Granger Taylor’s disappearance has puzzled investigators and his family for over four decades.
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A man once hailed as a mechanical genius disappeared under mysterious circumstances more than 40 years ago after claiming he had been in contact with extraterrestrials.
It was a stormy night on November 29, 1980, when 32-year-old Granger Taylor left his hometown of Duncan, British Columbia, and was never seen again. What happened to him remains one of Canada’s most baffling cold cases.
Before vanishing, Granger left behind a note for his family, saying he was about to go on a journey aboard an alien spacecraft. He promised he’d return—but he never did.
Granger’s loved ones described him as exceptionally gifted with machines. By his early 30s, he had already restored everything from an old car and a bulldozer to an abandoned train engine and even a WWII fighter jet, according to CBC.
He dropped out of school at a young age, but his talent for mechanical work quickly stood out. People in town considered him a local prodigy when it came to fixing or rebuilding almost anything.
He also told people he had been communicating with aliens. Inspired by these experiences, Granger built a life-sized model of a spaceship using scraps he found at the local junkyard.
Granger Taylor was quite the mechanical genius
CBC
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His sister later revealed in an interview with Vice that Granger had been taking LSD, sometimes multiple times a day, in the period leading up to his disappearance. He was also known to regularly use cannabis.
Then one day, he was just gone. He left everything he owned behind—including a letter that described his plan to embark on a space journey lasting three and a half years.
Despite the timeline he gave, Granger never returned, leaving his family and friends heartbroken and confused about what really happened.
In the letter he left behind, Granger wrote: "Dear Mother and Father, I have gone away to walk aboard an alien spaceship, as recurring dreams assured a 42-month interstellar voyage to explore the vast universe, then return."
"I am leaving behind all my possessions to you as I will no longer require the use of any. Please use the instructions in my will as a guide to help. Love, Granger."
His disappearance sparked a massive search effort. Loved ones scoured the region, hoping for any sign of him, but no trace could be found.
His last note
CBC
Then, in March 1986—nearly six years after he went missing—forestry workers discovered a blast site deep in the woods near Mount Prevost, not far from the Taylor family’s home.
Investigators later confirmed that a destroyed vehicle at the site had a registration number matching Granger’s Datsun pickup truck.
They also found fragments of what appeared to be human bones and a piece of clothing similar to one of Granger’s shirts. But a complete body was never recovered from the scene.
A coroner’s investigation eventually concluded that Granger had likely died in the explosion. Evidence suggested he had been carrying dynamite in his truck when it detonated.
However, it was never determined if the blast had been an accident or intentional. Granger was known to use dynamite to help clear tree stumps and was familiar with how to handle explosives safely.