The Haunted Forest

This afternoon, Troy, my wife, and I went for a hike through the haunted forest. That’s what we’ve started to call the hiking trails near the Old Alton Bridge. The bridge is said to be haunted by the Goatman, a black goat farmer who was reportedly lynched on the bridge by the KKK back in the 1800s. (That’s a farmer that was black and raised goats, not a farmer that raised black goats. We had this debate in the car on the way.)

Troy and I had hiked through here on a another adventure, but this time we decided to take a different trail. This one followed along Hickory Creek and was mostly secluded and quiet. Other than a few guys fishing, we didn’t see another living soul. I say “living,” because Troy was convinced that the trees were haunted, monster trees that were sleeping in a magical slumber. They were only waiting for night to descend to wake up and start walking around. And if you were foolish enough to be caught in the forest at night, then the trees would wrap their long, gnarled fingers around you and pull you inside them. Where you’d sleep in a magical slumber…forever.

That story along with the eerie stillness of the forest gave the atmosphere a scary feeling. We heard birds singing, but always on the other side of the creek. It was like they avoided flying in this part of the forest. And to add to the effect, I periodically picked up small sticks and tossed them into the woods when Troy wasn’t looking. They’d crash and thump, and I’d tell him that the trees were restless. They were moving in their sleep, sensing living bodies walking through their midst. Which was enough to keep him moving quickly down the trail.

We stopped in an open place near the water, where Troy could throw rocks and my wife could sit on a stump and listen to the forest life. Out in the middle of the creek, a little ways downstream, there was a giant log submerged in the water. One branch protruded upward, and it looked like the head of the Loch Ness monster swimming along the shore. I told Troy it was a sea dragon, the ancient guardian of the forest. I warned him not to disturb the water and anger the guardian. Of course Troy would throw a rock and watch to see if the “dragon” would move. When it didn’t, he was convinced that it was only a tree.

That is until we heard a very loud crash in the woods on the other side of the creek. I said it was a bear, but Troy was convinced that it was the dragon coming to the water. And his solution was to leave it alone. He was also ready to go at this point, funny enough.

So, we started our trek back through the woods as the sun was setting behind the trees. I goaded Troy along with stories of the trees coming to life, but I also believe he truly wanted to see it happen too. Finally, I just put him on my shoulders, so we could get back before night fell on the haunted forest. He seemed okay with this, because it gave him more time to watch the trees for movement.