Anti- Gravity Roads!

Full Title: AntiGravity Roads - Optical Illusions or Magnetic Anomalies?

Have you ever heard about slight slope streets where leaving your car in neutral gear without hand brake will have as a result the car to start moving towards the hill? About roads where the law of gravity vanishes?
Surely most of you must have heard about the gravity road on the Penteli mountain, fewer will have heard of a similar somewhere on Mount Olympus, and slightly fewer you will be aware of the existence of such roads in Cyprus, Serbia and Italy.
Yet there are thousands of similar roads around the world, from the U.S. to South Korea and from Alaska to Brazil which they are known by the name “antigravity” roads (in Greece) and gravity hill, magnetic hill, mystery hill, gravity road, etc. (abroad).
In this study, we attempt to provide a long list of such roads all over the world (more than 100 cases!). At the same time, via earlier investigations, we give possible explanations and cite a simple -albeit entirely-scientific - method which can help you unfold the mystery of any gravity road you might visit.

A Classic Case
Although there are thousands of similar cases - not very different though – all of them share many characteristics which tend to be repeated composing as it is a typical manifestation of the phenomenon:
Any driver, who wants to see for himself the phenomenon that occurs in a gravity road, should simply stop his car at a certain point, turn it in the right direction, put neutral gear and let go of the handbrake. Immediately the car will start moving, giving the impression that it goes towards the top of the uphill road, while according to the law of gravity should have happened just the opposite. The same applies to other objects such as balls, water, etc.
Moreover, almost always these roads have a slight slope, they are covered with asphalt, are located on hills or mountains without any specific conditions to be required for the manifestation of the phenomenon.

Exploitation of the phenomenon
Many people worldwide have been involved with the gravity roads and all sorts of adventurers have directly or indirectly obtained money from ordinary people to show them the phenomenon or to “reveal” the truth behind it. As a result, without any slightest previous research, we have heard about theories of paranormal activity, of geomagnetic anomalies in the area, up to conspiracy scenarios including extraterrestrial intervention and state secret experiments!
In this article, we would like to address the common sense, some basic knowledge of physics, but also the good will of each one of you in order not simply to believe but search on your own, aiming to give some more credible answers, which means that you will also be able to participate in the interpretation having eventually the opportunity to accept it or not.

Optical Illusion?
As mentioned above, most gravity roads have a slight grade either uphill or downhill without being very different in height. Furthermore, they are encountered on hills or mountains the circumferential environment of which while being pretty rich, it also hides the skyline. In short, they are the ideal places to mislead the human visual perception, leading it into optical illusions!
By this I mean that the human visual perception depends greatly on the background of each image. In particular, when ahead of us there is a road with a slight inclination, we perceive it as an uphill, a downhill or a plain by comparing it with its circumferential environment. When the background is missing, then it is almost impossible to estimate the inclination of any surface.
Moreover, when unexpected elements are found in the background, such as excessive tree inclination due to the extreme conditions that occur in the area (not a rare phenomenon), then our visual perception can also be compromised leading us to incorrect conclusions. In these cases, we usually have visual contact with the horizon which can be used as a safe benchmark to avoid the optical illusion. However, sometimes we cannot see the horizon, a phenomenon that usually occurs up on mountains or hills, creating thus optical illusions.
If you wonder why I have mentioned all the above is simply because most gravity roads are found in environments that tend to cause visual hallucinations. In these areas, the inclination of the road is so slight that makes the human eye perceive an uphill where in fact there is a downhill.

At this point, some people may think that human beings have a certain sense of balance which gives them the ability to identify the inclinations and therefore they should not be mistaken that way. Yet, since the earth inclination in these cases is infinitely small, the optical illusion can overcome the sense of balance.

A study conducted in 2004 gives answers!
Do you think that these claims are far-fetched? Then again, they are not only based on theoretical models but have also been verified in practice in various gravity roads worldwide.
Such a research was carried out recently in March 2004, by M. A. Frizzell and V. Fulda on Gravity Hill Road in Bedford County, near a hill in the New Paris Pennsylvania (USA) for the group Enigma Project (Frizzell, 2005).
The Gravity Hill Road has all the typical features of a classic case (as mentioned above). In addition, the local people have marked the road with white spray on two points: on the one is written "GH (Gravity Hill) START" where the driver must stop and leave the car and on the other "GH END" where the car will stop running. The same phenomenon is manifested when instead of a car there are other objects, such as water, balls, etc.
In this study, Frizzell and Fulda collaborated with a local topographer, who supplying them with GPS, tripod lasers, and a topographical elevation map gave them the opportunity to reach the following conclusion: the small downhill that perceives the human eye as such is actually a slight downhill and therefore no natural law is rebutted. However, another equally impressive phenomenon truly occurs: the area manages to trick the human eye creating such an extraordinary optical illusion, which no visitor since then had managed to realize!
In this case, the topographical maps of the area gave all the essential information regarding the actual inclination of the road, but people ignored them because of the general human tendency to “believe only in what we see”.

Are there Magnetic / Gravity Anomalies on Earth?
Therefore, since the phenomenon of the gravity roads is, according to the studies, nothing but an optical illusion, there must be no geomagnetic and gravitational anomalies. But is this accurate? Of course not!
Not only are there such anomalies, but they are also recorded in the relevant official maps. For instance, the U.S. Geological Survey releases maps including names such as Magnetic Intensity Map, Bouguer Gravity Anomaly Map, Magnetic Anomaly Map, etc.
So, there are areas with magnetic anomalies. The question is whether there can be caused phenomena such as the ones we have mentioned above. The answer is unequivocally negative: these anomalies may explain the abnormal movement of the compass index, but they are not that powerful as to move a car against the gravitational force.

Have you heard about a certain Gravity Road? Study the phenomenon on your own!
So far, we have gathered enough information regarding the nature of the phenomenon, but this does not necessarily mean that we can draw a general conclusion for all the gravity roads worldwide. This would be nothing but a conceptual leap which would be considerably dangerous.
Such an absolute assumption would be justified only by a separate inquiry on any known gravity road. Personally, I would not like in any way to persuade you on the validity of any such absolute assumption. Moreover, the phenomenon that is manifested on the gravity roads fortunately is repeatable, it cannot be stopped, and it is not selective, which means that it can be experienced by everyone without requiring any particular ‘sensitivity’.
In short, the gravity roads - unlike the majority of other unexplained phenomena – have been here for centuries and will remain as such for more years to come. Thus, they give us the opportunity to conduct on them a personal research, with a rather simple methodology.

Therefore, if you have already found a gravity road and you would like to experiment, you should only follow two pretty simple steps. At first, you should contact a local topographer asking him to show you in an elevation topographical map the location where the phenomenon is manifested and tell you whether this particular road is uphill or downhill according to the map. Then, ask him to help you make some measurements in the area in order to determine more reliably the true road inclination. Measurements can be either made with a tripod laser, with GPS, or with a simple topographic plumb.
The ideal situation would be to talk to a topographer you know and who is highly interested in such phenomena, which according to my experience is very common.

The Simplicity of the Research
Like this, you will be able to draw conclusions based on your own research and on the knowledge of a professional, which is the best combination in these cases. Most importantly, it is a process that can be completed in just one day (2-3 hours) and so simply you can let others talk nonstop about conspiracy theories, extraterrestrial intervention, or anything else.
In the field of the unexplained phenomena, investigations are often deliberately presented as something extremely difficult and time consuming, prohibitive for the common men, leading to the creation of a myth surrounding the name of the researcher. However, as we have seen in this article, and in my previous studies, this is not the case. All you need is time, availability and accountability. Through the experience you will also acquire soon the know-how.
I would like to think that many readers will respond to the stimulus and attempt their research on a gravity road, the results of which I would be very interested to learn.



[Notes:]
* For research on Gravity Hill Road in Bedford County in Pennsylvania (USA) please refer to the study: Frizzell, M. A. (2005), An Examination of The Bedford County Gravity Hill, New Paris, Pennsylvania, An Enigma Project Report.
* The Global Gravity Roads List has been completed with the participation of Nicholaos K. Peristeridis and Spyros Katsantamis for the purposes of this study. The complete list is available to readers, after contacting the writers.

[Watch:]
* Video of gravity road research in Burkittsville, Maryland (USA) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3A4CRoQA3A

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Australia: [some of many]
- In Forrestfield, Western Australia, in a part of Holmes Road that the locals call Gravity Hill.
- In Bowen Mountain of New South Wales, at the intersection of Bowen Mountain Road and Westbury Road there is a hill called Magnetic Mountain.
- At Mt. Cotton in Brisbane, located at Spook Hill at the end of the road Mt View Rd.
- Beside the Hanging Rock of Wood-End, located in the Straws Lane Road of the Anti-Gravity Hill.

Belize:
- At Hummingbird Highway, between Dangriga and Belmopan.

Brazil:
- In Belo Horizonte at Rua do Amendoim.
- In Itajuba at Estrada Itajuba.

Germany:
- In Hessen, L3053 Street between Butzbach and Hausen.

Dominican Republic:
- In Polo Magnetico at the road towards Polo (Barahona).

Greece:
- At Mount Penteli, on the way from Athens to Nea Makri, near the crossroads towards the Cave of Ntaveli.
- In Livythra, Mount Olympus, near Leptokaria.

USA:
Along the U.S. we have identified over 50 gravity roads. For example:
- Thurmond, South Carolina, Old Street NC-21.
- New Paris, Pennsylvania (Bedford County), Gravity Hill Road.
- Cumming, Georgia, Booger Hill.
- Middlesex, New York, Spook Hill.
- Lake Wales, Florida, 27 Hwy Street between Orlando and Tampa. The locals have even set up a sign where they mention the phenomenon.
- El Paso, Texas, Thunderbird Drive Street towards the south.
- Huntsville, Alabama, Big Cove Road.
- Anchorage, Alaska, Upper Huffman Street.
- Marblehead, Ohio. You will not struggle to find the point since an entire advertising campaign has been launched around it with the slogan «Mystery Hills defy the laws of nature and gravity!".

India:
- Magnetic Hill in Ladakh, India.

Indonesia:
- At Mount Kelud in East Java.

Ireland:
- Mount Comeragh in Co. Waterford, on the way to the waterfalls Mahon.
- Mount Cooley Co. Louth, in Magic Hill north of Dundalk.
- In Strokestown, Co. Roscommon.

Israel:
- Dirt road next to Jerusalem, known as Gravity Road.

Italy:
- In the city Montagnaga of the province Trento.
- A hill next to the SS218, between the Rocca di Papa and Ariccia, 60 kilometers south of Rome.
- On the road to Castellammare del golfo, in the province of Trapani in Sicily.
- A hill south of Rome, in Colli Albani next to Frascati.

Canada: [some of many]
- In Moncton of New Brunswick, the area Magnetic Hill.
- In Burlington, Ontario, King Road at the height of the sign "No Motorized Vehicles".
- In Vernon, British Columbia, at Dixon Dam Road.
- In Dacre of Ontario, Street Highway 41, near the coupling with Highway 132.
- In Hull of Quebec, in the park Gatineau.
- Magnetic Hill, in Chartierville of Quebec.

Cyprus:
- On the road from the village Kathikas to the City, 1 km away from the village Droussia in the northwest of the island.

Malaysia:
- At Kimanis-Keningau Road, near the city Sabah.

Great Britain:
- In the Buckinghamshire of Aston Clinton, near Dancer's End.
- On Hangman's Hill, High Beech Street of Epping Forest.
- In West Sussex, on the A272 Road west of the village of Rogate.

Barbados:
- Morgan-Lewis Hill in St. Andrew.

Southern Ireland:
- In County Down on the Mourne Mountains, on the B27 Road on the way south to the Spelga Dam.

South Korea:
- On Mount Halla on the island Chenju Do, 1.100 Hwy Street.
- Part of the Dokebi Road at Jeju Island.

Poland:
- At Strazacka Road, 18 km south of Jelenia Gora to Karpacz Gorny.

Portugal:
- In Braga, part of the road passing through the nearby forest, near a church dedicated to Born Jesus.
- In Malveira da Serra in Cascais, on the N247 coastal road west of Lisbon.

Serbia:
- On Mount Radan, next to Lebane.

Scotland:
- In Electric Brae in Ayrshire, on the A719 Road between Dunure and Croy Bay.

Trinidad and Tobago:
- Track Street Saddle Road, from Trinidad to the beach, Maracas.

Philippines:
- The PCARRD Road in Los Banos of Laguna.
- Bacolod-San Carlos Avenue, near Negrow Occidental.

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Note: Part of this text was originally published in the magazine mystery, Issue 32 (July 2007).