Exeter UFO Festival 2023: What you need to know before you go

EXETER — The UFO Festival is returning to town Labor Day weekend, celebrating all-things UFO-related.

Brought to you by the Exeter Area Kiwanis Club, the two-day festival from Sept. 2-3 pays homage to the famous UFO sighting known as the "Incident at Exeter," which occurred Sept. 3, 1965. The event draws thousands to downtown Exeter and features paranormal guest speakers, alien costume contest and trolley rides to where the UFO was first spotted.

Bob Cox, president of the Exeter Area Kiwanis Club, said last year they had one of their biggest crowds. He expects an even larger one this year with all the talk about UFOs.

In July, a whistleblower testified to Congress that the U.S. has been concealing a longstanding program that retrieves and reverse engineers unidentified flying objects. Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum even asked a question at the Republican presidential primary debate about UFOs and whether the president should tell the public the truth about the subject.

"Last year, we had a huge crowd because we hadn't had a festival in two years because of COVID," Cox said. "But with all the interest now in UFOs, I think we are going to see even more people this year."

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What was ‘The Incident at Exeter’?

The celebration originated from a highly publicized sighting of strange red lights in the Exeter area on Sept. 3, 1965.

In the early morning of Sept. 3, the Exeter Police Department began getting reports of flying objects chasing people.One woman reported being chased by a red-lighted flying object while driving on Route 101.

Two hours later, a terrified Norman Muscarello, an 18-year-old Navy recruit, reported seeing a strange light in the woods near Kensington as he was hitchhiking home from Amesbury, Massachusetts.

Two officers went back to the farmhouse with Muscarello and later said they had also seen a flying object they couldn’t explain.

According to a newspaper account, the men described the object as “about the size of a house” which “hovered silently over the nearby farm buildings frightening animals in the barn before disappearing in the distance.”

The Air Force said the sightings were either a mirage caused by a temperature inversion or one of five B-47 planes in the area at that time.

Although the sighting actually took place in Kensington, it was famously attributed to Exeter in John Fuller’s book “Incident at Exeter.”

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Experts to talk Bigfoot, UFOs and 'preparing for life with ET'

Does Bigfoot have a connection to UFOs? Find out on Saturday at 12:45 p.m. when Ronny LeBlanc gives a talk titled "What is Bigfoot? Hunting and Highlighting the Connection to UFOs."

LeBlanc is a globally recognized figure in the world of the paranormal, Bigfoot and UFOs. He is the author of the book "Monsterland: Encounters with UFOs. Bigfoot and Orange Orbs" and is one of the stars of the TV show "Expedition Bigfoot," where an elite team of Sasquatch specialists journey into the North American wilderness to prove that Bigfoot is real.

He will be one of 10 experts to speak during the two-day festival at the Exeter Town Hall. The cost is $35 for one or both days.

Also speaking on Saturday, at 9 a.m., is paranormal investigator Valerie Lofaso, who will give a talk titled “Quantum ETs – A Quest for Understanding," and Keith Seland, who gives a talk on "preparing for life with ET" at 2:15 p.m.Matthew Moniz, who claims he was abducted by aliens and that witnesses saw him "being returned," will speak at 3:45 p.m.

Sunday guest speakers include paranormal researcher Mike Stevens, who will give a talk at 9 a.m. titled “Taken for Granite: Research and Investigations into Local and Regional Paranormal Phenomena." Stevens is the founder of Granite Sky, a support group for those who have experienced extraterrestrial encounters, contact, and abduction.

Petter Robbins, an investigative writer, author, and lecturer who has spent 45 years on the subject of UFOs, will also speak on Sunday at 10:30 a.m. There will also be a screening of the documentary he wrote and produced called "James Forrestal: His Extraordinary Life and Suspicious Death.” Forrestal was the country's first Secretary of Defense.There will be a "meet the speakers" event on Saturday. Seats are limited to the first 50 people and the fee will be $20 per person.

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When is the Alien Costume & Alien Pet Contest?

The Alien Costume and Alien Pet contest returns at noon on Saturday. The costume contest is for children ages 12 and under while the pet contest is open for all.

A “genuine alien" will be on hand to judge the contests.

Contestants will get a chance to march in their costumes from Town House Common Park to the town bandstand. This event is free to participate.

How can I take a Trolley ride to the Kensington site?

One of the highlights of the festival each year is the trolley ride to the Kensington site, which for the first time will be happening on both days of the festival.

“One of the feedback (items) we got last year was there weren't enough trolley rides,” Cox said. “So we’re upping that.”

Rides will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The trolley will leave from 10 Front St. and bring riders to the incident site, which is approximately 5 miles south of the town, in the neighboring town of Kensington. The tour will be narrated by local Exeter-terrestrial expert and Founder of Granite Sky Service Mike Stevens.

Tickets are $5 for adults, and payments are to be made only in cash. Riders are first come, first serve, and the trolley will leave every 30 minutes, with the last trolley departing at 2:30 p.m.

Food, souvenirs and other activities

The Exeter Area Kiwanis Club will provide food and refreshments at the tent by the Bandstand. Expect carnival-type food and drinks such as hotdogs, hamburgers, potato chips and sodas to be served from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Don’t forget to pick up your UFO T-shirts, hats and posters. The souvenir booth in front of Town Hall will be open both days from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Exeter police will sell a special edition patch at the UFO Festival for $10 on Saturday.

The patch features an alien officer giving a peace sign with a bright green border and lettering.

While the patches were created to celebrate this unique festival, they also acknowledge the department's involvement in the "Incident at Exeter," where officers claimed to see the UFO.

The festival will also have plenty of activities for children from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Town House Common Park, corner of Front and Court streets. There will be Alien Arts & Crafts, face painting, rock painting, a UFO crash debris site, cornhole, and free snacks and drinks for kids.

"Everyone that makes something gets a prize," Cox said.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Exeter UFO Festival 2023: Paranormal experts, aliens and more