If you followed Area 51 in the 1990s, you may remember me. I'm Glenn Campbell (code name "Psychospy"), the original resident researcher in Rachel, Nevada. I am the author of the Area 51 Viewer's Guide and the Desert Rat Newsletter. I was featured in the New York Times, on a 2-hour Larry King special and in other countless TV shows, articles and news reports.
Now I'm back!
I am not longer actively researching Area 51, but I've become more interested in the slice of history I participated in.
If you, too, are amused be the "good old days" of Area 51 (i.e. the ancient 1990s), I'd be happy to lead you on a mini-adventure to the area to show you the base and talk about local lore. For $250 (plus transportation), I'll escort you or your group around the border of the secret base in a tour we will design together.
This guide service was features on the "Area 51 Revealed" episode of UFO Hunters on the History Channel. See my photo album of the filming and my instant review of the final show. Also note my fact checking of the episode. (I feel obligated to to point out that in all my years of watching Area 51, I have never seen anything I couldn't eventually explain.)
Starting from Las Vegas as the early in the morning as possible, we'll drive two hours north and climb to the last remaining legal viewpoint, Tikaboo Peak. Then, if you have the time and energy, we'll go down to the Valley and skirt the military border in search of aliens, secret aircraft, government agents or anything else your heart desires. (None of this is guaranteed, of course, but if we stay after dark, I'll make spooky sounds to try to frighten you.)
Compare my services to the many scam operators that run Area 51 tours out of Las Vegas. (Google Area 51 Tours) For about $200 per person, they'll give you an antiseptic 9 hour packaged tour, while my $250 fee covers your entire group and the whole day, from the earliest you care to wake up 'til we limp back to Vegas at night. And I guarantee you'll get dirty!
This is less a "tour" than a mutual expedition we will plan together. I don't have any talks prepared, but I do know the area as well as anyone on Earth, and each place we visit has a story attached to it. We can start out on an itinerary already taken by hundreds of journalists, but we can stop or deviate in any way you like. I am less your leader than your consultant, and we will share responsibility for the trip.
At no additional charge, I will also take photos of the expedition, like these ones here. Later, I'll send you a CD with the original photos on it that you can print yourself.
You can find out way too much about me and my Area 51 role by Googling
"Glenn Campbell" "Area 51".
(Also check out the image search.)
I've started writing a book about my Area 51 experiences,
I Was Abducted by Aliens at Area 51,
but haven't got around to finishing it. I still maintain a blog on Area 51: Area 51 Loose Ends. (I conduct very little research on the current Area 51, only follow up on my experiences there in the 1990s.)
My Area 51 Viewer's Guide is still available from me (via Amazon). It is ten years old, but nothing in the desert changes much and it is still mostly up to date.
Where have I been for the last ten years? You could say I have been sidelined by real life. I got married and unmarried—an adventure to rival that of anything at Area 51. I was the Family Court Guy in Las Vegas for three years, trying to report on child welfare the way I did for Groom Lake. (Alas, without the UFOs, aliens and secret aircraft, it never got much attention.) For a while, I worked for a major airline, which let me fly all over for free, but I got laid off in the Great Airline Purge of 2008. Bad news? No great news! I get to keep my flight benefits until the airline decides to rehire me. Now, I'm a "free agent", pursuing my various web projects and business ideas, as they amuse me.
For my current websites, blogs and activities, see home page. For my photos see my my photography website, and feel free to Friend me on Facebook
WARNING: Some people regard me as a UFO "skeptic". While I am open to anything, I have never seen anything at Area 51 that I couldn't eventually explain.
Contact Glenn Campbell at FamilyCourtGuy (at) gmail.com or phone 702-812-0400 (Las Vegas).
The hike itself in only about a mile, but it climbs almost 1000 feet of elevation on a trail that is very steep and loose in places. The climb is especially difficult because of the high elevation. Kids and teens almost never have a problem, but adults, especially those who live at sea level, are going to get winded very quickly. We will take as long as we need to on the hike, but some people simply can't make it. If you smoke or don't exercise regularly, the chance of you completing the hike is slim.
We start from an elevation of 7000 feet and end at 8000 feet. Some people who live at sea level will get altitude sickness at this elevation, and you can't know if you are one of them until you try it. Altitude sickness usually consists of headaches and dizziness, and it often goes away if you rest for a while.
Our safety valve is that it is much easier to go down than up, so one or all of us can always quit and turn back. If we are with a group and some people don't think they can make it, they can return to the car. The whole hike, from the car and back, usually ends up taking about four hours.
The dangers we will face are not dramatic ones. We won't be getting close to any cliffs, and encounters with dangerous animals are extremely rare. However, because the trail is loose in places, there's always the risk of spraining an ankle or falling and hitting your head. If we get in trouble there is no cellphone coverage (just like the old days), and we will be 22 miles from the nearest paved road if the car breaks down.
If you decide to go to Tikaboo, you have to accept that these are the risks of hiking in the wilderness. I may be your adviser on this trip, and I will try my best to steer you right, but you must accept that you are responsible for your own health and safety.
To get the most out of our day, it is best to start as early as possible from Las Vegas (or you can stay in Alamo and I'll meet you there). After Tikaboo, most people are beat, and the most we can expect to do is visit the Restricted Area signs on Groom Lake Road and perhaps do some UFO watching after dark at the (former) Black Mailbox. Reaching Rachel is usually beyond most people's capacity at that point, but I am game for it if you are.
WINTER TRAVEL: Thanks to global warming, Tikaboo is more accessible now in the winter than it used to be. Between December and March, we still have a good chance of getting there, but patches of snow are likely, and it is possible that snow may close off the last few miles of the road. We might be able to guess the snow conditions based on the mountains around Las Vegas, but we can't know for sure what things will be like until we get there. In any case, I'm game for the attempt if you are.
"I highly recommend Glenn Campbell's guide services if you want to see Area 51. My boys and I had a great day with him, listening to stories and hiking up the mountain. We saw a real B-2, a tarantula and can now say we're one of the few people who have seen Area 51 from Tikaboo peak and lived. As 4 'men' seeking the truth about Area 51, it was a great expedition, and we were able to take a whiz anywhere we wanted." — Kevin H. (photos)(Contact info for the people above is available upon request.)"We had a great time, and the photos were fantastic!" — Daniel E.
"Glenn Campbell was an absolute joy to work with. From a TV producer's perspective, he delivers the goods and then some! From a human being's perspective, he's a lot of fun to be around. His Tikaboo Peak tour was a blast. His Area 51 guide is a "must have" for anyone with even a passing interest in Area 51. If all my interviews were as on target as Glenn Campbell's, TV producing would be a breeze." — Johnathan W. (photos).
Last Updated 8/10/08