New Hampshire has always held a fascination for me, but it's not the mountains or the live free or die attitude. It's not the New Hampshire Motor Speedway or Strawberry Banke, either. As a young man from far northern Maine, I took my share of trips out of the state at the rate of about two a year. Each time we drove into New Hampshire, especially at night and we passed the sign that read 'Exeter' I turned my eyes to the skies. You see, in my young imagination, the Granite State's reputation as a UFO hotspot fired my imagination. When I was a kid, I read John G. Fuller's Incident at Exeter (now out of print) and it forever altered my view of UFOs. This year, if you've a mind that turns to wondering about such things, there will be a celebration of sorts in the town of Exeter, New Hampshire. On September 5 and 6, the town is hosting the Exeter UFO Festival, a fundraiser for the local Kiwanis Club and its charitable programs.

This is a blend of campy fun and serious ufology studies. With a list of speakers, from physicist Stanton Friedman to political commentator Richard Dolan, visitors will receive more than their fair share of serious investigatory work. Meanwhile, kids can explore a UFO 'Crash Site" in the park, along with extraterrestrial arts and crafts. A fun time is to be had by all. But the best part might be after all of the talks and activities, when the town quiets down and the night skies darken. Then, all you need to do is possibly just look up to be 'entertained.'

Of course, those who visit the festival on a lark might find themselves fascinated by two of the most famous UFO stories ever investigated. The famous "Hill Abduction" of 1961 is the more famous of the two cases. It gained attention in the media as the first widely publicized report of an alien abduction in the country. A best-selling book by John G. Fuller, The Interrupted Journey, sold like hotcakes from the bookstore shelves. Even today, Betty and Barney Hill's notes, tapes and other items including the dress she shore during the abduction have been placed in the University of New Hampshire's permanent collection. The state has even marked the site of the alleged abduction with an appropriate historical marker. For readers interested in the Hill Abduction, there are plenty of online resources that detail their story. It is definitely worth the research and reading, but in the end, we only have the words of the couple and Betty's dreams as a kind of remembrance of the events. Later hypnosis seemed to confirm the 'truth' of the events, though hypnosis still must rely solely on subjective testimony.

The other famous case concerns events that occurred in nearby Kensington in the early morning of September 3, 1965 and are in the official police records of the Exeter Police At around two in the morning, 18 year old Norman Muscarello was hitchhiking to his parent's home along Highway 150. Having already enlisted in the U.S.Navy, he had been spending time with his girlfriend at her parent's home in Amesbury, Massachusetts. There was little traffic on the road at that time of night and he spent most of his time walking. He noticed five red lights low in the sky, flashing on and off. Later, he would claim that the craft with the lights was as big as a house. According to his story, when the 'thing' moved away from him and began hovering over a nearby farmhouse, Muscarello jumped out of the ditch he had been cowering in and ran to the house, pounding on the door as the lights got lower and closer. Of course, no one was home. He was alone, except for whatever or whoever was behind the mysterious lights. He ran back to the road and thankfully, a passing car stopped to pick him up. He asked to go to the police station in nearby Exeter.

As Muscarello reported what he had just witnessed to the policemen in the station, Patrolman Eugene Bertrand must have had a perplexed look on his face. Hours before, while patrolling the roads, he had stopped to help a mo