Noises From The Woods

Lately there have been strange noises in the woods around my cabin. I live on the top of a small mountain in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountain Range. Trees close to the cabin surround us and a cliff is immediately behind us. There is a farm about half mile away with some open fields that also back up to thickly wooded areas.

The entire area was deeply involved in the Civil War and ghost stories are common. But much to my surprise, there are also stories of strange creatures flying about at night and unearthly beasts that also live in the woods around Sharpsburg, Maryland.

I probably would not have given the stories much credence years ago, but Paranormal Research has become a big part of my life and I now know there are many strange things going on around us all the time. I have been recording EVPs in the area for years have been listening to the world a lot more than I did in the past.

About a year ago, peculiar things started happening on our mountaintop. We have several cats that live outside and they do not come into the house. My wife feeds them and they are a part of the family. Without a trace, they started disappearing one by one. Eventually other cats from the farm wandered over and a new cat family was back on the porch.

Once again, they were disappearing without any apparent reason. We chalked it off to wild dogs or some natural occurrence until one dark quiet night. My son came in from feeding the remaining cats one night white as a sheet. "Dad, come quick!" He shouted with what was left of his terrified voice, "There is an awful noise in the woods, and something is killing a cat!" I ran outside and stopped dead in my tracks when I heard it.

The most terrible growling I have ever heard was coming from about 20 feet into the dark forest. It was obvious that a cat was being torn apart and I swear the growling sounded like it was having fun while doing it. The cat’s cries soon stopped and a sort of growling sound came next. At this point, I was mad and went in the house for my rifle. I returned at emptied a 30 round clip into the sound that was still coming from the area just out of sight in the trees.

I was out of ammo and the growling was still there mocking me. Since I had dumped enough lead to kill 20 men into the trees, it seemed prudent to run back inside and lock the doors! We called the police and when they arrived (45 minutes later since we are in the middle of nowhere) we went to the woods in force with flashlights, and the Sheriffs had their pistols ready. What we found was terrible. There were cat body parts all over and a badly shot up tree. We found nothing else and soon the police left.

Since that night things have never been the same. We don’t go far away from the house at night unless we are getting in our cars to go somewhere and the kids hate going out at night for any reason. My wife came in scared to death one night having seen a pair of red eyes peering at her as she walked into the cabin one night. She said they were the most terrifying thing she has ever seen and she was visibly shaken for hours.

It was relatively quiet for months after that until two weeks ago. Awful screaming sounds have started coming from all over the area at night. Ghosts don't scare me very often but this sound scares the hell out of me. It ranges from screams that sound angry to screams that sound like the agony of something chained in Hell. It sometimes sounds like shouting and once in a while, it is obvious something is being eaten alive. The police are called at times but nothing has ever been found except animal parts and bloody spots.

After doing a little asking around a local legend has come to my attention. It is called the "Snallygaster" and information about it is on the web if you enter it in a search engine. There is also another story about a "Mothman" that occurred in the 60’s. It seems this thing may lay dormant for years and wreaks havoc when it awakens. I can tell you first hand it is wide-awake at the moment!

As a Paranormal Investigator, I should be out looking for it but I will pass on this one. Whatever is out there should be taken seriously and no one should go looking for it. I’m pretty sure the local ghosts don't like it either!