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Engine
05-13-2009, 12:07
One night last week we were camped at an old home site in GSMNP. Caboose and I were drifting off to sleep right after dark when we both heard voices entering the camping area around 9pm. The voices quieted down after a couple minutes and I assumed the new arrivals had seen our tent up the hill and had hushed themselves on our behalf. The next morning I awoke early and got up to stretch my legs. I found no other tents around and thought maybe the other group had left early, but when we left ours were the only tracks in the trail.

No one had been there even though we both clearly heard a male and female in conversation. The camp site was over 1/4 mile into a ravine from the trail, so I don't think we heard people passing by. It was kind of weird and I wondered if anyone else has had similar experiences? I know the Appalachians are full of ghost stories but I am beginning to wonder...:-?

Phoenixdadeadhead
05-13-2009, 12:14
Promise not to laugh at me, but in 94 maybe 95 I was hiking between yuma and sandiego pretty far north of any roads and one of the guys I was with pointed out a light in the sky. As we watched the light sit perfectly still we conseidered it to be a helicopter, but it then appeared to drop 2 other lights which formed a triangle and for 20 to thirty minutes these lights sat motionless or at least appeared to. The 2 lights which had dropped seemed to dissapear and then the 3rd took off with an exceptional burst of speed. I was raised military and have been in and around almost every aircraft the military uses, I had thought the 2 lights might have been a new long lasting extremely bright flare, but the speed that the main lights left at and the fact it had been statonary really throws me off.

Engine
05-13-2009, 12:32
Promise not to laugh at me, but in 94 maybe 95 I was hiking between yuma and sandiego pretty far north of any roads and one of the guys I was with pointed out a light in the sky. As we watched the light sit perfectly still we conseidered it to be a helicopter, but it then appeared to drop 2 other lights which formed a triangle and for 20 to thirty minutes these lights sat motionless or at least appeared to. The 2 lights which had dropped seemed to dissapear and then the 3rd took off with an exceptional burst of speed. I was raised military and have been in and around almost every aircraft the military uses, I had thought the 2 lights might have been a new long lasting extremely bright flare, but the speed that the main lights left at and the fact it had been statonary really throws me off.

That reminds me of my first night camped in the Shirley basin in Wyoming. Looking toward Elk mountain to the south west we saw strange flickering lights right after dark. After about an hour we realized it was a wind farm and the blades were causing the red beacon lights to appear to flicker. It was strange for awhile, but that doesn't sound like your experience though...

CaseyB
05-13-2009, 12:43
Sound can do weird things in the mountains, most especially traveling uphill & downwind. I was waiting in a road gap for about 35-40 mins a couple weeks ago for a friend who had lost a dog and kept hearing ~things~ ...noise got stronger & stronger until finally two guys on horses showed up. If you figure they were going 2-3 mph that means I was hearing them 1-1.5 miles off, talking. As soon as they were through the gap, not another sound.

JokerJersey
05-13-2009, 12:51
Eh, I guess it all depends on what you believe. I don't understand how someone can believe in an afterlife, but no believe in ghosts or wandering spirits. If you can get lost on a trail, why couldn't a soul or spirit get lost on its "trail"?

When I was younger and used to hike and camp alone in the woods close to my house in South Jersey, I often ran into situations that couldn't be explained. In one area that I had to hike through to get to the one of the "spots" I love, there had been a murder/suicide. Many times while going through there, I had the feeling of being watched or followed, often times to the point of being physically oppresive. No matter how long it went on, there was never anything "there". At first, I chalked it up to fear of being alone or a simple case of nerves. As I grew older though, it happened too frequently and too distinctly to be that. I had long ago lost any fear of being alone and had spent too many nights to count sleeping under the stars to brush it off as "nothing". The feelings persisted until I left for the military and left that trail/area behind.

Whatever it was, I still believe it was something outside of the norm and something that wouldn't fit into accepted definitions of science. Others may scoff at that notion, but I believe what I believe.

As for what Phoenix said, having served in the military myself, I would put more weight on the idea that it was an experimental aircraft being tested by the military. Even more so, considering the area that you were in. Yuma, El Toro, and other bases of that type that are far out from places of habitation are often the best test sites for new technology. Not that I'm one to discount the possibility of extraterrestrial life, since I think if we are the only sentient beings in the universe then God wastes an awful lot of space for just us, but in the place and time that you saw these things, I would be more likely to chalk it up to military testing than UFOs.

StarLyte
05-13-2009, 13:05
Hope to meet up with you guys around campfire some night....:-?

Blissful
05-13-2009, 13:23
There are a few spots on the trail I would consider unsettling.

The trail between Paul C Wolf and Rockfish Gap by some old homesites. That place feels strange to me.

And the place in PA where the hikers wer killed. Yes the shelter is gone (Thelma Marks, I think), but that area too doesn't feel right. I went through there in a hurry.

But the most unsettling places off trail are Civil War battlefields, namely Antietam by the bridge. You can smell gunpowder. In the trenches at Wilderness, the leaves are a different color, like brownish black than the rest of the forest. And Spotsylvania battlefield, that place just feels awful.

DAJA
05-13-2009, 13:38
I’ve had several odd encounters in the woods, but there are two that definitely stand out. I’ve told both stories’ here on WBs, so I’m just going to cut and paste rather than re-type them.. Since we survived both, they’ve become staples around the campfire since..
First:
I used to use ear plugs to sleep at night... Up until week long trip in the Ontario Northern Region, north of Algonquin National Park. We'd been hiking on old trading routes, mainly following the coastlines of the many lakes in the region.. Anyway, on the third night of the trip, we stopped, set up camp, it was raining and had been all day, the ground was soft. We built a small fire to dry out some of our gear, had some supper, had a dip in the lake, sat around the fire until about 10pm then both turned in to bed in separate tents.. As was my usual method, I popped in the earplugs and was out for the night..

I awoke the following morning, and as I climbed out of my tent I froze in fear as I see perfect size 12 boot prints right to the door of my tent... I quickly scan my vestibule and realize my boots are gone (oddly, I wear a size 10) then look to our clothes line and realize both our sets of raingear are gone..

Once I woke my buddy up and explain we'd had a visitor and that some gear was missing, he got up and realized his boots where gone as well... We put on our sandals and followed the tracks to where we had hung our bear bags, which where both gone as well...

So here we were, 40kms from our car with no food, stoves (they were in the bear bag) no boots or raingear and it was still raining hard...

We made it out fine, but it was an uncomfortable hike both physically and mentally. This was not a blazed commonly used hiking trail. Rather, it was old overgrown trading trails used 50yrs ago... So it was first shocking that someone else was out here with us, but more so that they where malicious enough to make off with our stuff.
That final night camping on the way back to our car was a long night... We sat around the campfire trying to ease our imaginations from taking us to the worst possible places. My buddy did admit that he'd heard my vestibule unzip and movement around camp, but assumed it was me getting up to go to do my business...
Since that night, I no longer sleep with earplugs... I've learned that the only thing I fear in the woods travels on two legs...
Second:
Losing my boots, rain gear and food may seem a tall tale but I assure you it is not, in fact, that trip was mild compared to a group of 4 of us essentially being held hostage by "Sh%thawk" and "Boner" while camping when we were just punk teenagers.. These two winners had just been released from prison for robbing a liquor store, and had got in some trouble at a bar in a nearby town and where looking to lay low for a while... They had ditched their camero (i'm not kidding) in a gravel pit down the road from the trailhead and decided to hike into the woods to "live off the land for a few weeks". They stumbled upon our campsite near 2am and that’s when the fun begins... Long story short, we spent 3 days babysitting these two, against our wishes... They had no gear, just jeans, leather coats, and work boots, and hinted heavily at being armed... Lucky for us, not with a brain... We convinced them we were planning a clam feed, knowing full well the flats had been closed due to red tide... These fella's where so impressed with our menu when we dug and cooked up a pot of clams in salt water and seaweed... We all got such pleasure watching them savor their dinner. Within an hour these two where in such a world of hurt that we just packed up and walked away... When we got to town we explained to the police where to find them...

My only regret is we didn't think of the clam boil on day one instead of day 3... Worst hiking trip ever!

And to be fair, they only threatened to be armed, never saw so much as a knife... But as youngins, we were too frightened to push our luck on grown ups...

In the end we all survived, the Mounties got their men and we all got a fun story to tell when we get together...

Engine
05-13-2009, 14:04
I’ve had several odd encounters in the woods, but there are two that definitely stand out. I’ve told both stories’ here on WBs, so I’m just going to cut and paste rather than re-type them.. Since we survived both, they’ve become staples around the campfire since..
First:
I used to use ear plugs to sleep at night... Up until week long trip in the Ontario Northern Region, north of Algonquin National Park. We'd been hiking on old trading routes, mainly following the coastlines of the many lakes in the region.. Anyway, on the third night of the trip, we stopped, set up camp, it was raining and had been all day, the ground was soft. We built a small fire to dry out some of our gear, had some supper, had a dip in the lake, sat around the fire until about 10pm then both turned in to bed in separate tents.. As was my usual method, I popped in the earplugs and was out for the night..

I awoke the following morning, and as I climbed out of my tent I froze in fear as I see perfect size 12 boot prints right to the door of my tent... I quickly scan my vestibule and realize my boots are gone (oddly, I wear a size 10) then look to our clothes line and realize both our sets of raingear are gone..

Once I woke my buddy up and explain we'd had a visitor and that some gear was missing, he got up and realized his boots where gone as well... We put on our sandals and followed the tracks to where we had hung our bear bags, which where both gone as well...

So here we were, 40kms from our car with no food, stoves (they were in the bear bag) no boots or raingear and it was still raining hard...

We made it out fine, but it was an uncomfortable hike both physically and mentally. This was not a blazed commonly used hiking trail. Rather, it was old overgrown trading trails used 50yrs ago... So it was first shocking that someone else was out here with us, but more so that they where malicious enough to make off with our stuff.
That final night camping on the way back to our car was a long night... We sat around the campfire trying to ease our imaginations from taking us to the worst possible places. My buddy did admit that he'd heard my vestibule unzip and movement around camp, but assumed it was me getting up to go to do my business...
Since that night, I no longer sleep with earplugs... I've learned that the only thing I fear in the woods travels on two legs...
Second:
Losing my boots, rain gear and food may seem a tall tale but I assure you it is not, in fact, that trip was mild compared to a group of 4 of us essentially being held hostage by "Sh%thawk" and "Boner" while camping when we were just punk teenagers.. These two winners had just been released from prison for robbing a liquor store, and had got in some trouble at a bar in a nearby town and where looking to lay low for a while... They had ditched their camero (i'm not kidding) in a gravel pit down the road from the trailhead and decided to hike into the woods to "live off the land for a few weeks". They stumbled upon our campsite near 2am and that’s when the fun begins... Long story short, we spent 3 days babysitting these two, against our wishes... They had no gear, just jeans, leather coats, and work boots, and hinted heavily at being armed... Lucky for us, not with a brain... We convinced them we were planning a clam feed, knowing full well the flats had been closed due to red tide... These fella's where so impressed with our menu when we dug and cooked up a pot of clams in salt water and seaweed... We all got such pleasure watching them savor their dinner. Within an hour these two where in such a world of hurt that we just packed up and walked away... When we got to town we explained to the police where to find them...

My only regret is we didn't think of the clam boil on day one instead of day 3... Worst hiking trip ever!

And to be fair, they only threatened to be armed, never saw so much as a knife... But as youngins, we were too frightened to push our luck on grown ups...

In the end we all survived, the Mounties got their men and we all got a fun story to tell when we get together...

Man, you have had a lifetime worth of crap hiking luck in those 2 trips! Pretty spooky stuff btw.

Ridge Rat
05-13-2009, 14:14
I felt I was being watched once on the AT... Walked by a bush and it flashed.... Spent the next half hour messing with the hidden camera I suppose was there to count either wildlife of trail usage... About the closest ghost story I have... Well that and the coyotes screaming "help me" freaks me out sometimes

Pony
05-13-2009, 15:12
A few weeks ago I was camping alone at Zaleski S. F. in SE Ohio. There are only designated camping areas with water tanks and an outhouse. After dinner I was sitting around the fire and I had a thought that it would be strange if another person showed up. No more than ten seconds later I looked down the hill in time to see a guy walking out of the outhouse. He was wearing a flannel shirt, blue jeans and had a red mullet almost down to his butt. No hiking gear. I watched as he walked away and after about fifty feet he turned and looked at me and then turned back around kind of quick when he saw I was looking at him. He never said a word or waved, just walked back down the F.S. road that leads to the campsite. Probably just a local out for an evening walk, but it was creepy to say the least. I didn't sleep well that night.

hiker33
05-13-2009, 19:44
I maintained the section in NC from Big Stamp north to Little Bald, including Bald Mtn. Shelter, for about a decade. I made several trips a year to do trail work, and for all those years I always had a feeling of being watched in one particular section of trail, about 0.3 miles N of the shelter. There's a side trail down to a spring in a rhodo thicket and people sometimes camp near the junction. I always had a creepy feeling and would find myself looking behind me and going faster through that section of trail. Going down the side trail to clean the spring and clear the trail was the worst, as visibility in the rhododendron was very limited. I later learned that this trail continued down into Tennessee and was occasionally used by hunters and other locals to reach the shelter. One other thing was that this section was always very quiet, no birds or other sounds. The rest of the section had normal woods noises and you could hear barking dogs and vehicles in the distance.

I've hiked and camped alone for many years and have never experienced this feeling elsewhere. I've always thought that this was very odd since I'm not one to spook easilly or let my imagination run wild. Wish I could say that I actually saw something, but I never did. Just this creepy feeling that would come upon me even when I wasn't thinking about it. I recognized a pattern after the third or fourth time.:-?

Seeker
05-13-2009, 23:37
There are a few spots on the trail I would consider unsettling.

The trail between Paul C Wolf and Rockfish Gap by some old homesites. That place feels strange to me.

And the place in PA where the hikers wer killed. Yes the shelter is gone (Thelma Marks, I think), but that area too doesn't feel right. I went through there in a hurry.

But the most unsettling places off trail are Civil War battlefields, namely Antietam by the bridge. You can smell gunpowder. In the trenches at Wilderness, the leaves are a different color, like brownish black than the rest of the forest. And Spotsylvania battlefield, that place just feels awful.

wow. and i thought i was the only one that happens to... Gettysburg did that to me, as well as a few places in europe... The Somme, Dachau, Normandy, and a few others...

zoidfu
05-13-2009, 23:55
There are a few spots on the trail I would consider unsettling.

The trail between Paul C Wolf and Rockfish Gap by some old homesites. That place feels strange to me.

And the place in PA where the hikers wer killed. Yes the shelter is gone (Thelma Marks, I think), but that area too doesn't feel right. I went through there in a hurry.

But the most unsettling places off trail are Civil War battlefields, namely Antietam by the bridge. You can smell gunpowder. In the trenches at Wilderness, the leaves are a different color, like brownish black than the rest of the forest. And Spotsylvania battlefield, that place just feels awful.

You're definitely right about the Cove Mountain shelter area(formerly Thelma Marks). My friends and I have discussed why it feels creepy there many times and we came up with-

The damage to the trees caused by moths/porcupines makes it seem, for lack of a better word, skeletal
+
the fact that the upper canopies are seemingly untouched(thusly blocking out the sun) makes it feel like it's darker than what it really is.
+
It's also very quiet up there

Add that to the story and there you go.

Phoenixdadeadhead
05-13-2009, 23:56
As for what Phoenix said, having served in the military myself, I would put more weight on the idea that it was an experimental aircraft being tested by the military. Even more so, considering the area that you were in. Yuma, El Toro, and other bases of that type that are far out from places of habitation are often the best test sites for new technology. Not that I'm one to discount the possibility of extraterrestrial life, since I think if we are the only sentient beings in the universe then God wastes an awful lot of space for just us, but in the place and time that you saw these things, I would be more likely to chalk it up to military testing than UFOs.
Yeah for years that was my thought especially considering how close I was to Yuma, and my grandfather would neither confirm nor deny a plane that would react the way I saw (he worked there at the time and for many years prior) Once the F22 came out I was sure that was all it was was an F22 and some flares. I had not really considered anything else till about 6 months back when I saw a show on Discovery, and many people had described the same thing. Still like you I lean more to it being an aircraft, even though I do believe that out there somewhere there is life.

snowhoe
05-14-2009, 00:03
I hate this post. Two things I am SOOOO scared of Ghost and UFO. Engine I could barely read your post. I absoulty freak out. Uncontrolably freak out. I once went to one of those cheesy haunted houses with some friends one Halloween and I pushed a 12 year old kid down and a 9 year old kid into the Mike Myers he had a chainsaw and was asked to leave by the owners of the haunted house. I HATE IT !!!!

Jayboflavin04
05-14-2009, 01:00
This isnt my story but I will share it anyway.

My friend was hiking with buddy who was dying of cancer. They got on the trail at devils fork gap, and got off at sams gap(just to give you an idea of how slow they were moving). The second day they were out the gentleman with cancer said to my friend. "Do you see that." My friend responded "No." He then asked him what he saw. He said, "You really dont see those two little colored girls in their plantaion dresses right over there playing." My friend said this dude probably watched these two girls playing for about 5 min, and that the look on his face was the for real.

World-Wide
05-14-2009, 03:13
Back in 1993 I was stationed in Ohio at Wright Patterson, AFB. I friend of mine lived in base housing with his wife and they where returning home from a late night dinner. After taking several steps he realized that he forgot the left-overs and told his wife to go ahead and he'll catch up. After grabbing the food he started walking back to the house and saw his wife looking thru the window pane of the door. He was feeling friskey so he blew a few kisses and made some obscene gestures with his tongue. When he was about 15 feet from the door he realized it wasn't his wife and he could see the clock on the microwave in the background thru the women's face. Fearing his wife might be in danger he burst thru the door only to see the transparent women turn and swiftly drift out of sight. He never mentioned it to his wife for the sake of needless worry. He thought perhaps he just imagined it. The very next evening William was watching late night T.V. when he heard his wife scream in their upstairs bedroom. He rushed up there and his wife said that there was a woman standing at the foot of the bed. They left that evening for a hotel and two days later me and a couple other friends were helping him move out of base housing.

zoidfu
05-14-2009, 06:00
It would seem that the use of psychoactive drugs on the AT is vastly underreported:-?;)

World-Wide
05-14-2009, 06:04
I solo hiked the Northville lake Placid Trail in the Adirondacks. The first night in the High Peaks Wilderness(10th day on the trail) about 40 miles from the finish I stayed in a shelter alone.

I woke up in the middle of the night and there was a ghost tent pitched in the shelter. It was whitish and spooky.
I thought about running but it was the middle of a dark night so I covered myself and just didnt look that way again that night. The next morning I was relieved to have gotten through the night.
What a scare!


A day or two later I camped by a river that had the rock that is supposed to be the same as that on the moon. I was alone again and
it was the late afternoon. I hung my pack in the shelter directly over my head; I lay down to relax and looked straight up at it.
This dull orange glow was coming from the bottom of my pack. I kept blinking my eyes but it would nt go away. It must have been there a good half hour and was really strange and a little scary. I couldnt explain it. The night and sleep went smoothly though.


I drank way too much snake-saki in mainland Japan back in "90" and saw an orange glow for a couple days, but never on the bottom of my pack! :)

Spogatz
05-14-2009, 08:43
Back when I was a teen I saw a UFO once. It came up out of a swampy area near the house and took off streaking across the sky. Pretty cool.

zoidfu
05-14-2009, 08:47
Why, oh why does it always happen to the people that don't have cameras!!! Answer me!

vamelungeon
05-14-2009, 09:03
If you study the folklore of the Cherokee and Shawnee you'll find lot of stories about spirits, little people and super-animals inhabiting specific places in the Appalachians. I've been in a few places where I got spooked or felt like I was being watched, and I've seen and heard some odd things over the years. Maybe the Indian legends were a way of explaining the unexplainable or maybe there's something to it. It's interesting to me either way.

2011_thruhiker
05-14-2009, 09:19
Dudley Town in Cornwall,Connecticut...it is an old "ghost town" (only thing that is left is foundations)-a settlement on the side of the mountain from the 1700's. It is reported that the entire town died of unnatural causes and accidents while it was a active town...It is creepy to hike through there-no birds, no wildlife-just dead quiet and an unsettling feeling that someone is not only watching you-but following you and an impending "doom".

A friend of mine owns a share in the property-it sits across the road from her house, I went in there once-thought it would be neat, while I stayed at her house-as I had heard the stories-there was nothing "neat" about it-I hiked in there alone and I will never go back again. An hour was all I could stand before I hiked-ran the hell out of there.

I am not sure if I still believe all the stories about the place-but there is something definately not right about it.

Here's a link detailing the history of it... http://www.ghostvillage.com/legends/dudleytown.shtml

JokerJersey
05-14-2009, 09:32
Why, oh why does it always happen to the people that don't have cameras!!! Answer me!

How many people do you know who walk around with thier cameras out all day? A lot of "incidents" happen in the space of a few seconds, during which most people would stand there with thier mouths gaping open.

I watched in amazement one day when I saw a pair of bald eagles mating, then one landed in the road right in the middle of an intersection right in front of me, looked at all the cars, took a hop or two, then launched himself into the air. Ten minutes later when I got to work, I realized I had my digital camera sitting right next to me on the seat, but while it was happening, I didn't even think of it.

World-Wide
05-14-2009, 09:43
How many people do you know who walk around with thier cameras out all day? A lot of "incidents" happen in the space of a few seconds, during which most people would stand there with thier mouths gaping open.

I watched in amazement one day when I saw a pair of bald eagles mating, then one landed in the road right in the middle of an intersection right in front of me, looked at all the cars, took a hop or two, then launched himself into the air. Ten minutes later when I got to work, I realized I had my digital camera sitting right next to me on the seat, but while it was happening, I didn't even think of it.


Too Bad JJ,
That would have been an awesome bald eagle porno flick! Might have been able to sell it to some racoons on my 2010 thru-hike! :D J/K

Gray Blazer
05-14-2009, 10:57
Why, oh why does it always happen to the people that don't have cameras!!! Answer me!
When I saw Big Foot's foot prints plain as day, I had my camera in my front pocket. I still regret not photographing the extremely fresh prints, but, I was a little apprehensive (to say the least). I just wanted to get out of there and back to my car.

World-Wide
05-14-2009, 11:03
when I Saw Big Foot's Foot Prints Plain As Day, I Had My Camera In My Front Pocket. I Still Regret Not Photographing The Extremely Fresh Prints, But, I Was A Little Apprehensive (to Say The Least). I Just Wanted To Get Out Of There And Back To My Car.

Lol................:d

KevinAce
05-14-2009, 11:42
Back in 1993 I was stationed in Ohio at Wright Patterson, AFB. I friend of mine lived in base housing with his wife and they where returning home from a late night dinner. After taking several steps he realized that he forgot the left-overs and told his wife to go ahead and he'll catch up. After grabbing the food he started walking back to the house and saw his wife looking thru the window pane of the door. He was feeling friskey so he blew a few kisses and made some obscene gestures with his tongue. When he was about 15 feet from the door he realized it wasn't his wife and he could see the clock on the microwave in the background thru the women's face. Fearing his wife might be in danger he burst thru the door only to see the transparent women turn and swiftly drift out of sight. He never mentioned it to his wife for the sake of needless worry. He thought perhaps he just imagined it. The very next evening William was watching late night T.V. when he heard his wife scream in their upstairs bedroom. He rushed up there and his wife said that there was a woman standing at the foot of the bed. They left that evening for a hotel and two days later me and a couple other friends were helping him move out of base housing.I live about 5 minutes from WPAFB. There are a lot of haunted stories I've heard from many people about the base and surrounding housings. Ghost Hunters even did an episode on it (http://www.wpafb.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123081947).

vamelungeon
05-14-2009, 12:10
I live about 5 minutes from WPAFB. There are a lot of haunted stories I've heard from many people about the base and surrounding housings. Ghost Hunters even did an episode on it (http://www.wpafb.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123081947).

I will be visiting Wright-Pat this weekend, specifically the museum. Hopefully there won't be any supernatural episodes while I'm there.

Gray Blazer
05-14-2009, 13:21
Lol................:d
How did you get all my words capitalized? You are not a capitalist, are you?

BTW, I believe in Big Foot. That was a true story. There have been many Big Foot sightings in the Ocala National Forest and the Etoniah Creek State Forest (where I saw the footprints).

jody
05-14-2009, 19:47
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Originally Posted by The Hog http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/styles/wb_style/buttons/viewpost.gif (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?p=90439#post90439)
I spent a night alone in the Wapiti II ("Wapitu") shelter a year after the murders took place. I don't believe in ghosts, but that place may be haunted. It's beyond creepy. Believing that the murders had actually taken place at the other Wapiti shelter, I awoke in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, feeling unalloyed fear and knowing I had made a mistake.
Jess Carr's book was not very well written, IMO, and his portrayal of thru hikers was off the mark.

In 1981 I was the last hiker to stay at Wapiti II Shelter before the bodies were found. The girl's body was found the next day.

I also experienced terror (no other word for it) at the shelter. I had fallen asleep, but woke up suddenly because I felt hands on my head and shoulders. But there was no one there. No other hikers spending the night. No one there period. There was still enough post-sunset light coming through the trees that I would have been able to see had someone been there.

I managed the 16 miles to the Catholic hostel the next day. That evening I was up in the loft trying to fall asleep when someone burst into the hostel and announced that the first body had been found. The next morning I summoned the courage to tell the priest, Father Winter, what I had experienced at the leanto. I remember that my chest was heaving as I told the story. After what I told him he felt the need to perform "an exorcism" at the leanto. At his request I went back to the leanto with him. So did a couple of other hikers. So did Mr. Mountford. Bob Jr. was still missing at that point.

As we arrived at the leanto, cops were shouldering shovels, etc, and cavalierly announced that Bob Mountford, Jr.'s body had just been found. That's how Mr. Mountford got the news.

A number of years later I was backpacking somewhere. It had rained all day. I was aiming for a leanto and hoped there would be room. It was still raining when I got to the leanto. The leanto was full, albeit there was elbow room. A nice woman offered that they would all scoot over and make room for me. I didn't have a chance to say anything before they all dutifully started to shift over to my right as I stood there looking at them. I politely declined and said I would sleep in my tent. The woman, incredulous, demanded, "WHY?!?" I looked at the floorspace they had created for me, and really did not have an answer. It then dawned on me that ever since I had stayed in Wapiti II Shelter years before, I had forever after shunned the left side of any leanto; i.e., where one of them (presumably Bob Mountford) had bleed to death, and the killer had tried to cover up his crime by smearing the floor with black carbon from the fireplace. It had been a subconscious thing until that moment when the woman confronted me and made me confront it myself.

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/styles/wb_style/buttons/quote.gif (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=837519) http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/styles/wb_style/buttons/multiquote_off.gif (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=837519) http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/styles/wb_style/buttons/quickreply.gif (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=837519)
Thought you might find this interesting.....

jody
05-14-2009, 19:52
Sorry Im new at posting on here and had just read these posts a couple days ago. It is 2 different posters. Thought you might find it interesting and relavent to the thread. Hope you can make heads or tails out of it..

Engine
05-14-2009, 20:26
Why, oh why does it always happen to the people that don't have cameras!!! Answer me!

"They" know we don't have a camera at the time...self explanatory really. :)

Engine
05-14-2009, 20:28
How did you get all my words capitalized? You are not a capitalist, are you?

BTW, I believe in Big Foot. That was a true story. There have been many Big Foot sightings in the Ocala National Forest and the Etoniah Creek State Forest (where I saw the footprints).

Down there he prefers to be called Skunk Ape. :D

World-Wide
05-14-2009, 20:32
How did you get all my words capitalized? You are not a capitalist, are you?

BTW, I believe in Big Foot. That was a true story. There have been many Big Foot sightings in the Ocala National Forest and the Etoniah Creek State Forest (where I saw the footprints).

My bad!! Good story though...........world-wide

Cassie
05-14-2009, 20:59
I keep passing up this thread because my experience sounds so weird, but here it goes:

I was SOBO a day or two north of Partnership Shelter. I tented off the trail in a little clearing. About 2:30 A.M. I had to go to the bathroom. I carefully looked around outside my tent (snakes) and walked a bit away from my tent towards the edge of the clearing. It was totally quiet but sometimes the woods go quiet like that when you move around with a headlamp at night.

As I walked back to my tent I saw two large pairs of eyes looking at me about twenty feet away. They were the same color green that some animal eyes are when they reflect light at night. They weren't that glassy green that animal eyes are, they were just flat and glowing. The eyes didn't have an animal shape, either, they had that - forgive me - angry skull eye shape, that's the only way I can describe it. If I drew it for you you'd know what I mean. It was completely quiet and they were just sitting there in the middle of the air about five and a half and six feet off the ground (I'm six feet tall and one was just above eye level). Unblinking. Not hovering. Just staring and still. Looking right at me they way you'd look at a curious animal in a zoo.

I decided they had to be animals. Really tall deer with cataracts or something (I was trying hard not to think of that angry skull thing). I started whooping and clapping my hands to scare them off. They didn't move. Baroo? I tried again and finally each turned away from me and just floated away; it was pitch dark - no moon - and once the eyes turned away from me I couldn't seem them anymore, their eyes sort of slipped out of view the way they would if they'd been wearing hoods or cloaks. The place was full of dead leaves on the ground and they made absolutely no sound as they moved off. I kept making noise for a while then climbed back into my tent and tried to forget about it.

I thought maybe they'd been birds perched on a tree branch or something but in the morning I went over to the spot where they'd been and it was clear, two or three small boulders but no trees.

DAJA
05-14-2009, 21:15
I keep passing up this thread because my experience sounds so weird, but here it goes:

I was SOBO a day or two north of Partnership Shelter. I tented off the trail in a little clearing. About 2:30 A.M. I had to go to the bathroom. I carefully looked around outside my tent (snakes) and walked a bit away from my tent towards the edge of the clearing. It was totally quiet but sometimes the woods go quiet like that when you move around with a headlamp at night.

As I walked back to my tent I saw two large pairs of eyes looking at me about twenty feet away. They were the same color green that some animal eyes are when they reflect light at night. They weren't that glassy green that animal eyes are, they were just flat and glowing. The eyes didn't have an animal shape, either, they had that - forgive me - angry skull eye shape, that's the only way I can describe it. If I drew it for you you'd know what I mean. It was completely quiet and they were just sitting there in the middle of the air about five and a half and six feet off the ground (I'm six feet tall and one was just above eye level). Unblinking. Not hovering. Just staring and still. Looking right at me they way you'd look at a curious animal in a zoo.

I decided they had to be animals. Really tall deer with cataracts or something (I was trying hard not to think of that angry skull thing). I started whooping and clapping my hands to scare them off. They didn't move. Baroo? I tried again and finally each turned away from me and just floated away; it was pitch dark - no moon - and once the eyes turned away from me I couldn't seem them anymore, their eyes sort of slipped out of view the way they would if they'd been wearing hoods or cloaks. The place was full of dead leaves on the ground and they made absolutely no sound as they moved off. I kept making noise for a while then climbed back into my tent and tried to forget about it.

I thought maybe they'd been birds perched on a tree branch or something but in the morning I went over to the spot where they'd been and it was clear, two or three small boulders but no trees.

Yikes... that is some serious pucker factor!!!:eek:

DAJA
05-14-2009, 21:16
Keep em coming, i'm loving this thread!

wnbresn
05-14-2009, 21:49
I'm an old time skeptic. I look for things that go bump in the night and so far in my 50 years I have never had anything happen that was not easily explained. Back in my 20's I spent years going to every haunted place I heard about all over CT including Dudley town. There was never any ghostly things happening. In fact I firmly believe the fastest way to clear a haunted house is just have a skeptic move in. I would love to see a real show on TV involving real skeptics with engineering degrees going into these places. Even that TAPS show lately has become a joke. I'm sorry but those toys they use prove nothing especially those EMF detectors. As an electrical engineer I cringe when I watch these idiots parade around with them. They prove nothing. ANY house will have high low EMF spikes depending on whats in the wall. And any show that uses those idiotic fake psychics telling ghost stories is bogus from the start.

As to big foot... another myth. There has not been a new large species of animal discovered in this country in almost a century. Big animals like big foot would be always leave traces of its passing that are easily found. Fur, droppings, bodies or bones. Nothing has ever been found that stood even a simple scientific find. It always turns out to be the remains of something common and local....

BR360
05-14-2009, 22:19
One night last week we were camped at an old home site in GSMNP. ... we both heard voices entering the camping area around 9pm. The voices quieted down after a couple minutes ...

UN-spooky response:
Last June I was in the Cataloochee area of GSMNP hammocking at campsite # 41 on the Caldwell Fork Trail.

About 11:30 at night I heard voices along the trail maybe 50 yards from my campsite. They stopped and shone flashlights my way and talked, like they were checking out the camping area. After a few minutes, I yelled at them to quit shining their light my way. They quieted down and I didn't hear or see of them anymore.

In the morning, no sign of them. I figure they were rangers out checking for poachers...or something.

Hikerhead
05-14-2009, 22:27
I was hiking with Cookerhiker last year above Zealand Hut in the whites when a girl came around the corner about 100 yards in front of me. I heard something behind me and turned around, when I turned back around she was gone. I thought she must have went back up the trail for someone or something. I walked past where I last saw her and looked and looked everywhere but she was gone......really strange. I told Cookerhiker about this when I caught up to him.

Worth
05-14-2009, 22:30
I was on a paddling trip in Northern Ontario. On this particular day we entered a marsh and would be paddling in it for a couple of days. There were dead cedars that reached out over the river. Several times throughout the day I saw owls watching us. As the day went by it got hotter and hotter until there was a heavy fog in the air. I paddled out ahead of the group. Every now and then I felt like we were being watched. Looking towards the shore I would see something move behind a tree. I then began to navigate not by looking at what was around me but by looking at the reflections in the water. Hoz paddled up to me and ask what is up. I hushed him and told him we are being watched. I told him to paddle looking at the water's reflection. He responded no way, the spirits will talk to you. I told him, I know and paddled off. After seeing another owl or two I made the comment that I thought owls were nocturnal. No one responded.

When I got home I learned that my father died that day. I told my buddies and was told that many societies few owls as messengers of bad news. That was why no one responded to my comment. Because the 90 degree temperatures and thick fog seemed out of place, I took a picture. The picture is my proof that it was a strange day on the river.

zoidfu
05-14-2009, 22:49
I'm an old time skeptic. I look for things that go bump in the night and so far in my 50 years I have never had anything happen that was not easily explained. Back in my 20's I spent years going to every haunted place I heard about all over CT including Dudley town. There was never any ghostly things happening. In fact I firmly believe the fastest way to clear a haunted house is just have a skeptic move in. I would love to see a real show on TV involving real skeptics with engineering degrees going into these places. Even that TAPS show lately has become a joke. I'm sorry but those toys they use prove nothing especially those EMF detectors. As an electrical engineer I cringe when I watch these idiots parade around with them. They prove nothing. ANY house will have high low EMF spikes depending on whats in the wall. And any show that uses those idiotic fake psychics telling ghost stories is bogus from the start.

As to big foot... another myth. There has not been a new large species of animal discovered in this country in almost a century. Big animals like big foot would be always leave traces of its passing that are easily found. Fur, droppings, bodies or bones. Nothing has ever been found that stood even a simple scientific find. It always turns out to be the remains of something common and local....

Man.... I wanted to be the group skeptic:( You're more qualified than I am though...

Karrmer
05-14-2009, 22:53
Eh, I guess it all depends on what you believe. I don't understand how someone can believe in an afterlife, but no believe in ghosts or wandering spirits. If you can get lost on a trail, why couldn't a soul or spirit get lost on its "trail"?


I'm definitely not a believe in the whole "ghosts" thing; mainly all the stories of people seeing and hearing them.

If that is possible then when I die I will be flying around during the Superbowl and any major event I can think of. I will fly through people and flip around in the air making dolphin sounds. It will be glorious.

Now I kinda hope ghosts are real so I can have my fun after I pass.

wnbresn
05-14-2009, 23:05
Man.... I wanted to be the group skeptic:( You're more qualified than I am though...

lol plenty of room for skeptics. I would love to be able to believe in ghosts but so far every time I have ever seen something go bump in the night it only takes me a few minutes to find out what it was. It does'nt help when you have the phonies out there playing off of peoples fears. Ever notice how things have to be dark before the real spooking begins? You never hear of ghosts popping up in Manhatten at noon. It always happend in the dark quiet spooky places where our minds go into protective overdrive.....

Nicksaari
05-14-2009, 23:16
camped at sky meadows state park one night and i swear i heard Mosby's rangers galloping by. i kid you not- horses and equipment clinking and clanging. scared the bejesus out of me.

prain4u
05-14-2009, 23:38
Many years ago, I was camping with friends in a tiny clearing located along a small stream in a wooded area of Northern Wisconsin. (I was an older teenager at the time). I woke up just after dawn and I had to go to the bathroom. So, I exited my tent--which as located about 50 feet away from the small river. I was the only one awake in our camp at the time--or so I thought.

I noticed someone crouched down at the edge of the river--dipping their hand into the water and lifting it to their mouth to drink. The person must have heard me moving around, because he turned and looked right at me--and stared at me for a few seconds (as he slowly rose to his feet). He appeared to be in his late teens or early 20's. He stared at me for a few more seconds and then slowly walked about 30-40 feet along the edge of the stream (without making a sound). He then vanished (sort of dissolved into thin air).

This experience was freaky enough. What made it even more freaky was the fact that the person was dressed in what appeared to be old-time Native American attire.
I QUICKLY went back into my tent and awoke my friend and made him come with me to the riverbank to check out the area. The ground along the riverbank was very soft and muddy--BUT THERE WERE ABSOLUTELY NO FOOTPRINTS!

Needless to say, we decided not to camp there a second night!

Roan Creeper
05-14-2009, 23:58
I was hiking alone one day along the Doe River and I had been hiking about 2 hours without seeing or hearing anyone. I stopped to take a drink, eat a snack and suddenly I heard some cough. I freaked out alittle because I knew I had not seen anyone since the trailhead. I walked on up and saw a guy standing in the river fly fishing. He looked up and about jumped out of his waders when he saw me.

We both laughed and stated we scared each other.

sliderule
05-15-2009, 00:09
...we both heard voices entering the camping area around 9pm.

I wish I had a nickel for every time I have heard voices coming up or down the trail...and no one was there.

TIDE-HSV
05-15-2009, 00:18
I've had many times when I was a bit unnerved, but one still sticks out. It was August, 1974, and I was hiking with my daughter, 11 at the time, in the GSMNP. We started out from Clingman's dome, down Forney Creek, camped near the Fontana Lake at the old CCC camp, and then headed up Bee Branch (another story there - the bees gave us hell) to Forney Ridge. There was an old trail showing on the map, which more or less crossed over the ridge into the Noland Creek valley, which we were going to follow to our pickup at the end of the Road to Nowhere (may it ever remain such). Well, the old trail was grown in, so we had to turn north along the ridge to another connector. The spooky part was that we were stalked the entire distance until we left the ridge to the east (right) to go down into Noland Creek. The trail slabbed right (east) along below the summit of the ridge. Whatever was following us was above us and to the left and it was fairly loud, moving through the brush. My daughter never heard it and I wasn't going to let her know I was worried. I stopped suddenly several times to see if it stopped. It did, a second or so after we did. It would start back when we did. The only animals I could think of big enough to match the noise were bear and deer, and I never heard of deer following like that. In fact, I'd never heard of a bear doing it either. "Deliverance" aside, I didn't know what it could be. We had, best as I remember, a couple of miles to make along that ridge and our companion was with us the entire stretch. When we took a hard right, off the ridge and down into the creek drainage, our shadow didn't come with us. I've never been so happy to get off a ridge in my life, except for a couple of electrical storms...

sliderule
05-15-2009, 01:33
Sitting around a fire at Icewater Springs one night. A piece of burning wood popped and something in the bushes 20 yards away jumped. This went on for over an hour. Every time the fire popped, something in the same location would jump. Never saw what it was, but it is amazing that an animal would stand in the same spot watching a bunch of hikers sitting around a fire for that long.

Nearly Normal
05-15-2009, 02:19
Saw a supersized fat guy once just before Kelly Knob with nose hairs about 3 inches long. It was windy and they waved around curiously.

Engine
05-15-2009, 06:44
UN-spooky response:
Last June I was in the Cataloochee area of GSMNP hammocking at campsite # 41 on the Caldwell Fork Trail.

About 11:30 at night I heard voices along the trail maybe 50 yards from my campsite. They stopped and shone flashlights my way and talked, like they were checking out the camping area. After a few minutes, I yelled at them to quit shining their light my way. They quieted down and I didn't hear or see of them anymore.

In the morning, no sign of them. I figure they were rangers out checking for poachers...or something.

There were definitely no lights in the area on this night, and as I pointed out, no tracks in the damp soil along the trail into camp that weren't ours. I don't rule out an explanation like yours, but it seems unlikely. I should also mention that in order to leave the area they would have had to hike an honest 15 miles back out after dark! Both stream crossings to get out of there were too laden with water to cross.

Engine
05-15-2009, 06:50
Saw a supersized fat guy once just before Kelly Knob with nose hairs about 3 inches long. It was windy and they waved around curiously.

I think I met that guy on a cruise ship once. He was eating across from me and I could hardly concentrate on the meal.

Homer&Marje
05-15-2009, 07:05
Not really too many spooky experiences but last summer at Guyot we were in the middle of one of the crazy rain storms from last summer. Could hear trees coming down all over the woods and the tent was blue most of the time awash with lightning glow. We survived....no S&R needed:D

Gray Blazer
05-15-2009, 07:11
Down there he prefers to be called Skunk Ape. :D

Over by Palatka, they call it the Bardin Booger. There is a Bardin Booger museum in Bardin of all places. The FT used to go thru the Bardin Booger Woods north of Rice Creek.

saimyoji
05-15-2009, 07:13
Saw a supersized fat guy once just before Kelly Knob with nose hairs about 3 inches long. It was windy and they waved around curiously.

sounds like my mother in law.

Gray Blazer
05-15-2009, 07:15
I'm an old time skeptic. I look for things that go bump in the night and so far in my 50 years I have never had anything happen that was not easily explained. Back in my 20's I spent years going to every haunted place I heard about all over CT including Dudley town. There was never any ghostly things happening.

As to big foot... another myth. There has not been a new large species of animal discovered in this country in almost a century. Big animals like big foot would be always leave traces of its passing that are easily found. Fur, droppings, bodies or bones. Nothing has ever been found that stood even a simple scientific find. It always turns out to be the remains of something common and local....


You would think so. Lots of people here have seen him including two of my boys.

Engine
05-15-2009, 07:53
sounds like my mother in law.

Ouch, don't women typically end up looking like their mom? :cool:

World-Wide
05-15-2009, 08:14
You would think so. Lots of people here have seen him including two of my boys.

I agree w/Gray Blazer! There has to be a "Big Foot!" How else would have Eddie Murphy come up with the famous "Big Foot" quote of: Goonie-Goo-Goo? :eek: Big Foot is real I tell ya!!

sherrill
05-15-2009, 08:33
Not on the AT, but,

Last summer my wife and I did the Inca Trail. We camped above Phuyupatamarca the third night. This campsite is at 12k and is a very remote location in the Andes before you get to Machu Picchu.

It rained that night, I woke up and tried to wait for the rain to let up so I could pee (you guys know what that's like!). So, during a lull, about 2 am, I made my way out to a spot overlooking the ruins.

The clouds were hanging low in the valley above the ruins and there was a bluish glow coming from the middle that illuminated the whole valley floor. I remember wishing I could take a picture because it was so beautiful. Went back to the tent and to sleep.

When I mentioned this to our guide, a Quecha woman who has guided over 50 Inca Trail expeditions, she got a funny look on her face and said that other guides and porters would talk about this in hushed tones but she had never seen it herself. In fact, she said she had gotten up at approximately the same time to use the bathroom and remembered looking over the valley and seeing nothing.

In fact, when I inquired with the head porter, he didn't want to talk about it. Neither did any of the other porters in our group.

I tried to do some online research on it when I got home but came up empty. So, to this day, still not sure what I saw.

Engine
05-15-2009, 08:57
This is good stuff everyone, thanks for sharing! :)

Farr Away
05-15-2009, 10:03
Why, oh why does it always happen to the people that don't have cameras!!! Answer me!

Wouldn't matter if they had a camera. Most times the photo op happens unexpectedly, and the camera isn't even thought of until it's over.

Not a spooky story, but a couple years ago I almost walked into a bear (15 yards?) on the AT up from Fontana Dam. I had a camera; my hiking buddy who told me to "hold up" had a camera. Neither one of us got a picture.

jrnj5k
05-15-2009, 11:55
First few camping trips every branch that fell in the woods or squirrel runnin around I swore was a bear waiting to eat me.

Homer&Marje
05-15-2009, 14:35
If I go back to California to hike I'll be scared of those Devil Jays out there. Like the common Blue Jay but they have a big triangular feather on the top of their head. And they are mean as hell. Will attack you for your dinner or for no reason at all and they just sit in the trees and squawk at you when they aren't attacking you.

Engine
05-15-2009, 15:38
If I go back to California to hike I'll be scared of those Devil Jays out there. Like the common Blue Jay but they have a big triangular feather on the top of their head. And they are mean as hell. Will attack you for your dinner or for no reason at all and they just sit in the trees and squawk at you when they aren't attacking you.

I forget what they are called, but there is a type of parrot like bird in New Zealand that are horrible little miscreants. They will destroy just about anything you leave laying around.

hawkeye
05-15-2009, 16:06
I was at Limestone Springs shelter in Ct a few years ago. I just got to the shelter and I heard a load crash behind me. A widow Maker about 10 ft long was laying on the path where I was just on. 10 sec later and my wife would have been a widow!

World-Wide
05-15-2009, 23:02
I forget what they are called, but there is a type of parrot like bird in New Zealand that are horrible little miscreants. They will destroy just about anything you leave laying around.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Kea.jpg/250px-Kea.jpg (http://www.whiteblaze.net/wiki/File:Kea.jpg) New Zealand Kea!

Engine
05-16-2009, 06:41
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Kea.jpg/250px-Kea.jpg (http://www.whiteblaze.net/wiki/File:Kea.jpg) New Zealand Kea!

Yup, that's the culprit!

Phoenix7
05-16-2009, 11:12
Up until 1996 more people had died on Mt. Washington than on Mt. Everest. When you hike up the mountain coming from Lakes of the Clouds there is a wooden cross which marks the spot where a hiker perished. If any place on the AT would be haunted I would think Washington would be the perfect place. I've never seen any paranormal activity there but above treeline, it is kind of eerie.

Bearpaw
05-16-2009, 11:27
My spookiest experience on the AT was coming out of Hanover, NH late afternoon. It turned foggy and it was slap dark by the time I found the sided trail to the first shelter. Besides the fog, blue blazes don't show up so well in the dark, the trail was simply rocks with no actual tread, and the ".2 miles" was more like .4, so I was convinced I was lost.

It still wouldn't have been bad, except I had just watched Blair Witch Project the day before in Hanover. Now THAT made it spooky!

World-Wide
05-16-2009, 11:35
My spookiest experience on the AT was coming out of Hanover, NH late afternoon. It turned foggy and it was slap dark by the time I found the sided trail to the first shelter. Besides the fog, blue blazes don't show up so well in the dark, the trail was simply rocks with no actual tread, and the ".2 miles" was more like .4, so I was convinced I was lost.

It still wouldn't have been bad, except I had just watched Blair Witch Project the day before in Hanover. Now THAT made it spooky!

Watched the "Exorcist" and then had to walk down a long set of stairs!:eek:

TIDE-HSV
05-16-2009, 11:41
Well another one from near the AT. I took my younger daughter, about ten at the time, to Walnut Bottoms in the GSMNP (just downhill, south from Low Gap on the AT). The first night we were there, I swung our food bag from a rope between two trees. It was, however, right by the tent. I was awakened by a loud "chunk" sound and the ground vibrating. It went on for a while. I was not about to leave the tent to investigate. My daughter never woke up. In the AM, the soft, sandy ground looked like a bear exercise ground, with paw prints all over the place. The bear had been jumping for the food bag. (Subsequent experiences with them taught me that they jump very poorly.) That area has always had a lot of bear problems. The campsite is frequently closed and they've been through a series of bear protection methods...

Grinder
05-16-2009, 11:44
Every morning I get up and some old guy looks out of the mirror at me.

I tell him to get out of the way, so I can see the real me, but he doesn't. He's real good at lip synch too!!

That's eerie

<G>

TIDE-HSV
05-16-2009, 11:49
There was a cute humor piece this AM on NPR - an iPhone app - i-Corsist, or something like that. Captures the demon in your hard drive... :)

Egads
05-16-2009, 11:50
I was in a deep sleep one night when I was suddenly awakened by a terrifyingly loud roaring and bright lights approaching very quickly....damn plane

Trail Bug
05-16-2009, 15:39
Only been really scared in the woods one time. Happened near the St. Mary's Wilderness area in 1984. Don't know what it was, but it was a lot bigger than a bear and walked on two legs. Here is the report. http://www.bfro.net/GDB/show_report.asp?id=16777

excuses
05-16-2009, 23:23
I was hiking near sunset last year when I thought I'd set the hammock on the other side of the next clearing. It turned out to be where the Sheldon graves are. That was spooky hiking through there. I felt I was being watched you know the whole hair raising thing. I hike on until Jerry Cabin Shelter. Not another problem like that again.

stranger
05-17-2009, 04:41
I've had 3 spooky experiences, the 3 times I went into Gatlinburg

Chaco Taco
05-20-2009, 16:22
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3274/2926869841_46e4ef508b_o.gif

gravityman
05-20-2009, 17:18
March 30th-ish 2001 in Clyde Smith Shelter. Woke up trying to scream from my dream but couldn't. I was dreaming that I was a little girl standing at a window in a huge skyscraper watching a plane come at me. I woke up just as it hit. I couldn't believe how much grief I had in my head when I woke up, thinking about how my mother would feel knowing I had just been killed.

It was very vivid, but I couldn't imagine where that dream came from. I was a 29 year old man, and never dreamed about being a little girl, nor was I afraid of flying at all. But that dream stuck with me. A few days after Sept 11th it hit me like a brick to the head how similar that dream was to what happened on the 11th...

Gravity

flemdawg1
05-20-2009, 17:48
Dangit Gravity you could've stopped the whole dang thing.

DAJA
05-20-2009, 17:56
Back in my military days during basic at CFB Gagetown, NB I drew the 2am sentry duty while in the bush on one of the battle exercises. We had been warned that the now disbanded Airborne regiment (Canada’s old version of special forces) where in the area for training. The reason we had been warned is because these guys where notorious for using other units as “training exercises” if they discover them… Being nubs, and beginning to understand that the instructors loved to play mind games, we assumed this was one of their games to try and scare us…

Anyway, so I’m sitting amongst the branches of a fallen spruce tree for cover, at the edge of the tree line watching an open clearing at 2am while my unit slept. We were conducting a mock battle with the other half of our unit. I was edgy at first, reacting to twig snaps, and mistaking fire flies for cat eye reflectors on our helmets, but after 15mins I started to settle in and relax. That suddenly changed.

Without so much as hearing a breath, I was snatched from my perch with a violent and forceful tug, hand over my mouth, nose plugged, knife at my throat. This all happened in less than a second, and whatever maneuver they used to snatch me, ceased all the breath from my lungs not allowing me to yell.. Before I knew it, I had been placed face down, still unable to breathe or speak, riot cuffs put on my hands and a bag over the head, and then I was quickly lifted and moved quickly out of the area.

After what seemed like 10 – 15 minutes of being kicked and pushed through the bush we finally came to a stop where they stripped off my belt and bootlaces and informed me I was now a prisoner of war of the Airborne.

For the next 3 – 4 hours (or just before dawn) they trudged me through swamps and thickets. Taking turns kicking and pushing me all over the place. Finally when they got board of knocking me around, they pulled a sleeping bag over my head, tied a rope around my ankles and hoisted me up into a tree. And then it was quite.

My unit found me later that day sometime after lunch… There is no describing the headache I had from hanging in this bag for hours. When they brought me to ground and pulled the bag off of me, I could see the looks of discomfort in my fellow troop mates faces. Later when they got me to the medic office to be checked out I could not believe my condition. There was barely a square inch of my body that didn’t have some form of bruise or abrasion…

Even though I was aware I was truly safe (training area) it still to this day spooks me when I think about it… Just how silently and suddenly they took control of me, and how helpless I was… I think that was the only time our instructors where being honest with us when they warned us about the Airborne… Even if I had taken them serious, I don’t think I could have done anything different to prevent that night.. Very very capable men!

Gray Blazer
05-21-2009, 11:03
Good story, DAJA.

Did you guys see cosmos new picture in the WB gallery from 2 days ago of the stairway at the Doyle? The spirit orb has a face in it! (You gotta lean your head to the right a little.)

Gray Blazer
05-21-2009, 11:50
Good story, DAJA.

Did you guys see cosmos new picture in the WB gallery from 2 days ago of the stairway at the Doyle? The spirit orb has a face in it! (You gotta lean your head to the right a little.)

Sorry, I mean your other right (left).

Gray Blazer
05-21-2009, 11:52
I was right the first time.

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=33700&catid=newimages&cutoffdate=7

Gray Blazer
05-21-2009, 12:36
I was right the first time.

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=33700&catid=newimages&cutoffdate=7
Enlarge it first.

Buzz_Lightfoot
05-21-2009, 13:05
Not on the AT but scarey none-the-less.

I was on a week long hike back into the five ponds wilderness in the western Adirondacks. It was mid-summer and almost completely empty of people. The whole week there I saw only two other hikers.

Other than vague trails in places the trip to my "base camp" was uneventful. It was a shelter I was planning on doing day hikes from all week to explore the surrounding wilderness.

The first night I did not make a fire. I was exausted after a long drive then a longer hike to the shelter. I just cooked dinner and set up my sleeping bag and pad went went to sleep.

Some hours later in the still of the night I was woken up by the sound of footsteps circling the shelter. Heavy footsteps. Figuring "animal" I shouted something and went back to sleep.

The next night the same thing happened. By now I was getting a little nervous and when I shouted it was half in fear!

Night three: Same thing. Me: "*** IS THAT!" :eek: Now I was getting seriously spooked. This night I had my flashlight out and ready. I shined the light out towards the sound and didnt see a thing. I shined it a little lower and nearly DIED!

Died of laughter. It was a snowshoe hare. Here I was a late 30's something man reduced to near terror by a rabbit!!!! :)

Beware, they are out there and have been known to eat hikers! :eek:

Engine
05-21-2009, 13:15
Not on the AT but scarey none-the-less.

I was on a week long hike back into the five ponds wilderness in the western Adirondacks. It was mid-summer and almost completely empty of people. The whole week there I saw only two other hikers.

Other than vague trails in places the trip to my "base camp" was uneventful. It was a shelter I was planning on doing day hikes from all week to explore the surrounding wilderness.

The first night I did not make a fire. I was exausted after a long drive then a longer hike to the shelter. I just cooked dinner and set up my sleeping bag and pad went went to sleep.

Some hours later in the still of the night I was woken up by the sound of footsteps circling the shelter. Heavy footsteps. Figuring "animal" I shouted something and went back to sleep.

The next night the same thing happened. By now I was getting a little nervous and when I shouted it was half in fear!

Night three: Same thing. Me: "*** IS THAT!" :eek: Now I was getting seriously spooked. This night I had my flashlight out and ready. I shined the light out towards the sound and didnt see a thing. I shined it a little lower and nearly DIED!

Died of laughter. It was a snowshoe hare. Here I was a late 30's something man reduced to near terror by a rabbit!!!! :)

Beware, they are out there and have been known to eat hikers! :eek:

Those nocturnal rabbits can be pretty scary, I had one hop out in front of me once and I jumped out of my skin. It is tough to admit though. :)

DAJA
05-21-2009, 13:38
Five yrs or so ago, my bro and I where doing a weeklong kayak trip down the coast of Maine. It was the first real long distance paddle trip either of us had done in open water.

On day two fog started to build almost from sun up and got thicker as the day went on. We both had deck compasses but our map was less than adiquate for any kind of useful navigation. By early evening the fog had grown so thick you could just see the bow of your boat but not much else, so we turned west until we where almost on shore and then followed the shore looking for a place to set up camp for the night.

By 7pm we where tired, hungry and a little concerned about the lack of visability and not entirely sure where exactly we where. So we hauled into shore, pulled our boats above high the high water mark, set up camp, cooked some dinner and retired for the nite.

Sometime after I fell asleep, I'm awaken by my bro unzipping the door to my tent saying he keeps hearing voices.. I sit up and listen, but being deaf in one ear can't hear anything. We sit and listen and every few seconds he'll say, "there did you hear those voices?" By this time i'm getting annoyed so I suggest he take his headlamp and go investigate. He finally gives up trying to coax me into going with him and returns to his tent to go to sleep.

Well this goes on for what seems like hours, him running back to my tent saying he hears voices, or snoring, or a sneeze, all night long...

Well morning comes around and a hot sun burns off the remaining fog giving us a clear view of our surroundings. Within 100 feet of us there where at least six tents. We had pulled ashore at Cobscook State Park and set our tents up right on the edge of the campground..

We look at each other and laugh, as that was our intended destination the previous day before giving up in the fog and pulling ashore.. Took a walk up to pay for our campsite, walked back loaded up the boats and carryed on...

Buzz_Lightfoot
05-21-2009, 14:28
Those nocturnal rabbits can be pretty scary, I had one hop out in front of me once and I jumped out of my skin. It is tough to admit though. :)

hehe. Yes, it is but sure makes a funny story. The snowshoe hares are large enough that they make a serious thumping noise. At least in such a quiet and remote place. Another memory from that trip was at dusk, sitting by the edge of the lake. It was so quiet I could hear the flutter of bats' wings. I should go back! :)

BL

McPick
05-21-2009, 15:39
[quote=Cassie;838850]I keep passing up this thread because my experience sounds so weird, but here it goes:

"As I walked back to my tent I saw two large pairs of eyes looking at me about twenty feet away..."

Interesting story, Cassie. Reminds me of this "Close Encounter of the Second Kind" I had at the Cornelius Shelter in '06.

I was "Home Alone" and just had my first (of 7) bear encounter earlier that evening, right at the shelter so I was a little jumpy anyway...

At about midnight I was awakened by what I can only describe as a loud snorting sound. I grabbed my headlamp and shone it around the front of the shelter. OMG! Directly in front of me, about 30 feet away, at ground level were two VERY LARGE greenish-blue eyes... Just looking at me... Not blinking... Just staring... I was petrified... I didn't move... The eyes didn't move... Then I heard the loud snorting again. The eyes rose off the ground about four feet still looking directly at me. My heart was pounding. Suddenly a deer walked out of the bushes. I was so relieved I had to go relieve myself! That deer snorted around the camp for about a half an hour. I finally fell back asleep.

About an hour later I was awakened by the feeling that something was poking at me. I put my light on. The deer had put its head into the shelter and was munching on the loop of my tent's groundcloth (which I always put down on the floors of shelters. My foot was 6 inches from the deer's head. I sat up and decided enough was enough and quietly (but firmly) told the deer to move along. It did, although it stayed around the camp all night. And I finally got back to sleep without incident for the rest of the night.

chrishowe11
05-23-2009, 12:44
here is a story that is not ghost or UFO, i had a english teacher in high school who had hiked the long trail southbound late fall... said she saw only a handful of people her whole hike. she had brought a digital camera to photograph the journey. When she finished the trail she went to go look at her pictures and there where pictures of her sleeping in her tent or in a shelter. The dates on the photos suggested this had happend 10 nights in a row. she didn't take those pictures she didn't hike with anyone. thats a good way to screw with someone

SteveJ
05-23-2009, 13:06
here is a story that is not ghost or UFO, i had a english teacher in high school who had hiked the long trail southbound late fall... said she saw only a handful of people her whole hike. she had brought a digital camera to photograph the journey. When she finished the trail she went to go look at her pictures and there where pictures of her sleeping in her tent or in a shelter. The dates on the photos suggested this had happend 10 nights in a row. she didn't take those pictures she didn't hike with anyone. thats a good way to screw with someone

damn - that sent chills up my spine!

chrishowe11
05-23-2009, 13:21
man could you imagine looking through all your awsome pictures and then suddenly seeing a person sleeping and then realizing it was you, and then realizing that you didnt take the picture... just the thought process scares me

chiefduffy
05-23-2009, 14:13
I had a couple of weird experiences on my '07 section hike. Here's a journal entry from May 4/07:
I was gettinG low on water, and it was hot. I came down into Beech Gap, and saw a blueblaze leading off into the rhododendrums and followed it a few hundred yards to a tiny spring. I filled my bottle, then soaked my bandana and wiped the sweat off my brow. When I returned to where I had dropped my pack, I took off my shoes, put my feet up on my pack, and lay my head back for a rest. A cool breeze whispered through the shade, and as has become my habit, I quickly fell deep asleep. After a little while, I saw a man standing next to me. He had on a shapeless brimmed hat, a brown jacket of some soft material that must have been awful hot to wear, and wore a curly brown beard and had long stringy brown hair. His faded blue eyes were mildly interested, as he looked at my pack. He stood near my right elbow, and spotted my water bottle at my left. He mumbled something like, "I'd like to look at this, just for a minute" as he leaned across me to pick it up. As his shadow crossed my face, I opened my eyes, only to see that, of course, I was completely alone.

Engine
05-23-2009, 15:25
damn - that sent chills up my spine!

That might keep me in the house, probably one of the creepiest stories so far.

Nean
05-23-2009, 16:47
Some spooky stories here!
I think it makes sense and is polite to call out whenever you approach a campsite, shelter, tent or person. You set yourself or another up to be spooked if you don't.;)

Engine
05-23-2009, 17:34
Some spooky stories here!
I think it makes sense and is polite to call out whenever you approach a campsite, shelter, tent or person. You set yourself or another up to be spooked if you don't.;)

In the old west it was regular practice to announce yourself to the camp and ask permission to enter. It kept you from being shot. :)

The Will
05-23-2009, 17:45
here is a story that is not ghost or UFO, i had a english teacher in high school who had hiked the long trail southbound late fall... said she saw only a handful of people her whole hike. she had brought a digital camera to photograph the journey. When she finished the trail she went to go look at her pictures and there where pictures of her sleeping in her tent or in a shelter. The dates on the photos suggested this had happend 10 nights in a row. she didn't take those pictures she didn't hike with anyone. thats a good way to screw with someone

I think this is the winner in this thread thus far.

saimyoji
05-23-2009, 18:43
this happened while I was living in Japan:

A friend and I night hiked up to a temple (about 2.5 miles from the parking lot). We hiked down through a forest and up a small knoll to the temple, then inside the temple compound, lit only by the moon. Spooky as hell. We met a monk who spoke with us for a while, then gave my friend a small conical figurine as he left. He told us to ask at the temple office during the daytime about its meaning. We did. They said that none of the monks would have been out that late as it was against the rules. And, that particular figurine was one of only a few that had not been made for around 200 yrs, a very rare find. They showed us a picture of the potter who made the figurines.....the same guy who spoke with us the night before. The monks at the office said our encounter was extremely good fortune.

so we got that going for us.....

Bearpaw
05-23-2009, 19:19
...our encounter was extremely good fortune.

so we got that going for us.....

Gunga Galunga (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxIfMHhWXoY&feature=related) :banana

Nean
05-24-2009, 13:02
In the old west it was regular practice to announce yourself to the camp and ask permission to enter. It kept you from being shot. :)
Guns are good!;)

Wyld80
03-21-2013, 14:22
Thought some of you might enjoy this thread - http://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?t=57236

The Old Chief
03-21-2013, 15:56
A few years ago my hiking friend Xmas and I were going from Harpers Ferry to Waynesboro in the Fall. We stopped one evening at Mannassas Gap Shelter and after a while saw an older woman with a dog looking at us from the trail. We called to her and she came down to the shelter and talked to us for a while. Her dog, who looked like a border collie, kept jumping in the air and snapping at something that we didn't see. The dog did this the whole time we were talking, probably over 30 minutes. Carol, the woman, never mentioned anything about this behavior to us. The next evening, after a very short day, we were fixing hotdogs with all the fixins' at Jim and Molly Denton Shelter, when up walks Carol and the same dog. The dog immediately starts jumping up in the air and sanpping and never quits. I finally asked Carol if she knew what the dog was jumping and snapping at. Carol tells us that she is a psychic and that every evening she walked in the area and was always accompanied by one Union soldier and one Confederate soldier to protect her. This entire area was a battlefield in the Civil War. Carol said that the dog was just playing with the two spirits. She said that she had many conversations with solldiers who had died on the battlefied and could not "cross over". She stayed and ate hotdogs with us and the dog never stopped jumping and snapping. We saw Carol and her dog the next night in Front Royal and the dog was just as calm as could be.

Mr. Bumpy
03-21-2013, 16:06
I get this sometimes:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hum