Introduction
My first view of the Phoenix Legends, commonly referred to as simply the Montauk Project, was presented by a hunched over old man, fiddling with a box of books. This took place in 1993, at the annual UFO Exposition in San Mateo, California. To be honest, I was not at all interested in the old man and his story. In fact, I probably would have ignored him completely if it were not for a close friend and psychic, Armand. Armand had heard several things about this Montauk Project material, and wanted to talk to the guy. In the beginning, I was just along for the ride.
The old man had no real physical draw, as someone younger would. He was balding, thin, and my impression was that he had back problems. As Armand talked to the old man, I noticed his voice was sharp, yet aged, and the words he chose revealed a sense of education, something that surprised me at the time. My interest rose with their conversation and, before I knew it, I was the one talking instead of Armand. I didn't know it at the time, but I had just taken my first step into a body of information that would surround my life for the next several years. That old man was Al Bielek, and he claimed to be a Philadelphia Experiment survivor from 1943.
Of course, the only immediate problem with being a Philadelphia Experiment survivor in Al's case was that he wasn't that old. You would have to be on the high side of seventy today to be in that category, and while I have been terming Al an old man, that is from my point of view. Today Al Bielek is seventy years old; he would have been seventeen at the time of the Experiment and sixty-seven when I talked to him in 1993. (For those readers unfamiliar with the Philadelphia Experiment, there is a short summary in the first chapter.)
While being seventeen and in the Navy is not an impossible task, Al does not even go down that road. Instead he states that he is really Edward Cameron, born in 1916. It was Ed Cameron that took that fateful journey on the U.S.S. Eldridge on August 12th, not Al Bielek. When Ed Cameron's usefulness in the experiment had ended, he was regressed back to a one year old child and given to a couple who had thought their infant son had died, Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Bielek. This age regression occurred at Montauk Point, Long Island, in 1983.
While there could be some growing pains in trying to comprehend and accept Al Bielek's story, it is not under scrutiny here. In my mind, Al Bielek believes what he says and that is as far as I need to take it. What is far more important and deserves much more of our attention is one of the premises of his story, Montauk Point. Even more specifically, the can of worms that is known as the Phoenix Project.
Others besides Al Bielek have written and talked on the subject of Phoenix. These include Preston Nichols, Peter Moon, Brad Steiger and Duncan Cameron (Duncan is Al's brother, really Edward Cameron's brother). Some of them, and others, too, claim direct involvement in Phoenix operations that were carried out at Montauk Point. These people speak of one or more of the aspects of the Phoenix Project, ranging anywhere from time travel and thought manipulation to weather control and alien involvement. Some of the stories are very interesting and deserve examination. Others are not so intriguing and can be left for history to determine their worth.
When I think of my first reaction to the legend of Phoenix, I must remember a story I read about Mae Brussell. Mae was a conspiratist's conspiratist, a true leader in the effort to uncover the hidden dabbling of the U.S. government and its agencies. The reason I must think of Mae Brussell is because of her reaction to Alternative 3. Alternative 3 is the account of the secret adventures to Mars, sponsored by the United States, Britain, and the Soviet Union, and deals with the bases we have established on the surface of the red planet. Mae said Alternative 3 was the only book she ever had a reaction to, an intense, physical reaction. She felt nauseous and wanted to vomit and faint. The reason, Mae said, was because Alternative 3 'puts into focus all the books and articles which I have received over the last fifteen years.' I can only imagine the incredible documents Mae Brussell must have seen over the course of her life.
I, too, had the same reaction to Alternative 3. It was an earth-shaking document for me to digest, and forever changed the way I viewed the world and my life. My initial reaction to the Phoenix Project was not so toxic, but here is the point: Phoenix grew to encompass Alternative 3. Not only did it do this while I watched, but as I became some kind of active participant in the whole bizarre affair.
The issue with Phoenix is that it seems alive. It reminds me of a mythical Hydra, with the moving heads and slippery tongues and all of that. I feel this creature growing eyes that look in many directions. I sense the long necks with dragon heads that move as the research moves. In my mind, it does not merely react to what you do, it follows with you, almost as if it knows where you are going (or perhaps, where you should be going). And here's another twisted thing about this living entity: It wants to be caught. It almost dares you. It reveals clues that only you could find. Specifically tailored for you and only you.
In the beginning I did not notice this strange effect with any level of consciousness. Some degree of this type of association is to be expected, with the range of personal experiences we all have. As the occurrences continued, however, I found myself shifting to a standpoint that I do not usually take: Denial that the synchronicities were even taking place. The world was a much safer place with everything in its proper box, and with the box walls remaining at the correct height.
These Fortean incidents soon reached a point where my denial would either have to transform or become complete. In other words, I would have to begin to look at the legends of Phoenix a little differently or find a new road to travel. Chalk the whole research effort up to a series of bad experiments with poor controls or acknowledge the fact that I was playing an active part in this drama on some level. So, instead of falling victim to pure denial, I let go of the objective stance I was already teetering on and began to play the hand instead of counting cards.
I am not the first person that has felt and experienced this effect with Phoenix. In fact, it is part of the story Preston Nichols tells in his book, The Montauk Project. Anyone who becomes involved in the Phoenix Project experiences a step-up in the level of synchronicity that surrounds their lives. I can now say that the more involved you choose to be, the deeper and more profound these experiences become.
So, within this book, you will not find an objective 'this is black and this is white' approach. Based on my experiences, and those of others, the whole issue of Montauk and Phoenix cannot be approached in that manner. There is no black and white to divide the evidence and data within. There are many shades of gray, many hues of colors as well as texture, flavor and any other sense you decide to use to analyze the information. Ultimately it becomes your personal choice on color and content, on what you choose to accept and what you feel must be denied.
This book is the result of my three year journey into the secrets of Montauk, along with some of my experiences while traveling this road. Facts alone cannot do the legend justice, and a story in and of itself has no concrete basis for belief for those not involved in its unfolding. It is my hope that the mixture of these two elements will add value to the issue of Phoenix and Montauk. I anticipate that many of you are about to take that first step, just as I did a few years ago, into an incredible experience of learning and growth.
May you enjoy the ride.
