TV
The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch: Up In Smoke (S7E9)
Welcome back, fellow ranchers! Let’s jump right to the point today. This is an action-packed episode. Season 7 Episode 9 “Up In Smoke” reminds me why I love The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch; this is the show I fell in love with. This show once felt like an adventure…a relief from the over written, over-dramatized shows of its ilk. Slowly, it started to cannibalize itself and become something unrecognizable. But this episode just warmed my cold heart.
I don’t have anything interesting to talk about regarding Ufology, as I’ve been spending less and less time on social media. Which really has been a breath of fresh air. But I will give a quick shoutout to the book I just finished! Scott Thomas’s Violet was a breathtaking novel that treads lightly before making you realize you’ve been in the deep end the whole time. His other novel, Kill Creek, is one of my top 10 favorites of all time, and Violet just proves that was not a fluke. If you’re into slow-burn horror novels that don’t give you everything on a silver plate, novels that make you work for the goodies, then Violet will hit that spot perfectly for you.
Okay, enough is enough. I hyped up this episode, and I need to stop beating around the bush. Without further ado, let’s head out to our second favorite ranch in Utah to see if we get any closer to uncovering The Secret…of Skinwalker Ranch.
Mesa Drilling Continues on The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch
Mesa Drill Site – 8:36 AM
We join Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Kaleb Bench, Thomas Winterton, Archaeologist Chris Roberts, Sam Deriso, and Technologist Pete Kelsey at the top of the Mesa. Jed Murray and Bo Camp, of Triple A Drilling, are setting up their drill for the day’s happenings. Erik points out a spot that he truly believes is where the shallowest part of the anomaly is; around the 30-foot area. This should put them on the right path to drilling to the object buried within the Mesa.
Triple A starts drilling the fourth two-foot-diameter vertical borehole. While the drilling commences, Dr. Travis Taylor and Kaleb Bench join Chris Roberts at the spoils pile from Vertical Borehole Three; the borehole where metal flakes were found around the 60- to 70-foot mark. Not too long after they begin, Travis finds a metal flake with Chris’s magnet. They notice that it has rust on it, and they are very confident that it did not come off of the drill.
The spoils team radios down to the science tent and asks Erik Bard, Sam Deriso, and Pete Kelsey to head over. The three men meet up at the spoils pile. Just from a simple look, Erik is certain the metal flake is artificial material. He also says that it makes him hopeful. But that hope will run dry soon enough.
A Fourth Borehole Fails to Reach the Suspected Mesa Object
Mesa Drill Site – Later That Day – 4:37 PM
Triple A has spent the entire day drilling and has now reached the 40-foot mark. Well beyond where the team thought the buried object was. Thomas Winterton radios the team and asks them to come over to the drill. The team arrives, and Thomas delivers the bad news. Dr. Travis Taylor is perplexed, “This doesn’t make any sense to me.” Multiple data points prove an object is within the Mesa. Erik Bard says they should stop drilling for some time and invite Dr. Jan Francke back to the ranch for more GPR scans.
Dr. Jan Francke Returns With a New Ground-Penetrating Radar System
Top Of The Mesa – Three Days Later – 9:25 AM
Dr. Jan Francke joins Dr. Travis Taylor, Kaleb Bench, and Thomas Winterton at the top of the Mesa. He’s here to scan the interior of Borehole One with a brand new device he designed specifically for Skinwalker Ranch. This device is called a Coded Sequence Reader, which he somewhat discussed in Season 7 Episode 6 “All Mesa’d Up”. Dr. Francke made this device after scans from Season 7 Episode 5, “Home Sweet Homestead,” returned corrupted data. Because of this, Dr. Francke believes that something from within the Mesa is jamming his devices.
This new instrument, which has encrypted signals, should bypass any interference and collect clean images of the things buried within the Mesa. I’ve said it before: there are only a handful of people on this show whose genuine amazement at the ranch’s happenings means anything to me. The team from Sky Elements and LOC Precision are highly regarded in their respective fields, so when something goes awry and they’re amazed, that means something. I can happily add Dr. Jan Francke to that list.
We get a really nice little monologue in a talking head from Dr. Francke where he lays some stuff out on the line. He states that he has done this kind of work in 108 countries around the globe. To date, Skinwalker Ranch is the site that produces the most amount of frustration from an instrumentation and data standpoint. He ends his talking head by saying that too many weird things happen here (that he has seen data-wise) that he cannot easily explain.
Dr. Travis Taylor and Kaleb Bench head to the bottom of the Mesa to help maneuver the rope and pulley system that will bring Dr. Francke’s GPR device down the borehole. The device makes it to the bottom and back to the top with no issue. Dr. Francke is excited, but nervous, to see the data.
New GPR Data Reveals Metallic Anomalies at Skinwalker Ranch
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – The Next Day – 10:06 AM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Dr. Jan Francke, Sam Deriso, Kaleb Bench, and Thomas Winterton sit around the Command Center table. Somehow, Dr. Francke scrubbed through all the data and has some great news: usable data!
Dr. Francke’s GPR data shows some sort of anomaly at the 80-foot mark. Erik Bard says this is puzzling, but ultimately validating. What’s even more perplexing, per Dr. Travis Taylor, is that this means they should have hit whatever is down there. Thankfully, that’s not all. Dr. Francke’s scans revealed something else.
At around the 290-foot mark, inside Borehole One, are two large anomalies. Moreover, these anomalies, per Dr. Jan Francke, are very clearly metallic. Shocked and stumped, the team doesn’t know what this means. This data review ends with Travis asking Dr, Jan Francke if they can run GPR down the vertical boreholes, which he says they can start working on.
Boxes With Freaking “Lasers”
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – Later That Day – 7:04 PM
An Austin Powers reference in 2026?! Who do I think I am?
Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Thomas Winteron, and Jim Royston meet up outside the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center. Jim Royston has brought a box with him (that will oddly be referred to later as Pete Kelsey’s laser box??) that they will take over to Homestead Two. If you remember, in Season 7 Episode 5 “Home Sweet Homestead”, the team brought Navajo shaman Art Hardy to perform a prayer ceremony at Homestead Two.
Homestead Two has long been my favorite part of The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch. It’s been home to strange phenomena like orbs, portals, and errant radiation poisoning. Thankfully, the rest of this episode is all about Homestead Two; it feels like a genuine episode of Ghost Hunters. That being said, there is one thing that happens that I feel a bit iffy about. But we’ll cover that when it comes up.
The Team Heads Back to Homestead Two for Another Paranormal Experiment
Erik Bard says they will set up the laser box inside the main house at Homestead Two. They will then use the smoke gun from Season 7 Episode 4 “Smoking Guns” to blast smoke into the dilapidated house. The hope is that the smoke will allow them to see the lasers clearly. Dr. Travis Taylor says this specialized laser box will project a grid of laser beams inside the main building where they’ve previously detected random 1.6 GHz signals. And then Travis says something odd.
Travis reveals that they plan to use an audio file of the whistle Art Hardy used during his ceremony. Remember, Art had specifically requested parts of the ceremony not be filmed. This implies that there’s a level of secrecy and privacy that he wanted to maintain during this ceremony. It’s clear that there are still heavy feelings from the Native Americans in this area about Skinwalker Ranch (and even Blind Frog Ranch). So the fact that Travis wants to use Art Hardy’s whistle WHILE HE’S NOT THERE feels a little bit…wrong.
Or, maybe I’m too woke.
Smoke, Lasers, and LiDAR Set the Stage at Skinwalker Ranch
Homestead Two – 8:04 PM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Kaleb Bench, Thomas Winterton, Jim Royston, Erik Bard, and Pete Kelsey are setting up for the night’s experiments at Homestead Two.
Thomas Winterton sets up some high-speed cameras pointing into the main building. Pete Kelsey prepares to run stationary and moving LiDAR devices throughout the evening. A GPS sensor is placed atop Homestead Two. Multiple spectrum analyzers will be monitored throughout the night. Jim Royston will be flying his thermal drone across the area.
Since Homestead Two is on the very outside edge of The Bubble boundary, the team hopes they can see if there is any connection between Homestead Two and The Bubble. As the night begins to get started, Erik Bard heads back to the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center.
8: 45 PM
As usual, to test the equipment, Dr. Travis Taylor runs a 1.6 GHz signal on his signal generator. Erik Bard confirms he sees the signal from the Command Center. Travis turns the signal off as it’s been confirmed on both ends. Erik also confirms that he lost the signal. Just moments later, both Travis and Erik confirm that the signal…has come back! Travis’s directional antenna confirms the signal is coming directly from Homestead Two.
Erik also makes sure to note that the signal is above the noise floor. That just means the measure of the signal created from the sum of all the noise sources (per Wiki).
A Strange Light Appears at Homestead Three During the Experiment
Homestead Two – 9:01 PM
Thomas Winterton starts pumping smoke into Homestead Two. Once the building is full of smoke, Pete Kelsey turns his (?) laser grid on. It honestly looks sick as hell. And that’s when Erik Bard notices something odd from the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center: a light.
From his desk chair, Erik notices a blinking light coming from Homestead Three, a location we have rarely even heard mentioned. Erik radios Dr. Travis Taylor and asks if they have anyone from the team or production over at Homestead Three. Travis confirms that no one is over there. Thomas and Kaleb Bench sprint over to Homestead Three, but they don’t find anything. Yet.
Travis asks Jim Royston if he could put his thermal drone in the air to see if he can find anything. Jim obliges and gets his drone in the air. But as the drone approaches Homestead Three, Thomas and Kaleb see something odd. They both notice a mysterious green light. No matter how hard they look, neither Kaleb, Thomas, nor Jim are able to confirm further information on the mysterious light.
Jim’s drone finally makes it overtop Homestead Three. And that’s when Pete Kelsey notices something weird. “Why is Homestead Three so warm?” Pete asks. It looks like a furnace is on inside the building. But it’s falling apart; nothing is inside of it. Since no one is able to find an answer to the mystery light, Thomas, Kaleb, and Jim’s drone head back to Homestead Two.
Laser Anomalies and Radio Failures Add to the Mystery
Now that the whole team is back at Homestead Two, they get back to the experiment. Thomas Winterton fills the house with smoke and turns the lasers back on. While this is going on, Dr. Travis Taylor plays the audio file of Art’s whistle. That’s when two things happen at the same time. Erik Bard notices the data from the GPS tracker placed atop Homestead Two has started moving vertically. Simultaneously, Travis starts receiving a 1.6 GHz signal from Homestead Two!
Travis redirects his attention to the live video of the smoke and lasers inside the house. That’s when he notices something passing through the beams. He can’t make up his mind as he states that something is either moving or walking through the beams. Thinking there may be another new anomaly found, Travis asks Pete Kelsey to run his SLAM scanner inside the house.
Pete heads over to run his SLAM scanner. Once inside the homestead, Pete radios to Travis and Jim Royston. The two men can see Pete trying to talk to them through the live video feed, but his radio severely malfunctions. Travis notes the same thing happened during Art’s ceremony with the whistle and how the EEG headset stopped working even though it was only 20 or so feet away from “EEG expert” Maddy Farrer’s computer.
Drone Signal Loss at Skinwalker Ranch Raises More Questions
They decide to do one last experiment for the evening. Homestead Two is filled with smoke once more, and the laser box is turned on. While this happens, Jim flies his thermal drone inside and outside of The Bubble. Right as Jim’s drone gets to The Bubble boundary, it loses signal. Like literally it crosses the boundary, and the signal goes out. Thankfully, for Jim, the drone starts flying itself, and once it makes it out of The Bubble, he’s able to safely land it.
Data Review Highlights the Homestead Three Heat Signature
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – Next Day – 11:58 AM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Jim Royston, Kaleb Bench, and Thomas Winterton sit around the table at the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center.
To kick off the review, Erik Bard asks the team to describe exactly what they think they saw moving/walking through the lasers. Dr. Travis Taylor says it looks like a void-thing is moving through the lasers. Unfortunately, Pete Kelsey’s SLAM scanner doesn’t reveal anything useful. Maybe I’m reading into this too much, but Erik doesn’t seem convinced one bit.
Erik then pulls up the video that his Meta-Frame captured from the blinking light at Homestead Three. We can see it blinking for some time before eventually becoming a solid light. That’s when it abruptly and quickly starts hauling ass to the west. This is when Erik asks if the light is someone or something.
We end the data review with video from Jim’s first thermal drone flight over to Homestead Three. The top right of the video has the heat index key, and we can glean two important things from that. Firstly, the outside ground is around 30 degrees, which makes sense. Secondly, the roof is also cold, but 60-ish degree heat is emanating from the slots of the broken Homestead Three roof. This would make sense if the floor was concrete and was taking on extreme heat all day. But the floor is made of wood…
Final Thoughts on The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch Season 7 Episode 9
I don’t care about nonexistent voids (that are just leftover plumes of smoke) going through lasers. I’m on Erik’s side with this (even though he doesn’t state that he doesn’t believe it). It’s nothing. What I do care about is the mysterious light and heat anomaly from Homestead Three. This show used to care about true drama, true supernatural phenomena. And this episode delivered the goods.
How exactly could this wooden structure retain so much heat, especially after the sun has been down for hours? Does this imply that there is something directly beneath Homestead Three? Or could there potentially be a portal at this homestead? I want more episodes that feel ghost hunter-y. That’s when the cast and the viewers are obviously having the most fun.
Anyways, that’s all for this week! Join us again next week to see if we get any closer to uncovering The Secret…of Skinwalker Ranch.
Welcome back, fellow ranchers! We’ve nearly made it to the Season 7 finale of The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch. Can you believe it? Just a few short weeks ago, we were welcomed back to the ranch via Kaleb Bench, longingly looking towards the Command Center’s helipad. And now we have explosions, smoke, and lasers! As stated last week, I don’t plan to cover anything Ufology-related, especially since they’re in the midst of a full-blown civil war.
Apologies for the delay on this piece; I’m finally off the graveyard shift after seven years, and it’s been quite a transition. Before we get into everything, I want to discuss how this may be the last coverage for this season for a very specific reason. But we’ll get into that later. For now, let’s take a trip to our second favorite ranch in Utah to see if we get any closer to uncovering The Secret…of Skinwalker Ranch.
Red Devil Pyro and FLÜG Join the Skinwalker Ranch Experiment
The Skinwalker Ranch Corral – 10:17 AM
We join Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Thomas Winterton, Jim Royston, and Technologist Pete Kelsey at The Corral. Kaleb Bench joins the team with a coterie of people for a giant experiment. As winter is closing in fast, Dr. Travis Taylor and his team plan to try to find out just where the hell these UAPs are coming from and whether or not they are related to The Bubble, The Blob, or The Mesa. So, who all is here and what are they going to do?
Firstly, there is Kevin and James Devoll of Red Devil Pyro. Secondly, we have John Engstrom (owner), Charner Ramsey (3D Technician), Isabella Dominguez (3D Technician), and Marlo Irani (Array Director) of FLÜG. The team from Red Devil Pyro will set off multiple fireballs within The Bubble boundary near the western edge. The fireballs will send massive amounts of smoke and energy into the Bubble, which will then create perfectly formed smoke rings. These smoke rings should pass through the side of the boundary at around 50 feet.
While Red Devil Pyro sets the sky ablaze, FLÜG will use 48 cameras to fire simultaneously. Once post-processed, each capture will create a two-second video playback of one frozen moment in time.
The Bubble Experiment Produces Strange Smoke Rings
Dr. Travis Taylor leads the respective teams to a spot near The Bubble boundary. We learn that Red Devil Pyro will be igniting 25-gallon fuel mines. And they’re glorious. The teams start setting up, but that doesn’t mean Travis is going to sit around twiddling his fingers.
While Red Devil Pyro and FLÜG are prepping, Travis sets up a signal generator on a post inside the boundary. The signal generator is taped to a post, and Travis sets it up to generate a 1.2 GHz signal. Erik Bard, who is in the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center, immediately picks up a strong peak at 1.2. Suddenly, FLÜG runs into a gigantic issue; 12 of their cameras stop working. John Engstron says that this has never happened before and that the trigger boxes are losing connectivity. Thankfully, they’re still able to go forward with 36 cameras.
Red Devil Pyro now has the first series of explosions ready to go. Once given the go-ahead, Red Devil Pyro sets off the first explosion. The fireball engulfs the air, slowly fading into a near-perfect ring of smoke. After the smoke has cleared, the team sets off the second explosion. But the ring doesn’t form properly. Weird, because there isn’t a single bit of visible wind.
Did the First Explosion Activate the Bubble?
This leads Travis to ask a very leading question: did the first explosion turn The Bubble on? Giggity. Erik radios to Travis that his 1.2 GHz signal is getting stronger. But what’s even weirder is how Travis has NOTHING on his spectrum analyzer. Mind you, Erik is all the way across the ranch in the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center (inside The Bubble); Travis is roughly 50 feet away (outside of The Bubble). Coincidence?
For explosions three and four, Red Devil Pyro plans to do them in quick succession.
Red Devil Pyro sets off the third explosion. While the fireball proper looks great, the smoke ring doesn’t. It seemingly looks like it’s getting squished by something in the air before escaping the invisible thing’s grip and turning into a perfect smoke ring. The fourth explosion goes off and doesn’t even form a smoke ring, squished or not.
Red Devil Pyro sets off the fifth explosion, and a smoke ring is not formed. Marlo Irani tells the team that he will be able to provide the raw footage immediately, but the processed footage from the bullet time will take about a day. Travis wonders if The Bubble is getting stronger and expanding with each explosion.
Skinwalker Ranch Bullet Time Footage Reveals a Possible UAP
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – 10:11 AM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Jim Royston, Kaleb Bench, and Thomas Winterton sit around the Command Center table. Erik Bard pulls up some of the processed footage from Marlo Irani. To be honest, it looks amazing. Erik notes that one of the smoke rings looks as if it grew fangs as it began to form. But I don’t necessarily see it.
What I do see is a damn UAP in the background! Erik zooms in on the unidentified flying object, and it does look interesting. Dr. Travis Taylor says, “[It] looks like a spaceship from sci-fi…man.” Riveting stuff, doctor!
GPR Scans Search for Anomalies Beneath the Mesa
Next Day – Top Of The Mesa – 1:36 PM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Thomas Winterton, Jim Royston, Technologist Pete Kelsey, Kaleb Bench, and Dr. Jan Francke are at the top of The Mesa. Dr. Jan Francke is back with a larger GPR device, which will be let down into the first vertical borehole. Dr. Travis Taylor says this hole was picked specifically due to its proximity to where the Type A ceramic (plaster) material was found. Dr. Jan Francke says he will be using a stronger surface radar to scan the side of the borehole with a much higher resolution.
The rest of the team leaves, but Thomas Winterton stays back to lend a hand. Thomas thinks they should start on the east side of the vertical borehole as it’s closest in proximity to the original anomaly found within The Mesa. They begin, and Dr. Jan Francke is very optimistic about this, saying that it will give us direct access into the heart of The Mesa.
Once the east side of the vertical borehole is completed, they move on to the south side of the borehole. As Thomas pulls the surface radar scanner, Dr. Jan Francke notices something very bright at the 25-foot mark. Travis, Jim, Sam Deriso, Pete, and Kaleb join back up with Dr. Jan Francke and Thomas. Dr. Jan Francke reveals to them what he saw around the 20- to 25-foot mark and that he’s excited to post-process the data.
Lasers and Explosions Return for Another Skinwalker Ranch Experiment
Next Day – Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – 5:38 PM
We join Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Jim Royston, Kaleb Bench, and Dave Mason outside of the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center. But that’s not all! Also joining the team are
Jason Holmes (Display Operator with Red Devil Pyro) and Adam Scott (Nu-Salt Laser). If you thought the previous day’s experiment was huge, then get ready! Adam Scott is back and ready to go with eight 300-watt space cannons!
The Triangle – 6:27 PM
The teams make their way to The Triangle to get things all set up for the night’s big show. Dave Mason will be running his stationary FLIR throughout the entire experiment. And one thing that’s important to note is how windy it looks. Because later on someone will say, “There’s no wind at all!”
Eight Lasers and Multiple Explosions Target the Triangle
The Triangle – 9:14 PM
Red Devil Pyro is finishing setting up three 20-gallon explosion mines and one 35-gallon one. That’s when Dr. Travis Taylor says, “there’s no wind at all,” as his hair is currently going eight different directions because the wind won’t stop blowing.
Nevertheless, Adam Scott gets the lasers going. Rather than the lasers pointing at a single spot on The Mesa (like in Season 7 Episode 12 “Hot Pursuit”), the lasers are pointing straight up. With the lasers going, Red Devil Pyro begins their controlled explosions.
The first explosion goes off, and looks great set against the pitch-black night sky. Unfortunately, the smoke ring fails to form. Dr. Travis Taylor, who just minutes ago said there was no wind at all, wonders if the smoke ring hit The Blob and failed to form. After the smoke clears, Red Devil Pyro sets off their second explosion–no smoke ring.
Equipment Failures Coincide With 1.2 GHz Signals
As they prepare to set off the third explosion, Nu-Salt’s lasers flash on and off. Suddenly, Jim Royston’s computer and video feeds mysteriously go down. AND THEN all of Dave Mason’s equipment goes offline. Thomas Winterton joins Travis as they go check all generators and circuit breakers to see if anything tripped. But they find nothing.
What is important to note is what Erik Bard reveals. From his spectrum analyzer within the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center, Erik sees four incredibly strong peaks at 1.2 GHz. And then, as if nothing had even happened, all of their equipment comes back online.
Red Devil Pyro refuels the fuel mines. They set off the third explosion. And again, while it looks great, there is no formed smoke ring. That’s when Dave Mason notices something odd. Once the smoke clears from his view, he notices multiple spots on The Mesa that appear to be heated. There is no reason why these rocks should be hot. In fact, they aren’t even close enough to The Mesa for the rocks to retain any heat from the explosions!
Strange Heat Signatures Appear on The Mesa
Red Devil Pyro sets off the night’s final explosion. Who would have guessed…the ring doesn’t form. At least, not right away. From Erik’s perspective, the smoke forms this anomalous figure-eight pattern in the sky. But that’s not all! Dave Mason reveals that the rocks on The Mesa continue to retain heat from the explosions!
Final Thoughts on The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch Season 7 Episode 13
I’ll be honest, I’m not sure how I feel about this proxy-season finale. Nor am I sure how I feel about this entire season. It felt incredibly unfocused and lazy, though parts of it were unquestionably entertaining. But this finale just seems…like nothing. Why can we not get a final data review before next week’s big finale?
And the “big finale” is something that also needs to be discussed. Every season ends with one of those “this is what happened this season” episodes. And while that’s not inherently awful, The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch spends about 25% of each episode’s runtime rehashing things already seen or discovered in previous episodes (or in that episode, too). It has become a show that penalizes recurring viewers so that the people who are casually flipping through channels don’t feel lost when they stumble upon it.
I loved what they did with the bullet time capture with Red Devil Pyro, and wish they would do more fun stuff like that. I know science/exploration isn’t always supposed to be “fun”. But it’s supposed to keep someone entertained when you’re MAKING AN ENTIRE SHOW ABOUT IT. Will I cover next week’s episode? My answer is like a UAP; it’s up in the air. All I know is I can confidently say that Season 7 didn’t get us any closer to uncovering The Secret…of Skinwalker Ranch.
Welcome back, fellow ranchers! I thought my intro to last week’s episode would genuinely be the last time I discussed Ufology out loud (aside from interviews and The Horror Press Podcast). But the Ufology civil war is now among us. When I last wrote, UAP Gerb had publicly spoken with Ross Coulthart regarding multiple aspects of Ufology. In said conversation, barbs were thrown toward Lyin’ Lue Elizondo. The “Final Thoughts” section of last week’s The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch article mentioned how Lue had “clapped back” and vaguely threatened Gerb.
Then, shit hit the fan. Lue’s lawyer started beefing with a literal elected official. The elected official hit back. Then Lue’s lawyer doubled down. Lue moved to DC. And all hell broke loose. UFOTwitter has turned into a literal warzone. People have been doxxed. Lives have been threatened. Friendships have been broken. But most importantly, it caused Jeremy McGowan to come out of his sporadic Ufology retirement to put Lue in his place.
Due to the litigious nature of Lue’s lawyer, I am going to hold my tongue (even though everything I want to say is truthful). All I will say is that I saw this coming from miles away–it was clearer than Jose’s original Fresno Nightcrawler video. Simply put, all of this is laughable and sad. Grown men acting like teenagers for nothing more than a handful of likes on Twitter. Get a life.
Anyways! This week’s episode of The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch is a doozy, so let’s not waste any more time! Let’s head back to our second favorite ranch in Utah to see if we get any closer to uncovering The Secret…of Skinwalker Ranch.
Cameron Fugal Spots a Metallic Object Near Homestead Two
The Triangle – 3:26 AM
We pick back up exactly where we left off from Season 7 Episode 11 “On The Radar”. Cameron Fugal is flying his helicopter while Jereme Manhart and Technologist Pete Kelsey throw aluminum bottles down to the ground. Pete notices something flying over the treetops near Homestead Two. Cameron studies the object as best he can and states that it’s definitely metallic in nature.
Dr. Travis Taylor reiterates a point made last episode when he says that it appears the dropped bottles bounced off The Bubble and slid down the side. Cameron is certain this isn’t a bottle. Thomas Winterton and Kaleb Bench look towards Homestead Two, but they don’t see anything. Even Jim Royston, who is with Travis at the science tent, doesn’t see anything.
The Doppler on Wheels Team Comes Up Empty-Handed
Travis radios over to Dr. Karen Kosiba and Dr. Joshua Wurman, two of the three members of Doppler on Wheels, and asks if they see it on their Doppler radar. He reminds the audience that Doppler radar relies on radio waves that reflect off water droplets–hopefully, the flying object reflects enough for the Doppler to catch it. Unfortunately, they don’t see anything either. Travis wonders aloud if the UAP could have come from The Bubble.
I know this has probably been brought up before, but I’ve noticed something quite hysterical about this show. Whenever someone says anything about something anomalous, there’s a reality-based conversation about what’s been seen. And then after that, someone follows up with something that most likely sounds ridiculous by saying “looks like” or “maybe”. It’s an interesting form of manipulation that works incredibly well to keep audiences engaged in the possibility that this thing that’s most likely a bird could possibly be something other than a bird.
It’s brilliant television.
A Familiar Cylinder-Shaped UAP Returns to the Same Spot
Travis, Jim, Kaleb, Thomas, Erik Bard, Dr. Karen Kosiba, Dr. Joshua Wurman, Dr. Oluyinka Oluwale, Cameron, Jereme, and Pete all meet up outside the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center. (It should be noted that Pete is still wearing his harness from when he was strapped into the helicopter, and it’s giving him a crazy moose knuckle.) Cameron mentions that this is without a doubt the clearest thing he’s seen on the ranch. The object, per Cameron, is like a cylinder that was moving in a rolling motion.
Erik notes that they recently saw a cylinder-like UAP in Season 7 Episode 5 “Home Sweet Homestead”. The UAP in that episode and the UAP they just saw from the helicopter…were in the exact same location.
Doppler on Wheels Data Reveals Multiple UAPs Near The Triangle
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – Next Day – 11:36 AM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Jim Royston, Thomas Winterton, and Kaleb Bench sit around the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center Table. They are joined by Dr. Karen Kosiba and Dr. Joshua Wurman via video call. We start by taking a look at the data set from Doppler on Wheels’ day one tests when the team set off rockets. Their data shows multiple UAPs (not their words) near The Triangle. What’s weird is there are two specific points of data; a series of green blots are moving toward The Triangle while a series of brown (orange) blots are moving away from The Triangle.
Dr. Wurman says he is unable to tell what these pieces of data truly are from radar alone. But he says that doesn’t negate the fact that these objects were moving in the air. What’s more interesting is how the sky was cloudless that day and no one reported seeing anything, nor did any cameras pick anything up.
A Second Data Set Points to the Same Wooded Area
The Doppler on Wheels team has a second set of data that is from one minute later. We see some interesting objects south and southwest of The Triangle. One of the objects is placed in the wooded area–behind Homestead Two–where Pete Kelsey and Cameron Fugal saw the metallic UAP. Dr. Travis Taylor asks if they were able to capture the UAP that Pete and Cameron say, but the team didn’t have any conclusive data-driven evidence of the UAP.
While discussing the UAP, Travis mentions how it very clearly “glints” off the sun. What’s important to note is how the object doesn’t stay one distinct shape; rather, it seems to be changing its shape, which could be for several reasons. Erik Bard suggests the change in shape could be because it changes its angle of trajectory. One thing is clear: Travis believes the object is being propelled by something and is moving laterally.
The Team Assembles for a Major Skinwalker Ranch Experiment
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – Three Days Later – 5:18 PM
Kaleb Bench stands longingly at the Skinwalker Ranch helipad as Cameron Fugal flies in with Jereme Manhart and Mormon millionaire Brandon Fugal in tow. Once landed, everyone meets outside the Command Center. We have Dr. Travis Taylor, Thomas Winterton, Jim Royston, Erik Bard, and Pete Kelsey. But that’s not all! We have some familiar faces on Skinwalker Ranch! Joining the team for this experiment is thermal camera expert David Mason, SFX experts and smoke specialists Steve Bolan and Jeff Ference, and Nu-Salt Laser’s Tim Anderson (who we last saw on the show in Season 6 Episode 7 “Lights Out”).
This week, the team will be doing a similar experiment to what they had done in Homesteads Two and Three. They plan to fill The Triangle with smoke and have Nu-Salt fire lasers through The Triangle. Tim says they will utilize eight 30-watt RGB solid-state lasers. Steve has brought a mega-smoke machine to the Skinwalker Ranch for this experiment. It uses a turbo jet aircraft engine, which will pump five gallons of smoke per minute of air show smoke oil to create 10,000 ft³/minute. Once that’s done, Cameron Fugal and Pete Kelsey will fly above The Triangle and shine a laser light directly into The Blob.
Everyone heads to their respective locations and tests their equipment. Everything seems to be going swimmingly. Surely that won’t change! (I can now understand why Steve and Jeff were referred to as smoke specialists because their smoke rig is NO JOKE.)
The Team Sets Up for Another Night at The Triangle
South Field – 9:01 PM
Kaleb Bench and Thomas Winterton join Dr. Travis Taylor at the South Field. Dave Mason is near the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center and is setting up his FLIR thermal cameras. Jim Royston gets his thermal drone set up. And it’s showtime!
Steve Bolan’s Smoke Machine Suffers a Mysterious Malfunction
Tim Anderson gets the lasers turned on. I always love when they do giant laser experiments on the show. Steve Bolan goes to turn on the smoke machine…but nothing. Brandon Fugal humanly says, “Where’s the smoke?” Steve’s smoke machine is broken.
What we learn is that four different malfunctions happened simultaneously. They lost their fuel control, the battery blew a fuse, the smoke pumps broke, and the ignitors went out. Jeff Ference radios Erik Bard and tells him that they have never had issues like this before. Erik tries to make them feel better by saying, “Welcome to the club.” Steve drops the line of the season when he says, “Feels like some voodoo shit going on here.”
In a talking head, Steve states that he and Jeff have been prepping for weeks for this experiment. That includes new parts, batteries, etc., they prepared to the max. Steve has been doing this for 35 years, and he has never once had things go haywire as they have tonight. Dr. Travis Taylor makes a fascinating point when he says that Skinwalker Ranch does an excellent job of demoralizing expert after expert. Which is very true.
Jim Royston’s Drone Gets Pushed by an Unseen Force
Dr. Travis Taylor radios Sam Deriso and says he wants to get Jim Royston’s thermal drone in the air. The drone goes up without any issue. But as Jim is flying his drone towards The Triangle, something happens. Well, two things happen. Firstly, the drone has an error stating it failed to obtain remote control (we’ve seen that one before). Secondly, a warning pops up and says Gimbal 1 pitch axis endpoint reached. And then suddenly, the drone is pushed 15 feet in the sky. And it wasn’t due to wind.
Dave Mason is watching through one of his two thermal cameras, but doesn’t see anything physically push Jim’s drone. And then it happens again. They have Jim return the drone so that they can move on with the next part of the experiment.
Cameron Fugal’s Helicopter Flight Gets an Unexpected Visitor
Cameron Fugal is radioed and told to start his flight. They get the helicopter in the sky, and Pete Kelsey successfully shines the laser into The Triangle. Suddenly, something zips by the helicopter. And it’s not a bird.
Thankfully, Dave Mason was able to catch the thing that flew by the helicopter. That’s when Jim Royston, who is watching Dave’s FLIR video on a monitor, sees a second object in the sky. This second object flies in and out of frame multiple times. Dr. Travis Taylor tells Jim to get his drone back up in the sky, hoping they can get a better look at whatever is flying around Cameron’s helicopter.
Multiple UAPs Engage in a High-Speed Chase
The drone goes up, but not all that glitters is gold. Jereme Manhart sees a “dot” chasing Jim’s drone. First it’s in front of the drone, then behind, and then back in front. It’s moving surprisingly fast. But no one can see this from the ground, unfortunately.
At that exact moment, Dave reports seeing an object in front of Jim’s drone through the FLIR. And as he sees that object, Jim’s drone is harshly pushed multiple feet. This happens multiple times whenever Jim is trying to fly the drone over The Triangle. But that’s not all! A third UAP appears, and at this point, it feels like a giant cat-and-mouse game.
Due to the potentially unsafe nature of what’s going on, Brandon Fugal radios his brother, “Hey Cameron, this is your brother…pull the plug.”
The Team Reviews Dave Mason’s FLIR Footage at Brandon’s Office
Salt Lake City – Two Days Later – 1:13 PM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Kaleb Bench, Jim Royston, Erik Bard, Thomas Winterton, and Cameron Fugal join Brandon Fugal at his villain-like office. Dave Mason joins the team via video call. Erik Bard pulls up Dave Mason’s FLIR video. The first thing we see is Jim Royston’s drone getting pushed hard by an invisible force. But this happens the first time we see a UAP.
It’s actually incredible to watch the UAP slowly come into frame before disappearing into nothing. What’s more incredible is how the UAP is nearly four times the size of Jim’s drone. Dave Mason is sure the UAP is not a cloud.
And then the episode just kind of ends?
Steve Bolan’s Smoke Machine Meltdown Was the Episode’s Real Highlight
Typically when we have these data review segments at Brandon Fugal’s office, there are some high-profile people there. Or, at the very least, tons of data to look through. But this whole setup feels weird. Why are we at Brandon’s office to just look at a couple pieces of FLIR video? Is this a weird way to justify using his office space as a write-off?
The experiment would have been so much cooler had the smoke machine worked, but I think that goes back to something I’ve been saying for a while. Steve Bolan’s smoke machine incident is captivating. He, like Dr. Jan Francke, the team from LOC Precision, and Sky Elements, are respective experts in their fields. Seeing Steve’s reaction after his smoke machine went down shows that he is either an INCREDIBLE actor, or he was truly surprised by what happened. I am going to say it was the latter.
I don’t know…nothing from this episode really felt solid. It kind of was a beat-to-beat episode that had a few incredible moments that felt like they didn’t lead to anything worthwhile. Oh well, that’s just how it goes, I guess. That’s it for us this week, so join us next week to see if we get any closer to uncovering The Secret…of Skinwalker Ranch!
