The Travis Walton Abduction: A Harrowing Encounter in the Arizona Wilderness By David Freeman - March 20, 2025 The late afternoon sun was already fading behind the tall pines of the Sitgreave-Apache National Forest on November 5, 1975, as six weary woodcutters packed up their chainsaws after a long day of tree-thinning. The forest, located in east central Arizona, was quiet except for the occasional call of birds settling in for the night and the sound of boots on fallen pine needles as the men loaded their equipment into their truck.

Mike Rogers, the crew boss, checked his watch – 6:10 PM. Darkness would soon blanket the forest, and the men were eager to return to their homes in Snowflake, Arizona, about 30 miles away. The seven-man crew cab truck rumbled to life, and they began their journey along the rough, bulldozed trail that snaked through the thick forest.

The men – Mike Rogers, Ken Peterson, John Goulette, Steve Pierce, Allen Dalis, and Dwayne Smith – were joined by 22-year-old Travis Walton, who sat in the front passenger seat next to Rogers. The mood in the truck was light as they discussed plans for the weekend ahead and the progress they’d made on their U.S. Forest Service contract.

As they rounded a bend in the road, a golden glow flickered through the trees to their right. The men initially thought little of it – perhaps it was the setting sun catching on something metallic, or maybe even a hunter’s campfire. But as the truck rounded a right-hand turn, the source of the glow became immediately and unmistakably clear.

Hovering approximately fifteen feet above a small clearing, no more than ninety feet from the road, was an object unlike anything the men had ever seen. It had the appearance of two shallow bowls placed rim to rim, with a golden light emanating from it. The truck fell silent as all seven men stared at the craft.

“Stop the truck,” Travis Walton said, his voice barely above a whisper. Rogers, still trying to process what he was seeing, brought the vehicle to a halt.

Before anyone could stop him, Walton jumped out of the truck and approached the object, moving at a brisk walk toward a woodpile stacked by their crew. His co-workers called after him, warning him to be careful, to come back, but Walton seemed transfixed by the sight above him.

watched as Walton stood beneath the craft, which hovered at approximately a 60-degree elevation from his position. A distinct beeping sound filled the air, audible even to the men inside the truck.

Suddenly, Walton seemed to sense danger. He took a step back, appearing to reconsider his approach. At that moment, a blue-green beam shot out from the bottom of the craft. The light struck Walton in the upper body, lifting him from the ground with his arms outstretched, before flinging him backward. He hit the ground with force and lay motionless.

Panic erupted inside the truck. Fearing they were all in danger, Rogers quickly restarted the engine and sped away from the scene. About a quarter mile down the road, he pulled over, and the men looked back toward the clearing. In the distance, they saw a light rise from the ground and streak to the northeast, appearing to originate from the area where they had left Travis.

Thinking it might be the object departing, Rogers turned the truck around and drove back to the clearing. For fifteen minutes, the six men searched frantically for Walton, calling his name and combing the immediate area. The forest had grown dark, making the search difficult, and there was no sign of Travis or the craft that had been hovering there just minutes before.