ON THIS PAGE:
Much of the information on this page is expanded on other pages. This is a summary of how the night played out, with Mike driving the crew further than we’ve been led to believe.
This map is an overview of Rim Road from the work site (east) to Gentry Tower (west). Officially, the truck drove a few hundred yards to the UFO, took off toward Rim Road after Travis was zapped, chased a camper-truck along Rim Road for a mile, then turned back to look for Travis (red line).
The Gentry Tower theory, which Ryan Gordon claims Travis and Mike told him (and walked him through), has the truck driving west (as initially reported by the witnesses) along Rim Road to the "UFO" (as initially reported in the local paper). After Travis was zapped, Mike took off in an unknown direction, then drove back to an unknown location along Rim Road to look for Travis. (Chasing the camper-truck along Rim Road never happened - see below for an explanation of why Travis may have inserted it into his book.)
- A map and side-by-side comparison of the "official" route taken that night compared to the route to Gentry Tower.
Much of the information on this page is expanded on other pages. This is a summary of how the night played out, with Mike driving the crew further than we’ve been led to believe.
This map is an overview of Rim Road from the work site (east) to Gentry Tower (west). Officially, the truck drove a few hundred yards to the UFO, took off toward Rim Road after Travis was zapped, chased a camper-truck along Rim Road for a mile, then turned back to look for Travis (red line).
The Gentry Tower theory, which Ryan Gordon claims Travis and Mike told him (and walked him through), has the truck driving west (as initially reported by the witnesses) along Rim Road to the "UFO" (as initially reported in the local paper). After Travis was zapped, Mike took off in an unknown direction, then drove back to an unknown location along Rim Road to look for Travis. (Chasing the camper-truck along Rim Road never happened - see below for an explanation of why Travis may have inserted it into his book.)
Official and actual routes taken by the truck from the worksite, including "chasing" a camper along Rim Road (red loop), which witnesses Steve Pierce and John Goulette deny happened.
There are two ways to interpret the narrative in The Walton Experience (Travis's book, 1978, republished as Fire in the Sky 1996). It was written with the other witnesses in mind, striking a balance between matching their likely memories of the event (in case they ever read it) while also matching the official story that the UFO was near Turkey Springs.
But there are plenty of clues that things aren't as they seem. The official description (red line) does not fit well with what the book tells us (see table below). More importantly, it doesn't match the very first report to NUFORC (Seattle) on Nov 8, 1975, called in by a friend of Travis's step-brother while Travis was still missing. This family friend relayed that after a beam of light "projected" onto Travis and he "crumpled" (see Tall Tales for how this evolved into a deadly lightning bolt), "the rest of them were just, like anyone else I guess, they were terrified so they start their vehicle up and go the other way on that Rim Road for several miles, until they regained their wits." [NUFORC recordings, 1975, 051.mp3]
This sure makes it sound like they were already on Rim Road. The story will quickly evolve into the truck fleeing at impossible speeds further along the logging road, instead, because it's the only way to situate the UFO in Turkey Springs (where the fruitless manhunt took place).
By the time Travis writes the book, with Mike telling him what supposedly happened after Travis was "abducted", he's added to the story a later chase along Rim Road for one mile, hoping to get help from the camper-truck, which both Steve Pierce and John Goulette adamantly deny happened and which even Mike is curiously doubtful about in a recent interview.
Eliminating the chase, then, we can piece together from interviews what actually happened: the truck fled the scene along Rim Road, stopped at a clearing where Mike suggests building a fire, some talk about finding a deer hunter to ask for guns, but instead they all go back to look for Travis at a random location along Rim Road.
Why add chasing the camper-truck to the narrative? It makes sense that Mike and Travis feared the innocent witnesses in the truck might recall driving fast along on Rim Road at some point, so the fictional chase was to cover for the fact they were on Rim Road the whole time.
But there are plenty of clues that things aren't as they seem. The official description (red line) does not fit well with what the book tells us (see table below). More importantly, it doesn't match the very first report to NUFORC (Seattle) on Nov 8, 1975, called in by a friend of Travis's step-brother while Travis was still missing. This family friend relayed that after a beam of light "projected" onto Travis and he "crumpled" (see Tall Tales for how this evolved into a deadly lightning bolt), "the rest of them were just, like anyone else I guess, they were terrified so they start their vehicle up and go the other way on that Rim Road for several miles, until they regained their wits." [NUFORC recordings, 1975, 051.mp3]
This sure makes it sound like they were already on Rim Road. The story will quickly evolve into the truck fleeing at impossible speeds further along the logging road, instead, because it's the only way to situate the UFO in Turkey Springs (where the fruitless manhunt took place).
By the time Travis writes the book, with Mike telling him what supposedly happened after Travis was "abducted", he's added to the story a later chase along Rim Road for one mile, hoping to get help from the camper-truck, which both Steve Pierce and John Goulette adamantly deny happened and which even Mike is curiously doubtful about in a recent interview.
Eliminating the chase, then, we can piece together from interviews what actually happened: the truck fled the scene along Rim Road, stopped at a clearing where Mike suggests building a fire, some talk about finding a deer hunter to ask for guns, but instead they all go back to look for Travis at a random location along Rim Road.
Why add chasing the camper-truck to the narrative? It makes sense that Mike and Travis feared the innocent witnesses in the truck might recall driving fast along on Rim Road at some point, so the fictional chase was to cover for the fact they were on Rim Road the whole time.
Summary of actual route taken
- After leaving the work site in the dark, Mike drives south to Rim Road and turns right (west). He drives past the usual turn off at Old Verde/Black Canyon Road and continues for 4.5 miles along Rim Road.
- Mike stops the truck to view the "UFO"/Gentry Tower from 100 feet away. Travis jumps out and is "zapped".
- Mike takes off, making at least one sharp turn along the way - which suggests he may have gone left down the T-junction opposite the campsite, or taken any of the other trails that branch off Rim Road. He stops someplace where the crew gets out to discuss what to do next.
- Mike drives them to a random trail to look for Travis.
- After failing to find him, Mike drives the crew east along Rim Road, back to the turnoff and onto Old Verde/Black Canyon Rd to Heber via the usual route.
In August 2021 in private communication, Steve told me:
"I don't believe we went back to the same spot where Travis was zapped. I even told Travis couple times: I don't believe we drove back to the same spot where it happened. He said, You were just 17, you were confused."
So where was this fake abduction site where Mike took the crew to look for Travis? Rim Road has a lot of trails branching off. Taken from this map of trails from the Forest Service, I've superimposed them onto Google Maps which doesn't show them all clearly today - many are now closed.
Trails leading off Rim Road
Which way to the UFO?
Referencing these maps, let's compare the Gentry Tower theory with the official version, taken from Travis's book.
What really happened |
What we're supposed to think happened (from Fire in the Sky, 1978, 1996) |
Premise: “UFO” is Gentry Tower on Rim Road, a 4.5-mile drive from the work site |
Premise: UFO is halfway to Rim Road, a quarter-mile south of the work site |
Mike drives his crew south down the logging road to Rim Road for half a mile, then turns right to head west along Rim Road (in the dark this is just another right-hand bend on the logging road for passengers not paying attention while they talk about going swimming). They bypass the Old Verde Rd turnoff toward home and continue along Rim Road. |
Mike drives his crew south* down the logging road (an "obstacle course" of logs and boulders, p.43) toward Rim Road for almost quarter-mile. *The book says "north", which is an obvious error. We know they go south because:
|
About 15 minutes after leaving the logging road, they see the glow up ahead on the right. The book says they speed up to investigate the glow, which would be easy to do on the fairly good quality Rim Road; the GSW report says they slow down to 3-5mph, which must refer to the truck preparing to stop. |
About halfway between the work site and Rim Road, they spot a glow 100 yards ahead. (p.53) Mike stops the truck 30 yards (~100 feet) from the UFO glowing through the trees. A quarter mile on the logging road at 5-10mph, speeding up at the end, would take no more than 3 minutes. |
Before Mike even stops, just short of the entrance to Gentry Campground at the perfect viewing angle and about 100 feet from the tower glowing through the trees, Travis jumps out. Note: The evidence shows the UFO was not in a clearing. Mike turns off the engine (perhaps so nobody will ask him to move closer for a better view). Travis approaches the tower, gets “zapped”, and falls back. |
Before Mike even stops, Travis jumps out, Mike turns off the engine for no good reason. Travis approaches the UFO, gets zapped, and flies back 10-20 feet depending on who you ask. This encounter takes 30 seconds (according to Mike). (p.57-58) |
Mike takes off along Rim Road driving erratically, quickly reaching 35mph and shooting over water-bars. At some point he leaves Rim Road for a side trail. John Goulette says they drove for a quarter to half a mile. Steve Pierce says it was "a good mile, mile-and-a-half", followed by: "it was either half a mile or a mile." |
Mike takes off and continues south along the boulder-strewn logging road for a quarter-mile, driving recklessly, including "a tight curve to the left". He shoots over non-existent water-bars and reaches an incredible (literally, impossible - "obstacle course", remember?) 35mph. (p.59-60) |
Mike stops and backs up to tackle a high water-bar. Instead, he pulls into a clearing. The men get out and discuss what to do. Mike regains his "primitive instinct" that failed him 1 minute ago - he wants to build a fire to waste a little time while Travis climbs that 70-foot ladder. |
Mike stops and backs up to tackle a high water-bar - the last one before Rim Road, 100 feet away. Note: Despite frequent mentions of water-bars, there are no water-bars on the unmaintained logging road. They get out and discuss what to do. Mike's "primitive instinct" is to build a "comforting" fire, despite the "false security" it offers. They are suddenly in a "clearing". (p.61-62) |
They possibly discuss finding deer-hunters with guns. They do not chase any vehicle along Rim Road. |
From up the logging road they see headlights of a westbound camper-truck on Rim Road – the dim outline passes in the dark. Someone suggests chasing it for help or guns. (p.62) |
As they get back in the truck, Mike says he thinks he saw the UFO depart. Gentry Tower is now in darkness and invisible. |
As they get back in the truck, Mike sees the UFO depart. [p.63] Note: This is contrary to the witness sighting report, which said the UFO was not seen to fly away, disappear, or move at all. |
Steve and John deny they chased a camper. |
Mike pulls out of the clearing, drives over the non-existent water-bar, then drives another 100 feet to Rim Road and turns "west" to chase the camper. After a mile, they reach the Old Verde Rd turnoff, give up and turn back to look for Travis. (p.63) |
Mike drives back along Rim Road "looking" for the "UFO" site with his terrified crew. He turns onto a random trail and stops at a random spot. Steve Pierce says he never believed it was the same spot. |
Mike turns the truck around around, drives back east along Rim Road, turns left onto the logging road, and returns to the same site. (p.65) |
The guys argue about whether it's the right place, because (duh!) it's not. They decide that it is. In the dark, who would know? |
The guys argue about whether it's the right place, and decide that it is. (p.65) |
No sign of Travis or the tower. Travis is cosy in his lofty Tiny House with the accomplice (a Forest Service employee) and a hot cocoa. |
No sign of the flying saucer or Travis. Travis is having his Heinlein-of-an-adventure in outer space. (p.66-67) |
Mike drives the crew to Heber via Rim Road then Black Canyon Rd, the usual route. |
They retrace their route south for a quarter-mile to Rim Road and eventually join Black Canyon Rd to get to Heber by the usual route, |
Ken insists on calling the cops. |
Ken calls the cops. (p.67-68) |
That night, Mike (with Ken and Allen) takes the sheriff to a new random site at Turkey Springs, a quarter-mile from the work site, claiming it’s the abduction site. |
That night, Mike (with Ken and Allen) takes the sheriff to the abduction site near the work site. |
The search party in daylight searches the Turkey Springs area, from where the tower isn’t even visible, and the surrounding 2.5-mile radius. |
The search party in daylight searches the Turkey Springs area in a 2.5-mile radius. |
Read on...
There's plenty more in the book that doesn't match up with contemporaneous evidence, as well as examples of the tale being embellished over the years.
(c) Charlie Wiser 2021
