Quick Info
May 20, 1967, Falcon Lake, Manitoba, Canada. Stefan Michalak encountered a landed, disc-shaped craft in the woods. He touched it, was burned by hot exhaust from a grid-like pattern, and suffered radiation-like injuries. RCMP, doctors, and Project Blue Book investigated. Physical evidence (burned shirt, grid marks, melted coins) and medical records remain unexplained. This is one of the best-documented close encounters of the second kind on record.
Timeline of Events – May 20, 1967
The encounter unfolded over roughly 45 minutes on a clear Saturday afternoon. Times are approximate, based on Michalak’s report, RCMP logs, and medical records.
- 12:00 p.m. Stefan Michalak, a 51-year-old industrial mechanic and amateur geologist, is prospecting for quartz and silver in the Falcon Lake area (about 130 km east of Winnipeg). He is alone, carrying a Geiger counter and tools.
- 12:15–12:30 p.m. Michalak hears a loud humming/roaring sound overhead. He looks up and sees two cigar-shaped objects, bright red-orange, moving slowly at low altitude. One object stops and hovers, while the other accelerates away and disappears.
- 12:30–12:35 p.m. The remaining object changes colour from red-orange to greyish, then descends and lands on a flat rock about 50 metres away. Michalak approaches cautiously, thinking it is a secret military craft or experimental vehicle.
- 12:35–12:40 p.m. Michalak gets within 3–4 metres of the craft. It is disc-shaped, about 12 metres wide, 4 metres high, with no seams or rivets. The surface is smooth, like "molten glass" or "polished steel." He hears two human-like voices speaking inside in an unknown language. He calls out in English, Polish, German, and Ukrainian, offering help. No response.
- 12:40 p.m. Michalak touches the craft’s surface with his gloved hand. It is hot enough to burn the glove and his shirt. He steps back. A grid-like exhaust pattern on the craft’s underside suddenly releases hot gas, burning his chest and shirt. The grid pattern is seared into his skin and clothing.
- 12:41–12:45 p.m. The object lifts off silently, hovers briefly, then accelerates away to the west. Michalak is left dazed, with severe burns on his chest forming a perfect grid pattern matching the craft’s exhaust vents. His shirt and coins in his pocket are melted. He is nauseous and disoriented.
- 12:45–1:30 p.m. Michalak stumbles back to his car, drives to a nearby motel, and calls for help. He is taken to hospital in Winnipeg. Doctors note grid-shaped burns, nausea, headache, and radiation-like symptoms (vomiting, weight loss). His shirt shows matching burned grid marks.
- Afternoon – Evening RCMP and military investigate the landing site. They find scorched grass, melted metal fragments, and elevated radiation readings (though not dangerous). Michalak is hospitalised for days. The case attracts national media attention.
- Days/Weeks Following Project Blue Book and Canadian officials investigate. Michalak undergoes medical exams showing radiation exposure. The case remains officially "unexplained." Michalak never changes his story and dies in 1999.
May 20, 1967 – A Prospecting Trip Turns Into a Close Encounter
Stefan Michalak was a 51-year-old industrial mechanic, amateur geologist, and family man living in Winnipeg. On May 20, 1967, he drove to Falcon Lake (about 130 km east) to prospect for quartz and silver. He was carrying a Geiger counter, tools, and lunch. The day was clear and warm. He was alone.
Around 12:15 p.m., he heard a loud humming/roaring sound overhead. He looked up and saw two cigar-shaped objects, bright red-orange, moving slowly at low altitude. One object stopped and hovered, while the other accelerated away and disappeared. The remaining object changed colour from red-orange to greyish, then descended and landed on a flat rock about 50 metres away.
"I thought it was a secret military craft or experimental vehicle. It was shiny, smooth, like polished steel or molten glass. No seams, no rivets, no visible propulsion."
– Stefan Michalak (official report & interviews, 1967–1969)
Michalak approached cautiously. The craft was disc-shaped, about 12 metres wide, 4 metres high. He heard two human-like voices speaking inside in an unknown language. He called out in English, Polish, German, and Ukrainian, offering help. No response. He touched the surface with his gloved hand — it was hot enough to burn the glove and his shirt.
"The surface was hot, like a blowtorch. My glove burned, my shirt caught fire. I stepped back. Then the grid-like exhaust vents opened and released hot gas. It burned my chest and shirt. The grid pattern was seared into my skin."
– Stefan Michalak (1967 testimony)
The object lifted off silently, hovered briefly, then accelerated away to the west. Michalak was left dazed, with severe burns on his chest forming a perfect grid pattern matching the craft’s exhaust vents. His shirt and coins in his pocket were melted. He was nauseous and disoriented.
The Landing Site – Physical Evidence
Michalak stumbled back to his car, drove to a nearby motel, and called for help. He was taken to hospital in Winnipeg. Doctors noted grid-shaped burns, nausea, headache, and radiation-like symptoms (vomiting, weight loss). His shirt showed matching burned grid marks. Coins in his pocket were partially melted.
"The burns were in a perfect grid pattern, matching the exhaust vents on the craft. The shirt had the same pattern burned into it. The coins were melted on one side. Doctors said it looked like radiation exposure."
– Stefan Michalak (medical report summary, 1967)
Investigators later found scorched grass, melted metal fragments, and elevated radiation readings (though not dangerous) at the landing site. The grid pattern on Michalak’s chest and shirt matched the exhaust vents perfectly.
Key Videos and Interviews of the Falcon Lake Event
More interviews, documentaries, and witness accounts on YouTube
Project Blue Book & Official Investigation
Project Blue Book and Canadian officials investigated. They interviewed Michalak (described as credible and unshakable), his wife, sons, doctors, RCMP, and locals. Physical traces were analysed. The official conclusion: "Unidentified." The case remains one of the best-documented close encounters of the second kind.
"This was a legitimate UFO sighting. The witness was credible, the physical evidence was there, and no explanation fits."
– Project Blue Book investigator (files, 1967)
Legacy in 2026
Over 59 years later, Falcon Lake 1967 remains one of the most credible close encounters of the second kind: a single highly credible witness, physical traces (burns, grid marks, melted coins), medical records showing radiation-like symptoms, and no conventional explanation. Stefan Michalak never changed his story and lived quietly until his death in 1999. The site is now marked with a plaque. The case is frequently cited as a benchmark for close encounters with physical effects.
