National Park After Dark - Trail Tales 63

Episode Date: January 30, 2025

Today’s stories include ghostly gossip, nature soup, weird places, cursed stories, hellos and goodbyes from beyond and proof that fed bears are dead bears. Outsiders Only bonus stories available for Patreon and Apple Subscribers!For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at:Instagram: @nationalparkafterdarkTwitter/X: @npadpodcastTikTok: @nationalparkafterdarkSupport the show by becoming an Outsider and receive ad free listening, bonus content and more on Patreon or Apple Podcasts. Want to see our faces? Catch full episodes on our YouTube Page!Thank you to the week’s partners!SelectQuote: Use our link to get the right life insurance for YOU, for LESS.  iRestore: For a limited time only, our listeners get $625 off their iRestore Elite when you use code NPAD at Minds of Madness: Listen to Minds of Madness wherever you listen to your favorite shows.For a full list of our sources, visit npadpodcast.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Hey everyone and welcome back to National Park After Dark. We got Trail Tales for you right now. Yeah, we sure do. Thank you, everyone. As always, for writing in again. We're getting all cozy. If you are watching this, I am feeling, extra cozy today because it's dumping snow outside. So I put on like my coziest softest sweater that I

own and I'm like, it does look nice. Let's read some stories. It is like a winter wonderland right now and it's so nice. I'm disappointed in my choice of location once again. I, it has snowed once this season. It is now January 2nd as we're recording this. It snowed once and it's snowed once. And it melted within a day. Yeah, Southern like New England doesn't, doesn't get winter anymore. It's actually really sad. Yeah, it just ain't it. It's upsetting. But I'm excited because I'm going to be going to, like, Utah and Colorado in the next couple weeks, and there's definitely snow there. So it's going to be really exciting. And if you're ever craving a weekend of snow, just come up to my place. We have plenty and will until probably end of April. Well, I want to wait.

until you get your sugar shack done. I want to stay in the sugar shack. Okay, well, I'll see you in like three years then. What do you mean? What do I mean? It's not even insulated. If you slept in there in the winter, you would be so cold. I thought it was an Airbnb before. It was. I don't know how. I think there is a wood stove in there. So I think maybe, um, also we have all the water shut off for the winter. So you couldn't actually utilize anything. It would be a summer thing. Okay. Never mind. All right. Well, let's read everyone some stories. Would you like to go first? I feel weird saying no, so yes. I would like to go first. I'm nervous. I've never done this before. I'm like, oh my God, this is like really scaring me. But yeah, I guess I'll go first. Okay.

Okay. So mine, of course, my favorite topic, mine is titled Plain Crash and Plain Sight. I mean, the news has been riddled, riddled with plane crashes the last couple of weeks. I had a dream. That reminds you. I had a dream I was in plane crash the other night. Really? I don't know why. Yeah. Yeah. And it was weird. Actually, I had a dream we were in a plane crash the other night. I don't know why. this is like coming back to me. Leave me out of it right now. No, I couldn't. You were, so I totally forgot about this dream until I just read this. No, so I had a dream that we were taking a private flight.

We booked a private plane that costs like thousands and thousands of dollars that in real life we do not have. But in my dream, we were very excited to go on this private plane. And the plane was a little weird. It kind of looked like a, it kind of looked like a, it kind of looked like. like a limousine on the inside. And it was like high tech. I don't know. So we had to dry, we had to fly over New York City to get to where we were going, which I'm not sure exactly where we were going. But we were flying through New York City. And the pilot was like,

oh, the cool thing about these planes, these high tech planes, is that we actually don't have to fly at the same altitude. So we're going to cruise in between all the skyscrapers of New York City to get to where we're going. And in my dream, I was like, that feels like a great place. That feels like a really bad idea. Couldn't we hit something? That seems like a really bad idea. So I was really nervous. And of course, right into it, the wing of the plane, I was sitting on the window seat and you were next to me.

And of course, the wing hits a building. It scrapes the side of it and we just plummet down to the bottom. But because we weren't that high in elevation, I guess, we were. fine and we both walked out of the plane crash and then we were like well we have been wanting to see new york city for a while now so i guess we'll just switch our trip we're already here yeah and then it just like morphed into a bunch of other stuff but yeah i had a dream that we survived a plane crash okay well at least it had a happier ending because i don't know like i got to get i've been spending a little bit more time on social media than i usually do i got to i got to i got to

I have a timer set for... Oh, the limit, the daily limit. The daily limit, which I do for 45 minutes. But it's hard because it's not just all personal stuff because we have our accounts for this. So it's hard to keep it under 45 minutes, but I try really hard. But I've been like hitting ignore limit more often, which is bad. Yeah, it's difficult. And with, you know, it's just all the sad and scary things that happen in the.

the world. It just feels like there's been a lot more recently. So I'm trying to. Happy 2025, the world is going to shit. Truly. Okay. That's the spirit that we want going into the new year. Well, someone has to be realistic and it's usually me. That's true. I am optimistic that 2025 is going to be an interesting year. Okay. So tell me about. Okay. To my story, that is not my dream.

Right, yeah. The titled Plain Crash and Plain Sight. Hey Cassie and Danielle, I have a tale that does not take place on a trail or in a park, but does take place in rural Ohio. It was summer break from school, and I was about eight years old. My siblings and I were being super annoying, so my mom separated us and told us to give her a break. I was assigned to go play outside, so I took a big pot from the kitchen in a wooden spoon and set off to play one of my favorite games, nature soup kitchen.

I would fill a pot with hose water and then forage my ingredients. flowers, grass, sticks, rocks, whatever I was feeling that day. Once I had all my ingredients, I would mix everything together and pretend I was on top chef and frantically cook my soup. I was smart enough not to eat my creation, but I would walk around and feed it to the trees, bushes, and whatever else looked hungry. That is the most wholesome game I've ever heard also. Yeah.

So on this particular day, I knew my mom probably needed an hour to herself, so I planned on sitting on my front porch and stirring up some magic while looking at my favorite view. My childhood home's front yard is about 50 yards long to the road. Just past the road is a pretty large cornfield. As I was cooking, I noticed a single-engine plane flying pretty low and right towards me. I immediately became fixated and frozen. Even at my young age, I knew something was wrong. As the plane got lower and closer, I just sat there with zero survival instincts kicking in. Luckily for me, the plane took a sharp right turn before crossing the street into my yard. I heard a large bang, which kicked me out of my frozen disbelief.

I immediately ran inside and screamed to my mom, a plane just crashed outside. I now don't fault my mom for this, but her response was, quote, if you kids don't stop making up stories, I'm going to lose it. Yeah, we were really that annoying. With no time to argue, I ran back outside and towards the scene of the accident. My heart was pounding in anticipation of what I was about to run up to. When I arrived, I saw the plane intact.

but definitely totaled from the damage. I said, hello, is everyone okay? It was a single man in the pilot seat and he seemed a bit beaten up, but overall okay. He said, yep, I'm okay, but I don't think my plane is walking away from this one. I assume you are from across the street. I really thought about landing in your front yard, but I was afraid I'd hit the power lines in the process. My stomach still turns thinking about the what if of him crashing in my front yard while I made my soup. About a minute later from me arriving at the scene, my adult neighbor joined. She had witnessed the crash as well and alerted the authorities. As more people arrived, I Irish exited from the crash and made my way back home. Walking down my driveway, I see my mom opening the front door. She yelled to me, what's going on out there?

When I reached the door, I said, I already told you. A plane crashed. She stared at me in disbelief, made her way towards the scene. I made my way back to the front porch to finish what I had started. My mom eventually came back home and we just stared at each other for a minute. Finally, she said, I'm really sorry I didn't believe you. But you kids can be so damn annoying sometimes. Fair enough, I thought. This all happened before the time of social media or getting any source of news from the internet. I did get an update in the paper that the man ended up being just fine and his plane was totaled.

The crash was a result of engine failure. That's when I made a promise to myself to never get in a single engine plane. I want to visit every U.S. National Park in my lifetime, but I believe that you. if gates of the Arctic require a single-engine plane ride. Will I get over my fear to conquer a dream? To be determined. I was inspired to submit the story from the plane crash stories you guys have covered. Terrifying to hear about and imagine, but hard to look away from. I was on your Patagonia trip and believe I had a lengthy conversation with Cassie about fear of flying. I'm glad the fear doesn't stop people from traveling and exploring the world. Just know that you're not the only one

on the plane white-knuckling the ride. Thanks for what you guys do. And keep it up. Best wishes, Julie. Julie. I remember Julie. Yeah, of course. And I also remember that conversation. You know, I love the nature soup aspect. But she did not tell me this story in that conversation. Did she say how old she was during that? Eight. Oh, okay. Yeah. That's funny. I mean, I totally get the mom's attitude as well. Oh, yeah. The amount of times I ran up to my mom and was like, oh, what if this happened or just like saying some outlandish thing where she was like, oh my God, get away from me. I'm trying. I think please. To have some peace. Especially when you have siblings too.

And you know that the two of you are either fighting or playing too rough or yelling at each other or whatever it is or just like ganging up on your mom. Like I can just imagine her mom was like, I don't care that there's a plane crash outside. Get away from me. It's like kids in their imaginations. Meanwhile, someone's truly in danger. Yeah. Okay. My next or first story, I should say, is titled a goodbye.

from beyond. Hey Cassie and Danielle, I found your podcast through tooth and claw, and I am now a devoted listener. Your stories have inspired me to be outdoors more and have made me feel more confident in my skills, so thank you for everything that you do. I have listened to all of your stories and now have started listening to the Trail Tale episodes. I recently listened to your Trail episode 12. Danielle talks a lot about signs, and I decided I would tell you my story. This does not take place in a national park, and I was actually inside when my experience happened, but there is some nature in this story. About 15 years ago, I lost my best friend, but she made sure to say goodbye before she left. We were in our early 20s and had been best friends since second grade. I would go on her family

vacations and we basically spent every weekend at each other's homes. She was like a sister to me for 14 years, and I can't believe she has been gone for longer than I knew her on earth. For this story, I will refer to her as Kate. We are both from New Hampshire. Shout out to my Shire, folks. Kate's story took place on a cold, icy February, New Hampshire morning. She had bravely, or stupidly, decided to go canoeing with some friends down an icy river. It didn't go well, and they capsized. She slipped into the water, and it took about three days to recover her body. My story takes place the morning after she was presumed drowned.

I had slept over another friend's house, and my phone had started to die the night prior, so I had turned it off. We went to bed blissfully unaware of what had happened to Kate earlier that day. That night as I slept, I had the most vivid dream. I was laying in the same bed I was actually sleeping in, and Kate came to my bedside. She was cast in a golden hue, and she had the biggest smile on her face. She giggled, touched my hair, stroked my left cheek, and my dream ended. The next morning, I woke up very early as my friend had to be in work for 6 a.m. When I powered on my phone, I was surprised to find multiple text messages and missed calls.

911, call me back. Something happened to Kate. Please call me. I had a voicemail from Kate's sister telling me to call her. I immediately called her and was brought to my knees with the news that she had to tell me. I remembered the dream I had and knew they would not find her alive. My life completely changed over a 30-second phone call, like so many do. I haven't told anyone about my story because I always thought it was silly and probably just a dream.

But as Danielle has said many times, nothing is a coincidence. Since she has been gone, I see her in every butterfly I see. When I ask for a sign from her, a butterfly is usually about to come into my view. I am sorry for my downer of a story, but I'm a vet tech from New Hampshire who loves nature and had a best friend named Cassie. So I feel a real kinship with this podcast and with the two of you. Please continue to do what you do. It is so greatly appreciated.

And remember to always wear a life jacket. Much love, Krista. That was so hard. And I can just resonate with it so hard. I know exactly what it's. like to have a best friend that you grow up with that's like a sister to you that you spend all your time with and to have that happen is so tragic and it's such a it's such a huge loss and I thank you for sharing that story and for sharing the signs that you have from her and I it's I can definitely

like empathize and feel for you and in everything that you said yeah I can empathize with the dream of like it's not exactly exactly the same, but as she was saying, she had, she didn't know that of the situation and had a dream of her friend coming to her and saying goodbye. I had a, my first, like, very vivid visitation dream from Ian the night that he was in the ICU. So like he went into the hospital and then that evening, they, you know, they had to kick me out at some point. And then the next day, he was actually officially pronounced deceased, but that evening prior, I had a dream very similar with like just a very brief interaction, no words being spoken and kind of like, I'm coming to you and letting you know that like this is about to happen type of thing. And it was just such a vivid visitation and one that like,

I mean, my brain was in a million places, right? So at first, it's a little different because She had no idea. And clearly I had a very good idea of what was going on. But it's the similar feel, a similar vibe. And I, you know, no one has to convince me of a loved one coming through to them in their dreams. I, like, we all know that. So I think that this is a really special story. I do too. I mean, I think 100% that that was Cassie visiting you and your dream. I mean, just everything that you described and her seeming so happy and at peace and just it felt very much like a visitation and how just how clear that the dream was it really felt like that. Yeah. Yeah. This episode is brought to you by Prime. Obsession is in session. And this summer, Prime originals have everything you want.

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My name is North, and I've been an avid listener of the podcast for a couple of years now. I love the vibes, the way you tell the stories, like actual stories and not just brief synopsises, and fact that you include educational information alongside the stories and also the personal banter between the two of you on each episode. This is a podcast that feels modest and humble, narrated by people who don't have large egos, and I'm grateful to how open-minded that you both are. As someone in the LGBTQIA plus community, especially with the results of the recent election, times are scary, and hearing you do episodes centered around my community, hearing you discuss fellow queer people with the same respect as anyone else just really means a lot to me. Thank you. Wow. Thank you for all the love.

Shit. North. Thank you. Yeah. And the LGBTQ community and everyone plus and everyone is always welcome here. And we love you. And some of the best people I've ever met. Honestly. You always have a safe space here. Yeah. So I live in Delaware Water Gap recreational area in Pennsylvania, particularly in the northern

parts of the Poconos in Pennsylvania. In my area, there is a long trail called the McDade Trail. It runs alongside the Delaware River and is overall a very easy hike. One day in fall of 2023, I was spending my free time on Google Earth, as one does, and noticed a cemetery marker in the woods right off the trail. Having stumbled upon a few tombstones of the McDade before, I was curious and wanted to go hike and find the cemetery. I think, actually, it's no longer listed on Google Earth or Google Maps, but I assure you, it is still there. Anyway, it was a rainy fall early day, and I drove my car down the gravelly pot-hole ridden road into the woods to where the parking lot closest to the cemetery was located. This was a parking lot meant for a section of the McDade Trail mostly, but whatever, right?

So I drive under the canopy of trees. There are no other cars in the parking lot. Makes sense. It's a weekday. It's rainy and super humid. The air is thick and sticky, the ground muddy, and bugs still out holding onto the warmer days before winter. I sprayed myself down with tick spray, made sure my shoes were tied, had my knapsack of supplies and my phone GPS out. I didn't have a signal in this area, but that was okay. Google Maps was working fine offline.

I walked down the trail. It's very straight and flat in this area, with trees towering above on either side, littered with thick bushes and other flora around their roots. Thick enough that it would not be easy for someone to leave the trail comfortably, especially without some sort of bushwhacking tool. I hike easily down the trail and then pause right where I'm supposed to turn to find the cemetery. There is no trail to the cemetery. I cannot even see the cemetery from the trail at all. But hey, my GPS insists there is one somewhere in the spot of woods, so I trudge right into the thick brush. Now, I'm kind of a weird hiker in the sense that a smart person would have worn thick pants. But no, no, no, I was wearing my usual beach shorts and my leather sandals.

Poison ivy seems to have a minimal effect on me. Thorny bushes don't bother me, so I'm just plowing through like a draft horse, allowing plants to scrape my arms and legs, allowing my feet to squish in the muddy patches. I'm in my allelment. Nothing in these forests scares me. I'm following the direction of my GPS compass towards the cemetery, only stopping to take pictures. I've attached photos if you wish to use. I'm listening to birdsongs and insects. In the distance, I can just barely hear cars rushing along Route 209. I've still alone though i feel calm as i said i'm in my element i eventually stumble upon the cemetery it's small but beautiful with a painful route iron fence that needs repairs in several places there are tombstones placed against the outside of the fence and also tombstones covered in moss and ivy completely impossible to read there are old horse posts i climb over a broken part of the iron fence and there are several tall stones cracked written upon in cursive type lettering they are beautiful and i read them as best as i can I walk all around this tiny cemetery, taking pictures, sometimes pausing to just breathe in the air, to think of the people who may rest beneath this dirt, to think of the history behind this place.

I sit upon a log outside the cemetery and just think, you know? Drink some water, write a little in my journal, and just chill for a bit. But then it's time for me to go. And this is where things get weird. Now, I'm a secular Jew, agnostic, pantheistic, but open-minded. Yes, I go for scientific explanations first, but I also remember that Arthur C. Clark, you know, the one with the advanced technology being indistinguishable from magic, and there can be scientific explanations for the supernatural, too, that don't deny the existence of the supernatural. We just haven't evolved that far yet in our understanding, you know, kind of. I'm confused. I'm confused. I know. I'm confused. But I believe you. But as I'm climbing over the fact. to leave the cemetery, I hear laughter and chatter, and it sounds like two women, like maybe around my

age or maybe older. I think maybe there are some other hikers on the trail now. As I make my way through the dense undergrowth towards the McDade, the chatter is still as incessant, but seems to be fading a bit. They sound like two women gossiping. They'd speak in words I couldn't make out and then giggle or outright laugh, and for a moment, I think maybe they see me and I'm the subject of their gossip. Looking at this stupid young man and a t-shirt and shorts and sandals, clambering clumsily through the bushes, sweaty and red-faced. Idiot can't even handle the most straightforward of trails. He got lost so easily. The laughter does feel rather pointed and something inside me that isn't usually anxiety or insecurity does make me think that I'm not far off in my assumptions.

I'm pretty laid back and make fun of myself often, so being the potential topic of gossip doesn't bother me. It's amusing, actually. I step out of the forest brush and onto the well-managed gravel of the McDade and look up and down the trail. No one is there. This part of the trail is very flat and straight. You can see just how in the attached photos. Where I was standing, I could see down the trail to the parking lot, and yet I could still hear the giggles and chatter, though now it's much more faint like the hikers have moved away. But I don't see anyone, and I don't see anyone in the brush. After all, not many people would do what I just did. I hear no crunching of gravel under hiker footfalls, nothing. But I don't feel as though I'm in danger. I'm just kind of perplexed. Just imagine like a

bunch of question marks floating over my head. I treadge slowly down the trail towards my car and the laughter fades the further I get from the cemetery. Huh, strange. I use one foot to scratch the bear shin of my opposite leg and look down. My legs are sliced up in red and I'm bleeding from several places where I was clearly scraped up by thorn bushes. I'm amused and I wonder if the ladies were ghosts in the cemetery and I wonder if my own stupidity and lack of self-preservation were topics of gossip and jokes. I wouldn't mind, honestly. If they were entertained by my presence and not angered by it, I consider that a win after all. It's also possible I wasn't even a subject of their conversations, but something made me think I was. I hike back towards the parking lot and the

laughter fades completely. I wiped down my legs with a damp cloth, then get into the driver's seat. way out, I noticed that there were no other cars in the lot and no sign that any car but my own had been there the entire day. I still can't explain what I heard or what I felt, but I think the more quote unquote fun interpretation is that I may have awakened two of the ladies in the cemetery and their spirits were either reliving an event from their lives or they were aware of my presence and making fun of me. Either way, it didn't bother me, mostly just confused me. So I guess if you're ever hiking in that part of the Poconos, dress more appropriately than me, and don't go bushwalking to find an off-trail cemetery, or you might end up the subject of ghostly gossip.

Thank you for creating such an epic podcast, Alexander slash North, he slash him. That was really cool. I think that that's such a funny. I think you were being made fun of, too. That feels, it feels very lighthearted and like, look at him, he doesn't even have pants on, look at his legs. Like it feels like they were kind of gossiping. In a playful way too.

Not in like a, like, almost it kind of. Not like a mean-spirited way. Yeah, kind of like laughing with you. Like, you know this wasn't a good idea. You should have put pants on. Like, kind of like a fun laughing. I love that. See, that's your type, that is your type of haunting.

Yeah. I agree. That's what you need. They're not touching you. It's lighthearted. Exactly. It's fine. Yeah. Although I don't know how much. It seems like the vibes were good. So yes. But I like just on paper hearing women laughing in the woods when I'm alone and no one's around could be creepy. Yeah, but it's better than men laughing. That's true. If I heard men laughing and I was alone in the woods, I wouldn't think it was a ghost. I would think someone was like stalking me and about to murder me. Yeah. But women laughing and just be like, oh.

As I'm slowly backing it out of there. Okay. My next story is titled, this is not a coincidence. Of course it's not. And I made a little note to myself because I put this together. And this, just so we're all like going to this on the same page. This is a trail tale that's a follow up to the story that we shared on Trail 60, which was about the girl and her coworkers who thought they encountered a dark entity.

And she had really bad luck. And she was like, I don't want to pass it on to you, but you remember? And it's like now people are like, are you okay after hearing that story? Yes. Someone commented on our Instagram and said that they got in a car accident while they were listening to it. Okay. Well, this is another follow-up to that person. Sorry. Are we passing? Is the story continuing to pass on bad luck? You will answer that at the end of this. I'm just wondering if people listening should skip it if they're afraid. But it's not the same story. It's not the OG story. It's just like what happened as a result of the OG story. So if you listen to this, you're not taking in that entity. Maybe. I don't, I'm not promising anything. I am. I don't know how it works. Listen at your own risk. I'm forced. I'm here. So. Okay. So it begins. It all started after listening to your listener tales episode the other day. The one where the listener tells their flesh pedestrian story. Well, I got a bad feeling the entire time. I was listening and felt I needed to turn it off.

However, I was way too curious and kept on going. Fair. Nothing really happened the first night. I was closing at work and any time I turned a light off and it was in the dark, I could feel someone behind me. I could even see them in my mind as a dark figure with a bright, white smile. I fortunately work with my amazing boyfriend, so I made him take care of the rest of the lights, L.O.L. Anyway, I am scared of the dark, so I figured I was just having some anxiety. Also, sensitive to spirits, and our work location is haunted, so I just chalked it up to the combination of both. Later on, I went to walk my dogs like normal.

After about a half a mile, I got an uneasy feeling that I was being watched. I looked up ahead of me into the pine trees and saw a shadow, darker than the night itself, crouched down. Don't. My dog seemed unfaced, so I figured I was just seeing things. However, my survival instincts kicked in, and I knew inside that, something was wrong. I turned on my heel and walked calmly the other way back home with my dogs. In my mind, I was freaking out and thought about the listener tale, but knew I needed to stay calm.

Now, onto last night. I was on the phone with my dad and stepmom while I walked the dogs. I usually have them on speakerphone in my jacket so they can hear if anything happens to me, and I can hopefully yell details to them if needed. Isn't that, okay, just a brief, but isn't that so sad that you need to think about that? Of like, I'm just out on a while. lock, but if anything is to happen to me, I need someone to be able to know in real time. So I can share some identifying details. Like, that's just depressing. I think that any woman listening to this can resonate with that and has done that.

I know I have. Or just known, like, okay, I have this. I can pull out really quickly or I'm just already holding something or whatever it may be. You're looking for a rock if you're walking around. You're thinking of escape routes. Yeah. Yeah. I felt followed and watched the entire time and my dogs were on high alert.

We only did maybe a fourth of a mile out and then headed back home to our townhouse. While I was walking back with my dogs, I noticed a man walking around the outside of my complex on his phone. He would walk about 10 feet to his left, then turn around and walk back, and so on and so forth. He looked confused and looking for someone maybe. I was about 50 yards from my front door when this man started walking in our direction, not towards us, but towards the other townhomes. He already made me feel pretty uneasy with his erratic actions, so I was already on alert. Well, he went from a speedwalk to a dead stop, maybe about 35 feet away from me and turned directly towards me.

I stopped walking, pulled my dogs in closer to me, and stared at him. I had pulled my phone out of my jacket and placed it in my hand in a way that if needed, I could ideally break his nose or at least hurt him in some way. My Taekwondo master used to tell me anything as a weapon, so I live by that to this day. Anyway, he starts walking towards me at his weird brisk speed, and my dogs are pissed. My dog Houston, a blue healer Pyrenees, stood right next to me but a little behind me and started a low, guttural growl I had never heard from him before. Ollie, a lab terrier, stood about five feet in front of me doing the same thing.

Neither dog has ever been aggressive, and Ollie loves people, so I knew something was wrong. I go into full fight mode ready to beat this bold-ass little man into the next century when he just when he just as suddenly stopped and turned the other way and continued to walk. I sat and watched him for a while just to make sure he wouldn't come back up behind me or watched to see where I lived. But he continued to other homes and then went up the street. Maybe this man thought I was just somebody else or maybe not. About five minutes after I got inside, I had the worst stomach pain ever and sat in the back

dry heaving for 45 minutes, then fell asleep in the shower. Is this related? Maybe, I don't know. Tonight, as we were walking, the feeling of being followed and watched was the worst. I pushed through and in my head just kept saying, you cannot touch me, I am a child of God. We went further and always fine. We turned to go home after a little over a mile and both dogs were on alert again. Houston walked right next to me and a little behind in her protective way and Ollie in front with his hair on end. My fur babies are almost seven years old, and I have had them since they were both six weeks, so our bond is amazing, and I know they will always keep me safe. And yes, before I am judged for having them since they were so, so young,

Ollie was free on Facebook Marketplace, where a farmer said they all needed to find home soon, or they would be trigger warning taken care of. Houston was born on my family farm, so I kind of had had her since birth. Anyways, we got maybe halfway home, and all of a sudden, they both stopped, ears parked, hair on end growling. To say I was scared was an understatement. There have been wolves seen in the area as well as our typical black bear, so I thought either could be an option. I crossed the street right away from the direction they were looking and encouraged them to continue to go faster, but we're still at a walking pace. We went maybe 40 feet and I looked off into the field and someone or something was standing in the field about 30 yards away from me. It seemed to absorb any light around it. I panicked internally. My dogs were pissed and trying to get away. We crossed the street again where the development started and it was well lit. We hauled ass back home. I felt like it was following us and getting closer. I kept repeating, you cannot touch me. I have protective hands. I am protected by love, light, and God. I say this over and over

and over until we get home. And when I reached my front door, I felt that that dark, evil entity was right behind me and trying to come into my home. I closed my door, set a blessing, and set a boundary. Hopefully it works. I'm not sure what this is, if it's related to your story or not. I am ready for it to go away, though. I hope you guys and other listeners are all safe. If you choose to read this on the podcast, stay safe and watch your back. You never know what may be lurking. Shiant. Oh my God. That's so scary. Why do you keep telling these on the podcast? I just feel like they need to be voiced and given some... Giving another entity to attach to? No. I don't. I don't. I don't. I don't. I don't. I want to pass it on, but I want to recognize that people are suffering. I'm sorry. Let's just,

okay, ready? We're going to stop right now. Close your eyes really quickly. Okay. Take a break. Take a deep breath in and imagine you're just like sucking in all the positive vibes, good energy, protective, healing light. And then breathe out and imagine all of that is just projected out around you into like this safe little bubble, just emanating off of it. you okay there we are i'm safe we're good i hope everyone else did that and you're safe too yeah and that's scary i i hope you're okay and uh because this sounds like this is like currently happening uh so i hope that uh it's all resolved after like yeah like she said it could have gone either way like he could have just been lost and weird and whatever and yeah but the second

entity, the dark entity that followed her to the door is what I'm more concerned about because the guy, he seemed like he might have been like a sketchy guy trying to break into someone's house is what it sounds like. Right, yeah. Because he was looking for a home that was empty to break into. And then she like happened. But even at her place of work

too. Yeah. And feeling like that dark shadow. Anyway, so I hope it's... I don't want to revisit it all. We just talked about it. We all know what happened. But I don't know. Just like it feels weird that things are happening to people after. So maybe, okay, what was it? Trail 60, did I say? Yeah. Yeah, so maybe just don't listen to that one story

in that. If you haven't yet. It's the first story that Daniel reads. Okay. Okay. My next story is titled, Don't Feed the Bears. Hi, ladies. I first want to start off by saying I love, love, love the podcast. I found out about y'all from my girls, Ash and Elena over on the Morbid podcast. Oh, we love fashion. I actually was at the library today, picking up our most recent book club book. Yeah. Vanishing Treasures. And I saw Elena's book. Oh, that's so cool. Right on like the front thing. And I was like, I know her. Yeah. So cool. So cool. So exciting to have your own book and like her name. I've seen it. I think I was at Barnes & Noble and I saw it there. And I was like, oh my God. That's amazing. Yeah. Yeah.

After listening to your Night of the Grizzlies episode, I was inspired to write in about a crazy tale that happened to my uncle a few years back. I'm honestly not sure if what he did was illegal, and if not illegal, then I think he'd be heavily fined, so I'll leave his name out of it, smiley face. You can use mine since I have the most basic white bitch name on the planet, and him and I don't have the same last name, so I think he's safe for now. That's so funny. My uncle lives in an area of Colorado, about an hour and 15 minutes from Denver. He lives in a huge neighborhood, basically on the side of the mountain where him and all his neighbors have at least 30 acres each. Everyone in this neighborhood has money, money, and have all lived there for at least 10 years. So everyone knows of and is respectful of

the law of the land. That is until a new family moved in. There is so much wildlife in this neighborhood. Everything from mountain lines to bears to turkeys to elk and deer. One year when visiting, I was driving down their long windy driveway, windy, long windy driveway, long windy driveway and was about five feet from totaling my rental car into a huge elk. I almost poop my pants when I saw the thing. Sorry for the detour. Back to my story. My aunt and uncle never really had too many issues with the bears besides occasionally forgetting to lock their garage door and then them getting into the garbage. They kind of just minded their own business. But soon everyone started noticing more bear sightings in the neighborhood, particularly around the area that the new neighbors moved to. This could

only mean one thing. They were leaving out food for the bears. Multiple people reported this to honestly I don't know who but they had to pay some pretty significant fines but apparently they had the money like that and didn't really care because of this as we've seen in many instances bears were associating humans with food and when that happens things don't usually end well one cool day my uncle was making breakfast with the doors and windows open to feel the breeze while my aunt sat on the front patio swing with her dog brodie my aunt hears a grunt and looks up to see a bear coming up the driveway. Following the smell of the food my uncle is cooking, the bear comes closer and closer. My aunt, paralyzed in fear, only manages to call out my uncle's name. He runs out to

see what's wrong and is met with a chaotic scene. My aunt, frozen on the porch swing, a bear only feet away from both of them, and their dog barking aggressively at the bear and inching closer and closer. My uncle runs back inside and grabs a shotgun, comes back outside and fires a warning shot in the air, hoping to scare the bear away. It remains in its position. He fires another one, and the bear starts to inch forward, closer to my aunt, their dog, and the entrance of the house. Having no other options left and the bear approaching him, he fires several shots at the bear. It lets out a cry and runs away. He grabs my aunt and tugs her back inside while ushering Brody in as well. They sat in silence trying to process the events that just took place. A month or so later, on their daily walk to get

male down their mile-long driveway, Brody seems to catch the scent of something and takes off into the brush. Moments later, he returns with something in his mouth. It's a decaying bear paw. My uncle rushed to where Brody just was, and there he sees the bear's body very much dead and very much decomposed. It's a sad story, really. My aunt and uncle are both huge animal lovers, and it really took a toll on them that they were responsible for this bear's death. But in all honesty, they aren't the sole people responsible. If those neighbors followed the rules that are set for a reason and didn't feed the wildlife, then the bear likely would have never gotten the courage to approach my aunt and uncle the way that it did. The bear probably would have gone on

living its happy life in the wilderness, feeding on whatever came came its way through natural forces. Hopefully this can be a lesson to not interfere with nature. Bears and other wildlife are accustomed to obtaining food in a way that nature allows them to. They don't need your help. You may think it's fun or cute or whatever, but you never know who or what may be impacted by your selfish actions. Thank you for reading. P.S., my uncle actually took the bear's skull and cleaned it, and it's now on a shelf in his office. Also, I'm a Midwesterner, so I have no idea what type of bear it was. I just know it wasn't a polar bear. Smiley face. Emma. Well, Emma, I was a black bear, for sure. And I don't know what the illegal part, maybe the keeping of the skull is maybe illegal.

Maybe. Remember, she's like, I don't know if what he did was illegal. Unless it was like in a protected area or I guess certain areas have black bear hunting seasons maybe is what she's referring to like it wasn't the right season to shoot a bear but it was in their house yeah well it was right outside their house oh I thought it was like entering their house from no it sounds like it was feet away outside their house walking towards them gotcha gotcha yeah it is that's I mean it is awful and it's sad and it you're so right it's there's it's not just solely your uncle and aunt's quote-unquote fault. Like they, they were scared and frightened and the bear clearly wasn't being hazed. Yeah, I mean, if a bear's not afraid of gunshots going off and it's still walking

towards you, I can see how that would be really scary. And the fact that their neighbors were actively feeding the bears, it was only a matter of time that something like that happened, whether it's with your uncle or another neighbor. Yeah. It reminds me of the book, which we've talked briefly about before here, I think. And I know it's been suggested on our book club on Patreon, but Fuzz by Mary Roach, which I read a couple years ago. She talks a lot about just how frustrating it can be when, it doesn't matter if nine out of ten people are doing the right thing, especially when it comes to proper garbage containment in areas that have, you know, bear presence or other wildlife presence. And all it takes is one person to either intentionally feed wildlife or not properly do, you know, use bear safe garbage like disposal methods and things like that.

And it can wind up in a situation like this. And it's just kind of hard because a lot of the problems that come from human and wildlife interactions, it's just like fall so heavily on community being all like united. in people, you know, a community of people do it all doing what they can and doing the right thing. And that can get really tricky. Yeah. Because people love to do their own thing and not follow the rules. And people don't really understand the implications of their actions all the time. Like, they might be well-intentioned, but then- Look what happens, yeah.

Okay, my last story is titled, Broccoli on the Road. I do love broccoli. Do you love broccoli? Yeah, I do, actually. I think broccoli is great. I have such a vivid. I like it now. I wouldn't say I love it, but I'll eat it, especially if it's seasoned and, like, mixed in with a bunch of other stuff. Yeah. But I have this vivid memory of having broccoli as a kid. And it was just, like, on the side in its own thing. It wasn't mixed in or anything or whatever. And I was just like, I was trying to eat it. And it was either my mom or my step down there,

like, just eat, like, you got to eat it. And I remember just taking a bite out of the head of it, like, the fluffy part and it just making me want to throw up so bad and I went to the sink and was like gagging and they're like you are so dramatic being dramatic you just didn't like the texture no I think the tech I don't I'm not one of those people who has a texture problem with food I don't know what the hell it was but it's a vivid vivid memory and every time I see broccoli I kind of think of it but I know it's good for me and now I'm not as much of as a little bitch Okay. I'm glad you're eating your greens now. Yeah. All right. Hi, Cassie and Danielle. My name is Courtney and I work at a provincial park in rural Nova Scotia. I have many stories about the park I work at. However, today I wanted to share a sign story with you. I am sitting in my deer stand right now as I write this hoping a deer walks by, so fingers crossed. A month ago in October, my hunting buddy and neighbor of four years, let's call him John, died suddenly of a heart attack. We hadn't had a chance to go out hunting together the season before he passed away.

He was only 67 and lived a very active lifestyle of farm work. The day he had his heart attack, they shocked his heart back with an AED, but his brain had already lacked oxygen for 10 minutes too long. He would be on life support for a few days. And the night before he was taken off life support, I was visiting the park that I work at while off shift. The northern lights were visible, which is uncommon for my area. As I was admiring them, I got a text saying,

that the next morning they were going to be taking John off of life support. I drove up the road back home to the farm and fell asleep. That night, I had a dream where I walked outside to find John packing the trunk of his car. It looked like he was packing for a long trip. I asked, where are you going? But he didn't say anything. He just looked up and smiled. I woke up that morning and drove to the hospital to say goodbye. Here is the sign part. Last season, when I hunted with him, we were walking back after a cold November day. We took a shortcut through the broccoli field. He knelt down, picked a head of broccoli, and handed it to me. He said, we ain't going to get any deer today, so here's some broccoli instead, with a smile.

That was the last time I was hunting with him, November of 2023. So I went out hunting alone, October 2024. He had just passed away a week prior. I go out with my shotgun and rubber boots and head to the deer stand. I'm walking through the muddy tractor treads on the dirt road, and right in front of me is a single head of broccoli, just like the one John picked for me last season. There was no broccoli planted in this particular field, so I picked it up and smiled. I went home after and gave the broccoli to his wife. Oh my God. I didn't get a deer that day. I think it was John's way of saying that he was here with me

out hunting, or maybe it was just his way of saying, I ain't getting a deer today. Hunting season is ending next week. I'm hoping to get a deer to give to his wife to fill her freezer for the winter. for reading, we love the podcast. My co-worker and I listened to your show at the park during our night shifts. Attached is a photo of the broccoli on the road. And the next photo below is of me today on the deer stand, freezing my tits off. Courtney. Corny, I love that. This is so sweet and very thoughtful to include his wife in what you're doing surrounding, you know, him. Yeah. And I definitely think it was a sign. I agree. You ain't getting a deer today. Yeah. I also feel like you got a visitation dream, too.

Yeah. I told you, yep, that was snuck in there too. Yep. Well, thank you so much for sharing and thank you everyone for sharing on the podcast. We love to read these. If you have a story that you'd like to share, you can go on to our website and p.depodcast.com. And there's a little submission link and you can write in your own trail tale. Yeah. And if you are an outsider either on Patreon or on Apple subscriptions, we each have a bonus story to share with you. Mine is titled, Babies are Friends, not food. Oh, okay. Mine is titled Scarf Lady and Arches saves the day.

Awesome. All right. Well, thank you everyone for listening and watching if you're watching us. And we will see you next week. In the meantime, enjoy the view. But watch you're back. Bye. Bye.

Thank you for joining us again this week. If you have a trail tale of your own you'd like to share, you can write to us at N-P-A-D-Stories at gmail.com or visit our website at npaddpodcast.com. Bonus trail tales and content are available to Patreon members and Apple subscribers. Follow the show on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and X at National Park After Dark. And if you prefer to watch our episodes, you can find us on YouTube at National Park After Dark. And as always, if you enjoy the show, please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.

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