By the time we stood in front of the 10-foot alien obelisk in Des Moines, Washington (with my son whispering “is this where they land?” and my wife rolling her eyes so hard they almost fell out of her head) I was fully in. Not because I believed in UFOs, though that was negotiable by hour three, but because this was weird in the best way. It was summer-campfire-story weird. Twilight-Zone-on-a-budget weird. The kind of weird that makes you pull out your phone and Google “who exactly were the Men in Black?”
Welcome to the UFO Mysteries Trail, a new immersive experience from Explore Seattle Southside, where you can traipse across the Puget Sound chasing one of America’s earliest and eeriest UFO events, the Maury Island Incident. If you’ve never heard of it, don’t worry. I hadn’t either. It’s a fringe legend with just enough truth, tragedy, and metallic dog-memorial sculptures to make you wonder whether your skepticism is the real conspiracy.
Let me back up.
A Brief History of Intergalactic Oddness
In June of 1947, before Roswell and well before the term “UFO” was watercooler shorthand for “this work meeting could’ve been an email”, a man named Harold Dahl reported seeing six metallic flying discs over the Puget Sound near Maury Island. According to Dahl, some sort of slag-like debris rained down from the objects, damaging his boat and tragically killing his dog, Sparky. (is someone cutting onions around here, because my eyes are watering). The story, as you might expect, spiraled from there: drawing in government agents, shadowy figures now known as the “Men in Black,” and eventually, a tragic plane crash that killed two intelligence officers who had been sent to investigate.
The trail takes this story and spins it into an 11-stop adventure that stretches across Seattle Southside, from shopping mall installations to forested ferry routes to actual pieces of public art inspired by this 1940s fever dream.
Why This Trail Works: Suspicion Meets Pacific Northwest Vibes
Here’s the thing about the Pacific Northwest. It’s beautiful, yes. And full of people who are overly caffeinated and make their own kombucha but also own machetes. But it’s also kind of spooky. It’s gray in the mornings. There’s moss growing on literally everything. You’re never more than ten minutes from a body of water or a very serious person in flannel. Which is to say: if there was ever a place for a real-life alien encounter, this feels like the plausible set for it.
The UFO Mysteries Trail leans into that energy. But it also does something more grounded: it gives families (and conspiracy-curious grownups) a way to learn about regional history without requiring Civil War reenactments or dry interpretive signs.
Here’s what our adventure looked like.
Stop One: The Westfield Southcenter Mall
If you’re like me, your enthusiasm for UFO lore takes a brief dip when you’re in the parking lot of a mall next to a Cheesecake Factory. But this is actually where the journey begins—and it sets the tone perfectly. In the southwest corner of Westfield Southcenter, there’s now an interactive UFO history installation complete with visuals, maps, and the kind of alien photo-op that your kids will force you to pose in (I did the peace sign; no regrets). My favorite part was the “Alien Communicator” phone booth. It’s unclear if it actually dials home, but if there’s a sentient race of intergalactic beings monitoring our species, they’re definitely judging how many times people shout “Take me with you!”
We scanned a QR code and officially began the trail, downloading the guide and getting our first clue: something about donut-shaped metal disks and a man named Harold. Then we got back in the car, passed a dozen teriyaki joints (Seattle Southside has an alarming number), and headed toward Des Moines.
Stop Two: Murals, Memorials, and a Dog Named Sparky
Let me just say: if I die tragically in a UFO incident, I want a sculpture. Harold Dahl’s dog Sparky (a supposed casualty of the Maury Island encounter) got one. Right next to a giant, gorgeously weird mural by Nancy and Zach Pahl, which includes flying saucers, the legendary “slag,” and a rather sassy-looking Man in Black, there’s a shiny statue honoring Sparky. My son insisted on petting it. I wasn’t going to stop him.
Nearby, an actual obelisk has appeared. No, seriously. It just showed up one day. It’s 10 feet tall, inscribed with a cryptic message, and no one is entirely sure who made it. The arts council has sort of shrugged and adopted it as public art, which is the most Pacific Northwest thing I can imagine. The whole area is walkable, and if your trail partners need snacks or caffeine (which mine always do), The Quarterdeck near the marina has both. The view? Let’s just say if you’re going to get abducted, this is the backdrop you’d want.
Sculptures That Look Suspiciously Like Saucers
The next few stops are public art installations that seem way too on-the-nose to be coincidences. Artist Ben Dye created Atomic Mobius, a sculpture that looks exactly like Harold Dahl’s original description of the flying discs. Round, shiny, donut-holed—like if Krispy Kreme designed an alien fleet.
Then there’s Pat McVay’s Raven Discovers Spaceship, carved out of reclaimed cedar. The raven is a trickster figure in many Indigenous cultures, which adds a layered, local mythology to the whole thing. I told my family that the bird was maybe a metaphor for how we dismiss the strange, and my wife muttered something about “being tricked into another sculpture walk.” So yes, everyone was learning something.
Ferry to the Truth (Or at Least a Pretty Beach)
To really commit to the trail, you need to take the ferry to Vashon Island, and then wind your way to Maury Island, still wild-feeling and secluded. This is where Dahl said it all began, and while I’m not saying I saw anything weird, I did get that strange tingling feeling you get when the woods get too quiet. The beach is eerie. Beautiful, yes, but also frozen. There’s a stillness that doesn’t feel like peace. It feels like pause. Like something’s waiting. Or maybe I just had too much cold brew that morning.
Let’s Talk Prizes (Because Bribery Works)
Here’s a genius move on Explore Seattle Southside’s part: if you check in at seven of the 11 stops, you get a prize. I thought it might be a bumper sticker or something, but no: it’s a toy “bait cow” plushy (aliens famously love cows) and entry into a drawing for a six-armed alien T-shirt. If this sounds ridiculous, that’s because it is. And that’s also why it works. You don’t take your kids on a trail like this because you need to understand mid-century military conspiracy theory. You do it because they’ll shriek with laughter when they get to yell “BEAM ME UP!” into a fake phone booth and pet a statue named Sparky.
What We Talk About When We Talk About UFOs
Look, I’m not here to convince anyone that extraterrestrial life is real, or that Harold Dahl wasn’t maybe just trying to get out of explaining a damaged boat to his boss. But what I do think is real is our human need to find meaning in the unexplained. We’re storytelling creatures. We crave mystery. And when those stories involve sparkling beaches, cryptic obelisks, and prize-winning alien T-shirts, all the better.
The UFO Mysteries Trail doesn’t just teach you about the Maury Island Incident. It gives you a reason to explore the hidden corners of the Pacific Northwest. It’s history with a wink. A civic scavenger hunt wrapped in mythology and moss. And maybe—just maybe—it’ll leave you looking at the sky a little longer the next time something flashes in your periphery.
Because even if it’s just a seagull—or a drone, or a weather balloon—it’s fun to believe it might be something more.
If You Go:
- Visit SeattleSouthside.com to download the free trail map.
- You don’t need to complete all 11 stops to win prizes.
- Ferry rides to Vashon Island are not required but highly recommended (because who doesn’t want to say they chased aliens by boat?).
- Most stops are accessible, though the final beach location is not wheelchair-friendly.
So go. Pack some snacks. Bring a healthy dose of skepticism—and maybe a little hope. The truth might not be out there, but adventure definitely is.
