The Mystery Spot
On a hillside in the redwoods, balls seem to roll uphill and people seem to change height.
What was reported
The Mystery Spot is a small patch of forest near Santa Cruz, California, opened as an attraction in 1941. Inside a tilted wooden cabin and around the site, balls seem to roll uphill, people lean at impossible angles, and someone appears to grow or shrink when they swap places on a level board.
Its owners say the cause is unknown, and its bumper stickers are a familiar sight on Californian cars.
Explanations offered
Scientists who have visited explain it as an optical illusion: the cabin and its surroundings are tilted, so the brain picks the wrong reference for level. The height trick uses the slope of the ground. Similar 'gravity hills' and 'mystery houses' exist around the world, such as the Magnetic Hill near Leh.
- When
- Open since 1941
- Where
- Near Santa Cruz, California, USA
- Witnesses
- Millions of visitors
- Status
- Explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.