What do you get when five friends make a pitstop on the way home from a basketball game?
Nothing, apparentlyβ¦because they disappeared, never to be seen from again.
Itβs actually quite tragic, and baffling. (And not as uncommon as you would think. There are other instances of unexplained disappearances; links at the end.)
Be warned: this mystery has no answers, just questions.
The 5 Men and the Disappearance
The five friends were Jack (Jackie) Huett, 24; Gary Mathias, 25; William (Bill) Sterling, 29; Jack Madruga, 30; and Ted Weiher, 32.
On the night of February 24, 1978, the five left their homes in Yuba, CA in Madrugaβs white and turquoise 1969 Mercury Montego. Their destination was a basketball game in Chico, CA between UC Davis and California State University, Chico.
They were avid basketball fans, often gathering together to watch or play basketball. In fact, they had their own game to play on the next day, February 25. It was part of a local program for the mentally handicapped and was sponsored by the Special Olympics.
You see, Mathias was diagnosed with schizophrenia while in the Army and based in Germany, and was subsequently psychiatrically discharged. Huett and Sterling had slight intellectual disabilities, and Weiher and Madruga - who was also an Army vet - were unofficially considered βslow learners.β
Anyway, they left the game and stopped at Behrβs Market in downtown Chico to buy one Hostess cherry pie, one Langendorf lemon pie, one Snickers bar, one Marathon bar, two Pepsis and 1.5 quart of milk. The clerk remembered them because she was annoyed that the men arrived right before closing at 10pm.
That was the last time they were seen alive. The morning of February 25 came and went, and when none of their guardians - who they lived with - heard from them, they notified the police.
The Investigation
The first to be discovered was the car, on February 28, parked along Oroville-Quincy Road in the Plumas National Forestβ¦not anywhere near or on the way to Yuba. Question #1 (and #2): how did they end up there, and why?
Maybe they were stuck in snow? But no, the snow was not so deep that five strapping, young men couldnβt push the car out. Maybe the engine stalled? The keys were missing, but when police hot-wired the car, the engine started immediately. Maybe they ran out of gas? Nope, it was one quarter full.
The questions piled on when they examined the car further at the station and noticed no dents, gouges or even mud scrapes
... keep reading on reddit β‘PROOF: https://i.redd.it/w9qawzyc6hx71.jpg DEAD MOUNTAIN. The Dyatlov Pass Incident. The story of one of the most famous and mysterious tragic incidents of the Soviet Union. Till now there is no definite answer to what really had happened to the infamous group of tourists in Ural mountains in February 1959? What could possibly make the skiers run out into the bitter cold without about warm clothes and food? Equipped with archives, documents and eyewitness accounts, the creators of βDead Mountain. The Dyatlov Pass Incidentβ will put an end to a story baiting both professional conspiracy theorists and inquisitive minds for more than half a century. The series is now available to stream in the US on Topic. Pavel Kostomarov was a director of yet another Netflix hit series 'To the Lake' which was produced by Valeriy Fedorovich and Evgeniy Nikishov. 'To the Lake' landed top 10 of non-English language TV shows in the USA in 2020 and upon release in top 10 in 72 countries including major territories with a Twitter recommendation from Stephen King. Link β https://www.topic.com/dead-mountain https://1-2-3production.com/project/dead-mountain
episode #3 but its one my favorites but also very disturbing Iβm disturbed days after re-listening lol and definitely cannot get behind the avalanche theory
Hey John! Not sure if you've done anything with this ^. It's creepy, violent, in Russia 1959, and still unsolved.
Cheers!
What are some of the most bizarre, unexplainable incidents you know of that are similar in nature to the Dyatlov Pass incident?
By similar, I just mean any event that doesnβt have a conventional explanation and has a sort of supernatural/paranormal element to it, with many details that simply donβt make sense when put together.
Thank you.
This is all my conjecture and I have the deepest sympathies for these students that died. It is unlikely that we will ever know what happened to the students. Furthermore I don't like to start harping on conspiracy theories. but After a few years working with found bodies as a LEO, I would like to give some possible reasons for the events that occurred in 1959.
#1. Radiation on some of the clothing.
A. I'm thinking thorium from the lanterns. It glows white when heated up and Thorium was found in compressed gas lanterns up until the late 90s.
B. Some of the students may have been exposed to radiation in the course of their individual studies.
C. Some Military Flairs have a low level radiation associated with the chemical mixture that burns. contact with the flairs could have contaminated some of the clothing.
#2. Crushed Ribs, (force of a car impact)
A. Avalanche.... which if I recall was not considered with in the range to impact the tent. If slope is <30Β° the avalanche is unlikely... But a Slab Avalanche could have built up from wind pushing snow on top of a weak slab of hard pack snow to the edge of their encampment, and I have seen some writing that says these type of avalanches can occur at 15Β° slopes.
B. A body being pushed out of a helicopter would impact the snow and possibly cause internal bleeding. Which may have let them walk away disoriented. but later to die from the impact of hitting the snow at great speed.
C. Being hit with a long Ore / Paddle. I know it sounds ridiculous but a paddle has a wide surface area and could absolutely crush ribs while leaving minimum bruising. (this idea has flaws, but I wanted to express it)
#3. People left the tent disoriented, and not dressed properly.
A. Helicopter could have landed near the tent collapsing the structure and causing the occupants to flee, possibly believing it was an avalanche or other happenstance that causes them to flee in varying state of undress.
B. Methanol exhaust building up in the tent while the occupants where sleeping, slowing exhausting their brains of oxygen. ---- also if you ever warmed a tent via burning Alcohol the humidity level in the tent builds up creating condensate on the in the interior, which could have also dampened their clothing and equipment.
C. Paradoxical undressing.
#4. Purple and Red Bruising
A. As a body stops functioning there is a pooling of blood and other varying liq
... keep reading on reddit β‘I was just imagining how fun that would be. A witcher hears of an unseen, unexplainable evil, high in the snowy peaks. It could be a chance to feature a lesser known anomaly or monster in the witcher universe. I really loved the Hym quest in Skellige. Not that I don't love every meticulously crafted hunt quest in the game, I just have an extra appreciation for the unique entities we seldom see, or hear of.
My grandfather commited suicide in 2019. I translated his diary, and found out what he was hiding from us since back in 1958. This is his story.
If you're confused, you should probably start at the beginning.
December 29, 1958
I was trapped in my cell for five days.
Hunger and cold took their toll on me. I would have died of dehydration, but there was a small, filthy toilet in the corner of my room. After a day my thirst overcame my revulsion, and I drank from it greedily. The water only lasted two days, and thirst quickly added itself to my list of tormentors.
The lights went out after several hours, as whatever happened to the base above destroyed the generators, plunging me into darkness. I was almost relieved, unable to see the dried red stain around the door.
I was starving and freezing, but my real enemy was my own mind. I could still hear the carnage outside, echoing in my mind. The inhuman screaming. The desperate gunfire. The sounds of a whole military base, unable to stop whatever had come out of that cave.
When I heard the sound in the corridor outside, I thought that I had to be hallucinating. I hadn't heard anything but my own voice for days. I rolled over on the floor and ignored it.
But then it came again. Footsteps, slow, wary, echoing down the abandoned hall. They were getting closer, heading right for my cell.
I leapt to my feet, swaying as my head swam. There was nothing in my cell I could use as a weapon. I bared my fists, turning in the dark to where I thought the door was.
Something grabbed hold of the heavy iron bar locking it, and it scraped loudly as it was drawn up. The door crashed open.
A blinding light shone into my eyes. I cringed backwards, my illusions of putting up a fight gone in a rush of terror. I shrank backwards, raising my arms to protect my eyes.
"Michail! Michail, stay calm, it's me!"
It was Yuri's voice.
The light swung downwards, and I squinted at it's source. Yuri stood in the cell door, one hand gripping a battery-powered light, the other holding a pistol.
"Yuri? What... What are you doing here? I thought... everyone was dead." I slurred.
"Not everyone. I'm sorry it took me so long, Michail. I didn't know you were in the cell, I thought you died like almost everyone else. Sergei, the bastard, only told us yesterday that you were locked up when it happ
... keep reading on reddit β‘My grandfather commited suicide in 2019. I translated his diary, and found out what he was hiding from us since back in 1958. This is his story.
If you're confused, you should probably start at the beginning.
February 1, 1959 - continued
We froze. We'd been awaiting this moment anxiously for hours - but when it came at last, we still hesitated.
"Blow the slope! Do it, Sergei!" yelled Yuri, breaking our horrified trance.
Our commander smiled cruelly, and hit the detonator.
There was a loud crack and a boom, like thunder in the distance. A flash of flame illuminated the slope, casting it in sharp-cut shadow and light. I covered my ears.There was a rumble that echoed across the mountain.
For a second, the world held still.
Then the whole slope above the tent began shifting, the vibrations setting off an unstoppable chain of motion. Tonnes of snow were moving, sliding down with an unsettling groaning sound. The mass gained speed.
And struck the tent with horrible force.
Silence fell on the mountain. Slowly, we picked ourselves up. The tension was palpable. We waited with bated breath.
"Did it... Did it work?" I said finally, my voice hoarse.
No one answered for a second, listening intently. Then Yuri whispered an answer. "I think it did," he said. "We should go che-"
A horrifying scream, louder than any before, cut through the night. My heart sank, a chill running down my spine.
Yuri swore, and Sergei drew his pistol.
"Looks like we're not done here yet, soldiers. Get ready."
The tent bulged, and then split as someone tore it open from inside. Figures streamed out, running towards our treeline. They weren't screaming - they weren't taken.
But my heart sank as the last four shapes emerged from the ruined shelter. Four loud screams sounded across the mountainside once again.
The things staggered through the snow, limbs uncoordinated, as if whatever force gave the bodies movement and strength was not used to these new hosts. But they were moving fast, following the fleeing hikers... and heading straight for us.
"Prepare to fire!" Sergei commanded, his voice cold as iron. "If it moves, kill it."
My surviving comrades kneeled in the snow, rifles trained on the incoming figures. With a crack of gunfire, we fired our first volley. We aimed with all the skill we had, trying desperately to make sure t
... keep reading on reddit β‘
My grandfather commited suicide in 2019. I translated his diary, and found out what he was hiding from us since all the way back in 1958. This is his story.
If you're confused, you should probably start at the beginning.
[The entry from December 21 is followed by several empty pages. This is what follows.]
unknown date, 1958
If you find this, please, please, get off the mountain. You may not make it, but if you do, take this diary and bring it to army command, to the KGB, to anyone that will listen. They need to know what happened here.
My heart sank when I heard the order consigning me to Level 5. It took a second to truly hit me, the reality slowly settling in my mind.
Sergei. It had to be him. He had remembered my inquiry into Yuri's fate, and had made sure, either from cruelty or from some twisted sense of justice, that I would share my friend's fate... whatever it was.
But there was nothing I could do now. I left for Level 5 immediately. The officer on guard duty at the tunnel from Level 4 looked at my printed orders, and smiled sadly.
"Wait a while in the side room, son. I have to double check all Level 5 postings with command. I'll just be a second."
He waved vaguely to a small, unlit side room, before walking over to a telephone set in the wall and dialling a number. I walked over into the side chamber resignedly.
The room was dark, only lit by a thin sliver of light coming from the corridor outside, and filled with dank air. There was another person waiting inside, standing silently in the corner.
As I approached, I could slowly make out more features. The man seemed familiar, even in the dark. It looked like...
"Yuri? Is that you?" I asked incredulously. "What are you doing here? Where have you been?"
"Mi... Michail?" Yuri asked.
I stared at my friend in shock. He had changed horribly in the few short days we had been parted. Where before he was a healthy, well-built man with a undying smile on his face, he was now sallow and frowning. His eyes were dead and cold.
"Yes, Yuri. It's me! Are you alright? Have you been discharged from Level 5? You've been-"
I didn't get another word out. Yuri darted forward, slamming into me, one forearm pinning my neck to the wall. He thrust his face right in front of mine.
"Where are you going, Michail?" he hissed in a sharp whisper. "Have you been pos
... keep reading on reddit β‘God help us. They're still out there.
Those were the last words in my grandfather's diary, which was found open on the table at which he shot himself in 2019.
I was the one who found his body, a hole blasted through his head with his old army pistol. I can still see the scene to this day. Blood dripping down the sides of the desk. The metallic scent on the air. I don't think it'll ever leave me.
But that's not why I'm writing this.
After I had grieved, that sentence began filling me with a morbid curiosity.
They're still out there.
Who, what, was out there?
My grandfather had always been a quiet man, who kept to himself and spoke little about his past. He had served in the army of the USSR in his youth, and I always assumed he kept silent about it out of guilt in being part of one of the cruelest regimes in the history of the world.
After translating and reading his diary, I know better. That's what I'm here to tell you about. I know what he was keeping quiet about, and why he took his life in 2019. It's all in the diary he kept during his time in the army.
The first few months he writes about are mundane, mostly detailing his training and first deployment. What is clear from these parts is that he was a patriotic man who had no trouble following orders, a soldier who kept his mouth shut and his head down.
That's probably what got him where he ended up.
Six months after his training, he was transferred to a base in the Ural Mountains he had never heard of. And that's where things start to get strange.
This is his story.
September 2, 1958
This place is like no base I have ever been stationed at. It's cut into the side of the mountains themselves, almost wholly concealed, and practically undetectable from the outside. We are not allowed any communication with the rest of the world.
The base is built in five descending levels, going down to the roots of the mountain. Each level is accessed by a single tunnel, with airlocks and security stations connecting them. Without authorization, you cannot leave the level you are currently in.
Our commander is a hard man named Sergei Yahontov. He talks little, and is ruthless in disciplining his soldiers. I have only seen him once, on my arrival here. He gave us our standing orders, which must be obeyed at all times.
These orders are what give me pause about this whole situation. They seem ludicrous, but several men have already been punished for not keeping them in mind.
**If any staff membe
... keep reading on reddit β‘Hi Folks,
I wanted to reach out to say hi and to let you know a bit more about my new documentary recently released on the Dyatlov Pass Incident - An Unknown Compelling Force. I've been receiving lots of questions about the film on different social media channels so I thought I'd start a post here where I can answer any questions people might have? So fire away!
I'll give you a bit of background to the story for those that don't know of it. The Dyatlov Pass Incident is one of the world's greatest unsolved mysteries. It's the story of nine Russia Students who were all found dead in the freezing frozen Ural Mountains in 1959. When search parties found the bodies, what was strange was they had seemingly fled their tent and were found nearly a mile away, many having suffered from brutal and deadly injuries.
As a huge true crime fan I was personally really frustrated with the really limited and often conflicting documentaries and you-tube videos out there on the subject. I think I saw one suggesting that the Russian Yeti did it(!) and that was it, I was determined to look into the case.
Some people have suggested that it was frustrating that my film doesn't quite solve the case, but that wasn't quite my intention. I wanted to try and separate the fact from fiction, try to figure out what was real and what was just the same falsehoods repeated over and over. Also, I wanted to understand who the hikers were as people - too often we look at these stories just as a body-count and I felt that I wanted to try and address that.
And I had one crucial and burning question... after the hikers fled the tent, why didn't they go back for the supplies after the threat had passed?
So I got a team together, flew to Russia(!) and tried to recreate parts the journey for myself, to understand what it might have been like for the hikers. And so what I hope people get from the film is not a complete solution - but a film that strips away the unlikely scenarios. I didn't want to fully speculate on what happened but I do point the audience in the direction in what I believe.
One of the biggest questions I see is, "Wasn't this just solved, it was an avalanche wasn't it?"
Well, no. Some of you may have seen the recent press and scientific paper that came out proves that counter to previous thinking, a small "slab avalanche" WAS possible on that gentle slope where their tent was found. However proving that technically
... keep reading on reddit β‘What do you get when five friends make a pitstop on the way home from a basketball game?
Nothing, apparentlyβ¦because they disappeared, never to be seen from again.
Itβs actually quite tragic, and baffling. (And not as uncommon as you would think. There are other instances of unexplained disappearances; links at the end.)
Be warned: this mystery has no answers, just questions.
The 5 Men and the Disappearance
The five friends were Jack (Jackie) Huett, 24; Gary Mathias, 25; William (Bill) Sterling, 29; Jack Madruga, 30; and Ted Weiher, 32.
On the night of February 24, 1978, the five left their homes in Yuba, CA in Madrugaβs white and turquoise 1969 Mercury Montego. Their destination was a basketball game in Chico, CA between UC Davis and California State University, Chico.
They were avid basketball fans, often gathering together to watch or play basketball. In fact, they had their own game to play on the next day, February 25. It was part of a local program for the mentally handicapped and was sponsored by the Special Olympics.
You see, Mathias was diagnosed with schizophrenia while in the Army and based in Germany, and was subsequently psychiatrically discharged. Huett and Sterling had slight intellectual disabilities, and Weiher and Madruga - who was also an Army vet - were unofficially considered βslow learners.β
Anyway, they left the game and stopped at Behrβs Market in downtown Chico to buy one Hostess cherry pie, one Langendorf lemon pie, one Snickers bar, one Marathon bar, two Pepsis and 1.5 quart of milk. The clerk remembered them because she was annoyed that the men arrived right before closing at 10pm.
That was the last time they were seen alive. The morning of February 25 came and went, and when none of their guardians - who they lived with - heard from them, they notified the police.
The Investigation
The first to be discovered was the car, on February 28, parked along Oroville-Quincy Road in the Plumas National Forestβ¦not anywhere near or on the way to Yuba. Question #1 (and #2): how did they end up there, and why?
Maybe they were stuck in snow? But no, the snow was not so deep that five strapping, young men couldnβt push the car out. Maybe the engine stalled? The keys were missing, but when police hot-wired the car, the engine started immediately. Maybe they ran out of gas? Nope, it was one quarter full.
The questions piled on when they examined the car further at the station and noticed no dents, gouges or even mud scrapes
... keep reading on reddit β‘What do you get when five friends make a pitstop on the way home from a basketball game?
Nothing, apparentlyβ¦because they disappeared, never to be seen from again.
Itβs actually quite tragic, and baffling. (And not as uncommon as you would think. There are other instances of unexplained disappearances; links at the end.)
Be warned: this mystery has no answers, just questions.
The 5 Men and the Disappearance
The five friends were Jack (Jackie) Huett, 24; Gary Mathias, 25; William (Bill) Sterling, 29; Jack Madruga, 30; and Ted Weiher, 32.
On the night of February 24, 1978, the five left their homes in Yuba, CA in Madrugaβs white and turquoise 1969 Mercury Montego. Their destination was a basketball game in Chico, CA between UC Davis and California State University, Chico.
They were avid basketball fans, often gathering together to watch or play basketball. In fact, they had their own game to play on the next day, February 25. It was part of a local program for the mentally handicapped and was sponsored by the Special Olympics.
You see, Mathias was diagnosed with schizophrenia while in the Army and based in Germany, and was subsequently psychiatrically discharged. Huett and Sterling had slight intellectual disabilities, and Weiher and Madruga - who was also an Army vet - were unofficially considered βslow learners.β
Anyway, they left the game and stopped at Behrβs Market in downtown Chico to buy one Hostess cherry pie, one Langendorf lemon pie, one Snickers bar, one Marathon bar, two Pepsis and 1.5 quart of milk. The clerk remembered them because she was annoyed that the men arrived right before closing at 10pm.
That was the last time they were seen alive. The morning of February 25 came and went, and when none of their guardians - who they lived with - heard from them, they notified the police.
The Investigation
The first to be discovered was the car, on February 28, parked along Oroville-Quincy Road in the Plumas National Forestβ¦not anywhere near or on the way to Yuba. Question #1 (and #2): how did they end up there, and why?
Maybe they were stuck in snow? But no, the snow was not so deep that five strapping, young men couldnβt push the car out. Maybe the engine stalled? The keys were missing, but when police hot-wired the car, the engine started immediately. Maybe they ran out of gas? Nope, it was one quarter full.
The questions piled on when they examined the car further at the station and noticed no dents, gouges or even mud scrapes
... keep reading on reddit β‘What do you get when five friends make a pitstop on the way home from a basketball game?
Nothing, apparentlyβ¦because they disappeared, never to be seen from again.
Itβs actually quite tragic, and baffling. (And not as uncommon as you would think. There are other instances of unexplained disappearances; links at the end.)
Be warned: this mystery has no answers, just questions.
The 5 Men and the Disappearance
The five friends were Jack (Jackie) Huett, 24; Gary Mathias, 25; William (Bill) Sterling, 29; Jack Madruga, 30; and Ted Weiher, 32.
On the night of February 24, 1978, the five left their homes in Yuba, CA in Madrugaβs white and turquoise 1969 Mercury Montego. Their destination was a basketball game in Chico, CA between UC Davis and California State University, Chico.
They were avid basketball fans, often gathering together to watch or play basketball. In fact, they had their own game to play on the next day, February 25. It was part of a local program for the mentally handicapped and was sponsored by the Special Olympics.
You see, Mathias was diagnosed with schizophrenia while in the Army and based in Germany, and was subsequently psychiatrically discharged. Huett and Sterling had slight intellectual disabilities, and Weiher and Madruga - who was also an Army vet - were unofficially considered βslow learners.β
Anyway, they left the game and stopped at Behrβs Market in downtown Chico to buy one Hostess cherry pie, one Langendorf lemon pie, one Snickers bar, one Marathon bar, two Pepsis and 1.5 quart of milk. The clerk remembered them because she was annoyed that the men arrived right before closing at 10pm.
That was the last time they were seen alive. The morning of February 25 came and went, and when none of their guardians - who they lived with - heard from them, they notified the police.
The Investigation
The first to be discovered was the car, on February 28, parked along Oroville-Quincy Road in the Plumas National Forestβ¦not anywhere near or on the way to Yuba. Question #1 (and #2): how did they end up there, and why?
Maybe they were stuck in snow? But no, the snow was not so deep that five strapping, young men couldnβt push the car out. Maybe the engine stalled? The keys were missing, but when police hot-wired the car, the engine started immediately. Maybe they ran out of gas? Nope, it was one quarter full.
The questions piled on when they examined the car further at the station and noticed no dents, gouges or even mud scrapes
... keep reading on reddit β‘#AmA live here: https://redd.it/qmlwtm
Weβre the creators of Russian TV Series Dead Mountain. The Dyatlov Pass Incident. The story of one of the most famous and mysterious tragic incidents of the Soviet Union. Ask us anything!
PROOF: https://i.redd.it/w9qawzyc6hx71.jpg DEAD MOUNTAIN. The Dyatlov Pass Incident. The story of one of the most famous and mysterious tragic incidents of the Soviet Union. Till now there is no definite answer to what really had happened to the infamous group of tourists in Ural mountains in February 1959? What could possibly make the skiers run out into the bitter cold without about warm clothes and food? Equipped with archives, documents and eyewitness accounts, the creators of βDead Mountain. The Dyatlov Pass Incidentβ will put an end to a story baiting both professional conspiracy theorists and inquisitive minds for more than half a century. The series is now available to stream in the US on Topic. Pavel Kostomarov was a director of yet another Netflix hit series 'To the Lake' which was produced by Valeriy Fedorovich and Evgeniy Nikishov. 'To the Lake' landed top 10 of non-English language TV shows in the USA in 2020 and upon release in top 10 in 72 countries including major territories with a Twitter recommendation from Stephen King. Link β https://www.topic.com/dead-mountain https://1-2-3production.com/project/dead-mountain
