On the evening of January 12th, 1983, multiple witnesses observed several "green fireball objects" appear to go down in an area near Gallup, N.M. Sonic booms and explosion-like noises were heard as far away as Durango. The police in Durango were told by FAA officials in Grand Junction, Colorado that the noise was created by "classified military aircraft" and would not answer any further questions.

Unusual military activity was reported in the vicinity soon after the incident. Again, there is strong evidence to suggest that the local law enforcement officials were deliberately mis-led and/or diverted while the real "retrieval operation" was carried on elsewhere (possibly somewhere near Chaco Canyon.) According to rumors in the military community that were passed on to Adams; "'Something' (be it terrestrial or otherwise) was removed from the side of the canyon or ravine into which it crashed... and was transported by air to Kirtland Air Force Base."

In 1991, Tom Adams published a revised edition of his book "The Choppers - and the Choppers" which details over 200 cases of helicopter/mutilation correlations. A frequent visitor to the San Luis Valley since 1970, investigative partner, Gary Massey, agree that "the valley ranks way up there on the high strangeness scale."

As Massey puts it: "We're not going to give up on this, but we'll probably all go to our graves and never know the answers to these questions." Adams states: "It would not be wise to rule out the extraterrestrial hypothesis, nor to rule it in. An open mind is essential in this business." Massey goes on to add: "Like my Daddy taught me; If it walks like a duck an quacks like a duck then it's probably a duck."

But sometimes things aren't always what they seem. What are we to make o this curious mix of conventional and highly unconventional aircraft in the San Luis Valley? Currently, the Colorado Air National Guard is pushing a proposal to expand the existing La Veta Military Operations Area (just east of the valley) further west into the San Luis Valley. This would mean a substantial increase in the military presence in the area.

According to Chris O'Brien: "It seems highly coincidental that the military wants to expand its permanent operations into the corridor where most of these anomalies take place. I'd be very, very surprised if there was no direct connection." O'Brien is perplexed by the military's current involvement: "Sometimes they seem to anticipate these strange events and other times they seem to be investigating them afterward."

Just when O'Brien thought he had all the weirdness he could handle, another unexplained phenomenon was brought to his attention. During a seven-day period during the end of December, 1993, and January, 1994, he investigated several reports of Bigfoot activity in a seven-square mile of the New Mexico portion of the valley. These include; a large, hairy creature spotted by a trucker near the highway, a white Bigfoot, a Bigfoot stalking a herd of elk, and a large creature that ran by a ranch house and supposedly threw a dog over a six-foot fence. Video tape was taken of tracks discovered in December 1st. These two sets of tracks ( one 21" in length and the other 18") descended through the snow for several hundred yards down a steep path. Reports of Bigfoot creatures have been reported in several other areas of the U.S. during mutilation/UFO flaps.

Just to make things more interesting, scientist are currently investigating an unexplained sound know as the "Taos Hum." Since the Spring of 1991, hundreds of Taos area residents have complained about the low frequency humming sound. It has been described as " a low, throbbing, grinding sound, accompanied by pulses of high static ringing." New Mexico Senator Bill Richardson notified the Secretary of Defense: "I have reason to believe the Dept. of Defence may be responsible for a mystery sound plaguing the residents of Taos, N.M." Both the Dept. of Defense and the Air Force have denied any involvement.

Scientist have isolated the sound as hovering around the 17 hertz range. Human hearing tends to range between 20 and 20,000 hertz. It is not commonly known that some San Luis Valley residents as far north as the Dunes claim to still hear the annoying sound.

Clearly, we are left with many more questions than answers in the unfolding story of the Mysterious Valley. Why, for instance, would a helicopter gunship hover over a 1990 Native American ceremony for the blessing of the sacred Mt. Blanca (the first such gathering in nearly 30 years)?

If the recent weirdness has instilled a sense of fear and dread in many valley inhabitants, others regard such events with a mixture of awe and joy. Indeed, UFO watching has become something of a spectator sport. Mark Hunter of the Alamos Valley Courier describes a whimsical scene in which cars were lined up along Highway 285 observing a UFO display. Meanwhile Undersheriff Brian Norton raced back and forth chasing a "fast moving, brilliant white strobe light flying low to the ground" on the nights of May 7th and 8th, 1994. The objects seemed to mirror Norton's actions: "I would chase it north and it would head south. I would stop and it would stop." The following morning Norton saw a dark unmarked helicopter buzzing the area where the chase had taken place.

It's an ill wind that blows no man good, as they say. O'Brien recently uncovered an interesting legend among the local Hispanic population. According to the story, residents become greatly exited when a UFO is spotted and hope that it will hover. Supposedly, at least two buried treasures have been discovered by digging under the spot where the UFO had paused.

So who are the mutilators and what exactly is it they're doing? Linda Moulton Howe, author of two books and producer of two documentary films on the subject, states: "After thirty years of case studies in human abduction syndrome and worldwide animal mutilations, one clear patter is the alien preoccupation with reproductive organs, sperm and ova. In an odd symbiosis, perhaps another life form needs us for its existence and wants us to survive." Howe has been a frequent critic of the government's handling of these matters: "If there is one truth that humans have a right to share, it is that something is tampering with this planet physically, psychologically and spiritually. Humanity deserves the truth, especially if that truth requires a revolutionary new perspective about our own history and our future."

"I love a good mystery," say Chris O'Brien " and this has to be the greatest unsolved serial crime spree of tee century." O'Brien continues:" The skeptics may be correct in saying that a large percentage of the mutilations are actually due to unusual scavenger action. As for the classic cases, I think multiple agendas may be involved. This is a blood-based phenomenon and I get a real sense of ritual magic about it."

O'Brien also notes that "The phenomenon is something that's couching itself in the technology just ahead of our time. There's a sort of transformative or mythological aura surrounding it that seems to be pulling us forward in an evolutionary sense. Maybe the mutilators are us in the future coming back and harvesting cattle parts from an animal that may be banned then because of its damage to the ecosystem. Maybe they're super-sophisticated chef and food acquisition teams coming back for delicacies: that makes as much sense to me as little grey being from Zeta Reticulae. The bottom line is: I don't even pretend to know who or what is behind this."

Meanwhile, the residents of the Mysterious Valley can only wait, watch and wonder.

Read Part 4 - Posted 7/5/96