Everett “Carl” Higdon Jr., a 41-year-old oil rig foreman from Rawlins, Wyoming, had one of the most bizarre and detailed alien abduction experiences on record on October 25, 1974. While taking a day off to hunt elk in the remote Medicine Bow National Forest, about 40 miles south of Rawlins, Higdon’s ordinary hunting trip turned into something extraordinary.
Higdon spotted five elk in a clearing and fired his 7mm Magnum rifle at a bull. To his astonishment, the bullet appeared to slow down in mid-air, as if passing through an invisible barrier, and dropped harmlessly to the ground about 50 feet away. Almost immediately, a humanoid figure appeared near the elk. The being, who called himself “Ausso One,” was approximately 6 feet tall with yellowish skin, no chin, a narrow face tapering into the neck, small beady eyes, and what appeared to be antennae or bristle-like protrusions on its head. It wore a black one-piece jumpsuit with a metallic star emblem on the chest and floated slightly above the ground.
Ausso One communicated telepathically and invited Higdon to come with him. Higdon found himself inside a transparent, cube-shaped craft roughly 15 feet square. Inside, he saw the five elk he had been hunting, now paralyzed and floating in beams of light. There were also several other human-like figures standing motionless, appearing almost lifeless. The craft then took him on a journey where he was shown Earth from space and a planet with tall, thin structures that Ausso One said was their home world.
During the encounter, Higdon underwent some form of examination. He later recalled being given a drink that tasted like licorice, after which he felt relaxed. When returned, he was found by friends in a confused state, sitting in his pickup truck in a muddy area far from where he had parked. He was disoriented, suffering from equilibrium problems and extreme sensitivity to light. His watch had stopped, and his compass was spinning wildly. Searchers noted that the truck was stuck in mud in a way that would have been nearly impossible to drive into.
Under hypnosis with University of Wyoming psychologist Dr. Leo Sprinkle, Higdon recalled further details, including reproductive examinations and messages from the beings about their mission on Earth. He passed a polygraph test and maintained the story consistently for decades. His wife Margery later wrote a book about the experience.
The case stands out due to the physical evidence (damaged watch and compass, the truck’s location), multiple witnesses to his post-encounter condition, and the consistency of his account. While skeptics suggest possible psychological explanations or misidentification, the case remains unexplained and is frequently cited as one of the more credible abduction reports of the 1970s.
D.R. Calloway is an independent researcher specializing in anomalous phenomena, historical UFO cases, and paranormal encounters. Fringe Archives is his ongoing effort to document and preserve these cases in one accessible place.
