UFO Sighting in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio on July 2nd 1973 – incredibly bright sphere. Pulsated, flashed at times. Hard to look at, 5-10 ft diameter
It was just before the 4th of July holiday. I was 13 years old. I clearly remember the time frame because some of the other witnesses had fireworks they planned on setting off.
There was a group of around 10 kids. We had several camping and partying spots in the wooded area nearby my home. We would often spend time there building fires, cooking hotdogs and other stuff teens did. We had a large fire going I remember that.
Someone (don't remember who) spotted a very bright light off to the North in the same woods. As there were rival "gangs" of teens in the area that also partied in the same woods, we figured that there was another party going on. We had also built a nice fort in that area we used in the Winter, and someone mentioned that maybe someone was burning down our fort (that's how bright the light was suddenly)
Myself and perhaps 4 others (I do have the names of most of the others, but as recently as 2010 when i ran into one of them and mentioned the event, they became quite upset and didn't want to discuss, so I am doubtful they would come fwd) got up from our seats and hiked towards the light.
As we got closer it suddenly became apparent that the light was a spherical object floating around just under treetop level (perhaps 40 feet up). It was round, but far to bright to look at directly. I remember seeing shades of violet and gold flashing in the mix. If you placed your hand up to block the light, and peered between your fingers you could make out the spherical shape.
I remember yelling out "what in the hell is THAT"?
One friend Brian at the same time started screaming and yelling that they were going to take us. He took off through the woods back in the opposite direction (later we found out he went home to get his Dad)
Several other at the same time also broke down and started sobbing. I was not the oldest there. The two that really freaked out were older than me...perhaps 16 at the time.
Only one stayed with me trying to get closer to the light.
As we did, it began wobbling and humming loudly and started moving right towards us, dropping down near the ground.
We (of course) ran off away from it. After maybe running 100 yards and stopping to take a break, I looked back and saw that the sphere was once again heading back in the other direction, now kind of dipping and bobbing as it weaved it's way between large trees.
The same thing continued on for another full 30-45 minutes (I think)
We moved towards it, it turned towards us. We turn away and it turned away. It no doubt was responding to us. During this time, several of the kids that were back at the fire and saw the kids running and screaming away, came to join us out of curiosity I am sure.
One of them was the oldest in the group (Brian's older brother) and after standing near the light (maybe 50 yards away) he also began babbling nonsense about being taken and began crying uncontrollably. All this of course was pretty traumatic to me, a 13 yr old.
Then I heard Brian (who had returned with his Father, and their house was a GOOD half mile from our spot in the woods) yelling at us to get away from the object. When we ran back to him and saw he had his Dad with him we all kind of expected SOME kind of sense to be made, as we now had an adult with us!
His Dad stood there slack-jawed, himself just muttering some nonesense. Then the object got MUCH brighter, like it was going to explode...amd shot off FAST through the trees.
We all ran after it. (including Brian's Dad)
It came out of the woods into a clearing from an old abandoned apple orchard, where we could all finally see the night sky.
the object wobbled around maybe 100 ft off the ground and again grew brighter. Then, it shot off at perhaps a 45% angle up into the night sky and then stopped dead in the sky. We all saw it sitting there (at this time there was only four people. Me Mike, Brian and Brian's Dad)
It was far brighter than a star now, and perhaps the size of a dime held at arm's length.
Then, there was a flash and it broke into two objects. The bright white half shot straight up into the sky leaving a streak.
the other part, red, fluttered down slowly beyond the horizon, with a path looking like a leaf falling down from a tree.
Brian's Dad did call the Cuyahoga Falls police to report it when we went home.
They admitted they had other reports of odd lights, but said "what do you want us to do about it?"
It has bothered me for years not reporting this.
My parents have had a close encounter years earlier(UFO hovered over their car, car stalled, etc) and my father won't barely admit anything happened. My mother (now deceased) was quite upset. Years later when Communion was released, she became obsessed with UFOs and abductions and told me the cover of Streiber's book scared the hell out of her and she HAD to buy it.
I also years later had another encounter while fishing at night with a friend. I have details on that as well...and recently spoke to that friend and he only remembers the bright flash when the object left from hovering over our small boat. I recall more than just the flash. I recall the beam illuminating the boat. I remember both us us looking up and seeing the bottom of something large above us and THEN there was a flash as it basically just disappeared!
I am willing to discuss this is person if desired. The events described above have led me on a very strange journey in my 55 years of life. I have an immense library of UFO literature. I spend a lot of time star gazing. I rally would like to someday understand better this event.
