Grandpa Cobalt hated letting things go. Whether it was the wobbly chair he kept in his study or his favorite warped record he fed to the gramophone—looping the same groove over and over. He was a tall man with a frosty thin hairline and a nose capable of the most […]
The sea forgives all. That’s what they say, thought the tall, dark-eyed man standing vigil at the stern of the Aquilon. His eyes were set on the waves trailing them in the fading light of dusk. Every ripple was another step away from his mistakes; another moment away from the
The first thought that crossed my mind as I hit the water was how warm it was. We left for Galapagos in mid-December, arriving on site towards the end of the month. I thought it would be cold, December has always been a time of cold nights and long snowy
I dove to depths uncharted. They should have stayed that way. Read More »
In a town kept alive by retirees and tourists looking for a cheap scare, we knew a place hidden from their money was bad news. Plebes are paraded around in horse drawn carriages through the dead of night. If there’s a storm, all the better. In the dim glow of
It was around lunchtime when Noah and I arrived at the base of the hiking trail. He practically ejected himself from the car the moment we were no longer in motion. His enthusiasm was infectious. I retrieved our backpacks from the seat behind me and stepped outside as well. Noah
Don’t go to Wilhelm Bridge. There are wolves out here. Read More »
I’ve been deployed on assignment to a new fracking well installation on Mount Olympus, on the Olympic Peninsula, in Washington state, for the last week, of what is expected to be a month-long job. It’s hard being away from my wife and two kids for so long, but it’s what
The Quakes of Mount Olympus Read More »
Oh, the town of Silver Crossing…Oh?… You’ve never heard of us?… I’m not surprised. You see, our little town can’t be found on Google maps. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, it doesn’t exist… The people from there don’t exist… Or at least they don’t now.
The Beast of Silver Crossing Read More »
When people come across something unexplainable, they try to find rational reasoning behind it. I mean, it’s only natural, right? Well, sometimes things are better left unexplained. I learned this the hard way. It was a cool Thursday afternoon. I had just got off work, and wanted to take a
The Door That Leads to Nowhere Read More »
Take in that fresh air girl! Damn it feels great to be back. Everything looks smaller though. “Yeah, because you were like three feet tall last time you were here, ya walnut.” Buddy “Bud” Jake looked at Gwen with a smile. The classic platonic boy-girl relationship where no sexual tension
They Only Take One Read More »
To all my children, to all those who followed me, and to those who trusted me, I am sorry, but this is my suicide note. It is necessary to kill the monster which now haunt us, one beyond all hope for redemption. There are many things which I should have
Children of Wood and Man Read More »
I’m in the engineers union, but I don’t have a degree in anything. I go to job sites all over the state and mark elevations for excavation. I hike around placing a GPS marker on the ground, push a button and the little screen on top tells me a few
Encounter on the Olympic Peninsula Read More »
There are few careers with the same considerations as police work. Not only are we in a position to make life-changing choices, but we also have to live with the consequences of those choices forever. Many people struggle to handle that. Time and time again, we see what happens when
I Investigate Disturbing Cases: Here Are My Stories – Voices From Nature Read More »
I had recently moved to the Yorkshire Dales with my rescue dog, Splash, so-named for his love of puddles, and this summer past we had ambled through the woodland on long walks on a weekend. He would always dart ahead, rustling through the leaf litter for insects or fallen branches,
Mt. Spire shone brilliant and white above the bristly pines. In the noontime sun, one could see the snow weep and the summer trails reveal themselves. It was a wonderful sight for any climber. However, Anna would consider it even more wonderful if she did not have to hike ten
In the Shadow of Mt. Spire Read More »
“I’ll see you at Kevin’s.” Those were words that used to be followed by a wide grin at school or a gleeful affirmative over the phone. There were either old memories to rediscover or new adventures to be had. The four of them had spent so many days exploring the
Everybody loves the woods, until they follow you home. When my father came back from the military, we bought our first house—a boxy, two-story affair on the woodsy outskirts part of town. I was twelve, going on thirteen then. Our neighborhood was a little off the beaten path, nestled somewhere
Forever and Always Read More »
Darlene Kelly’s eyes scanned the set of hoof prints in the mud where she knelt. Her eyes moved to the thick underbrush in front of them, where something large had fled, tearing a hole in the autumn foliage. She could see crimson specks on a patch of leaves to the
Heart of the Rotwood Read More »
The light of the camp fire offered little comfort to the panic that surged through him. His blood might as well have been pure adrenaline. His senses were on high alert, triggering him, causing him to jump at the slightest sight or sound. “AAAGGHHHHHHHHH! HEEEEELLLP ME”! There was that scream
I was discussing Creepypasta’s with my grandfather. He had never heard the term before, and kind of snickered at it. After I explained to him what they were, he said, “We used to just call them urban legends.” He wanted some examples, and I gave him a few of the
Jess steadied her breath as she saw the buck. She was behind a fallen log dug deep into the blanket of snow that lay across the ground. She brought her rifle up to her shoulder and rested it on her cover, moving ever so slowly as to not startle the
What Waits in the Cold Read More »
Thursday, 26th March 2020 There is an old monastery not far from my home in a quiet part of the country. It sits among a ten acre forest where it looms ominously over the local flora. I am writing this because of what I saw there tonight. The pale mannequin
The Music in the Woods Read More »
I had not received any replies from my good friend Colorado in over a week, and I wasn’t happy. All my efforts to play games with him online, or even just to meet-up and hang-out, were left on read. Not only was that bad enough, I had nobody to spend
It’s mid January, and, as I had recently turned 19, I had decided that it was time to take a rite of passage to manhood so to speak. So after nagging my parents (my mother mostly to be honest) for weeks, they had finally caved to my pleas to take
Not many people take me seriously. I get it. Someone with a traumatic past, like mine, must be nuts, right? But, I know what I’ve seen. I know all too well. You see, I’m a Bigfoot hunter. But, I don’t like calling it that. First, there is more than one
Please stay away from Wayne National Forest Read More »
