The UFO Festival is a festival put on by the Kecksburg Volunteer Fire Department and celebrates the Kecksburg UFO Incident through games, food, all sorts of interesting UFO and Paranormal Vendors, and Bed Races.
2024 DATE: TBA
Location: Kecksburg VFD
5128 Water St
Mt. Pleasant, PA 15666
Website: https://kecksburgvfd.com
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This post documents my experience on July 22, 2023.
Historical Background
On December 9, 1965, a fireball was reported over 6 US states and Ontario, Canada. Not only were there sightings in the sky, but there were reports of hot metal debris in Michigan and Northern Ohio, some of which led to grass fires.
In Kecksburg, Pennsylvania, citizens “reported wisps of blue smoke, vibrations,” a “thump,” and that something from the sky crashed in the woods.
The US Army and State Police got involved, sealed off the area and searched the woods but claimed to not find anything (wiki)…
…or did they?
Years later, in 1990, the show Unsolved Mysteries showcased the Kecksburg Incident and some residents in the episode claimed that they saw a giant acorn-like object in the woods that night.
The show created a prop for the episode and later donated it to the town.
It is on display along Water Street and can be visited during the festival.
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Aliens
Just passed the bridge onto the festival grounds…
…aliens were everywhere.
They were riding about…
…holding doors…
…showing off local fashion…
…or just trying to get ahead.
Vendors
Vendors were located both in an outdoor market and in the social hall…
…also known as the UFO Store.
More aliens could be found here in crocheted
…chocolate, cookie…
…and bath bomb forms…
…while they joined fellow cryptids on all sorts of tee shirts (Quilty Pleasures/Cryptoteeology)…
…and colorful luminaries.
To help guide in one’s understanding, there were also books written by folklorist Ronald Murphy, Jr.…
…insight from Bigfoot investigator and producer Mike Familant…
…spiritual wisdom from psychic medium Chris Marie…
…and even wine from Plum Run Winery to help deal with it all.
Food
While the Kecksburg VFD provided great food options that included apple dumplings and hamburgers…
…there were also other food vendors that served up pizza, sausage, hoagies, gyros and funnel cakes.
There was also a dining area to enjoy it.
Games and Entertainment
Along Water Street, a house porch was used as both a DJ Station and a stage for festival announcements…
…and it was here where people gathered when the Bed Races competition began…
…and they were fun to watch.
But when the races weren’t going on, there were Shriners clowns making balloon animals…
…a variety of games…
…raffles for all sorts of prizes…
…photo ops…
…and, of course, the UFO prop to get up close and familiar…
…so that you can recognize it if you ever see it again (in the sky).
A final note: If you plan on going
If you plan on going to the festival, I just wanted to write a quick note about parking.
As I’ve said before, the festival takes place on the property of the Kecksburg VFD and along Water Street.
Here’s the area shot with the festival grounds in red and three parking areas I’ve noticed during my visit.
The entrance for parking at the left bottom corner can be easy to miss when traveling east on Kecksburg Road. There is a sign but there’s also a bend in the road around the same time. Heading west, it’s much easier to see.
The central parking lot gets pretty congested but there are sometimes spots hidden within, so give it a shot. I have also seen parking across the street from the central lot and I believe they were charging $5.
I only noticed the upper right parking area when visiting the festival, so keep this lot in mind if you have any trouble.
Hope this helps and that you have a great time at the festival.