It came from outer space
Leominster becoming a hot spot for all things supernatural
The extraterrestrial universe is alive and well in Leominster, where aliens in flying saucers come to check in on their human counterparts. And, if you’re in search of a spooky cider to quench your thirst this Halloween season, Monsterland cider, released Friday will launch you into a supernatural universe, but the man who’s behind the cider says there’s some truth behind the name and the frightening tales coming out of his city. Investigating Bigfoot prints, UFO sightings and paranormal activity is all in a day’s work for Ronny LeBlanc, author of “Monsterland,” a 2016 book that details unusual happenings in and around the city of Leominster, which is earning a reputation as a supernatural hot spot. LeBlanc, who has experienced several UFO sightings himself, said aliens are only stopping by to observe us before they quickly disappear into space. LeBlanc, now the go-to guy for all things supernatural, has collected hundreds of reports on Sasquatch sightings, Bigfoot prints, flying saucers and ghosts to use in his book. “Honestly, I believe in this stuff. Every time I hear a story I am still blown away. There can’t be all this mass hallucination,” said LeBlanc. “I’ve had experiences in the past ... I had an encounter in the woods when I was really young.” LeBlanc said this was one of his first encounters with Bigfoot. “The forest was moving and I could feel the sounds of footsteps running away but I couldn’t see anything in front of me ... . Later I realized it may have been a Bigfoot that dematerialized,” LeBlanc said. He said Leominster is a special place for these happenings because of the town’s deep historical roots, which provide an element of spirituality. “There’s a deeper connection to this and there’s a long history of these sightings here in Massachusetts,” he said. LeBlanc took the Herald to all the hot spots around Leominster, like St. Leo’s cemetery on Lancaster Street where in the 1960s, a couple witnessed a flying saucer emerge from fog, prompting them to call the police. The man who saw the saucer claimed his hand and body was frozen upon pointing to the saucer, only to be released when it flew away. Leominster State Forest, another spot mentioned in LeBlanc’s book, has yielded several reports of Bigfoot prints and Sasquatch sightings. LeBlanc said he isn’t completely sure why these encounters continue to happen in Leominster, but “it might be something that we don’t want to know.” Susan McNeill Spuhler, the six-year organizer of the Greater New England UFO Conference, said Leominster is a “hotbed” of alien activity. She said there was a UFO sighting at her childhood home before she was born, “Leominster is an area that has a great many vortices and portals,” Spuhler said. “There are certain energetic lines that run around the earth. And Leominster, from what I’ve studied over time, has a certain energetic quality to it,” she said. LeBlanc said that over his years of investigation, he has encountered some nonbelievers. “There’s just certain people who are just skeptics and they’ll never change,” LeBlanc said. However, he said that whether you believe or not, “it doesn’t matter because these things are happening.”