.
316
00:16:23,789 --> 00:16:27,256
Upon taking the dog outside,
she saw a silver object
317
00:16:27,256 --> 00:16:31,448
hovering no more than 80 feet
above her roof of her house.
318
00:16:31,448 --> 00:16:33,697
The object looked and spun like a top
319
00:16:33,697 --> 00:16:36,996
and was bathed in a reddish glow.
320
00:16:36,996 --> 00:16:39,448
After several minutes,
the top-like anomaly
321
00:16:39,448 --> 00:16:42,940
shot up into the sky and was gone.
322
00:16:42,940 --> 00:16:45,548
The witness faced ridicule
from her family and friends
323
00:16:45,548 --> 00:16:48,798
when she spoke about what she had seen.
324
00:16:49,740 --> 00:16:51,584
Later that same year, two
women were approaching
325
00:16:51,584 --> 00:16:53,805
Adamsburg on Route 30 when they noticed
326
00:16:53,805 --> 00:16:56,339
a strange aerial craft almost touching
327
00:16:56,339 --> 00:16:59,650
a series of high tension powerlines.
328
00:16:59,650 --> 00:17:02,497
As they drove closer, the
object went under the powerlines
329
00:17:02,497 --> 00:17:05,642
and began to dive towards their car.
330
00:17:05,642 --> 00:17:08,500
Fortunately, there was no
collision and as it flew off,
331
00:17:08,500 --> 00:17:11,496
the women observed its
dark colored oblong shape
332
00:17:11,496 --> 00:17:12,966
with a type of tail in the back
333
00:17:12,966 --> 00:17:15,633
and deep grooves on its surface.
334
00:17:16,875 --> 00:17:18,783
The driver of the car, who to that point
335
00:17:18,783 --> 00:17:21,161
had been a UFO skeptic suffered
336
00:17:21,161 --> 00:17:24,411
repeated nightmares about the incident.
337
00:17:25,545 --> 00:17:27,270
In the months and years to follow,
338
00:17:27,270 --> 00:17:29,709
reports like these would
become more and more common
339
00:17:29,709 --> 00:17:31,792
along the Chestnut Ridge.
340
00:17:32,780 --> 00:17:35,939
Eyewitnesses were left to
speculate about what they had seen
341
00:17:35,939 --> 00:17:39,093
and wonder what normal
life was going to be like
342
00:17:39,093 --> 00:17:42,676
now that they knew
something was out there.
343
00:17:44,449 --> 00:17:45,589
- I know what I saw.
344
00:17:45,589 --> 00:17:47,137
It stayed with me all this years.
345
00:17:47,137 --> 00:17:49,179
I haven't told a lot of people about it.
346
00:17:49,179 --> 00:17:50,808
At this point in my life, it happened
347
00:17:50,808 --> 00:17:54,058
and I'm just here to tell you about it.
348
00:17:59,863 --> 00:18:03,221
I grew up in Derry on Ridge Avenue.
349
00:18:03,221 --> 00:18:08,208
This happened back in, it was
either the late fall of '67
350
00:18:08,208 --> 00:18:10,282
or early winter of '68.
351
00:18:10,282 --> 00:18:12,987
It was still dark, but
daylight was coming.
352
00:18:12,987 --> 00:18:15,630
I was sitting at the table in the kitchen
353
00:18:15,630 --> 00:18:18,703
when my mother was in the living room
354
00:18:18,703 --> 00:18:21,644
and I heard her call Tom, come here.
355
00:18:21,644 --> 00:18:22,753
When I walked into the living room
356
00:18:22,753 --> 00:18:26,112
we were looking out a picture
window in the living room
357
00:18:26,112 --> 00:18:28,424
above Chestnut Ridge.
358
00:18:28,424 --> 00:18:33,142
Out of the picture window,
we saw a circular UFO
359
00:18:33,142 --> 00:18:34,499
is what I'm gonna call it.
360
00:18:34,499 --> 00:18:36,979
Multiple lights spinning
around the bottom.
361
00:18:36,979 --> 00:18:39,146
Red, green, white, orange.
362
00:18:40,620 --> 00:18:41,660
It was just strange.
363
00:18:41,660 --> 00:18:44,887
It was something that I had
never seen or experienced before
364
00:18:44,887 --> 00:18:46,548
and while we're standing there,
365
00:18:46,548 --> 00:18:49,517
it was in the one spot
and then all the sudden
366
00:18:49,517 --> 00:18:53,752
it shot across, and you
never saw it shooting across,
367
00:18:53,752 --> 00:18:55,871
but it was in another position in the sky
368
00:18:55,871 --> 00:18:58,023
above the Chestnut Ridge.
369
00:18:58,023 --> 00:19:00,359
This went on I thought for a lifetime,
370
00:19:00,359 --> 00:19:02,905
but it probably wasn't that long.
371
00:19:02,905 --> 00:19:05,465
I'm going to say one minute to two minutes
372
00:19:05,465 --> 00:19:06,721
and we just stood there in amazement
373
00:19:06,721 --> 00:19:08,612
and neither one of us said
anything to each other.
374
00:19:08,612 --> 00:19:10,237
We just stood there and watched it.
375
00:19:10,237 --> 00:19:13,982
All of a sudden it just shot
straight up into the sky
376
00:19:13,982 --> 00:19:18,233
and it wasn't like a sparkler,
but there was a trail
377
00:19:18,233 --> 00:19:21,785
of red and silver lights that
came off the bottom of it
378
00:19:21,785 --> 00:19:23,785
and it just disappeared.
379
00:19:26,439 --> 00:19:29,138
I've looked into the
sky in the last 50 years
380
00:19:29,138 --> 00:19:31,964
looking for something similar to this.
381
00:19:31,964 --> 00:19:33,387
I've never witnessed anything like that
382
00:19:33,387 --> 00:19:36,387
since then, although I keep looking.
383
00:19:38,053 --> 00:19:40,205
- [Narrator] Strange sightings
around the Chestnut Ridge
384
00:19:40,205 --> 00:19:42,935
have never been limited to the skies.
385
00:19:42,935 --> 00:19:46,284
There's a long history of
earthbound bizarre activity,
386
00:19:46,284 --> 00:19:48,084
especially on the Westmoreland, Fayette,
387
00:19:48,084 --> 00:19:50,481
and Indiana County side of the ridge.
388
00:19:50,481 --> 00:19:53,429
With witnesses reporting
subterranean sounds,
389
00:19:53,429 --> 00:19:55,810
strange lights, black panthers,
390
00:19:55,810 --> 00:19:59,977
and unusually large birds
and then there's Bigfoot.
391
00:20:01,368 --> 00:20:03,226
Accounts of hair covered man apes
392
00:20:03,226 --> 00:20:05,483
can be found in Pennsylvania newspapers
393
00:20:05,483 --> 00:20:08,539
dating back to the 1800s,
and these creatures
394
00:20:08,539 --> 00:20:11,887
have never really gone away,
reemerging from time to time
395
00:20:11,887 --> 00:20:15,900
in the southwest highlands of the state.
396
00:20:15,900 --> 00:20:18,920
In the late 1960s a young
man named Stan Gordon
397
00:20:18,920 --> 00:20:22,247
began to actively research
the Bigfoot phenomenon.
398
00:20:22,247 --> 00:20:24,831
Like many, he was excited by the search
399
00:20:24,831 --> 00:20:28,827
for an unknown primate living
in the Pennsylvania forest.
400
00:20:28,827 --> 00:20:30,544
- So it was my determination to set up
401
00:20:30,544 --> 00:20:32,193
a volunteer group of research people
402
00:20:32,193 --> 00:20:34,970
to go out to investigate these reports,
403
00:20:34,970 --> 00:20:37,757
so that's what I did and I decided in 1969
404
00:20:37,757 --> 00:20:39,991
to set up my own hotline for the public.
405
00:20:39,991 --> 00:20:41,942
So I'm getting calls on haunted houses
406
00:20:41,942 --> 00:20:43,830
and ghosts and flying saucers
407
00:20:43,830 --> 00:20:46,969
and Bigfoot and strange
creatures and weird noises.
408
00:20:46,969 --> 00:20:49,499
Anything unusual, the
calls were coming in.
409
00:20:49,499 --> 00:20:52,497
By 1973 we expanded to cover
410
00:20:52,497 --> 00:20:54,308
the whole state of Pennsylvania.
411
00:20:54,308 --> 00:20:56,760
To our surprise, we were
beginning to get referrals
412
00:20:56,760 --> 00:20:59,307
from the state police
and from the news media
413
00:20:59,307 --> 00:21:01,656
and other agencies, so when
they were getting reports
414
00:21:01,656 --> 00:21:03,881
they would refer to the number of my group
415
00:21:03,881 --> 00:21:05,898
to investigate the report.
416
00:21:05,898 --> 00:21:08,217
And it was very lucky that
we were already established
417
00:21:08,217 --> 00:21:12,246
because 1973 comes around and here's this
418
00:21:12,246 --> 00:21:14,844
major UFO Bigfoot wave which nobody
419
00:21:14,844 --> 00:21:17,551
could have ever predicted and we were
420
00:21:17,551 --> 00:21:20,971
extremely busy during that time period.
421
00:21:20,971 --> 00:21:22,634
- [Narrator] It was
fortunate that Stan Gordon
422
00:21:22,634 --> 00:21:25,960
had assembled the Westmoreland
County UFO study group
423
00:21:25,960 --> 00:21:28,293
prior to the events of 1973.
424
00:21:29,408 --> 00:21:31,231
The volunteer unit would come to include
425
00:21:31,231 --> 00:21:34,178
medical professionals,
law enforcement officers,
426
00:21:34,178 --> 00:21:36,768
pilots, educators, engineers,
427
00:21:36,768 --> 00:21:40,030
former military specialists and scientists
428
00:21:40,030 --> 00:21:43,253
and they were united by a
desire to gather information
429
00:21:43,253 --> 00:21:45,415
as quickly and thoroughly as possible
430
00:21:45,415 --> 00:21:49,553
about the odd happenings
on the Chestnut Ridge.
431
00:21:49,553 --> 00:21:52,040
Researchers like Barry
Clark could be dispatched
432
00:21:52,040 --> 00:21:53,917
to the scene of a strange occurrence
433
00:21:53,917 --> 00:21:55,895
within minutes of it happening,
434
00:21:55,895 --> 00:22:00,050
thanks to Gordon's state of
the art two-way radio system.
435
00:22:00,050 --> 00:22:01,982
The group's fieldwork
was conducted as often
436
00:22:01,982 --> 00:22:04,198
as their full time jobs permitted,
437
00:22:04,198 --> 00:22:06,942
and many risked their
professional reputation
438
00:22:06,942 --> 00:22:10,129
by being associated with this pursuit,
439
00:22:10,129 --> 00:22:12,620
but with their aptitude for technology
440
00:22:12,620 --> 00:22:15,401
and their vast range of
vocational expertise,
441
00:22:15,401 --> 00:22:18,265
the members of the study
group shared a basic optimism
442
00:22:18,265 --> 00:22:21,129
that they would eventually
uncover the truth
443
00:22:21,129 --> 00:22:23,014
about the outlandish sightings
444
00:22:23,014 --> 00:22:25,931
that seemed to multiply by the day.
445
00:22:32,317 --> 00:22:35,263
- Yeah I'm Barry Clark, I was
a, went out to investigate
446
00:22:35,263 --> 00:22:38,443
different sightings and events that
447
00:22:38,443 --> 00:22:41,233
you know for people who
saw Bigfoot and UFOs,
448
00:22:41,233 --> 00:22:44,604
that type of thing back
in the early seventies.
449
00:22:44,604 --> 00:22:46,130
Somewhere along the line I'll bet you
450
00:22:46,130 --> 00:22:49,414
if you talk to in the
Derry area especially,
451
00:22:49,414 --> 00:22:52,329
Derry's a area, you'll talk to somebody
452
00:22:52,329 --> 00:22:55,811
who's either friends
with, related to, or know
453
00:22:55,811 --> 00:22:58,540
somebody that had some
kind of an experience.
454
00:22:58,540 --> 00:23:01,941
- Of course 1973, Bigfoot
was the big story.
455
00:23:01,941 --> 00:23:03,952
There were multiple reports
of Bigfoot sightings
456
00:23:03,952 --> 00:23:05,497
all along areas of the ridge,
457
00:23:05,497 --> 00:23:07,953
especially along the
Westmoreland County side
458
00:23:07,953 --> 00:23:09,266
and Derry township.
459
00:23:09,266 --> 00:23:10,695
- What's interesting about those reports
460
00:23:10,695 --> 00:23:13,878
from the 1970s, '73, '74,
some of those reports
461
00:23:13,878 --> 00:23:16,937
literally took place a couple
miles from where I lived.
462
00:23:16,937 --> 00:23:20,740
- An older lady lived kind of,
not secluded but by herself
463
00:23:20,740 --> 00:23:23,944
and I, the state police
were there the night before.
464
00:23:23,944 --> 00:23:26,116
I got to go there the
next day and talk to her
465
00:23:26,116 --> 00:23:28,199
but she had a little yapping dog
466
00:23:28,199 --> 00:23:31,798
and it was carrying on and carrying on.
467
00:23:31,798 --> 00:23:33,499
She looked out and she saw this thing,
468
00:23:33,499 --> 00:23:35,808
and the more the dog barked
the more agitated it.
469
00:23:35,808 --> 00:23:40,041
It literally kicked the end of
her trailer up on the corner
470
00:23:40,041 --> 00:23:43,581
and dropped it, and there
was no skirting around it.
471
00:23:43,581 --> 00:23:45,166
When I looked the next day you could see
472
00:23:45,166 --> 00:23:48,917
that it was not back in
the same position it was.
473
00:23:48,917 --> 00:23:50,914
- [Narrator] In the early
seventies, the nation was still
474
00:23:50,914 --> 00:23:54,118
enthralled by stories of
the Abominable Snowman,
475
00:23:54,118 --> 00:23:55,438
but was now even more enamored
476
00:23:55,438 --> 00:23:57,747
of his homegrown cousin, Bigfoot,
477
00:23:57,747 --> 00:23:59,381
whose presence in the Pacific Northwest
478
00:23:59,381 --> 00:24:02,876
seemed to be corroborated
by a shaky full color film
479
00:24:02,876 --> 00:24:06,895
obtained by Roger
Patterson and Bob Gimlin.
480
00:24:06,895 --> 00:24:08,532
But to the shock of all involved,
481
00:24:08,532 --> 00:24:12,164
a similar figure massive,
hairy, sometimes leaving
482
00:24:12,164 --> 00:24:14,737
large three toed footprints in its wake
483
00:24:14,737 --> 00:24:17,156
was appearing on farms along wood lines
484
00:24:17,156 --> 00:24:19,006
and crossing roads throughout
485
00:24:19,006 --> 00:24:22,014
Westmoreland and Fayette Counties.
486
00:24:22,014 --> 00:24:24,374
Most distressing was the
creature's fearlessness
487
00:24:24,374 --> 00:24:26,221
in approaching civilization,
488
00:24:26,221 --> 00:24:29,356
and the damage it sometimes caused.
489
00:24:29,356 --> 00:24:33,443
- But as these events of 1973
are coming to our attention,
490
00:24:33,443 --> 00:24:36,524
we began to see some unusual patterns.
491
00:24:36,524 --> 00:24:40,016
For example, we would have a
UFO sighting in a certain area.
492
00:24:40,016 --> 00:24:42,103
Within minutes to hours to days later,
493
00:24:42,103 --> 00:24:44,925
we would have a Bigfoot
sighing or vice versa
494
00:24:44,925 --> 00:24:48,035
and then the reports got even stranger.
495
00:24:48,035 --> 00:24:49,811
That's when we began to have reports
496
00:24:49,811 --> 00:24:52,328
with UFOs and Bigfoots seen together
497
00:24:52,328 --> 00:24:54,078
at the same time and place.
498
00:24:54,078 --> 00:24:56,870
As reports were unfolding
during that time,
499
00:24:56,870 --> 00:25:00,007
some of the stranger reports
began to come to our attention.
500
00:25:00,007 --> 00:25:02,996
One case September 27, 1973.
501
00:25:02,996 --> 00:25:04,464
This was out in an area where two women
502
00:25:04,464 --> 00:25:06,593
were waiting for a friend to pick them up.
503
00:25:06,593 --> 00:25:09,295
Suddenly they see this huge
seven to eight foot tall
504
00:25:09,295 --> 00:25:11,516
huge man-like creature with white hair
505
00:25:11,516 --> 00:25:14,211
running across the road towards the woods.
506
00:25:14,211 --> 00:25:16,513
Strangely enough, in one of its hands
507
00:25:16,513 --> 00:25:18,416
it had a glowing ball of light.
508
00:25:18,416 --> 00:25:21,908
It runs off into the woods
and a short time later,
509
00:25:21,908 --> 00:25:24,594
this object comes across the sky,
510
00:25:24,594 --> 00:25:26,173
projects a beam of light
down into the woods
511
00:25:26,173 --> 00:25:27,798
where the creature ran into,
512
00:25:27,798 --> 00:25:29,997
so these reports were getting very odd.
513
00:25:29,997 --> 00:25:33,198
And then we had the case that
occurred up in Fayette County.
514
00:25:33,198 --> 00:25:35,355
It was the case that
convinced me and my team
515
00:25:35,355 --> 00:25:37,589
that there was a lot more to Bigfoot
516
00:25:37,589 --> 00:25:40,422
than any of us had any idea about.
517
00:25:44,531 --> 00:25:48,076
- There were several young men
at a farm in Fayette County
518
00:25:48,076 --> 00:25:50,951
not far from here that in October of 1973
519
00:25:50,951 --> 00:25:52,734
saw a very large light in the sky
520
00:25:52,734 --> 00:25:54,810
come down in a farmer's field.
521
00:25:54,810 --> 00:25:58,079
- What we found out was at
about nine o'clock that night
522
00:25:58,079 --> 00:26:00,953
about 15 people in that rural community
523
00:26:00,953 --> 00:26:02,819
observed this object in the sky.
524
00:26:02,819 --> 00:26:04,684
It was only about 100 feet off the ground,
525
00:26:04,684 --> 00:26:06,151
but was as big as a barn,
526
00:26:06,151 --> 00:26:08,378
it was bright red, and like a big ball
527
00:26:08,378 --> 00:26:10,618
and was only about 100 feet up
528
00:26:10,618 --> 00:26:14,451
and was slowly moving
down towards the ground.
529
00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:25,212
- After he was done shooting at them,
530
00:30:25,212 --> 00:30:28,076
they ran back to their truck,
went back to the farmhouse,
531
00:30:28,076 --> 00:30:29,622
told the family what happened,
532
00:30:29,622 --> 00:30:31,675
took them to the neighbors
and called the state police.
533
00:30:31,675 --> 00:30:33,699
- And then the state police
officer was called in
534
00:30:33,699 --> 00:30:35,267
and he was called in after the fact,
535
00:30:35,267 --> 00:30:37,157
after the craft disappeared.
536
00:30:37,157 --> 00:30:41,283
He even mentioned how large
the area was illuminated.
537
00:30:41,283 --> 00:30:42,607
There was a very large area illuminated
538
00:30:42,607 --> 00:30:45,548
by this craft or whatever
it was that you could
539
00:30:45,548 --> 00:30:46,895
literally sit down and read a newspaper
540
00:30:46,895 --> 00:30:48,530
in it how bright it was.
541
00:30:48,530 --> 00:30:50,423
Unfortunately there
were some ramifications
542
00:30:50,423 --> 00:30:52,141
that happened to one of the witnesses
543
00:30:52,141 --> 00:30:54,153
where he was walking through the field
544
00:30:54,153 --> 00:30:55,561
and there were investigators with him
545
00:30:55,561 --> 00:30:58,498
and all of a sudden for no
reason he dropped to his knees
546
00:30:58,498 --> 00:31:01,040
and apparently having visions,
547
00:31:01,040 --> 00:31:03,525
visions of end times, visions
of the end of the world,
548
00:31:03,525 --> 00:31:05,529
destruction, chaos, and that sort of thing
549
00:31:05,529 --> 00:31:08,946
and it psychologically messed the guy up.
550
00:31:09,818 --> 00:31:11,622
- [Narrator] Some of the
most bizarre cases on record
551
00:31:11,622 --> 00:31:16,156
erupted from the Chestnut
Ridge in 1973 and '74.
552
00:31:16,156 --> 00:31:17,955
One family was chased from the woods
553
00:31:17,955 --> 00:31:21,862
by an aggressive ape-like
creature with prominent fangs.
554
00:31:21,862 --> 00:31:24,434
A motorist reported
hitting a bipedal monster
555
00:31:24,434 --> 00:31:27,923
which vanished at the moment of impact.
556
00:31:27,923 --> 00:31:29,654
Another person claimed to shoot a Bigfoot
557
00:31:29,654 --> 00:31:31,031
that had been stealing apples
558
00:31:31,031 --> 00:31:34,480
from a bushel basket on his porch.
559
00:31:34,480 --> 00:31:36,012
In many cases the unknown figures
560
00:31:36,012 --> 00:31:38,948
announced their presence
with an unsettling wail
561
00:31:38,948 --> 00:31:41,739
that witnesses compared to a crying baby
562
00:31:41,739 --> 00:31:45,906
as well as a distinctive
smell like ammonia or sulfur.
563
00:31:47,098 --> 00:31:48,953
These things happened with such frequency,
564
00:31:48,953 --> 00:31:50,647
especially during the summer months,
565
00:31:50,647 --> 00:31:53,172
that Gordon's investigative
team sometimes responded
566
00:31:53,172 --> 00:31:55,624
to multiple calls on the same night
567
00:31:55,624 --> 00:31:57,214
with local newspapers providing
568
00:31:57,214 --> 00:32:00,456
coverage of each disturbance.
569
00:32:00,456 --> 00:32:03,439
One location where repeated
oddities were reported
570
00:32:03,439 --> 00:32:06,667
was the Superior mobile home court.
571
00:32:06,667 --> 00:32:09,175
In August of 1973 the police were called
572
00:32:09,175 --> 00:32:11,926
to investigate a close
range Bigfoot sighting
573
00:32:11,926 --> 00:32:13,451
and they even located and preserved
574
00:32:13,451 --> 00:32:17,340
some unusual tracks for
Gordon's team to analyze.
575
00:32:17,340 --> 00:32:20,612
For reasons still unknown, this incident
576
00:32:20,612 --> 00:32:24,779
attracted some unwanted
attention from a peculiar source.
577
00:32:28,688 --> 00:32:29,847
- The incident in the trailer court
578
00:32:29,847 --> 00:32:31,948
happened on a Friday night.
579
00:32:31,948 --> 00:32:33,585
We'd come home from
Westmoreland County fair
580
00:32:33,585 --> 00:32:36,016
and the whole neighborhood is abuzz.
581
00:32:36,016 --> 00:32:39,099
(buzzing, crackling)
582
00:32:44,469 --> 00:32:46,133
I was trying to figure
out what was going on.
583
00:32:46,133 --> 00:32:49,430
They said the woman lived across from me
584
00:32:49,430 --> 00:32:51,125
heard a noise at the back of her trailer
585
00:32:51,125 --> 00:32:53,829
and she opened the door and
Bigfoot was standing there.
586
00:32:53,829 --> 00:32:55,000
- The people who lived in that trailer
587
00:32:55,000 --> 00:32:57,929
heard like scratching on
the end of the trailer.
588
00:32:57,929 --> 00:33:00,640
They heard like a baby
crying sound from close by.
589
00:33:00,640 --> 00:33:04,026
They opened up the back door
and only a few feet away
590
00:33:04,026 --> 00:33:06,989
here's this large, very broad shouldered
591
00:33:06,989 --> 00:33:09,771
hairy Bigfoot creature standing there.
592
00:33:09,771 --> 00:33:11,249
One of the witnesses saw it running
593
00:33:11,249 --> 00:33:13,537
between the trailers out of the area.
594
00:33:13,537 --> 00:33:16,277
- Everybody scattered
and people were tripping
595
00:33:16,277 --> 00:33:17,482
and falling over each other
596
00:33:17,482 --> 00:33:21,349
and they were all, whole
neighborhood's shook up.
597
00:33:21,349 --> 00:33:23,512
- Four days later after
the incident happened,
598
00:33:23,512 --> 00:33:26,093
I get an emergency call from an operator.
599
00:33:26,093 --> 00:33:28,722
Well it happened to be the
woman who lived in that trailer
600
00:33:28,722 --> 00:33:31,845
who four days before had seen the Bigfoot.
601
00:33:31,845 --> 00:33:33,711
When she called she was very upset.
602
00:33:33,711 --> 00:33:36,178
She said I think maybe
I did something wrong,
603
00:33:36,178 --> 00:33:37,241
and I said what's that?
604
00:33:37,241 --> 00:33:40,614
She said well, this odd appearing
man came to our trailer.
605
00:33:40,614 --> 00:33:42,064
He was asking all kind of questions
606
00:33:42,064 --> 00:33:44,036
about what we saw that night.
607
00:33:44,036 --> 00:33:45,189
- [Jack] I come home from work,
608
00:33:45,189 --> 00:33:47,214
and there's this car sitting there
609
00:33:47,214 --> 00:33:50,597
and had Ohio government plates on it.
610
00:33:50,597 --> 00:33:53,383
- He had some kind of
an ID on him about Ohio
611
00:33:53,383 --> 00:33:55,615
and UFO but she didn't
pay attention to it.
612
00:33:55,615 --> 00:33:58,453
He had an Ohio license
plate on the vehicle.
613
00:33:58,453 --> 00:34:01,186
And he wanted to know all
about what had happened here.
614
00:34:01,186 --> 00:34:02,713
- And there's a footprint in the sand
615
00:34:02,713 --> 00:34:06,114
and he's about to take
pictures of the footprint
616
00:34:06,114 --> 00:34:08,557
and the boy who lived there, older boy,
617
00:34:08,557 --> 00:34:10,264
he went and got his camera.
618
00:34:10,264 --> 00:34:12,509
- As time went on that evening,
619
00:34:12,509 --> 00:34:15,303
he was going over and
looking at the footprints
620
00:34:15,303 --> 00:34:16,832
and I guess there were
several local people
621
00:34:16,832 --> 00:34:18,270
looking at the tracks there.
622
00:34:18,270 --> 00:34:20,519
There was a young boy, he had one of those
623
00:34:20,519 --> 00:34:22,473
Polaroid Instamatic cameras.
624
00:34:22,473 --> 00:34:25,429
- And he started doing his
thing, taking a picture
625
00:34:25,429 --> 00:34:27,525
and the government guy said no pictures.
626
00:34:27,525 --> 00:34:29,369
Started taking pictures anyway
and he ripped the camera
627
00:34:29,369 --> 00:34:31,616
out of his hands and I don't
know if he ripped the film out,
628
00:34:31,616 --> 00:34:33,162
I don't remember that part.
629
00:34:33,162 --> 00:34:34,269
Took the camera.
630
00:34:34,269 --> 00:34:36,203
- He had just developed the picture,
631
00:34:36,203 --> 00:34:38,068
and he said I just made a picture
632
00:34:38,068 --> 00:34:40,950
and this mystery man, whoever he was,
633
00:34:40,950 --> 00:34:44,945
grabs that picture from
that little boy's hand,
634
00:34:44,945 --> 00:34:46,216
wrinkles up and put it in his pocket
635
00:34:46,216 --> 00:34:48,735
and said you just made a picture for us
636
00:34:48,735 --> 00:34:50,651
and then he went over to the tracks
637
00:34:50,651 --> 00:34:53,118
and with his foot, he
destroyed the footprints
638
00:34:53,118 --> 00:34:56,389
and the people were very,
very upset over that,
639
00:34:56,389 --> 00:34:59,167
started yelling at him and
said we're calling the police
640
00:34:59,167 --> 00:35:00,850
and he ran to his car and said,
641
00:35:00,850 --> 00:35:04,137
he sped out of their so fast
he almost turned the car over.
642
00:35:04,137 --> 00:35:06,397
That's the last time
anybody saw that fellow
643
00:35:06,397 --> 00:35:09,230
and we never found out who he was.
644
00:35:10,313 --> 00:35:12,491
- [Narrator] The instance at
the Superior mobile home court
645
00:35:12,491 --> 00:35:15,391
was extremely strange,
yet ambiguous enough
646
00:35:15,391 --> 00:35:17,954
to resist explanation.
647
00:35:17,954 --> 00:35:19,038
It would become far more clear
648
00:35:19,038 --> 00:35:21,110
that the United States
government had knowledge
649
00:35:21,110 --> 00:35:24,553
of the incidents being reported
around the Chestnut Ridge
650
00:35:24,553 --> 00:35:27,803
and knew who to talk to about them.
651
00:35:27,803 --> 00:35:31,113
On September 20, 1973, Stan Gordon
652
00:35:31,113 --> 00:35:32,739
received a phone call from a man
653
00:35:32,739 --> 00:35:36,977
who identified himself as
a US government official.
654
00:35:36,977 --> 00:35:38,578
The caller indicated a strong interest
655
00:35:38,578 --> 00:35:40,538
in the Bigfoot sightings taking place
656
00:35:40,538 --> 00:35:44,453
in Westmoreland County, and
then to Gordon's surprise,
657
00:35:44,453 --> 00:35:46,636
asked that any convincing evidence be sent
658
00:35:46,636 --> 00:35:49,219
to a facility in Washington DC.
659
00:35:50,090 --> 00:35:51,885
The spokesman even
provided a mailing address
660
00:35:51,885 --> 00:35:53,623
and phone number for what he called
661
00:35:53,623 --> 00:35:58,075
the Bureau of Sports Fisheries,
Bird, and Mammals Lab.
662
00:35:58,075 --> 00:36:01,982
Less than two weeks later,
Gordon would be contacted by
663
00:36:01,982 --> 00:36:03,272
and would meet with two men
664
00:36:03,272 --> 00:36:06,703
from the office of
congressman John H. Dent.
665
00:36:06,703 --> 00:36:08,298
The visitors wanted to learn more
666
00:36:08,298 --> 00:36:11,302
about Gordon's research
group and their findings
667
00:36:11,302 --> 00:36:12,816
and were courteous enough that Gordon
668
00:36:12,816 --> 00:36:14,805
kept in contact with them
669
00:36:14,805 --> 00:36:17,987
while the wave of sightings continued.
670
00:36:17,987 --> 00:36:20,353
Later on, Gordon would
be stunned to discover
671
00:36:20,353 --> 00:36:22,163
that the government may have taken
672
00:36:22,163 --> 00:36:24,169
a decidedly more active approach
673
00:36:24,169 --> 00:36:26,752
in their information gathering.
674
00:36:28,241 --> 00:36:30,375
- So while we're
interviewing this witness,
675
00:36:30,375 --> 00:36:32,700
back years later probably in the 1980s,
676
00:36:32,700 --> 00:36:34,350
and we bring up the fact we might have to
677
00:36:34,350 --> 00:36:35,663
hypnotize them again he said
678
00:36:35,663 --> 00:36:38,440
why do you want to hypnotize me again?
679
00:36:38,440 --> 00:36:40,573
And he goes on to say
that here these two men
680
00:36:40,573 --> 00:36:42,489
came to his home to interview him
681
00:36:42,489 --> 00:36:43,845
and he thought they were part of our group
682
00:36:43,845 --> 00:36:45,693
and we said well, tell
us about what happened.
683
00:36:45,693 --> 00:36:47,588
He said well these two
guys come to my home.
684
00:36:47,588 --> 00:36:51,164
One's in a dark suit, one
is in an Air Force uniform.
685
00:36:51,164 --> 00:36:54,207
The one in the Air Force uniform
has a briefcase with him.
686
00:36:54,207 --> 00:36:56,710
They wanted the witness to tell the story
687
00:36:56,710 --> 00:36:58,941
of seeing the UFO and the Bigfoot
688
00:36:58,941 --> 00:37:01,235
and then apparently he was hypnotized
689
00:37:01,235 --> 00:37:03,066
and they told him thank you very much,
690
00:37:03,066 --> 00:37:04,853
that they believed what
he was telling them.
691
00:37:04,853 --> 00:37:06,544
That they would be in touch with him.
692
00:37:06,544 --> 00:37:09,794
He never heard from these fellas again.
693
00:37:11,169 --> 00:37:12,445
- [Narrator] While Bigfoot
seemed to be lumbering
694
00:37:12,445 --> 00:37:15,529
through the woods of
southwest Pennsylvania,
695
00:37:15,529 --> 00:37:17,963
if eyewitness testimony is to be believed,
696
00:37:17,963 --> 00:37:19,553
the skies above the Chestnut Ridge
697
00:37:19,553 --> 00:37:22,480
were filled with all
manner of lights, craft,
698
00:37:22,480 --> 00:37:26,016
and inexplicable shapes
flying under their own power.
699
00:37:26,016 --> 00:37:29,360
In August of 1973 alone,
witnesses reported seeing
700
00:37:29,360 --> 00:37:33,679
an hourglass shaped object, a
sphere dropping fiery debris,
701
00:37:33,679 --> 00:37:36,631
a circular craft with illuminated windows,
702
00:37:36,631 --> 00:37:39,886
a bright orange ball, red,
green, and white lights
703
00:37:39,886 --> 00:37:42,228
that looked like Christmas tree bulbs
704
00:37:42,228 --> 00:37:46,395
and a boomerang shaped object
all floating through the air.
705
00:37:49,774 --> 00:37:51,790
- Another really significant UFO case
706
00:37:51,790 --> 00:37:53,623
was September 3, 1987.
707
00:37:54,879 --> 00:37:59,183
And this was on a major highway,
Route 30 near Greensburg
708
00:37:59,183 --> 00:38:01,192
and that evening numerous
witnesses in the area
709
00:38:01,192 --> 00:38:02,503
including law enforcement,
710
00:38:02,503 --> 00:38:05,853
they see this huge cylindrical object.
711
00:38:05,853 --> 00:38:09,256
Metallic, about 300 feet
long, only about 300 feet up
712
00:38:09,256 --> 00:38:10,671
with multiple lights on it.
713
00:38:10,671 --> 00:38:13,495
I don't recall anybody
reporting any sound.
714
00:38:13,495 --> 00:38:16,326
It's moving across, coming across Route 30
715
00:38:16,326 --> 00:38:18,323
across from the old Greengate Mall
716
00:38:18,323 --> 00:38:19,798
where there was a power substation
717
00:38:19,798 --> 00:38:23,635
so this object was moving
horizontally across the sky
718
00:38:23,635 --> 00:38:26,275
and then it turns vertical in the sky
719
00:38:26,275 --> 00:38:28,289
and when it does, all
the power in the area
720
00:38:28,289 --> 00:38:30,594
goes out for a short time.
721
00:38:30,594 --> 00:38:33,612
Behind that mall was an annex
where they had movie theaters
722
00:38:33,612 --> 00:38:34,964
and it was all blacked out,
723
00:38:34,964 --> 00:38:37,739
and when the engineers went
to examine it to investigate
724
00:38:37,739 --> 00:38:41,542
they found all three of the
master fuses have been blown.
725
00:38:41,542 --> 00:38:43,422
Something that's apparently unheard of
726
00:38:43,422 --> 00:38:44,771
and they were very interested in
727
00:38:44,771 --> 00:38:48,021
what caused those fuses to go that day.
728
00:38:49,091 --> 00:38:51,053
- [Narrator] In September of 1973,
729
00:38:51,053 --> 00:38:53,217
the aerial activity seemed to intensify
730
00:38:53,217 --> 00:38:56,717
over specific locations in Derry Township.
731
00:38:57,553 --> 00:38:59,841
At one of these locations
called the Bell Farm,
732
00:38:59,841 --> 00:39:03,313
a family and their friends
claimed multiple eerie encounters
733
00:39:03,313 --> 00:39:06,230
with both UFOs and hairy humanoids.
734
00:39:07,086 --> 00:39:10,424
Investigator Barry Clark,
a colleague of Stan Gordon,
735
00:39:10,424 --> 00:39:13,456
spent a number of nights
staking out the Bell Farm
736
00:39:13,456 --> 00:39:15,750
and soon found himself
at the center of events
737
00:39:15,750 --> 00:39:19,417
that by his own admission
he found haunting.
738
00:39:25,709 --> 00:39:28,634
- Three times we got a
call from different people
739
00:39:28,634 --> 00:39:31,354
saying that if you looked up in the sky
740
00:39:31,354 --> 00:39:35,395
at 10 o'clock in the
eastern part of the sky,
741
00:39:35,395 --> 00:39:39,315
you would see a real, bright, large star
742
00:39:39,315 --> 00:39:41,953
just all the sudden turn on.
743
00:39:41,953 --> 00:39:45,839
So the one night I left
interviewing one family
744
00:39:45,839 --> 00:39:47,692
and I went back out to the farm
745
00:39:47,692 --> 00:39:49,297
sometime after 10 we were sitting there
746
00:39:49,297 --> 00:39:51,591
and maybe 10 minutes after 10,
747
00:39:51,591 --> 00:39:54,048
all the sudden there was this bright star
748
00:39:54,048 --> 00:39:57,444
and we're watching it, and all the sudden
749
00:39:57,444 --> 00:40:00,649
that thing, it would turn blood red
750
00:40:00,649 --> 00:40:02,286
and then go back to silver.
751
00:40:02,286 --> 00:40:04,844
Turn blood red, go back to silver.
752
00:40:04,844 --> 00:40:09,347
Then there were five flashes
like an arc from a welder
753
00:40:09,347 --> 00:40:11,710
and they were about a second apart
754
00:40:11,710 --> 00:40:15,647
and then there were just
multiple small, silver objects
755
00:40:15,647 --> 00:40:19,483
went to it that looked like
bees going to a beehive
756
00:40:19,483 --> 00:40:21,447
waiting their turn to go in.
757
00:40:21,447 --> 00:40:22,793
Well when they got there they either
758
00:40:22,793 --> 00:40:25,818
reflected the red, or they turned red
759
00:40:25,818 --> 00:40:28,153
and we stood there and watched in awe.
760
00:40:28,153 --> 00:40:30,119
The guy's wife, she
screamed, jumped in her car,
761
00:40:30,119 --> 00:40:32,714
she wouldn't come back out and I said
762
00:40:32,714 --> 00:40:34,785
there's something, it's doing something
763
00:40:34,785 --> 00:40:37,288
and then we realized it was actually
764
00:40:37,288 --> 00:40:39,818
coming down and it was getting bigger
765
00:40:39,818 --> 00:40:42,318
and at that point we all left.
766
00:40:43,254 --> 00:40:45,334
- [Narrator] After the
incident at the Bell Farm,
767
00:40:45,334 --> 00:40:46,711
Barry Clark decided that he was
768
00:40:46,711 --> 00:40:49,192
finished with the paranormal.
769
00:40:49,192 --> 00:40:53,777
Shaken by what he saw, he never
investigated another case.
770
00:40:53,777 --> 00:40:58,633
But evidently, the paranormal
was not finished with him.
771
00:40:58,633 --> 00:41:00,719
After stepping away
from the research group,
772
00:41:00,719 --> 00:41:03,377
Clark experienced an
episode of missing time
773
00:41:03,377 --> 00:41:05,483
while making what should
have been a short drive
774
00:41:05,483 --> 00:41:08,257
between communities on the ridge.
775
00:41:08,257 --> 00:41:11,175
This sensation that only
a short time has passed
776
00:41:11,175 --> 00:41:13,584
when in fact many hours had elapsed
777
00:41:13,584 --> 00:41:18,158
is most commonly linked to
alien abduction scenarios.
778
00:41:18,158 --> 00:41:20,559
Clark did not suggest
that he was abducted,
779
00:41:20,559 --> 00:41:22,125
but neither does he have any answers
780
00:41:22,125 --> 00:41:24,284
for what happened to him.
781
00:41:24,284 --> 00:41:26,305
Only the disturbing reality of time
782
00:41:26,305 --> 00:41:27,884
for which he cannot account,
783
00:41:27,884 --> 00:41:30,051
of which he has no memory.
784
00:41:31,297 --> 00:41:32,946
And along with that comes the suspicion
785
00:41:32,946 --> 00:41:36,285
that when one peers
deeply into the darkness,
786
00:41:36,285 --> 00:41:39,618
there's actually something looking back.
787
00:41:45,955 --> 00:41:50,686
- I've had some things go on
through my life after that
788
00:41:50,686 --> 00:41:54,432
and what bothers me is I have a grandson
789
00:41:54,432 --> 00:41:56,099
who was born in 1986
790
00:41:57,884 --> 00:42:02,741
and from the time he was like
eight, nine, 10 years old
791
00:42:02,741 --> 00:42:06,429
he kept telling us about
people that were coming
792
00:42:06,429 --> 00:42:10,569
into his bedroom through
a hole in his ceiling.
793
00:42:10,569 --> 00:42:13,069
Now he has had lapses of time.
794
00:42:14,687 --> 00:42:17,644
You know can't explain, which I've had.
795
00:42:17,644 --> 00:42:21,227
I've had incidents
where I've lost an hour,
796
00:42:22,361 --> 00:42:25,158
an hour and a half, he does it.
797
00:42:25,158 --> 00:42:27,327
So I don't know if what I was doing
798
00:42:27,327 --> 00:42:30,133
back then triggered something,
799
00:42:30,133 --> 00:42:32,959
and then it carried on to my grandson.
800
00:42:32,959 --> 00:42:34,737
I don't know how that works,
801
00:42:34,737 --> 00:42:38,904
all I know is it was about
1975 when these things started.
802
00:42:41,571 --> 00:42:44,340
I talked to one other person
that was involved back then
803
00:42:44,340 --> 00:42:47,007
that said that they were afraid.
804
00:42:47,940 --> 00:42:49,863
That they didn't want to,
they were telling about
805
00:42:49,863 --> 00:42:53,105
seeing things in the mirror
when they looked at themselves
806
00:42:53,105 --> 00:42:55,855
and incidents like that, but it's
807
00:42:58,449 --> 00:43:01,195
quite scary when it happens to yourself.
808
00:43:01,195 --> 00:43:03,945
You know it's nice to read
about it by somebody else
809
00:43:03,945 --> 00:43:06,528
but when it's really your life.
810
00:43:11,712 --> 00:43:14,132
- I became friends with
a guy named Sam Sherry.
811
00:43:14,132 --> 00:43:15,673
He lived right in the
heart of the Chestnut Ridge
812
00:43:15,673 --> 00:43:18,543
up in Ligonier, Pennsylvania
in a town called Wilpen.
813
00:43:18,543 --> 00:43:20,835
It was 1986 and he was fishing
814
00:43:20,835 --> 00:43:23,848
at a place called Sleepy Hollow.
815
00:43:23,848 --> 00:43:26,431
It's a popular spot for fishing
816
00:43:27,271 --> 00:43:30,769
and it's a little breezeway or a crossover
817
00:43:30,769 --> 00:43:33,045
between Route 30 east and Route 30 west
818
00:43:33,045 --> 00:43:34,997
and one night Stan was out there fishing
819
00:43:34,997 --> 00:43:36,989
and he heard some noise to his left
820
00:43:36,989 --> 00:43:39,649
and looked over to see a figure standing
821
00:43:39,649 --> 00:43:43,313
on an embankment a little further
down the creek than he was
822
00:43:43,313 --> 00:43:45,688
and this was the Little Hannah
Creek that he was fishing on,
823
00:43:45,688 --> 00:43:47,221
so as he's fishing and doing his thing
824
00:43:47,221 --> 00:43:50,482
he notices this figure's
moving closer and closer to him
825
00:43:50,482 --> 00:43:52,580
and it got to the point
where it was so close to him
826
00:43:52,580 --> 00:43:56,712
that he could make out very
good detail of this thing
827
00:43:56,712 --> 00:43:58,895
and as he described it,
it's not your typical
828
00:43:58,895 --> 00:44:01,055
Bigfoot creature that he saw.
829
00:44:01,055 --> 00:44:04,438
It was an upright
walking creature that had
830
00:44:04,438 --> 00:44:07,812
very sparse hair on its body,
almost like it had mange.
831
00:44:07,812 --> 00:44:11,227
It appeared to have a mohawk
on the top of its head,
832
00:44:11,227 --> 00:44:15,060
and this creature was
very tall, had long arms
833
00:44:16,041 --> 00:44:18,460
hanging down well past its knees.
834
00:44:18,460 --> 00:44:21,546
Sam saw this thing walking
closer and closer to him,
835
00:44:21,546 --> 00:44:23,677
ambling closer and it kind of unnerved him
836
00:44:23,677 --> 00:44:25,520
so he got in his vehicle to leave
837
00:44:25,520 --> 00:44:28,537
and just before he was
able to leave this creature
838
00:44:28,537 --> 00:44:30,396
stopped the vehicle from leaving,
839
00:44:30,396 --> 00:44:32,346
put its hands on the driver side door,
840
00:44:32,346 --> 00:44:33,854
stuck its head in the window
841
00:44:33,854 --> 00:44:37,263
and he was literally face
to face with this thing.
842
00:44:37,263 --> 00:44:38,946
He said this thing
actually opened its mouth,
843
00:44:38,946 --> 00:44:40,673
he could see there were
no teeth in its mouth
844
00:44:40,673 --> 00:44:42,712
or it was missing a lot of teeth.
845
00:44:42,712 --> 00:44:44,385
It was pushing down on the car,
846
00:44:44,385 --> 00:44:46,114
preventing him from driving away.
847
00:44:46,114 --> 00:44:48,589
He hit the horn on his
car to scare this thing,
848
00:44:48,589 --> 00:44:52,635
this thing stepped back like
oh my gosh kind of expression.
849
00:44:52,635 --> 00:44:56,662
Sam took off and left, and
he said in his taillights
850
00:44:56,662 --> 00:44:58,400
as he was driving away
he could see this thing
851
00:44:58,400 --> 00:45:00,900
waving at him as he drove off.
852
00:45:05,497 --> 00:45:07,138
- [Narrator] Although the
Chestnut Ridge has yet to see
853
00:45:07,138 --> 00:45:08,637
another outbreak of reports
854
00:45:08,637 --> 00:45:12,298
quite like the flap of '73 and '74,
855
00:45:12,298 --> 00:45:14,035
unusual sightings have not stopped
856
00:45:14,035 --> 00:45:18,738
and if anything, they've
become more bizarre in variety.
857
00:45:18,738 --> 00:45:21,753
Otherwise sober-minded
individuals profess to have seen
858
00:45:21,753 --> 00:45:23,955
enormous dark colored birds in flight
859
00:45:23,955 --> 00:45:26,087
and on the ground, which are sometimes
860
00:45:26,087 --> 00:45:31,057
referred to as Thunderbirds
as well as black panthers,
861
00:45:31,057 --> 00:45:34,316
upright walking canid
creatures known as dog men,
862
00:45:34,316 --> 00:45:36,860
winged humanoids, and even a 22 foot long
863
00:45:36,860 --> 00:45:39,693
flying lizard resembling a dragon.
864
00:45:40,678 --> 00:45:42,300
In many cases, observers struggle
865
00:45:42,300 --> 00:45:44,228
to describe what they have seen
866
00:45:44,228 --> 00:45:45,483
because there are no categories
867
00:45:45,483 --> 00:45:49,414
that correspond to what
they have perceived.
868
00:45:49,414 --> 00:45:52,380
All they can do is react
to the invasive presence
869
00:45:52,380 --> 00:45:55,047
of what appears to be a monster.
870
00:45:55,926 --> 00:45:57,783
- But there's all kinds
of strange creatures
871
00:45:57,783 --> 00:45:58,854
that have been seen.
872
00:45:58,854 --> 00:46:01,448
The most recent was the dog man sighting
873
00:46:01,448 --> 00:46:03,914
that took place literally
miles down the road
874
00:46:03,914 --> 00:46:06,664
from where we're at here in 2015.
875
00:46:07,708 --> 00:46:12,107
Four women were going to a
place called Roaring Run Park,
876
00:46:12,107 --> 00:46:14,656
and they pulled into a
pulloff at the trailhead
877
00:46:14,656 --> 00:46:17,368
to get out of the vehicle
to start hiking the trail
878
00:46:17,368 --> 00:46:18,916
and as they got out of the vehicle,
879
00:46:18,916 --> 00:46:20,669
they started into the trailhead
880
00:46:20,669 --> 00:46:23,098
and they noticed a figure
walking towards them.
881
00:46:23,098 --> 00:46:26,110
The one woman claimed that
this thing wasn't a person.
882
00:46:26,110 --> 00:46:28,794
It was actually a very tall, muscular,
883
00:46:28,794 --> 00:46:30,650
salt and pepper hair covered creature
884
00:46:30,650 --> 00:46:34,035
that had a large snout
like a wolf or a dog,
885
00:46:34,035 --> 00:46:36,180
had pointy ears and had a tail on it.
886
00:46:36,180 --> 00:46:37,789
It was standing upright on two legs
887
00:46:37,789 --> 00:46:40,553
and it just approached
them out of the forest.
888
00:46:40,553 --> 00:46:42,608
Three of the four women
got back in the car.
889
00:46:42,608 --> 00:46:43,769
She stood there watching it,
890
00:46:43,769 --> 00:46:45,617
and it stood there watching her
891
00:46:45,617 --> 00:46:47,973
and the stareoff went
on for several minutes
892
00:46:47,973 --> 00:46:48,982
before this thing turned
893
00:46:48,982 --> 00:46:50,554
and walked back off through the forest.
894
00:46:50,554 --> 00:46:51,853
- There have been many
reports over the years
895
00:46:51,853 --> 00:46:53,814
of not only Bigfoot sightings,
896
00:46:53,814 --> 00:46:57,302
but reports of Thunderbirds
as huge, generally dark brown
897
00:46:57,302 --> 00:47:00,540
or black birds with massive
wingspans like a small aircraft.
898
00:47:00,540 --> 00:47:02,916
- Thunderbird basically is a large bird
899
00:47:02,916 --> 00:47:07,566
with anywhere from eight to
20 feet in length of wingspan.
900
00:47:07,566 --> 00:47:09,853
Some witnesses describe
the Thunderbird as having
901
00:47:09,853 --> 00:47:11,893
black feathers all over its body
902
00:47:11,893 --> 00:47:13,449
while others describe the Thunderbird
903
00:47:13,449 --> 00:47:17,616
as having like a reptilian
like membrane skin on its body
904
00:47:18,516 --> 00:47:22,012
almost like a pterodactyl like
thing flying through the sky.
905
00:47:22,012 --> 00:47:25,679
- I only ever heard one
that came from a guy
906
00:47:27,437 --> 00:47:30,572
that said that he was
up on the Derry Ridge
907
00:47:30,572 --> 00:47:32,822
and this large Thunderbird,
908
00:47:34,744 --> 00:47:36,497
well he didn't name it a Thunderbird,
909
00:47:36,497 --> 00:47:40,664
this very large bird flew
right over the top of him.
910
00:47:44,907 --> 00:47:46,304
- Yeah I grew up in Lower Burrell.
911
00:47:46,304 --> 00:47:50,163
I joined the army and then 2005 I retired,
912
00:47:50,163 --> 00:47:52,163
moved out here to Derry.
913
00:48:01,413 --> 00:48:03,960
I just got done cutting my back field.
914
00:48:03,960 --> 00:48:06,601
My family was down at
Keystone State Park there.
915
00:48:06,601 --> 00:48:09,199
I went down to get them to bring them up
916
00:48:09,199 --> 00:48:11,460
to show them what the field looked like.
917
00:48:11,460 --> 00:48:13,779
I came back up to the
field, I'm looking out there
918
00:48:13,779 --> 00:48:15,381
at the end of the field and it looked like
919
00:48:15,381 --> 00:48:17,924
there was a tree stump,
so we drove out there
920
00:48:17,924 --> 00:48:19,556
to the tree stump and I go
921
00:48:19,556 --> 00:48:21,698
that isn't a tree stump, it's a deer.
922
00:48:21,698 --> 00:48:24,047
Looked like a big deer about this tall,
923
00:48:24,047 --> 00:48:27,051
maybe five, 5 1/2 feet
tall sitting up on its butt
924
00:48:27,051 --> 00:48:28,862
and it was like this.
925
00:48:28,862 --> 00:48:30,985
And I'm getting closer I'm thinking
926
00:48:30,985 --> 00:48:32,811
that doesn't look like a deer anymore
927
00:48:32,811 --> 00:48:35,731
and it picked up its head
and it was staring at me
928
00:48:35,731 --> 00:48:38,735
like this, like it was mad.
929
00:48:38,735 --> 00:48:42,130
Huh, so I stopped 50 yards maybe from it,
930
00:48:42,130 --> 00:48:45,097
I'm looking at it, that's a bird!
931
00:48:45,097 --> 00:48:47,751
It got up and it took one swipe
932
00:48:47,751 --> 00:48:49,424
and it started coming towards me
933
00:48:49,424 --> 00:48:51,611
and I'm like oh Judas Priest.
934
00:48:51,611 --> 00:48:53,017
Came over the top of our bus
935
00:48:53,017 --> 00:48:56,555
and my yard is shaped like a rollercoaster
936
00:48:56,555 --> 00:49:00,506
and it, when it hit that it
came up like that into the air.
937
00:49:00,506 --> 00:49:04,197
It was big chested, just claws like this.
938
00:49:04,197 --> 00:49:06,964
If it wanted to and it swooped down,
939
00:49:06,964 --> 00:49:08,704
I'm not saying it's going to pick you up,
940
00:49:08,704 --> 00:49:12,319
but it'll peck you into pieces
and take those pieces away.
941
00:49:12,319 --> 00:49:15,803
- Strange events like this
go on all across Pennsylvania
942
00:49:15,803 --> 00:49:17,887
and there's certain areas where sometimes
943
00:49:17,887 --> 00:49:19,656
you get more activity than others,
944
00:49:19,656 --> 00:49:22,013
but the one area of course
that year after year
945
00:49:22,013 --> 00:49:24,295
we seem to get more than normal activity
946
00:49:24,295 --> 00:49:26,978
is areas along the Chestnut Ridge.
947
00:49:26,978 --> 00:49:29,237
There's been all kind of other
anomalies up on the ridge
948
00:49:29,237 --> 00:49:31,714
such as underground
sounds and mystery booms
949
00:49:31,714 --> 00:49:33,562
and strange lights that people see
950
00:49:33,562 --> 00:49:36,827
and small, little lights
coming near their homes.
951
00:49:36,827 --> 00:49:39,121
- And they appear as they
said very close to the ground
952
00:49:39,121 --> 00:49:41,288
or very very high up in the trees.
953
00:49:41,288 --> 00:49:43,816
There's no rhyme nor
reason nor explanation
954
00:49:43,816 --> 00:49:47,647
for the pattern they move or
why they move or a direction.
955
00:49:47,647 --> 00:49:49,761
They just, they move,
and it seems almost as if
956
00:49:49,761 --> 00:49:51,860
they're intelligent enough to move
957
00:49:51,860 --> 00:49:54,840
so they don't want you to see it.
958
00:49:54,840 --> 00:49:56,489
Like you see it over here and
you'll be focused over here
959
00:49:56,489 --> 00:49:57,862
and then it'll appear over here,
960
00:49:57,862 --> 00:49:59,013
then when you look over here,
961
00:49:59,013 --> 00:50:02,346
it's gone and it's back over here again.
962
00:50:06,240 --> 00:50:07,833
- To this point that is the biggest event
963
00:50:07,833 --> 00:50:09,211
that has happened in my life
964
00:50:09,211 --> 00:50:11,878
that I have no understanding of.
965
00:50:20,226 --> 00:50:24,467
In August of 2015, myself
and a friend of mine, Eric,
966
00:50:24,467 --> 00:50:27,968
we were on the West Virginia
side near Preston County
967
00:50:27,968 --> 00:50:31,279
in a very remote location
about two miles off of
968
00:50:31,279 --> 00:50:34,838
anywhere would have been
near any civilized area.
969
00:50:34,838 --> 00:50:37,007
- There's a couple times
where I've experienced this,
970
00:50:37,007 --> 00:50:39,211
and I don't know what it is.
971
00:50:39,211 --> 00:50:40,774
I really don't have an explanation
972
00:50:40,774 --> 00:50:43,333
and I don't think anybody
does at this point.
973
00:50:43,333 --> 00:50:45,086
We were out doing a Bigfoot investigation
974
00:50:45,086 --> 00:50:47,851
in this very active area.
975
00:50:47,851 --> 00:50:50,418
- This night was pitch ink dark.
976
00:50:50,418 --> 00:50:52,967
I couldn't even see Eric, I
couldn't even see my hand.
977
00:50:52,967 --> 00:50:54,419
I mean there was no moon that night.
978
00:50:54,419 --> 00:50:56,424
You couldn't see through
the canopy of trees,
979
00:50:56,424 --> 00:50:59,188
no star residual light from the stars,
980
00:50:59,188 --> 00:51:01,798
so we were in total ink darkness.
981
00:51:01,798 --> 00:51:04,447
- [Eric] And I noticed off
in the woods to my left,
982
00:51:04,447 --> 00:51:05,998
probably about 100 yards away this light
983
00:51:05,998 --> 00:51:09,793
and it first looked like
someone just carrying a lantern.
984
00:51:09,793 --> 00:51:11,252
If you would swing a
lantern as you were walking
985
00:51:11,252 --> 00:51:12,321
through the forest you could see it
986
00:51:12,321 --> 00:51:14,178
moving back and forth, rocking.
987
00:51:14,178 --> 00:51:17,197
- What appeared to be a light permeating
988
00:51:17,197 --> 00:51:21,364
underneath the canopy of trees
was moving around very slowly
989
00:51:22,550 --> 00:51:26,069
but erratically at the same
time, almost balloon-like,
990
00:51:26,069 --> 00:51:29,835
but it didn't, it would stop
and then it would move again.
991
00:51:29,835 --> 00:51:31,844
- And as more people focused on it,
992
00:51:31,844 --> 00:51:33,224
more people started to see this light
993
00:51:33,224 --> 00:51:35,842
moving through the trees and
we were trying to figure out
994
00:51:35,842 --> 00:51:37,928
where it was emanating from,
where it was coming from,
995
00:51:37,928 --> 00:51:39,516
if maybe there was somebody over there
996
00:51:39,516 --> 00:51:41,526
in the woods with us that night.
997
00:51:41,526 --> 00:51:42,966
- As it got a little bit closer,
998
00:51:42,966 --> 00:51:45,614
you could see, if you've seen
999
00:51:45,614 --> 00:51:47,587
the lava lamps of the seventies,
1000
00:51:47,587 --> 00:51:51,559
it had this pulsating
light change going on
1001
00:51:51,559 --> 00:51:54,335
inside of this spherical object.
1002
00:51:54,335 --> 00:51:57,022
I know for a fact it
was within 60 feet of us
1003
00:51:57,022 --> 00:51:59,001
when the next thing happened.
1004
00:51:59,001 --> 00:52:01,204
Well I didn't see Eric
and he couldn't see me.
1005
00:52:01,204 --> 00:52:03,946
Well he has a 500 lumen flashlight.
1006
00:52:03,946 --> 00:52:06,180
He lit it up with a flashlight.
1007
00:52:06,180 --> 00:52:09,822
This window opened up
in this black darkness.
1008
00:52:09,822 --> 00:52:12,554
It was a translucent, silvery,
1009
00:52:12,554 --> 00:52:16,008
almost like it was light
projecting out of it.
1010
00:52:16,008 --> 00:52:18,603
This thing went in, this window shut,
1011
00:52:18,603 --> 00:52:21,325
and then we're standing there
in total darkness again.
1012
00:52:21,325 --> 00:52:23,206
- I have no idea where it came from.
1013
00:52:23,206 --> 00:52:24,827
I started talking to
other people about it,
1014
00:52:24,827 --> 00:52:26,510
seeing if they'd seen it.
1015
00:52:26,510 --> 00:52:28,160
Other people that
researched up in that area,
1016
00:52:28,160 --> 00:52:30,101
and little by little I
began to hear people talking
1017
00:52:30,101 --> 00:52:33,934
about seeing this floating
light in that area.
1018
00:52:35,304 --> 00:52:36,325
- [Narrator] Is there a simple cause
1019
00:52:36,325 --> 00:52:37,939
for the glowing orbs being detected
1020
00:52:37,939 --> 00:52:40,087
in the forests of Pennsylvania?
1021
00:52:40,087 --> 00:52:42,389
Perhaps an atmospheric condition
1022
00:52:42,389 --> 00:52:46,074
or weather related anomaly is to blame.
1023
00:52:46,074 --> 00:52:47,346
Or is there something more than natural
1024
00:52:47,346 --> 00:52:50,513
generating light in those dark places?
1025
00:52:51,652 --> 00:52:54,557
What is it about the ridge that seems
1026
00:52:54,557 --> 00:52:58,232
to produce a parade of the monstrous?
1027
00:52:58,232 --> 00:52:59,465
Do these creatures crawl forth
1028
00:52:59,465 --> 00:53:02,705
from the belly of the ridge itself?
1029
00:53:02,705 --> 00:53:06,156
And what about the strange
lights that appear in its skies?
1030
00:53:06,156 --> 00:53:08,329
Are they terrestrial in origin,
1031
00:53:08,329 --> 00:53:12,660
somehow generated by
the great earthen mound?
1032
00:53:12,660 --> 00:53:14,769
Do we even know the right questions to ask
1033
00:53:14,769 --> 00:53:17,686
about this window into the unknown?
1034
00:53:19,720 --> 00:53:22,031
In this region, mysteries tend to layer
1035
00:53:22,031 --> 00:53:24,031
one on top of the other.
1036
00:53:25,530 --> 00:53:27,507
- People, they sort of make the connection
1037
00:53:27,507 --> 00:53:31,590
between Bigfoot or UFO or
UFO along with Bigfoot.
1038
00:53:34,890 --> 00:53:36,495
I am no expert by any means.
1039
00:53:36,495 --> 00:53:40,347
I think there are power
sources in the area
1040
00:53:40,347 --> 00:53:43,466
and I think there might be a link to
1041
00:53:43,466 --> 00:53:46,830
power sources having
something to do with this.
1042
00:53:46,830 --> 00:53:48,793
- I know if you look on the internet,
1043
00:53:48,793 --> 00:53:51,731
after that I started looking
on the internet what I'd seen,
1044
00:53:51,731 --> 00:53:54,577
there's a lot of stuff that
goes up on the Chestnut Ridge.
1045
00:53:54,577 --> 00:53:55,717
Is it strange?
1046
00:53:55,717 --> 00:53:58,389
Probably it's everywhere,
they just don't pay attention.
1047
00:53:58,389 --> 00:54:02,062
But density of forest, I'm not sure.
1048
00:54:02,062 --> 00:54:03,513
- I don't know why this area
1049
00:54:03,513 --> 00:54:07,478
seems to attract the
phenomenon, I really don't,
1050
00:54:07,478 --> 00:54:10,775
but it seems to be concentrated
in the state in this area.
1051
00:54:10,775 --> 00:54:12,980
- It seems like mountain areas around here
1052
00:54:12,980 --> 00:54:15,746
and West Virginia areas have a lot of
1053
00:54:15,746 --> 00:54:17,518
strange things happening on it.
1054
00:54:17,518 --> 00:54:21,567
- Over the years you know we
saw certain patterns emerging,
1055
00:54:21,567 --> 00:54:23,857
and we thought gee we're
getting close to some answers
1056
00:54:23,857 --> 00:54:25,986
then another case would show
up that would completely
1057
00:54:25,986 --> 00:54:28,176
dismiss your thoughts and theories,
1058
00:54:28,176 --> 00:54:31,322
and you're always hopeful
that you're going to finally
1059
00:54:31,322 --> 00:54:34,848
come to a conclusion, but
the more I receive reports
1060
00:54:34,848 --> 00:54:35,850
even in the last few years,
1061
00:54:35,850 --> 00:54:38,063
some of the crypto reports we're getting
1062
00:54:38,063 --> 00:54:40,264
are so strange and so unusual,
1063
00:54:40,264 --> 00:54:43,365
they're not even close
to the normal Bigfoot
1064
00:54:43,365 --> 00:54:46,061
or Thunderbirds or panthers
and other anomalies
1065
00:54:46,061 --> 00:54:48,795
we get reports on, so
there's a lot more out there
1066
00:54:48,795 --> 00:54:51,387
going on that any of
us have any answers for
1067
00:54:51,387 --> 00:54:52,594
and I think we're dealing with something
1068
00:54:52,594 --> 00:54:55,719
that's very strange and
unusual and right now
1069
00:54:55,719 --> 00:54:58,719
beyond our scientific understanding.
1070
00:55:04,457 --> 00:55:06,154
- [Narrator] Some who have
encountered the inexplicable
1071
00:55:06,154 --> 00:55:08,481
along the Chestnut Ridge have been able
1072
00:55:08,481 --> 00:55:10,876
to go on with their lives.
1073
00:55:10,876 --> 00:55:12,983
The occurrence becomes
an intriguing footnote
1074
00:55:12,983 --> 00:55:16,564
in their personal history, nothing more
1075
00:55:16,564 --> 00:55:18,554
but for others, the experience
1076
00:55:18,554 --> 00:55:21,249
has a profound and lasting effect,
1077
00:55:21,249 --> 00:55:23,791
shifting their worldview,
changing their thoughts
1078
00:55:23,791 --> 00:55:26,874
about what is possible, what is real.
1079
00:55:28,370 --> 00:55:30,517
Like Sam Sherry they
become obsessed with having
1080
00:55:30,517 --> 00:55:32,920
just one more encounter to justify
1081
00:55:32,920 --> 00:55:34,964
what they've been through.
1082
00:55:34,964 --> 00:55:37,960
To prove it to the skeptics
and maybe to themselves
1083
00:55:37,960 --> 00:55:40,927
that they're not losing grip on reality.
1084
00:55:40,927 --> 00:55:43,506
Or like Barry Clark, they would rather not
1085
00:55:43,506 --> 00:55:46,040
know what happened to them.
1086
00:55:46,040 --> 00:55:49,623
They prefer not to
remember, but to forget.
1087
00:55:53,030 --> 00:55:56,262
- And maybe if I went and had digression
1088
00:55:56,262 --> 00:55:58,647
maybe I would understand more,
1089
00:55:58,647 --> 00:56:00,230
but like I said now
1090
00:56:02,555 --> 00:56:06,477
I don't know if I want
to know any details.
1091
00:56:06,477 --> 00:56:10,424
You know I know what's happened happened,
1092
00:56:10,424 --> 00:56:14,284
and I've had some
physical stuff left behind
1093
00:56:14,284 --> 00:56:18,019
but do I really want to
know if I did do that?
1094
00:56:18,019 --> 00:56:21,707
Would it be worse than not knowing?
1095
00:56:21,707 --> 00:56:23,707
It's kind of a catch-22.
1096
00:56:27,047 --> 00:56:28,331
- [Narrator] Today, the
village of Kecksburg
1097
00:56:28,331 --> 00:56:30,799
has embraced its enigmatic past,
1098
00:56:30,799 --> 00:56:33,300
hosting a UFO festival each summer
1099
00:56:33,300 --> 00:56:36,403
that has attracted thousands of visitors.
1100
00:56:36,403 --> 00:56:37,714
Families bring children to play
1101
00:56:37,714 --> 00:56:39,902
in the shadow of the UFO replica
1102
00:56:39,902 --> 00:56:44,594
once used in the filming of
a TV program about the crash.
1103
00:56:44,594 --> 00:56:47,546
Locals are somewhat used
to camera crews in town,
1104
00:56:47,546 --> 00:56:52,338
as media interest in the
incident never wanes for long.
1105
00:56:52,338 --> 00:56:54,078
The people of this community
have done their best
1106
00:56:54,078 --> 00:56:57,661
to turn the events of
1965 into a positive.
1107
00:57:00,409 --> 00:57:01,409
- Once again I started this
1108
00:57:01,409 --> 00:57:03,555
back when I was 10 years
old in 1956 so this year
1109
00:57:03,555 --> 00:57:05,648
is going to be 58 years of research.
1110
00:57:05,648 --> 00:57:06,731
Why do this?
1111
00:57:06,731 --> 00:57:08,964
Well I guess it's just the fact that
1112
00:57:08,964 --> 00:57:10,707
I'm continuing to be curious,
1113
00:57:10,707 --> 00:57:12,541
I'm still learning more and more
1114
00:57:12,541 --> 00:57:13,858
about the phenomena out there,
1115
00:57:13,858 --> 00:57:16,326
I've learned that this
is a very strange world
1116
00:57:16,326 --> 00:57:18,719
and there's a lot of
ongoing things out there
1117
00:57:18,719 --> 00:57:21,136
that we have yet to understand
1118
00:57:21,136 --> 00:57:23,378
and I guess I'm always hopeful
that that next phone call
1119
00:57:23,378 --> 00:57:25,540
I might get on my hotline,
or the next email I get
1120
00:57:25,540 --> 00:57:27,545
might be the case that once and for all
1121
00:57:27,545 --> 00:57:30,381
gives us the evidence that will prove
1122
00:57:30,381 --> 00:57:34,548
that at least one of these
phenomena really do exist.
1123
00:57:42,118 --> 00:57:45,108
- [Narrator] But countless
questions remain.
1124
00:57:45,108 --> 00:57:47,469
What fell near Kecksburg, and what does
1125
00:57:47,469 --> 00:57:51,476
the United States
government know about it?
1126
00:57:51,476 --> 00:57:54,737
What was unleashed on this region in 1973,
1127
00:57:54,737 --> 00:57:57,070
and did it ever really stop?
1128
00:57:58,594 --> 00:58:00,344
How do we talk about phenomena that are
1129
00:58:00,344 --> 00:58:04,344
continuously shifting,
always just out of reach?
1130
00:58:05,940 --> 00:58:07,294
How do we describe the apparition
1131
00:58:07,294 --> 00:58:10,044
already disappearing in the mist?
1132
00:58:11,552 --> 00:58:14,506
It seems that the rolling
slopes of the hills,
1133
00:58:14,506 --> 00:58:17,962
the silent presence of
the Chestnut Ridge itself,
1134
00:58:17,962 --> 00:58:20,826
is the only thing permanent.
1135
00:58:20,826 --> 00:58:24,775
That, and the persistence
of human curiosity.
1136
00:58:24,775 --> 00:58:27,358
(eerie music)
88056
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