From the longest light rail train to the southernmost glacier, California can truly say it has it all. And this is just one of those odd and fascinating things we can add to the list. Sitting in the middle of the desert, where most would think there’s nothing to see but a few dunes or some birds flying by, a massive stone rises …to surprise anyone brave enough to visit… Humans or extraterrestrials alike.
Mojave Desert’s Giant Rock
Nestled in the Mojave Desert near Landers, California, about 2 hours from L.A., Giant Rock covers approximately 5,800 square feet and rises 98 feet (roughly seven stories high). It was first documented by explorers in the early 20th century, baffling adventurers and geologists alike.
According to the website, Geology Virtual Trips, this massive boulder is made of quartz monzonite (a type of granite), and it was uplifted and exposed through tectonic forces and erosion over millions of years. The boulder remains almost intact despite natural weathering, though a significant portion split off in 2000, revealing a lighter-colored interior, making it even more captivating.
The UFO connection
Though it’s believed the rock may have been a place of worship for Native Americans, what’s known for certain is that the site remained uninhabited until the 1930s. Back then, a man named Frank Critzer moved there with his family from L.A. and dug an underground home on the north side of the rock.
In the early 1950s (just a few years after the infamous Roswell incident) Giant Rock became a hotspot for UFO enthusiasts, largely thanks to George Van Tassel, a former aircraft inspector, self-proclaimed contactee and friend of Critzers, who described the rock as a “natural cone of receptivity”, in his book I Rode a Flying Saucer.
In 1953, Van Tassel began holding weekly meditation sessions in a room at Critzer’s former home. During these sessions, he claimed to receive “telepathic messages from extraterrestrial beings”. These experiences led him to organize the first Giant Rock UFO convention that, by 1959, drew over 11,000 attendees, Smithsonian Magazine states.
The gatherings included sharing experiences from contactees, meditation sessions, channeling, and discussions about advanced technologies supposedly shared by aliens. Van Tassel’s most notable work was the Integratron, a 16-sided dome structure he believed could rejuvenate human cells and serve as a time machine. The structure is still operational today, offering mindfulness activities such as sound baths.