64: The Travis Walton Incident

12/29/20 • 65 min

Our Strange Skies: UFOs Throughout History

As above, so below. It’s a phrase that traces itself to the founding of Hermeticism. Those words can be found on the Emerald Tablet, a document that purportedly reveals the secrets of how to make the philosopher’s stone. As above, so below is a phrase that has carried on through generations. It’s found in the Bible, it’s an element in the hit series, Hellier, and in 1975 terror would come from both places.
During the Summer, people would fear the water due to the theatrical release of the first ever Summer Blockbuster, Jaws. But in November of that year, 22 year old Travis Walton would encounter a UFO near a slash pile in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest in Arizona. The craft emitted a blue beam of light that lifted Travis off the ground and threw him back about ten feet. That was the last time his coworkers would see him for the next five days. What ensued was a large manhunt, and one of the best investigated UFO cases of all time.
In this episode we delve into the timeline of the Travis Walton abduction, his experiences on the ship, the sightings that occurred in the area after he returned, and new evidence that would emerge decades later. In short, we delve into an incident that could be described as being “bigger than a Wal-Mart.”
Sources:

Fire in the Sky by Travis Walton

The UFO Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition by Jerome Clark

Ultimate Encounter by Bill Barry

Travis: The True Story of Travis Walton - documentary

Paranormal Witness - The Abduction

Minisode Six - Taken in Kentucky: The Abductions of Lee Parish and the Stanford Three

You Were Gone But You Never Really Left - They Had Mushroom Shaped Heads and White Eyes: The Abduction of David Stephens and the Men in Black Encounter of Herbert Hopkins

Travis Walton’s First Interview After His Encounter in 1975

Guest Podcast Appearances:

“Ep. 173: The Fortean Buzzkils and Rich - Roundtable 1” - Astonishing Legends

“Project Blue Book with Rob Kristoffersen” - Based on a True Story

“Episode 47 - “Ancient Astronaut Theorists Say...” - Relic: The Lost Treasure Podcast

“76) ALIENS: Most Credible Close Encounters in Modern History - 10ish Podcast

11: Rob Kristoffersen - Me & My Friends Podcast

Music:

“The Telling” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Headlights/Mountain Road” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Snowcrop” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Dawn Line Approaching” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Cold and Hard” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Gaddy” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Cover Letter” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Alliston Night Owl” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Gilroy” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Low Slopes” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Vengeful” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“Where It All Happened (Darkstar Version)” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)
“OneEightFour” by Blue D...

Previous Episode

63: The North Canol Road Abduction with Rich Hatem

The Yukon is one of the most remote places in the world. Its untouched wilderness is beautiful to behold, and it offers up some of the best hunting and fishing in the world. In September of 1987, a man using the pseudonym "Kevin" set out for the woods on a three day hunting and fishing trip. On the second day into the trip, he would have a remarkable on a dirt road with a pair of alien beings. I'm joined by Rich Hatem to discuss the baffling North Canol Road abduction.

Sources: The North Canal Road Abduction - Aliens in the Yukon

Abduction on North Canol Road

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66: The 'Boys' Who Never Came Home (Yuba County Five)

In February of 1978 the news in northern California was consumed by Ted Bundy’s arrest, coverage of the East Area Rapist, and Roman Polanski’s escape to France following charges of rape. There was one story, however, that took up a lot of page space in The Sacramento Bee, from February to June of that year. It’s the story of five men that went to a basketball game in Chico and never came home.

The mystery of the Yuba County Five, or the boys as their parents called them: Tim Weiher, Jack Madruga, Bill Sterling, Jackie Hewitt and Gary Mathias was forgotten about for nearly 40 years, until the story was posted on Reddit in 2017 on the Unresolved Mysteries subreddit. From there, the story became an internet sensation. Podcasts far and wide have covered the topic ever since, and there has even been new information to emerge 40 years later.

But the heart of the mystery still remains where it has always been: in the questions that still need answering. This week, The Our Strange Skies Podcast veers away from UFOs to discuss the ill fated journey of five men, who never came home. What led them to a rural mountain road to ultimately walk to their deaths in the frigid Sierra Nevada mountains.

Sources:

Ep. #36 – What If You Never Came Home? – The American Dyatlov Pass - The What If Podcast

“5 ‘Boys’ Who Never Came Home by Cynthia Gorney - Washington Post

“Cold Case: Why Did Five Northern California Men Disappear in 1978?” by Benjy Egel - The Sacramento Bee

“Out in the Cold: Were 4 mentally disabled men set up to die in the California woods?” by Benjy Egel - The Sacramento Bee

The remaining sources were culled from 30+ newspaper articles from The Sacramento Bee and other publications clipped from newspapers.com. Available upon request. Email [email protected] for more details.

If you would like to contribute to the Native American Community Response Fund you can do so here!

Music:

“Szaree” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)

“Toothless Slope” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)

“Last Lights” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)

“Thread of Clouds” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)

“Game Hens” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)

“A Minor Etude” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)

“Gilroy Solo” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)

“Pieces” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)

“Chain Link” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)

“Snowmelt” by Blue Dot Sessions (sessions.blue)