A Pennsylvania man and his friend drive to Hocking Hills State Park, Ohio. They encounter and experience a few odd moments while hiking a trail."To whom it may concern. I am writing this to you to add it to your many varied collections of the paranormal and odd phenomena reported daily.I am a 29-year-old male from Pennsylvania and I have read through several stories on your site. I thought I would share with you and your readers one of the many strange things I have personally experienced, and like other people, I would like to know if they too had this type of experience; in September 2008 my best friend Ciera (pronounced Sierra) and I went to a park named Hocking Hills in Ohio for a day retreat from our busy lives. She and I had decided on this at random when we first got together early in the morning just after sunrise; it was a nice warm late summer day and we'd just decided to make a full-day drive and hike out of it. Hocking Hills is well known for its several walking trails, a cave or two, and several waterfalls and running water/creek areas. The day was very warm, and sunny, with hardly a cloud overhead, and very nice.We started a walk at random and found that one of the trails had been washed out so we had to take another path which forced us to cross a road; on the other side was a tall fire lookout ranger's station which doubled as a Fire Tower. We had seen a lot of people out walking with us that day and a few hikers/backpackers had passed us by on their treks up until that point. We played with our phones a bit on the way to show each other some pictures we had taken a few days before on a different outing and noted it was roughly after 12 noon when we came out of the woods and walked across the road; it was then that we noticed there was caution tape all over the fire tower, there was a pungent smell in the air which we could not identify, the windows on top of the tower appeared to be taped up, grimy, and there were flies all over the area. We walked past it, commenting on how odd it was, and continued down a seemingly new trail we hadn't seen on a previous walk in the area. The trail took us past the fire tower and then cut into the woodlands; as we walked into the forest we took notice that no one seemed to be around. In fact not only did we feel isolated from others but we felt very chilled without explanation. That day had been very warm as we both wore very cool clothing and when we entered the forest it began to feel very cool, much cooler than we expected and we both were shivering as we felt the temperature drop.As we continued down the way my friend pointed out that it was getting darker than either of us should have expected or seemed to be - we looked around and there was nothing but trees on all sides, there should have been a forest edge somewhere as the area wasn't really that big but aside from some hills and tall pine trees there wasn't a real 'ending' to the woods like we expected as the area tends to be narrow and normally you can see the edges. She took out her phone to use her GPS because she instinctively felt lost but her battery was nearly gone, I took mine out and it had no signal, the battery was also near dead, and showed "EE:EE" for the time (meaning it couldn't update as it was an older style flip-phone with a camera and when set to auto-adjust would contact the mobile phone network every 15 min).It was only then as the light grew dimmer as we continued on our way that I noticed it was very silent suddenly. Our footsteps echoed, the leaves, grass, twigs, and our breathing just echoed. Ciera got spooked and I did too, she mentioned it was very out of the ordinary. I agreed but I couldn't shake this sense of foreboding that something was amiss. I tried to rationalize it but I really, honestly, couldn't figure any of it out at all.We continued forward going down a small hill on the trail and back up when it got darker. The world seemed to have gone from shadowy to near-twilight darkness. My friend grabbed my arm and started freaking out about how weird it got - then the air grew chillier, and had a feeling of something was wrong. We both took off running looking for an exit, for some odd reason we never thought to turn around at all as we ran we could hear our steps echo off the area as things just felt like they grew more gloomy.Then ahead of us down a small hill and back up the other side we could see two large bushes on either side of the trail like a gate. We made a mad dash for the bushes and just as we pushed through the plants something odd happened - we were nearly blinded by light as sound and warmth returned all at once. It was like stepping outside of a cold, empty, and dark building onto a warm busy street. We stood at the edge of a place known as Old Mans Cave which has a large waterfall and a U-shaped cliff where you can look down into where the water and people gather. We turned around and the bushes were the same but the area was different, brighter, not silent for sure, and warm. In fact, our skin was cold to touch which just reinforced the facts. We took out our phones and the time had finally updated, it was now 4pm. The normal trail would only have taken an hour to walk fully so it was a loss of three full hours!Logic attempted to set in and we decided the trail we came up with must have just appeared creepy because there may have been clouds overhead or a storm blew by but when we went back between the bushes there was no trail. Nothing looked like it had a few seconds ago. Ciera walked around the bushes twice and it was the same bright sunny day with no darkness and no trail. We waited, it was blue sky overhead and we could see the edges of the forest and other people. The trail had simply vanished as if we had never walked it.On returning past the trail where the fire tower was located, we noticed it was normal looking and there was a blond-haired young lady with her hair in a ponytail climbing the steps, the windows were not taped and very clean, and no pungent smell. We don't know what it was, but it certainly was creepy. Of course, I jokingly told her later that day over dinner we had entered the faerie realms by mistake and were lucky to get away, she didn't find that funny of course but either way we felt we should share this with you and if anyone out there has had a similar experience perhaps they can provide insight.Thanks again, D"Hiding in the Mirror: The Quest for Alternate Realities, from Plato to String Theory (by way of Alicein Wonderland, Einstein, and The Twilight Zone)The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos (Vintage)Parallel Worlds: A Journey Through Creation, Higher Dimensions, and the Future of the Cosmos**********POLL: WHAT DO YOU THINK? Vote & comment on paranormal, cryptid & unexplained mysteries!FERAL PEOPLE & WILD MEN - ISOLATED HOMININS | Join Us - LIVE CHAT | Q & A (REAL EYEWITNESS REPORTS!)LISTEN TO NARRATIONS OF PHANTOMS & MONSTERS REPORTS & CASES - PLEASE SUBSCRIBE, LIKE & SHAREPHANTOMS & MONSTERS RADIO Podcasts on SpotifyPHANTOMS & MONSTERS READING LISTCHICAGO MOTHMAN / O'HARE BATMAN YouTube PlaylistHave you had a sighting or encounter?Contact me by email or call the hotline at 410-241-5974Thanks. LonJOIN AMAZON PRIME - Unlimited Movie/TV Streaming& FREE 2-Day ShippingRegister a SNAP EBT CardTry Audible PlusBigfoot and Other Cryptid Videos on YouTube'KILLER BIGFOOT' HUNTED BY U.S. SPECIAL FORCES / GLIMMER MAN / MANTIS HUMANOIDSCRAWLER HUMANOIDS - GRUESOME INVADERS! (REAL EYEWITNESS ENCOUNTERS!)WEREWOLVES: DO THEY EXIST?'DOGMAN IN OUR YARD!' - AN OHIO FAMILY'S 12-YEAR SAGA WITH CRYPTID CANINES----------Become a Phantoms & Monsters Radio member - just $2.99 monthly, and receive these perks. Thanks for your support!-Members-only live chats-Exclusive members-only videos-Priority reply to members' commentsHave perks suggestions? LMK-----YOUR SUPPORT IS APPRECIATED! THANKS-----CREEPY CAMPING ENCOUNTERS - ABOMINABLE CREATURES | LIVE CHAT | Q & A (REAL EYEWITNESS REPORTS!)I hear and read cryptid encounter reports daily. There are risks and dangers in the wilderness. Most campers, hikers, and hunters research and respect any wildlife or environmental pitfalls before heading to the location.But how can these people protect themselves from a creature they are told doesn't exist? An anomalous being that is so abominable that it's difficult for the human mind to comprehend.I'll examine several reports that I have received over the years so that you can develop your rationale for their existence.-----Project Threshold: Finale-----Have you had a sighting or encounter?Contact us by email or call the hotline at 410-241-5974Thanks. LonAlso available with audiobooknarration by Terry Springs,CBS-TV Las Vegas affiliate.This blog and newsletter are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Work 3.0 United States License.Registered trademark PHANTOMS AND MONSTERS ® / PHANTOMS & MONSTERS ® - USPTO #90902480 - Lon D. Strickler© 2005-2024 Phantoms & Monsters - All Rights Reserved

The Maryland Goatman is described as a hybrid creature; part man and part goat. According to those who claim to have seen it, the legs and feet resemble that of a goat, the upper body of a man with a horned head, and a body partially covered by fur. A height is generally described as 7-8 feet and a weight at 300-350 pounds. Below are a few of the documented sightings:June 1963 - Huntington, MD - A young couple was walking on Zug Road when they observed a peculiar creature staring at them from the edge of the woods. The woman described it as a "tall, ragged animal with human-like features."April 1971 - Huntington, MD - A farmer near Fletchertown Road reported seeing a large, man-like creature eating the remains of a pig. When the farmer approached the scene, the creature ran off.September 1976 - Woodmore, MD - A landscaper at the Woodmore Country Club finds unidentified remains on the golf course, near Lottsford Road. While attempting to dispose of them, he hears a low growl. He looks up and observes a large, unknown animal.October 1985 - Glenn Dale, MD - Police respond to a report of teenagers making noise at the old Glenn Dale Hospital site. While investigating, the officer hears unknown sounds but is unable to locate the source.August 1990 - Hyattsville, MD - During a birthday party at McGruder Park, a boy runs into the woods after a ball. Moments later, he screams. When adults arrive, they find him visibly shaken. The boy tells his mother, “It was the dark thing with the red eyes who stands in the corner of my room at night.”May 1998 - Bowie, MD - A group of teenagers are hanging out near a local bridge when they notice something moving in the weeds nearby. Two of the teens go to investigate and describe seeing a tall, human-like animal running into the forest.July 2007 - Glenarden, MD - A camera crew for WRC-TV (Washington, DC) is on location to cover a local golf tournament when they notice a strange animal moving in the trees nearby. The cameraman manages to capture a few seconds of video before the animal disappears.It is often associated with several locations throughout Prince George’s County, MD (listed above) including Glenn Dale Hospital, the former site of a state tuberculosis sanatorium. It is reported to have attacked and possibly killed several witnesses. It had also been connected to damaged property and the deaths of several family pets.The Piscataway native people believed a magical creature in the same area in Maryland could shape-shift into various animal forms. This was noted and written in 1666 by a Jesuit priest, in which the illustration of a Bigfoot-like creature standing on two legs appeared in the document.The sightings began in 1957 when a young couple were parked alone on a lonely country road (Zug Road) when they suddenly heard something banging on the hood of their car. Looking up they were startled to see a goat-like humanoid staring at them, waving what looked like an axe. The creature instantly turned and dashed into the surrounding woods. There were several more rumored sightings over the years.Then in the Summer of 1962, the Goatman was accused of killing fourteen people, including twelve children and two accompanying adults, who had been hiking too close to its apparent lair. The survivors, who, not surprisingly, remained anonymous, claimed that the Goatman violently hacked its victims with an axe while uttering horrid screams. According to the account, when the local authorities arrived on the scene all that was left in the carnage were half-eaten limbs and a bloody trail leading to an ominous-looking cave. BTW, the Prince Georges County and Maryland State Police have no written record of this incident. It was obviously a ruse and urban legend.Then in 1970, a woman heard her pet dog barking wildly outside, peering through a window she saw the shadowy figure of the creature moving about where the dog was tied up. Being too afraid to go outside in the dark she decided to remain in the house. The next morning she discovered that the dog had been decapitated.In the November 10, 1971 edition of the Prince George’s County News the headline on the front page declared “Residents Fear Goatman Lives: Dog Found Decapitated in Old Bowie” with a photo of the remains of the mutilated pet. The canine belonged to April Edwards and had disappeared after she and friends had reported hearing strange noises in their yard on the night of November 3, 1971. When they went to investigate they saw a large creature moving in the dark. The article also stated that reports of an “animal-like creature that walks on its hind legs” had been seen by other residents in the area.The Prince George’s County News coverage of the Goatman ended with one last front-page story on November 24, 1971. It focused on Mrs. Evelyn Johnson, who lived on Fletchertown Road and mentioned the trouble and harassment she and other neighbors received from Goatman hunters. This included an incident where the road was blocked off by two cars and one truckload of people who claimed they had the creature trapped. Mrs. Johnson had to call the police to drive home.So what are the actual origins of the Maryland Goatman? Some reports involve escaped mental patients and others satanic rituals...but the most popular legend is that the Goatman is the unfortunate result of an experiment involving one Dr. Stephen Fletcher that went horribly wrong at his U.S. Department of Agriculture laboratory in Beltsville. The doctor confessed to creating the Goatman by crossing the DNA of a goat and his assistant William Lottsford, but the experiment went terribly awry and the result was a genetic nightmare. It's obviously a manufactured tale, but many people claim that this scenario is valid.Many of these Goatman sightings and reports closely correlate to Bigfoot sightings that have been reported in the same general area of Maryland for generations, including the numerous property attacks by the Sykesville Monster in the early 1970s. Bigfoot-related sightings continue throughout Maryland and the surrounding states. In my opinion, the Goatman is simply an urban legend though, a Bigfoot or any other cryptid hominid with an axe would be a life-altering event.Sources:americanmonsters.comunknown-creatures.comphantomsandmonsters.comgoatmanhollow.comnbcwashington.comcryptidz.wikia.comMonsters of Maryland: Mysterious Creatures in the Old Line StateThe Weiser Field Guide to Cryptozoology: Werewolves, Dragons, Skyfish, Lizard Men, and Other Fascinating Creatures Real and MysteriousChimeras, Hybrids, and Interspecies Research: Politics and PolicymakingGenetic Turning Points: The Ethics of Human Genetic Intervention (Critical Issues in Bioethics)**********POLL: WHAT DO YOU THINK? Vote & comment on paranormal, cryptid & unexplained mysteries!FERAL PEOPLE & WILD MEN - ISOLATED HOMININS | Join Us - LIVE CHAT | Q & A (REAL EYEWITNESS REPORTS!)LISTEN TO NARRATIONS OF PHANTOMS & MONSTERS REPORTS & CASES - PLEASE SUBSCRIBE, LIKE & SHAREPHANTOMS & MONSTERS RADIO Podcasts on SpotifyPHANTOMS & MONSTERS READING LISTCHICAGO MOTHMAN / O'HARE BATMAN YouTube PlaylistHave you had a sighting or encounter?Contact me by email or call the hotline at 410-241-5974Thanks. LonJOIN AMAZON PRIME - Unlimited Movie/TV Streaming& FREE 2-Day ShippingRegister a SNAP EBT CardTry Audible PlusBigfoot and Other Cryptid Videos on YouTube'KILLER BIGFOOT' HUNTED BY U.S. SPECIAL FORCES / GLIMMER MAN / MANTIS HUMANOIDSCRAWLER HUMANOIDS - GRUESOME INVADERS! (REAL EYEWITNESS ENCOUNTERS!)WEREWOLVES: DO THEY EXIST?'DOGMAN IN OUR YARD!' - AN OHIO FAMILY'S 12-YEAR SAGA WITH CRYPTID CANINES----------Become a Phantoms & Monsters Radio member - just $2.99 monthly, and receive these perks. Thanks for your support!-Members-only live chats-Exclusive members-only videos-Priority reply to members' commentsHave perks suggestions? LMK-----YOUR SUPPORT IS APPRECIATED! THANKS-----CREEPY CAMPING ENCOUNTERS - ABOMINABLE CREATURES | LIVE CHAT | Q & A (REAL EYEWITNESS REPORTS!)I hear and read cryptid encounter reports daily. There are risks and dangers in the wilderness. Most campers, hikers, and hunters research and respect any wildlife or environmental pitfalls before heading to the location.But how can these people protect themselves from a creature they are told doesn't exist? An anomalous being that is so abominable that it's difficult for the human mind to comprehend.I'll examine several reports that I have received over the years so that you can develop your rationale for their existence.-----Project Threshold: Finale-----Have you had a sighting or encounter?Contact us by email or call the hotline at 410-241-5974Thanks. LonAlso available with audiobooknarration by Terry Springs,CBS-TV Las Vegas affiliate.This blog and newsletter are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Work 3.0 United States License.Registered trademark PHANTOMS AND MONSTERS ® / PHANTOMS & MONSTERS ® - USPTO #90902480 - Lon D. Strickler© 2005-2024 Phantoms & Monsters - All Rights Reserved

A retiree says she spent her life with low self-esteem, but now she can be seen on catwalks after a stranger approached her on the street, wanting to take a photo. Irishwoman Anne Flanagan had never modeled before and always thought of herself as a serious person. But after a chance meeting in January with […] The post ‘Shy’ Senior Lands Modeling Career at 70 After Stranger’s Instagram Post Goes Viral appeared first on Good News Network.

President Joe Biden’s late decision not to seek reelection has scrambled both the media’s Sunday plans and collective brains. In the wake of the expected but nonetheless surprising news, the galaxy-brain takes are flying. Watch as former U.S. Senator for Missouri and MSNBC contributor “Air” Claire McCaskill drops a head-scratcher in the immediate aftermath of Biden’s announcement: that Biden had no one hoping for some other candidate. https://www.mrctv.org/node/588605 JEN PSAKI: Claire, let me ask you, you know President Biden well. What- we’re going to spend some time, as I think we ought, as I think everybody should over the next couple months talking about his legacy. What do you hope people remember and talk about him in terms of his time as president? CLAIRE MCCASKILL:  You know, I think it’s really important. We are so polarized in this country right now. I think it’s really important to remember how effective he was at marshaling a team, first of all. He doesn't have anybody in his cabinet that’s not- that wasn't endorsing him. He doesn't have a vice president that isn't gonna be at his convention. He doesn't have, you know, loads of people saying, “oh, I wish it were someone else” behind the scenes. Um, you know, it really is that he- that he was going to bring people together. And that he was gonna restore dignity. And normalcy to the Oval Office.  Wait, are we in the Twilight Zone? Did we not arrive at this historical juncture PRECISELY BECAUSE there were “loads of people saying, ‘oh, I wish it were somewhere else’”? Do vast majorities of the American population and even Democrats not count as “loads of people”?  The same media that gaslit the American public over Joe Biden’s mental fitness to execute the office of the presidency and abetted the DNC’s suppression of the 2024 primary, which would’ve flushed Biden’s deficiencies out a lot sooner than the June 27th debate, are now going to attempt to gaslight the American public into believing that this is “democracy”. Proof evident of that is a former United States Senator appearing on MSNBC air and saying that no one clamored for someone other than Biden to be the 2024 Democrat candidate.    

A couple of months ago, I wrote a column about how spineless Christian leaders had failed America. This failure left a vacuum filled by Kansas City Chiefs star kicker Harrison Butker, who has done more this year to advance biblical ethics in the culture than much of the church combined. He continues to take shots for it, which brings me to Donald Trump and this week’s Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. There is some justifiable criticism from my fellow believers about some of the speaker choices, such as former stripper Amber Rose, who started something called “SlutWalk.” That criticism has also morphed into some broader statements claiming this was once a party of Christian conviction that is now suddenly being pushed into the gutter by Trump and his “New York values.” The church systematically ran from the culture war in the last generation to build megachurches in the suburbs. That is not true. The truth is this party had betrayed its evangelical base more times than any of us could count long before Trump showed up. It was Trump and his "New York values" that finally recognized Jerusalem as the rightful capital of Israel. It was Trump who got Roe v. Wade overturned, not nice guy born-again George W. Bush. It was Trump who brought unprecedented stability to the Middle East, while keeping us out of internecine fights between warring sects of Muslims that the more dignified forever-war GOP kept dragging us into. That doesn’t mean I don’t have criticisms of Trump. I’ve not been shy about sharing them on these pages and on the air. Nevertheless, the evangelicals who make it look like the Republican Party was an extension of the Council of Nicaea before Trump arrived sound just as out of touch as the GOP corporatists who failed to recognize they were the impetus for Trump’s original ascension nearly a decade ago. Just as the globalist corporatists merging with Democrats to form the uniparty created the market for the disruptor many believe Trump is, the spinelessness of too many Christian leaders necessitates someone to step into the Charlemagne-sized void and become the defender of the realm. Because when it comes to the culture war raging in America, the salt has lost its savor, making it useless and trampled underfoot. The church systematically ran from the battle in the last generation to build megachurches in the suburbs. When it did engage, its priority was ensuring that the battle was waged as proper gentlemen (nicer than God) would wage it rather than winning it. We were purpose-driven by forsaking one of our primary purposes. When I was on the Ted Cruz campaign opposing Trump in 2016, I made an analogy about his popularity with evangelicals. Because we were also striving to be the evangelical candidate and couldn't figure out why this New York celebrity with a tabloid greatest hits album was more popular with Southern Baptists than our Southern Baptist candidate. I pointed to Clint Eastwood’s “Man with No Name” antihero in the spaghetti Westerns. The people preferred the Gary Cooper nice guy sheriff who would cleanse the town of the banditos. The one they could look up to. Desire to marry their daughters off to. The one they would name their sons after. But that nice guy sheriff never showed up for the fight, and so the town kept getting overrun by the banditos. Sooner or later, you just need to survive. So you turn to the Pale Rider, the High Plains Drifter, the antihero, when you’re cornered and out of options. You know the collateral damage of aligning with the antihero will be high. A few townsfolk might get caught in the crossfire. You know he’s got unrepentant and irredeemable flaws you don’t aspire to. But you also know it is either him or the end of your town. For all his flaws, and for all the things about him and his way of doing things that have both flummoxed and frustrated me, the truth is that Trump has done more to fight the darkness seeping into this culture and threatening to overrun it since he came down that escalator in 2015 than the church has done collectively thus far this century. The darkness targets Donald Trump instead of the church for a reason. The biggest problem America faces is that most of its pastors are unworthy of being shot at.

Rosie O' Donnell Believes There Are Maybe One Hundred Days Left of a Free America

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President Joe Biden's brother Frank told CBS News on Sunday evening he is "selfishly" happy his brother dropped out of the presidential race.