Mel's Hole
Encyclopedia
Mel's Hole is a supposed geographic anomaly discovered by Mel Waters on his land near Ellensburg, Washington
. Waters claimed that he lived in or near Manastash Ridge
, Washington, about nine miles due west of Ellensburg, though later investigation revealed that no such person was listed as a resident. According to Waters, the hole has paranormal properties, including a possibly infinite depth and the ability to restore dead animals to life.
The first references to the hole were made in a series of interviews with Waters, made by Art Bell
on the American radio show Coast to Coast AM
(which focuses on conspiracy theories and the paranormal
). Waters initially appeared on Coast to Coast AM on February 21, 1997. He subsequently appeared on February 24, 1997, April 2000 and January 29, 2002. His most recent appearance on the show was on December 20, 2002.
Waters also told a story of a local man who dropped the remains of his deceased dog's body down the hole. Later, the man saw his dog while out hunting and attempted to call it, however, it appeared to belong to another hunter. Waters also speculated that the hole's properties might be tied to some cosmological events, including unspecified alignments of the moon.
On the September 18, 2008, edition of Coast to Coast AM, guest Red Elk, an intertribal medicine man, recounted the time he visited Mel's hole. He recounted the hole as "around 9 ft. in circumference and somewhere between 24–28 (27.5?) miles deep" and said that it was a blow hole for Mount Rainier
.
. Despite this, several people have claimed to have found the hole. Just before the tenth anniversary of Mel's first appearance on Coast to Coast AM, the moderator of the Mel's Hole website declared the search for the hole was a dead end, and that it would likely never be proven to exist unless Mel came forward with evidence of its location.
In 1997 a nearby Tri-Cities newspaper, the Tri-City Herald
, reported that Waters was not listed in the Kittitas County telephone directory or the register of taxpayers, and that authorities in Ellensburg were unable to find any evidence that he was a resident, thus calling into question whether he existed. During one of Mel's interviews with Art Bell on 'Coast to Coast' Mel claims that a friend notified him that his house was broken into by men dressed in black and driving black government vans. Additionally, he claims that his property had a facility designed for pharmaceutical purposes. A plain clothes man, guarded by military personnel told him that it would be easy to find illegal drug trafficking. Mel stated that he left his property and never returned.
art critic Doug Harvey, was presented at the Grand Central Art Center in Santa Ana, California
in 2008. The show featured works by 41 artists and collectives, many created specifically for the exhibition, including works by Marnie Weber
, Jim Shaw
, Jeffrey Vallance
, Georganne Deen, Paul Laffoley
, The Firesign Theater, Gary Panter
, The Center for Land Use Interpretation, James Hayward and Craig Stecyk. The GCAC published a hardbound 146-page catalog in conjunction with the exhibit, containing contributions from all the artists, plus essays by Harvey, psychoanalyst Judy Spence, science author Margaret Wertheim
, Hannah Miller, Brian Tucker, Christine Wertheim and the Rev. Ethan Acres.
Ellensburg, Washington
Ellensburg is a city in, and the county seat of, Kittitas County, Washington, United States. The population was 18,174 at the 2010 census. The population was 18,250 at 2011 Estimate from Office of Financial Management. Ellensburg is located just east of the Cascade Range on I-90 and is known as the...
. Waters claimed that he lived in or near Manastash Ridge
Manastash Ridge
Manastash Ridge is a long anticline mountain ridge located in central Washington state in the United States. Manastash Ridge runs mostly west-to-east in Kittitas and Yakima counties, for approximately 50 miles...
, Washington, about nine miles due west of Ellensburg, though later investigation revealed that no such person was listed as a resident. According to Waters, the hole has paranormal properties, including a possibly infinite depth and the ability to restore dead animals to life.
The first references to the hole were made in a series of interviews with Waters, made by Art Bell
Art Bell
Arthur W. "Art" Bell, III is an American broadcaster and author, known primarily as one of the founders and the original host of the paranormal-themed radio program Coast to Coast AM. He also created and formerly hosted its companion show, Dreamland...
on the American radio show Coast to Coast AM
Coast to Coast AM
Coast to Coast AM is a North American late-night syndicated radio talk show that deals with a variety of topics, but most frequently ones that relate to either the paranormal or conspiracy theories. It was created by Art Bell and is distributed by Premiere Radio Networks. The program currently...
(which focuses on conspiracy theories and the paranormal
Paranormal
Paranormal is a general term that designates experiences that lie outside "the range of normal experience or scientific explanation" or that indicates phenomena understood to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure...
). Waters initially appeared on Coast to Coast AM on February 21, 1997. He subsequently appeared on February 24, 1997, April 2000 and January 29, 2002. His most recent appearance on the show was on December 20, 2002.
Description
While speaking on Coast to Coast AM, Waters related several stories about the hole and its properties. He also claimed that he had discovered that the hole was in excess of 15 miles (24 kilometers) deep, which he figured out by spooling out 18 reels of 20lb test fishing line, tied end on end, into the hole. Waters claims that he attached a "triangular, one-pound, standard lead fishing weight" to the end of the fishing line.Waters also told a story of a local man who dropped the remains of his deceased dog's body down the hole. Later, the man saw his dog while out hunting and attempted to call it, however, it appeared to belong to another hunter. Waters also speculated that the hole's properties might be tied to some cosmological events, including unspecified alignments of the moon.
On the September 18, 2008, edition of Coast to Coast AM, guest Red Elk, an intertribal medicine man, recounted the time he visited Mel's hole. He recounted the hole as "around 9 ft. in circumference and somewhere between 24–28 (27.5?) miles deep" and said that it was a blow hole for Mount Rainier
Mount Rainier
Mount Rainier is a massive stratovolcano located southeast of Seattle in the state of Washington, United States. It is the most topographically prominent mountain in the contiguous United States and the Cascade Volcanic Arc, with a summit elevation of . Mt. Rainier is considered one of the most...
.
Location
Waters has never revealed the exact location of the hole. It is possible that it is located in a region removed from publicly available satellite images due to the nearby Yakima Training CenterYakima Training Center
The Yakima Training Center is a United States Army training center located in south central Washington state. It is bounded on the west by Interstate 82, on the south by the city of Yakima, on the north by the city of Ellensburg and Interstate 90, and on the east by the Columbia River...
. Despite this, several people have claimed to have found the hole. Just before the tenth anniversary of Mel's first appearance on Coast to Coast AM, the moderator of the Mel's Hole website declared the search for the hole was a dead end, and that it would likely never be proven to exist unless Mel came forward with evidence of its location.
In 1997 a nearby Tri-Cities newspaper, the Tri-City Herald
Tri-City Herald
The Tri-City Herald is a daily newspaper based in Kennewick, Washington, in the United States. Owned by The McClatchy Company, the newspaper serves southeastern Washington, including the three communities of Pasco, Kennewick, and Richland ....
, reported that Waters was not listed in the Kittitas County telephone directory or the register of taxpayers, and that authorities in Ellensburg were unable to find any evidence that he was a resident, thus calling into question whether he existed. During one of Mel's interviews with Art Bell on 'Coast to Coast' Mel claims that a friend notified him that his house was broken into by men dressed in black and driving black government vans. Additionally, he claims that his property had a facility designed for pharmaceutical purposes. A plain clothes man, guarded by military personnel told him that it would be easy to find illegal drug trafficking. Mel stated that he left his property and never returned.
"Aspects of Mel's Hole" art exhibit
An art exhibition, "Aspects of Mel's Hole: Artists Respond to a Paranormal Land Event Occurring in Radiospace," curated by LA WeeklyLA Weekly
LA Weekly is a free weekly tabloid-sized "alternative weekly" in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Editor/Publisher Jay Levin and a board of directors that included actor-producer Michael Douglas...
art critic Doug Harvey, was presented at the Grand Central Art Center in Santa Ana, California
Santa Ana, California
Santa Ana is the county seat and second most populous city in Orange County, California, and with a population of 324,528 at the 2010 census, Santa Ana is the 57th-most populous city in the United States....
in 2008. The show featured works by 41 artists and collectives, many created specifically for the exhibition, including works by Marnie Weber
Marnie Weber
Marnie Weber is an American artist who lives and works in Los Angeles. Her work includes photography, sculpture, installations, film, video, and performances. She is also a musician.-Life and work:...
, Jim Shaw
Jim Shaw
Jim Shaw is the name of:* Jim Shaw , artist and musician* Jim Shaw * Jim Shaw , Canadian businessman* Jim Shaw * Jim Shaw * Jim Shaw , mayor of Rapid City, South Dakota...
, Jeffrey Vallance
Jeffrey Vallance
Jeffrey Karl Reese Vallance is a contemporary artist who lives and works in Los Angeles, California....
, Georganne Deen, Paul Laffoley
Paul Laffoley
Paul Laffoley is a U.S. artist and architect. As an architect working for Emery Roth & Sons, Laffoley worked for 18 months on design for the World Trade Center Tower II. As a painter, his work is usually classified as visionary art or outsider art...
, The Firesign Theater, Gary Panter
Gary Panter
Gary Panter is an illustrator, painter, designer and part-time musician. Panter's work is representative of the post-underground, new wave comics movement that began with the end of Arcade: The Comics Revue and the initiation of RAW, one of the second generation in American underground comix...
, The Center for Land Use Interpretation, James Hayward and Craig Stecyk. The GCAC published a hardbound 146-page catalog in conjunction with the exhibit, containing contributions from all the artists, plus essays by Harvey, psychoanalyst Judy Spence, science author Margaret Wertheim
Margaret Wertheim
Margaret Wertheim is a science writer and the author of books on the cultural history of physics.Wertheim is the author of three books that collectively consider the role of theoretical physics in the cultural landscape of modern Western society. The first, Pythagoras' Trousers , is a history of...
, Hannah Miller, Brian Tucker, Christine Wertheim and the Rev. Ethan Acres.
External links
- Audio Clips from a Coast to Coast show featuring Mel Waters
- Audio clips of the original two shows featuring Mel Waters
- Mel Waters' guest page on Coast to Coast AM
- Manastash Ridge, mentioned by Waters as being in the vicinity of the alleged hole, is at coordinates 46°51′28"N 120°20′52"W
- Mel's Hole discussion forum Domain name expired.
- Tri-City Herald story on Mel's Hole
- The Seattle Chat Club's page discussing Mel's Hole
- 2002 Seattle Times article about an expedition to Mel's Hole
- Grand Central Art Center's "Aspects of Mel's Hole: Artists Respond to a Paranormal Land Event Occurring in Radiospace" exhibit.