Skeptic Project

Your thoughts on this...

http://news.yahoo.com/mysterious-orbs-confound-nc-county-decades-144601261.html

I lived in that area for 25 years, and spent plenty of time camping, rock climbing and canoeing in the Linville Gorge, as well as Table Rock, the South Mtns, and the area around the Nantahala River.

I've seen peculiar lights in the gorge on 2 occasions, both times from the scenic overlook on Hwy 105. Both times, the lights were near the bottom of the gorge, faintly glowing and flickering in the red to blue range. They appeared to be slightly below the tree canopy and I would best describe them a "skittering" quickly along an erratic path, perhaps 500 feet or more before fading and stating up at another location. The lights would cover this distance in just 2 or 3 seconds. The total display time was 10 minutes or so each time.

My thoughts on what I saw? I don't believe they were reflections, my orientation with regards to the lights just didn't lend itself to reflections from any known source. My best guess, given the nature of the lights that I saw, and the fact that that region is rich in granite, mica and quartz is that it could quite possible be the result of some sort of piezo effect.