In a country as big as the USA, it's no surprise that it's home to many weird and wonderful sights. From the legends of sasquatch (or bigfoot) - the giant ape-like creature that many have claimed to have seen in the forests of the Pacific Northwest - to ghostly apparitions of confederate armies, America is home to some of the world's biggest mysteries.
Here are five places where you'll discover some of the strangest sights to see.
Roswell, New Mexico
In mid-1947 a strange aircraft was seen to crash to earth near the Roswell Army Airfield in New Mexico. There was some interest at the time but the US Army claimed it was just a weather balloon that had fallen from the sky and the story went quiet for three decades. But in the mid-70s conspiracy theories emerged that it had, in fact, been an alien spacecraft and both the army and the government had hushed-up the story. Today you can take tours of the site where the crash occurred, led by expert Ufologists.
The Oregon Vortex
The Oregon Vortex near to Gold Hill is a place where nothing is quite as it seems. Locals claim that strange magnetic forces cause optical illusions, including making people appear to be taller or smaller according to where they stand and many buildings look like they are built at weird angles. Other strange phenomena include balls that appear to roll uphill and streams that flow in the wrong direction.
Runestones near Heavener, Oklahoma
Head into the woods near the Arkansas River close to the town of Heavener, Oklahoma and you will find some mysterious symbols carved into the rock. Experts have identified them as being Norse in origin, similar to ones thought to have been made by ancient people in eastern Canada. However archaeologists believe that these were not the work of marauding Vikings, but were more likely to have been made in the mid-19th century by a Scandinavian settler wanting to leave his, or her, mark.
Mel's Hole, Ellensburg, Washington
Mel's hole was allegedly first reported by a Washingtonian called Mel Waters who is said to have called a local radio station with information about a bottomless pit, that he claimed to have found near Ellensburg. Said to be at least fifteen miles deep, the hole is thought to have strange properties. But, it has subsequently been discovered that no person called Mel Walters ever lived in the area and the hole has never been found - but many still visit the area hoping to come across the mysterious chasm.
Ringing Rocks Park, Upper Black Eddy, Pennsylvania
If you're planning to hire a car in Pittsburgh, one phenomenon that you can visit, and which definitely does exist, is the field of ringing rocks in Upper Black Eddy. Around a third of the rocks in this seven acre area give a bell-like ring when tapped with a hammer and some were even used in a concert performed in 1890 which brought them to the attention of the world.
So with phenomena like these all-round the country, make sure that you add one or two to your itinerary - and don't forget your camera. After all, you'll need solid evidence if you're going to convince everyone back home that truth really can be stranger than fiction.
