Fans of “Stranger Things” know that all the interdimensional problems that have befallen our friends in Hawkins, Indiana, are because of the secret government facility known as the Hawkins Lab.
But did you know that Netflix’s “Stranger Things” was originally called “Montauk,” named after the real-life New York town that’s at the center of multiple conspiracy theories?
Since its debut in 2016, “Stranger Things” has become a phenomenon, spawning millions of dollars in merch, tie-in novels and comics, a stage adaptation, mobile games, a tabletop game, and more. It’s one of Netflix’s biggest franchises.
Camp Hero, formerly known as the Montauk Air Force Station, has been plagued with conspiracy theories since the book “The Montauk Project: Experiments in Time,” written by Preston Nichols, was published in 1992. Its unsubstantiated claims included that researchers at the base had repressed the memories of employees who’d been subjected to experiments throughout the ’70s and ’80s.
Today, it’s possible to visit Camp Hero, which opened to the public as a state park in 2002. As someone who has been to Montauk dozens of times but never to Camp Hero — and as someone going through “Stranger Things” withdrawal as we await a release date for season five — I jumped at the chance to check out the base, which is now abandoned.
I came away from my visit last summer understanding where the Duffer brothers, who created “Stranger Things,” got their inspiration. Camp Hero would certainly be on my list of the creepiest places I’ve visited.
Look inside the park, from its beautiful ocean views to the mysterious 90-foot radar tower that still stands now.
