Monsters Among Us – Season 20, Episode 16

“Pioneer ghosts, an egg-shaped craft, and mirrored men on video”

Host: Derek Hayes | Released: December 4, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode of Monsters Among Us dives into a collection of chilling first-person paranormal accounts, ranging from pioneer-era ghosts in Kentucky, to UFO sightings—including a mysterious egg-shaped craft and classic mirrored men phenomena backed up by recently obtained video evidence. True to the show’s form, listeners call in with their stories, while host Derek Hayes contextualizes, investigates, and provides commentary. The tone is eerie, nostalgic, and packed with suspense.

Segmented Summary & Key Insights

1. Ghostly Routine in the Burned-Over District (New York)

[03:10 – 08:31] | Caller: Magnus

• Setting: Finger Lakes, Western NY – “Burned Over District,” area rich in spiritualism.
• Story: Magnus recalls house-sitting in a home once owned by a childhood friend whose father died young. The house was teased as “haunted,” with objects moving mysteriously.
• The Phenomenon: Through a hallway mirror, Magnus repeatedly sees a figure enter the locked back door, then move to the bathroom, and later down a hallway—mirroring the routines of his friend's late father, who used to come home dirty from work, clean up, then join the family.
• Emotions: Not fear, but “a feeling of familiarity” hits—he realizes he’s witnessing the ghostly replay of a beloved, everyday ritual.
• Memorable quote:

  “But the crazy thing was, I wasn’t scared by it… what hit me was a feeling of familiarity to it. And that’s what caught me off guard more than anything else.” – Magnus [07:02]

• Host reaction:

  “I often say that if you’re going to host a ghost, it might as well be family.” – Derek Hayes [08:31]

• Insight: Hauntings may sometimes be benign, comforting echoes, not just spooky disruptions.

2. Classic Silver UFO Vanishes (Missouri)

[11:29 – 12:45] | Caller: Colleen

• Setting: Independence, Missouri, evening commute home.
• Story: Colleen spots a silver, flying object—assumes it’s a helicopter or plane, but it suddenly disappears in less than two seconds. No other reports from that area surfaced.
• Host commentary: Independence, population 123,000, reports strikingly few UFO sightings.
• Implication: Sometimes, UFO encounters are isolated and uncorroborated, even in populous areas.

3. The Mimic Mother (Virginia)

[15:23 – 18:49] | Caller: Rachel

• Setting: Childhood home in Virginia.
• Phenomena:
  • At age four or five, Rachel sees her “mother” in the doorway, evil-smiling, holding a butcher knife—vanishes when she looks away.
  • Years later, her boyfriend is terrified by a hunched, evil version of her mom in the kitchen.
  • Final incident: Sees mom in kitchen, but instantly finds her elsewhere; mom denies being in the kitchen.
• Chilling quote:

  “Anytime I think about this, I get instant chills and it really freaks me out…just to have multiple experiences—and it all being like my mom in the same kind of like creepy version of her…” – Rachel [18:15]

• Host commentary:

  “Paranormal mimicry… always seem[s] to replicate close family members… unnerving, unsettling, and very much unexplained.” – Derek Hayes [19:07]

• Takeaway: “Mimics” are one of the most unsettling paranormal experiences, especially when they imitate loved ones.

4. The Lady in Black – Culbertson Mansion Haunting (Indiana)

[19:49 – 23:39] | Caller: Anonymous

• Setting: Culbertson Mansion historic site and ghost tour, Indiana.
• Stories:
  • A police officer responding to an alarm encounters a Victorian “woman in black,” later identified by staff as a known spirit—Mrs. Culbertson.
  • The caller himself sees a shadowy figure staring from an upstairs window, described as unnerving.
• Historical context: Mansion is infamous for being haunted—history of fire and multiple reports of unexplained phenomena.
• Host note: Mansion offers tours and embraces its haunted reputation.
• Cultural insight: Hauntings can become woven into local heritage and even support historic preservation through tourism.

5. Pioneer Apparition on the Cumberland Gap Parkway (Kentucky)

[25:47 – 29:23] | Caller: Angela

• Setting: Early morning commute near Cumberland Gap, a historic migration route.
• Encounter: Angela, a nurse on her way to work in 1990, vividly sees a pioneer woman in period dress cross the highway in front of her—no feet visible, no glow, and disappears when she looks back.
• Key quote:

  “I saw all this detail. I’ll never forget it. I don’t know what it was…it looked human. I did not see any feet…As if time slowed down. Does that make sense?” – Angela [27:41]

• Host follow-up: Derek’s wife’s grandmother, local to the area, echoed tales of mysterious footsteps in mines but no direct connection.
• Reflection: Echoes of the American past (pioneers, migration trails) bleed through as spectral encounters.

6. Egg-Shaped UFO and Missing Time (Texas/Oklahoma)

[30:36 – 33:34] | Caller: David

• Setting: Winter night in early 1980s, en route to Oklahoma fairgrounds.
• Sight: A giant, luminous, windowless “egg” hovers in the sky. David locks eyes on it, then blanks out—does not recall looking away or rejoining his family. Represses the incident until it flashes back days later.
• Implications:
  • Experiencer realizes, as an adult, that missing time is Classic in UFO lore.
  • Egg-shaped UFOs are more common than assumed—host references famous cases in NM, NY, France, and a 1993 Louisville police chopper incident.
• Host sums up:

  “Take solace in knowing that you’re not the only one to have encountered such a craft…” – Derek Hayes [36:21]

• Wild moment: Some claim these crafts emerge from underground rather than space.

7. Poltergeist Kitchen Riot (Colorado/California)

[38:23 – 40:27] | Caller: Kathy

• Timestamp: July 29, 1981 (the day of the royal wedding).
• Incident: While watching TV, sudden chaos erupts in the kitchen—drawers slamming, silverware thrown. Kathy’s mother silently warns her not to look. After 20 seconds, the noise stops. They find silverware scattered, no sign of a break-in or earthquake.
• Eerie aftermath: The event is never discussed again between Kathy and her mother.
• Quote:

  “She shook her head no, as if to say, don't turn around. Just sit there and wait…” – Kathy [39:12]

• Host’s take: Classic poltergeist—and all the more bizarre for its one-time occurrence.

8. Mirrored Men on Video – Missing Time Confirmed (Washington)

[42:27 – 53:23] | Caller: Anonymous

• Setting: September 26, 2024, solo hiker on Yellow Aster Butte Trail, Mt. Baker Wilderness.
• The Event:
  • Wistfully daydreaming about an alien encounter, the caller glimpses two tall, stationary, bright-white “pillar” figures across the valley—then a third appears as one splits.
  • She records video (viewable via Monsters Among Us website), but what felt like 15 minutes yields only a minute and a half of footage, indicating missing time.
  • The figures morph—at one point, one becomes a hovering ball and disappears. No tracks or evidence found at the site, and other hikers haven’t seen anyone similar.
• Unexplained details:
  • Weather is bad (classic in “mirrored man” lore).
  • Anomalies include auditory phenomena (turkey gobble, but sees turkey vultures), unaccounted-for missing time, and missing hikers’ cars.
  • Psychological aftermath: persistent dread, obsession, therapy discussions.
• Memorable quote:

  “I feel like I have just enough information to argue both sides of this…like, this could be people, or it could have been something that I’ve never seen before.” – Anonymous [49:12]

• Host analysis:

  “The missing time—she mentioned that she stood and filmed the figures for nearly 15 minutes, yet she only had 2 minutes and 1 second worth of video to show for it. Where did those other 12 minutes and 59 seconds go? And were the mirrored men responsible for that lapse in time?” – Derek Hayes [56:24]

• Show highlight: First mirrored men video evidence discussed on air—listeners invited to view the footage and draw their own conclusions.

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On family hauntings:

  “If you’re going to host a ghost, it might as well be family.” – Derek Hayes [08:31]

• Childhood mimic terror:

  “I looked in my doorway and I saw my mom…an evil looking smile…and she was holding a butcher knife.” – Rachel [15:51]

• Poltergeist advice:

  “She shook her head no, as if to say, don't turn around. Just sit there and wait.” – Kathy [39:12]

• On mirrored men evidence:

  “There are two videos…they all seem to show the exact same thing: two or sometimes three tall human-looking figures standing along a distant ridge. The figures all seem to be dressed head to toe in white, and…seem to morph like she said they did.” – Derek Hayes [55:01]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:10] Magnus’ ghostly routine (NY)
• [11:29] Colleen’s classic UFO sighting (MO)
• [15:23] Rachel’s mimic mother stories (VA)
• [19:49] Culbertson Mansion haunting (IN)
• [25:47] Pioneer ghost on the highway (KY)
• [30:36] Egg-shaped craft & missing time (TX/OK)
• [38:23] Poltergeist kitchen riot (CO/CA)
• [42:27] Mirrored men on tape—missing time (WA)

Overall Episode Tone & Takeaways

The episode maintains a spooky, nostalgia-rich atmosphere. Caller stories range from uplifting and sentimental (family hauntings) to deeply unsettling (paranormal mimics, missing time, video-documented anomalies). Derek Hayes curates with curiosity and a hint of skepticism, always encouraging audience participation for deeper investigation.

Listener Invitation

• View Mirror Men video: monstersamonguspodcast.com → Show Notes [55:01]
• Call-in or write for future episodes: 888-608-NIGHT or monstersamonguspodcastmail.com

If you like chilling, contemplative, and occasionally heartwarming stories of the unexplained—from ghosts and poltergeists to mimics and mysterious crafts—this episode is a rich collection of firsthand accounts that leave as many questions as answers.