The Appalachian Mountains holds some of the most terrifying encounters ever reported.

It seems the deeper you get into those woods, the more bizarre it gets.

And the true stories that come out of there are some of the scariest I have ever heard.

Let's get into it. Our first story.

This happened about 12 years ago when I was a kid. Around 11 years old, my younger

brother was two years younger than me. Our dad took us on a camping trip. Blue Ridge Mountains,

West North Carolina, Appalachian Mountains. It's known for this cool, bluish haze that covers the area. It was pretty remote,

no self-service, no other campers nearby, just a small clearing in the woods with two campsites

and a tree line that felt way too close once it got dark. My dad had done a ton of camping growing up, so to him it was nothing.

But for us, the trip was exciting, but also a little intimidating. He set up two tents, one for him,

and one for me and my brother right next to it. Close enough that if we needed him, we could just

step outside and be at his tent in a few seconds.

And the first day was great. We hiked a little, explored the area, and just hung out.

But I remember before we left, some older kids in our neighborhood had been telling us creepy

stories about things in the woods. So that night, once it got dark, everything felt a little heavier.

We climbed into our tent, zipped it up, and just talked for a while.

At some point, we both went quiet.

Then we heard it, footsteps circling around the tent, Not like an animal, like a person. It was

step, then a pause, then another step. It was totally dark and my brother whispered,

do you hear that? I said, yeah, we both just sat there completely still listening as it moved

around us.

Finally, I called out trying to sound braver than I felt.

...