SALT LAKE CITY — A Salt Lake City resident says he may have uncovered what he believes to be a buried structure beneath a well-known hill in Sugar House Park, raising questions that have drawn both curiosity and skepticism.
Braxton Larsen, who lives nearby, said the idea came to him unexpectedly during a walk through the park on a warm afternoon earlier this spring.
“I’ve walked that park hundreds of times,” Larsen said in an interview Tuesday. “But that day, I stopped and really looked at the hill. There was something about it that didn’t feel random.”
Larsen returned the following morning with a garden shovel and began digging into the side of the slope. Within minutes, he said, he encountered compacted layers of soil and what he describes as stone beneath the surface.
“That’s when I knew I had to keep going,” he said. “You don’t expect to hit that kind of resistance in a hill like that.”
Since then, Larsen has made multiple visits to the site, documenting what he believes are structural features beneath the surface. He described consistent angles along the hill’s sides and what he interprets as terraced layers.
“If you stand back and look at it, you can start to see distinct faces,” Larsen said. “It’s subtle at first, but once you notice it, it’s hard to unsee.”
He also believes the formation may be aligned with cardinal directions, though no formal measurements have been conducted. Larsen said he has taken informal readings and photographs but acknowledged that further study would be needed to confirm any structural claims.
In addition to visual observations, Larsen said he built a device at home to measure variations in ground density using what he describes as magnetic resonance principles. The device, assembled from copper wiring, a modified radio frequency transmitter, and a handheld receiver, is designed to send low-frequency pulses into the ground and measure the return signal.
“The idea is that different materials respond differently to the signal,” Larsen said. “If there’s a void or a change in density, it should show up as a variation.”
He said the concept was inspired by techniques used in subsurface imaging, though his version is simplified and built from readily available components.
“It’s not lab-grade equipment,” he said. “But it gives you relative differences. And those differences are consistent in certain areas of the hill.”
“These are early observations,” he said. “But they’re consistent with something that was built, not formed randomly.”
Larsen added that based on these measurements he suspects there may be voids beneath the surface, possibly chambers or tunnels.
“You can also feel it underfoot in certain spots,” he said. “There are areas that respond differently.”
He has also suggested the possibility of low-frequency energy at the site, saying that some visitors have reported a sense of calm or focus when standing or meditating on the hill.
“I’ve had people come out here and just stand quietly,” Larsen said. “They don’t always say anything, but you can tell they feel something.”
No independent testing has been conducted to verify those claims.
Local experts have not issued formal statements. No archaeological survey of the site has been announced.
Still, Larsen’s claims have begun to circulate locally, drawing small groups of onlookers to the park in recent days.
Larsen said he has also reached out multiple times to Graham Hancock, hoping to draw attention to the site. He said he believes the discovery could be featured in a future season of the Netflix series Ancient Apocalypse.
“I’ve sent several emails with photos and notes,” Larsen said. “This fits the kind of sites they look at—places that challenge conventional explanations.”
Among those who have taken notice is Marcus Hale, a NBA player who has a second home in Park City.
“I’ve been out there quite a bit,” Hale said. “It’s a unique shape. I don’t know what it is, but I understand why people are asking questions.”
Hale stopped short of endorsing Larsen’s conclusions but said the site warrants attention.
“If something stands out, it’s worth taking a closer look,” he said.
Larsen said he hopes the discovery will prompt further investigation, though he has not contacted any academic institutions or city officials.
“I’m not claiming to have all the answers,” he said. “I’m just saying there’s enough here to take seriously.”
For now, activity at the site remains informal. Visitors continue to use the park as usual, with some pausing briefly near the hill, while others pass by without noticing anything unusual.
City officials have not commented on Larsen’s activities or whether any excavation permits would be required.
As of this week, the hill remains unchanged—though for some, the question of what lies beneath it has begun to shift how it is seen.
*Editor’s Note: This article is a work of satire and is intended for entertainment and commentary purposes only. While it may reference real places or echo real events, the characters and situations are fictionalized for humor and reflection. At Utah Stories, we believe that sometimes the absurd reveals more truth than the facts alone.
