Buzz
Approximately 9 miles (14.5 kilometers) west of Ellensburg, Washington, lies a mysterious pit believed to be bottomless. This claim was made by a man named Mel Waters, who shared his story on a renowned paranormal radio show in 1997. The enigmatic hole, now famously referred to as “Mel’s Hole,” continues to intrigue people to this day.
For decades, locals were puzzled by this seemingly infinite pit. Waters’ public revelation sparked widespread curiosity, turning it into an urban legend. While some dismissed his extraordinary claims, others were fascinated and sought further details. Explore 10 of Waters’ assertions about this endless hole and form your own opinion.
10. Waters Shared His Story on a Paranormal Radio Show
On February 21, 1997, Mel Waters called into “Coast to Coast AM with Art Bell,” a popular late-night radio show dedicated to paranormal and unexplained phenomena. The show was the ideal platform for Waters to recount his experiences with a supposedly bottomless hole on his property, which he claimed had supernatural properties. Local lore suggested the hole was cursed, captivating both Bell and his audience.
Early settlers referred to it as “The Devil’s Hole.” Waters never disclosed its precise location, only mentioning that he resided in Kittitas County, Washington, near the Manastash Ridge. In subsequent calls in April 2000 and January 2002, his tales became even more extraordinary. Little did anyone know that Mel’s Hole would remain a topic of fascination for years to come.
9. Waters Attempted to Measure the Depth with Fishing Line
Waters, along with his neighbors and the property’s previous owners, often used the enigmatic hole as a dumping ground for household waste, furniture, and construction debris. Despite years of disposal, the hole never seemed to fill. Intrigued, Waters decided to measure its depth. During his initial radio show call, he recounted using an astonishing 80,000 feet (24,384 meters) of fishing line to test the hole’s depth.
Waters asserted that the fishing line still didn’t reach the bottom. For context, the world’s deepest cave measures 7,257 feet (2,212 meters). According to the United States Geological Survey, the length of fishing line Waters used would extend “roughly a quarter of the way through the Earth’s crust at its thickest point.”
8. The Hole Reportedly Revived a Dog
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons
The fishing line experiment was just the start. In a story echoing Stephen King’s 1983 horror novel (and its 1989 film adaptation), Pet Sematary, Waters recounted how a neighbor tossed their deceased dog into the hole. To their astonishment, the dog reappeared alive in the nearby woods shortly after.
The dog was identifiable by its collar, but it showed no recognition of its owner and ignored their calls. While this outcome was less grim than the one in King’s story, Waters’ account was enough to both frighten and captivate his audience.
7. Unusual Phenomena Occur Near Mel’s Hole
Waters also shared that Mel’s Hole had peculiar effects on ordinary objects. Art Bell and his audience were captivated as Waters described how metal items and portable radios behaved oddly near the 9-foot-wide (2.7-meter) opening of the hole.
He asserted that metals would inexplicably transform into different metals or substances when placed close to the hole’s entrance. Waters also recalled bringing a radio to the pit, tuned to his preferred station, only to hear strange voices, unfamiliar programs, and music from the past instead of the expected broadcast.
6. Additional Mysteries Surrounding Mel’s Hole
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons
Waters recounted numerous experiments at the pit, each yielding increasingly bizarre outcomes. During one of his final calls, he described lowering a bucket of ice to a depth of 1,500 feet (457 meters). Upon retrieval, the ice was warm yet unmelted and had transformed into a flammable material.
The warm ice wasn’t the only anomaly. When Waters shouted into the hole, he claimed there was no echo. Similarly, no sound was heard when large items like refrigerators or CRT tubes were thrown in, leaving no indication they had reached the bottom.
5. Waters Lowered a Sheep into the Hole
One of Waters’ most unsettling claims involved lowering a live sheep into the hole to a depth of 1,500 feet, similar to the ice bucket experiment. The sheep screamed and struggled on the way down before abruptly falling silent. When retrieved, the animal was cooked and had developed a mysterious lump. Upon cutting it open, Waters discovered a “fetal seal” with “intelligent, human-like eyes.” He claimed the creature miraculously cured his cancer [LINK 2] before leaping back into the hole. Later, local shepherds reported seeing the creature, describing it as emitting a “benevolent presence.”
This eerie tale might explain why Waters’ dogs avoided coming within 100 feet (30.5 meters) of the hole and why birds never perched on its stone wall or metal cover.
4. A Mysterious Light Emerged from the Hole
Waters’ accounts on Coast to Coast AM weren’t limited to objects lowered into the hole. He also described bizarre phenomena emerging from it. One neighbor reported seeing a “blacker than black” beam of light emanating from the pit. Waters likened it to a flashlight emitting solid black light instead of the usual white glow. Black, often linked to evil, death, and emptiness, made the phenomenon even more ominous.
3. Mel’s Hole Continues to Spark Discussion
Discussions about Mel’s bottomless hole have persisted since his radio show appearances. The urban legend has been a hot topic in forums like Above Top Secret in 2005 and the Sheffield Forum in 2007. In 2008, Gerald R. Osborne, also known as “Red Elk,” a tribal medicine man, claimed to witness UFOs hovering over the pit, suggesting it might be an underground UFO base, further fueling the mystery.
2. Waters Returned Two Years Later
Image attribution: Wikimedia Commons
In one of his last communications, Waters revealed that he returned to Washington two years after relocating to Australia, ignoring government advice against it. He recounted being forcibly taken off a bus by police and abandoned on the streets of San Francisco shortly thereafter. With IV puncture marks on his arm, a few teeth missing, and no recollection of the events, he eventually made it back to his hometown. However, he sensed he was being followed by threatening individuals. He discovered his property had been confiscated by authorities and noticed the area was missing from TerraServer, an early digital mapping service.
However, Waters’s ordeal didn’t conclude there. He mentioned discovering a strikingly similar cavity in Nevada’s badlands. Unlike the previous one, this hole featured a metallic ring descending into the earth instead of a brick interior, yet his tests there yielded comparable outcomes.
1. The Land Was Confiscated by the Federal Government
The legend of Mel’s hole grew so widespread that it eventually attracted the attention of federal authorities. Waters later shared in a phone call that while he was approaching the site one day, a man in formal attire stopped him, claiming the area had been sealed off following an aircraft accident. The official informed Waters that he was prohibited from going near the pit. Waters also mentioned spotting individuals dressed in biohazard gear standing nearby.
Not long after, the government took over the land through a lease agreement and offered Waters a substantial sum to leave the premises. Waters agreed to the deal and relocated to Australia. This twist involving a government cover-up added a new layer of intrigue, further fueling the popularity of the urban myth.
