Unforgettable Highway Experiences: UFOs, Goat Peculiarities, and Big Lug Nuts

While many of us have witnessed bizarre occurrences on the road, I have a few particularly memorable encounters that stand out. These stories not only highlight the unique challenges of driving in less conventional environments, but also the incredible incidents that can happen on the highway.

The Most Notable Story: A Woman Eating Cereal on the Freeway

One of the craziest things I've ever seen on the freeway was a story I read about a woman eating a bowl of cereal with milk while making her morning commute. This scenario might seem surreal, but there are countless bizarre behaviors that have been observed on the road. Here are a few of my own personal experiences.

Personal Anecdotes from the Road

During my college days, I would often commute home on the weekends, and I've seen some truly unconventional behaviors.

1. A Woman Reading a Book on the Interstate

I once saw a woman reading a chapter book on the interstate, and it was quite a sight to behold. You can imagine the looks she got from other drivers, but to her, it was just another morning commute. However, even more fascinating was the story of my colleague who was using a full-sized folding map while driving on the bypass. This is something most people would consider poorly planned and risky driving behavior, but to him, it was just a part of the journey.

2. Mini Goats on the Back of a Trailer Hitch

Favorite and Most Surprising: What truly shocked me was seeing two mini goats on the back of a trailer hitch. From a distance, they seemed completely unphased as they enjoyed their breakfast. As I got closer, I noticed they were crated and secured, but from a distance, it looked like a straight-up bizarre scene out of a comedy movie. It serves as a reminder that the open road can often surprise us with extraordinary events.

Memories from Lake Powell: UFO and Big Lug Nut Incidents

My time living and working at Lake Powell at Hite Marina was filled with unique experiences. During my tenure, the highway towards Blanding was unpaved, and that added an altogether different driving experience.

1. The UFO Incident

One particularly memorable event involved a trip to repair a houseboat that had broken down at Halls Crossing Marina, about 40 miles down an unpaved highway. The call came in during heavy rains, and the road was extremely muddy in some places. Despite the challenging conditions, I managed to drive at about 50-60 miles per hour by following the ruts left by the heavy traffic.

On the way, a sudden incident occurred when I encountered an oncoming car. With the pickup truck's standard clearance, swerving out of the ruts posed a significant risk. Swerving onto the side of the road at 60 miles per hour, I hit the ruts again and a second later, I caught a glimpse of something flashing skyward behind my truck, which I later concluded was a UFO. A split second later, the rearview mirror showed something else flashing again, this time going down and then back up. Slamming on the brakes, I noticed the spare tire that had been in the back of the pickup land on the road and bounce off into the mud and brush.

By the time I got the tire back into the pickup and closed the tailgate, I was drenched in mud, marking the end of this bizarre encounter under the sunlit highway sky.

2. The Big Lug Nut Incident

A few months later, the highway was finally being paved, adding another layer of excitement to my journeys. While driving south to the same marina in a 1-ton Ford company van, I noticed a flagman and stopped due to oncoming earth-moving equipment. Absently looking through the passenger window, I saw something odd - a silver-colored, angular object that turned out to be the bottom lug nut of the earth mover's wheel. Impressed by the immense size of the earth mover, this incident gave me a new perspective on vehicle mechanics and construction equipment.

These experiences, while unusual and memorable, remind us of the unpredictable nature of driving, especially in less conventional environments. Whether it's a woman eating cereal with milk, mini goats chowing down, or the impressive size of a lug nut, the road has a way of surprising us with incredible stories and events.