Strange

From: Shelly (speedy9747@aol.com)
Story type: Ghost
Location: South East Tennessee
Source: Form Submission

I have resided in SE TN all of my life. I have been fortunate (or misfortunate) enough to grow up in an area steeped in history and haunting. The story I am about to tell you is one that defies logical explanation. As a young child, I was interested in stories of hauntings. This interest grew as I matured. As an adult, I have had more than my fair share of odd experiences, though I remained skeptical and yet hopeful for some more profound proof of the paranormal. That proof came one night in 1994.

I was in college and facing the many stresses and pressures that often accompany someone trying to determine their life's path. Some friends of mine were seeking a reprieve from all of this in the form of a mountain home in rural West Virginia. I had never been to WV before and knew that any break would be a welcomed one. So I tagged along. We were staying atop a mountain in a cabin that had uncertain electricity and no running water. It was a bit rustic and turn of the century. Our plans were to go hiking and take pictures and just be in nature.

On the third evening of our trek, we were restless and decided to ride around the many mountains. The moon was full and a light snow had fallen leaving the scenery absolutely breathtaking. Seven of us had piled into the back of a pick-up truck barely visible under the toboggans, coats, gloves and blankets. I was the smallest and was seated furthest away from the cab of the truck so that I could get the best possible view given my short stature.

We were riding slowly, not really talking when we came to a particularly desolate (not that there were any really congested areas there) stretch of road. Chills suddenly shot up my spine. I noticed that it was eerily quiet and the temperature felt about 20 degrees colder. The truck we were in began to sputter and the interior and exterior lights began to flicker.

Suddenly everything stopped. As we each looked around at one another a piercing, blood curdling scream shattered the silence quickly followed by gasps and the look of absolute terror in the eyes of those around me. I turned my head just in time to see something standing on the side of the road. It looked like a man but somehow we all knew that it wasn't. It never spoke an audible word, but what I heard inside my head was something so atrocious and heart-stoppingly macabre that I have never repeated it. We all sat frozen and watched as this thing faded into nothing right in front of us. Once it was completely gone, the truck was back to normal.

No one in the group used drugs or alcohol prior to this event and, though we discussed it at length back at the cabin, we have never discussed it since returning to TN. More than 10 years after the fact, this is still something that those present have difficulty discussing amongst one another.