Skinwalker Ranch although known as a ranch associated with UFOs, the events suggest more than just alien activity.
Have you ever heard of the Navajos? The Navajo tribe, an indigenous people living in the North and Southwest of America, is known as the poorest and most populous tribe in America. Navajos were one of the last groups to arrive in the Southwest, residing in an area known as Four Corners, where the states of New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Utah meet.
The Navajo Tribe and Skinwalker Ranch
They adopted Shamanism as their lifestyle and belief system, worshipping deities known as Holy People. According to their beliefs, they always relied on a Navajo shaman to communicate with their gods. The Navajo shaman was the tribe’s religious healer and leader.
The shaman typically conducted ceremonies and spoke to the Gods on behalf of the Navajos, selecting the most appropriate deity to heal the sick. While chanting the divine words, he would create a sand painting. The patient would then be seated on the painted tableau. Following this, the Navajo shaman performed a ritual to enhance the healing power.
Navajo shamans claimed to have the ability to travel the path between earth and heaven for spiritual contacts. Navajo Shamanism is considered occult, with tactics similar to other occult beliefs and practices. Common examples include channeling and using spirits appearing in animal forms. The primary goal of a Navajo shaman was to serve individuals and their communities with not just medical aid but also spiritual guidance for the soul, mind, and spirit.
Can anyone become a Navajo shaman? According to them, to become a Navajo shaman, one must first be able to communicate with spirits and possess the ability to prophesy for the community they serve.
Now let’s turn to our famous ranch named after the Navajos…
Name of the ranch is derived from the Navajo legend of the skinwalker, a type of harmful witch capable of transforming into, and disguising themselves as, animals. The Ute people, who live in northeastern Utah, say that this ranch was cursed by the Navajos.
Utah is generally known for paranormal events. Even the legend of Bigfoot originated here, with claims that Bigfoot lives in the mountains of this area.
The Mystery of the Skinwalker Ranch
Located about 150 kilometers east of Salt Lake City in the Uintah Basin, the 480-acre Skinwalker Ranch might appear peaceful from a distance, but it is anything but peaceful for those who live there, as unexplained terrifying events occur.
Known popularly as the UFO Ranch due to a history of strange events spanning 50 years, UFO reports from the region where Skinwalker ranch is located date back to the 1970s, though the incidents were first published in 1996.
Although known as a ranch associated with UFOs, the events suggest more than just alien activity. This includes unexplained flying objects, missing and mutilated cattle, large animals with red eyes that are unharmed by bullets, portals, and invisible objects; nearly 100 such incidents have been observed, making Skinwalker a hotspot for paranormal activities.
According to Navajo beliefs, this ranch is located on the path of witches known as Skinwalkers. According to the legend, these witches pass through this land to hide in a place called Dark Canyon and emerge at night to abduct people. For this reason, the Navajos prohibited tribe members from setting foot on these lands. However, the Navajo ban meant little to non-Native people. Unaware of or disregarding this prohibition, people tried living on this ranch until the late 1900s. One such family, the Myers, settled on the ranch in the 1930s and lived a quiet life there for about 60 years, until 1987…
In 1987, the Myers family suddenly left the ranch, which remained ownerless, in human terms, for 7 years.
In 1994, Terry and Gwen Sherman, thinking they had found their dream home, bought the ranch at a bargain price, unaware of the events that would unfold. They were very happy, unaware of the forthcoming events.
SHERMAN FAMILY
The vast green land, surrounded by a high hill on the southern side and a shallow forested area around, were key factors in Terry Sherman’s choice of this ranch, as he was a high-level cattle rancher. This ranch was not just his dream but a necessity for his livelihood, providing the large, secure area he needed. At least, that’s what he believed. However, it would lead to his financial and psychological collapse.
When Terry and Gwen first saw the ranch, they noticed it needed care, as it had been unchecked by anyone for 7 years.
It was normal for a ranch that had been vacant for 7 years to need maintenance. However, some things were not normal.
The couple noticed that all the doors and windows of the ranch were covered with numerous locks. Even the kitchen cabinets inside the house had many locks.
There were also thick chains nailed to the ground with steel stakes at the front and entrances. Why was there a need for such high-level security measures for a ranch lived in by just one family? What had scared the ranch’s previous owners so much?
Terry and Gwen did not feel the need to question these locks because they dismissed the previous elderly owners as paranoid and overly protective.
This thinking was based on unusual clauses in the real estate contract. For instance, one clause stated that the Shermans could not dig on the land without permission from the ranch’s previous owners. While these clauses seemed nonsensical to the Shermans, a terrible question lingered in their minds: What had scared the ranch’s former owners so much and driven them to take such measures?
Day 1 at the Skinwalker Ranch
The Sherman couple, who thought they would lead a happy life on the farm, began experiencing strange events from the first day. While unloading a furniture truck in front of their house, they saw a wolf approaching them with slow steps from a distance. Terry immediately readied his gun upon seeing the wolf, which was nearly three times the size of a normal wolf.
However, this wolf appeared not aggressive but friendly. It even continued to display friendly behaviors as it approached within 20 meters of the Shermans. Just then, a calf inside the pens started watching the wolf by sticking its head through the iron bars. Noticing this, the wolf suddenly leaped, clamped its massive jaws around the calf’s head, and tried to drag it through the bars.
Terry and his father, who was with him, tried to save the calf by attacking the wolf with tools they had on hand, but this method was ineffective. Terry then fired at the wolf with his .357 Magnum, but it had no effect. The wolf was not injured. Terry fired again in disbelief, and once more, the wolf remained unharmed. However, after the third shot, the wolf slowly retreated about 3 meters away from the calf. There were no signs of injury on the wolf.
Terry fired several more shots at the wolf, and finally, they managed to drive it away from the ranch. Terry and his father followed the wolf’s tracks for about 1.5 kilometers.
However, they could not follow further as the tracks suddenly disappeared. The events of that day were just the first indicators of what was to come on the ranch…
A FEW WEEKS LATER IN SKINWALKER RANCH
A few weeks after these events, Gwen Sherman saw a very large wolf pass by her while sitting in her car, followed by another canine-like creature that she couldn’t identify. These two passed by without doing anything and disappeared.
For the next two years, the Sherman family and other residents in the area frequently reported seeing strange animals to the police. Among these were exotic birds never before seen in the area, humanoid creatures, and Bigfoot. On one occasion, the Shermans saw a very strange creature resembling a hyena attack one of the horses on the ranch.
According to the Shermans, this creature walked very close to the ground and had a muscular build weighing at least 200 kilograms. The creature vanished from sight as Terry approached it.
The attacked horse had claw marks on it. Other locals also reported seeing a similar creature in their yards in the following days.
But strange animals were not the only things people saw. The Sherman family and others frequently witnessed bizarre lights and flying objects, which they reported to local authorities.
Whenever these objects appeared in the sky, something bad happened to the animals on the farm. For example, one day when these objects were seen, four of Sherman’s top seven cows disappeared without a trace, and the remaining three were found partially maimed and left for dead. Another odd aspect was that the maimed cows had holes ranging from 15-40 centimeters on them. In addition, paranormal events occurred on the farm.
STRANGE BEINGS SEEN
Some nights, the yard inexplicably lit up, and loud, disturbing noises came from underground. Additionally, some objects in the house would disappear and then reappear days later. Whispers in a foreign language were heard around the farm, and shapeless, shadowy figures were seen.
These entities looked into the windows from outside and then entered, standing at the foot of the bed. The events did not stop there. One morning, Terry woke up to find that tons of soil on the property had disappeared in large chunks overnight—tons of soil had vanished without a trace during the night hours. The Shermans were psychologically devastated.
As days passed, the intensity of paranormal activities increased. The family, who thought they would be happy when they arrived at the ranch, witnessed horrifying events. The major incident that led them to go public with these events was terrifying.
BLUE LIGHT SEEN IN THE NIGHT SKY
In May 1996, while Terry was sitting outside quietly with his three dogs one evening, he suddenly saw a blue light appear from a field near the farmhouse.
The dogs barked and ran towards the field where the light was moving. After the dogs chased the light ball into the bushes, Terry heard a terrible scream. He called out to his dogs, but got no response.
The next morning when he went to check on his dogs, he found burned patches and three greasy spots on the ground. The dogs were never seen again. This incident was the last straw. Now they had neither their dogs to protect them nor their farm animals to sustain their livelihood. The Shermans had lost everything because of this ranch.
Entire family’s psychology was damaged. The children were failing in their school life as they couldn’t sleep. Gwen lost her job at the bank and was on the verge of a breakdown. Because of this, the Sherman family started sharing all their experiences with the local press for two years. Although some mocked their stories, they spread through the media and became popular. And all these events caught the attention of a billionaire businessman named Robert Bigelow.
ROBERT BIGELOW
Robert, who was interested in such matters, bought the skinwalker ranch in 1996.
He set up a team to investigate the events on the ranch. Over time, Bigelow’s team collected many pieces of evidence about the strange occurrences over approximately ten years. Every piece of evidence and each event witnessed by the team proved the Sherman family was telling the truth. But whatever had frightened the Sherman family for two years, now faced a fearless team. What did Robert’s team encounter on the ranch? What was causing these events? Why did Robert buy the ranch?
MARCH 1996
Around the time the Sherman couple was considering leaving the skinwalker ranch, billionaire businessman Robert Bigelow was preparing to establish the National Institute for Discovery Science, abbreviated as NIDS. The purpose of this organization was to investigate paranormal and unexplained phenomena in America and uncover the truth behind these events.
After reading about the incidents at the ranch, Robert Bigelow offered to buy it, as the events there were intriguing for the organization he wanted to establish. Seizing this opportunity, Robert purchased the ranch for $200,000. Subsequently, the NIDS team held a private meeting with the Sherman couple a few weeks later to hear about the strange occurrences firsthand. Teddy Sherman was determined to understand the source of the terrifying days they had endured for two years at the ranch, taking it as a matter of pride.
The NIDS team also offered him the position of ranch manager. Because he was familiar with the ranch, they wanted him to guide the research team. The team, accustomed to working in a laboratory setting, was inexperienced with the conditions on the ranch and thus needed Teddy’s expertise. Facing financial ruin, Teddy accepted their offer, and a confidentiality agreement was made with the family by NIDS. This meant that any findings from the research could not be disclosed anywhere.
Robert gathered highly knowledgeable scientists and researchers with PhDs in various fields, set up high-tech detection equipment, and began the research with a 24-hour security team protecting the ranch. The unique aspect of Robert’s team was their interest in paranormal events and their capability to provide logical explanations. The team also despised pseudoscience. Additionally, Bigelow had established a separate oversight team to monitor and control the selected team, showing his commitment and meticulous approach to the project.
SEPTEMBER 1996
The team had moved observation trailers and mobile laboratories to the ranch and started living there with a group of four scientists and researchers on duty at all hours.
The team conducted tests on the ranch. They needed to determine if the reported incidents were hallucinations due to psychological issues of the Sherman couple or environmental factors. This possibility also concerned them. Perhaps the family’s water source was contaminated, causing hallucinations, or they might have lied to gain attention and make money. If the incoming team witnessed these reported events, the veracity of the Sherman couple would be proven.
However, since the team’s arrival at the ranch, they had witnessed no events except a few strange lights in the sky. The year 1996 passed quietly and without incident.
Everyone was beginning to think that the Sherman couple was lying.
But 1997 would vindicate the Sherman couple with a series of strange events. What terrifying events occurred at the skinwalker ranch? If you’re interested in continuing our story, don’t forget to like and share.
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