The Flaming Ship

Prince Edward Island or P.E.I as it's known to the residents, is an eastern maritime province of Canada that lies off New Brunswick and Nova Scotia in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It is a rather large island with the population being nearly 157,000 as of 2019, and the area being 5,660 km². Lighthouses and red sand beaches mark the island with the capital being Charlottetown.  

The island has a very pastoral community feel to it, one that produces a great sense of storytelling. The residents would be no stranger to ghost stories or the many urban legends that is talked about. Folklore has been part of the island for generations, often tales having to do with the rocky shorelines and the arbitrary waters that circled the land. 

Perhaps the most famous story was the much talked about flaming ghost ship of Prince Edward Island. This story was known to everyone that lived here, so popular it is believed that some schools even teach the kids about the lore as part of the islands history. Some even believe it to be more than just an island legend, and that the ship did in-fact exist in reality.

The version that is best known would be the story of a group of sailors back in 1900 in Charlottetown.  They saw up ahead on the horizon, a ship with white sails floating towards them. The closer the ship got they could hear screams of panic. Up along the large masts were people climbing frantically, chasing them were large flames that were growing by the second, The sailors jumped into a rowboat and oared out to the burning ship. As they were approaching the ship it had completely vanished, no signs to where it had gone to, it had just disappeared as if it was never there.

Other islanders have similar stories of that nature to share. Sometime in the 1950's, a married couple were settling down for the night when the woman pointed towards the window and asked her husband who's house it was with the light on so bright. The thing was though, that in the direction she pointed at, there were no houses, only the water. The two went out to see what the light was, only to lay eyes on a fully rigged ship sailing down the Northumberland Strait, full speed ahead and covered in roaring flames. It then, yet again had vanished from sight.

This account was what they told an American Folklorist named Edward D. Ives. Ives was visiting the island working on a project of his own when he began to hear whispers about the ship. His interest began to increase as he gained personal encounters with the ship from the locals along the lot7 shore part of the island. A fisherman down said the one night while casting off, that he had seen the ship, but when he started to walk towards it, it wasn't getting and closer nor further away. 

The ships origin was never really talked about with no one knowing where it had come from. Some rumors that it was warning that a storm was coming, but that idea never really took off. The first person to offer some insight about the ships emergence came from a guy named Roland H. Sherwood. In 1948 he wrote about it in a book called Story Parade, in which he states a few possibilities; it was a result of a drunken brawl in which a lamp was knocked over and causing the blaze to start. Another story he wrote about was that it was an immigrant ship that was struck by lightning on the way to Quebec and blown off course. An informant of Ives gave up a theory of his own, that the ship was the result of pirates setting it on fire due to the fact it contained priests and nuns. 

The sightings still are reported, the last being in 2008 being published in the Nova Scotia paper. It was an account of a teenage boy who had said to have spotted a white and gold ship in the area of Tatamagouche, a village in Nova Scotia. Each island on the Northumberland Strait is said to contain its own version of the flaming ship, with the details varying.

Many have disproved the presence of the ship, but no matter what the truth is, no one can deny the interest this has brought to the provinces along the strait. Prince Edward Island being the main beneficiary of profit from this legend, with many folklore enthusiasts travelling from all over the globe to try and catch a glimpse of the flaming ship. Sometimes blind faith can bring about more enjoyment than authentication. 

The Dark Side Of Christmas - Frau Perchta

The Goddess of Christmas and a prominent figure in the lore of the Alpine regions of Austria and South Germany, Frau Perchta is a much feared witch-like lady that is not to be messed with.

Other aliases she has been knows by are "Spinning room lady" or just simply "Bertha". Her appearance is that of a shabby old lady with a beak for a nose as long as Pinocchio himself. She dressed in the cheapest clothes she could find, they were more rags than anything else. Along with this, she also walked with a crooked cane fashioned out of iron. 

Her frail appearance was often deceitful and taken for granted. Her pleasure came from spinning and she was a lover of domestic cleanliness, albeit ironic for one who dressed so vile. From December 25th to January the 6th, otherwise known to us as the twelve days of Christmas, she would do her inspections.

These so called inspections often ended in a gruesome fashion. She would fly over head going from house to house checking for two things; the first being that all your flax was spun, that the time for spinning was finished for now. The second was that your house was as clean as it could possibly be, Christmas was over and so the house should return to its normal state.

For those that didn't follow these rules or have failed the inspections, there are punishments. If you fail one of these then she would set fire to a section of the house and let it burn away before putting it out when valuables got destroyed, this was a warning for those to get their act together for the next inspection.

If a house failed both check-ups then she would pay them a very personal visit. During the visit she would disembowel the house owners and replace their guts with rocks and straw. The only way said to repel her inspections was to leave out a bowl of traditional porridge at 11 p.m on the night of the 6th of January. This act was seen as a sign of respect and an offering to her that was very much appreciated, as long as the porridge was up to her taste of course.

Frau Perchta powers don't stop there, she is said to be a leader in the legend of the Wild Hunt. She would fly through the skies accompanied by her army of lost souls of the damned and the souls of unbaptized children.

Legend claims that if you're in this Alpine region and hear the thunder and wind roaring and rumbling through the mountains, followed by thrashes of lightening, then you are hearing Frau Perchta leading her army in the Wild Hunt.

Riverdale Road

In Thornton, Colorado, there is a stretch of road called Riverdale road. This street has become widely known across the country for its unexplained and mysterious happenings. Over the years the attention this road has gathered has gone from being some wacky local-lore to people actively avoiding driving down it, even if it meant adding substantial time to their journey. This hasn't stopped the ghost and ghoul chasers of the night from coming out of their dark bedrooms to see can they catch a glimpse of the sinister side of Casper. There are eight legends that are synonymous with the road, and below you can read about these.

The first legend talks about people spotting ghosts swinging from trees on the side of the road. It's not swinging as in the playful playground type, it's more the body of someone after being hung, dangling and swirling in the nights breeze. These people are said to be the bodies of one time slaves of the townspeople who were no longer needed and then murdered and buried along the road side.

Many years ago, there was a horrific car accident that resulted in the sad death of a ten year old child. The child himself was a very bright student who excelled at school in many areas, but mainly art. His death was a result of a an angry drink driver who was acquitted by a technicality, but everyone knew the real reason was because he was drinking with the mayor at the time and the mayors mistress. The ghost of the child is said to be seen wandering up and down the stretch of road looking for revenge on anyone he sees. If you see this ghostly figure then your front windshield will show on it hand prints of blood, which is said to mark your untimely demise.

Do not stop to give anyone a lift on this road; not under any circumstances. Many have vanished from this road for months, and in some cases years, with their last memory being that they pulled over and gave a woman a lift to the next town along the way. When they would return they would be in what many described as a "Sense of trance" and "Not able to connect with". All they would ever talk about is  if the lady who needed a lift had got home alright.

Gates of hell are regularly talked about when it comes to the unexplained, and this is no different. A very wealthy man, who bought a plot of land half way up the road, had iron gates built at every entrance to his four houses along the way. These were built for protection purposes but over time his mild mannered nature turned into a more controlling one, and his wife was never left leave their main house. She committed suicide one morning and upon waking to see this, he also took his own life. Now people have speculated that the large rusty gates that provide the entrance to the derelict house are in fact gates to a life of hell.

Running is a great way to maintain health and help you live a longer life, but not when the thing you are running from ends up killing you!!! The ghost of a  jogger who was killed mysteriously here is said to chase after those who decide to go for a midnight run on the 13th of every month. The transparent skinny figure will jog right next to you and if you stop to take a break or to tie your shoelaces, then your heart will also stop. 

Demonic activity is often reported by the residence on Riverdale Road. Reports of wailing women, mysterious graffiti and dead animals turning up in peoples backyards are an often too common call made by the folk of  this part of Thornton. Police were never able to give any explanation as to why these took/ are taking place, other than people passing through on their way out of Denver and having "some fun".

The surrounding land is said to be haunted also, with Native American tribes once inhabiting the area  and using the one time barren land as burial grounds. The spirits of these are said to be very protective of their past home, and anyone that does any wrong in the area; according to their tribal laws, is said to meet a very gruesome demise at the hands of a Native American shapeshifer acting as a loved one. 

The last legend on this lonesome road is one of a Camaro, that of course, is haunted. The Phantom Camaro of Riverdale Road, to give it, it's proper full title. The road itself is full of blind spots, which have caused numerous accidents on corner turns. One man in his 70's fatally crashed into a pregnant woman on a bright sunny evening back in the summer of the early 1940's. He was arrested and sentenced to death by lethal injection six months later. His last words were "demon car" and now that very car is the one that is spoken about as The Phantom Camaro.

The road today is still a very popular route for those behind the wheel. Those in the area remain convinced that something supernatural is going on here; those outside joke about the people along Riverdale Road. 

Snakey

In Eastern Austria lived a woman and her daughter of 7 years of age. They didn't have much so food rations were a big part of their daily routine. The house they lived in was an old cottage in the countryside, surrounded by streams and tall grass, especially in the summer time. The little girl would often spend her days outside in the open fields, while her mother took care of the house. 

In the afternoon they would each drink a glass of milk and eat a bread roll; it was normally hard and tough to tear apart, especially for those who's teeth wouldn't be as strong. On nice sunny days the girl would have this small meal outside in the tall grass just past the rotting front porch of the house. Her mother could see her through the front window so she wasn't all too concerned about her being outside, besides it was miles away from any people, and those who were seen were normally kids on school outings picking berries and being taught some ecological/botanical lessons.

One very warm afternoon, the girl went out to eat her meal on the rock in the middle of the tall grass, when she heard a hissing sound. The sound grew and before she knew it there was in front of her, a large grey-green grass snake. It hissed continuously while wrapped slithering up the girls body, resting on her lap like a household pet. The girl was frightened but was always taught by her mother to not make any sudden movements if she did encounter any snakes by the stream, it was unusual for them to come in this far away from the water.

Up looked the snake's head towards the girl, as if to greet her. She offered it some of her bread roll, to which it stuck its thick forked tongue and retracted the bread into its body. This brought a smile to the girls face and she continued to feed the snake small bits of her food.  After a short while the snake slithered back down the girls body and went back through the grass in the direction of the streams.

The next day the girl again went to the same spot, in hope that the snake would return, and return it did. The same as the previous day happened, it lay up on her lap and ate some of the roll, she offered the snake some of her milk but it wasn't to the snake's taste. Her mother was looking out the window always at her daughter but the snake was not in view, the angle in which the girl sat obstructed her vision of the reptile, along with it's camouflaged look.

Each day she would go out and see what she know called "Snakey" and spend some time listening to it hiss and watch it relax in the daylight sun. She would gently rub its head and body, this made the hissing sound as if it was feeling content, the same way a cat would purr when getting it's belly rubbed. No passing mice or frogs would bother the relaxed reptile, it was happy in the company of the little girl , and the feeling was mutual.

Her mother got a call with some good news a few days later. It was that she was offered a job in the town about 40 minutes away. She was overcome with joy, this meant she could giver her daughter a better life and they could both eat better, no more rations or living day to day. She couldn't wait to break the news to her child.

Out she went to inform her, but she wanted to creep up on her and surprise her. She could see her little girl sitting on the rock with her back facing her, all that was going through her mind was that from now on they could both have a proper warm meal at the table each evening. She out her eyes around her daughter head, covering her eyes; "Guess what news mommy has for you darling" she asked her in a joyful manner.

A second later she heard a loud and aggressive hissing sound coming from her daughters body. Much to her shock, she seen the snake on her little girls lap and immediately grabbed it by its head; pinning it to the ground. The little girl screamed for her to let go but her mother to go inside now, to get as far away as she could. Her daughters words were just noise in the background as she was in fight mode to protect her girl. She took out a knife from her hip belt and cut the snakes head off. The body and head were bagged before she went back inside the house to see if there were any bites on her girl. 

Inside the girl was weeping, she seen her mom standing there with the bloody bag and knew what had happened. Her mother was confused to why she was so upset with her, thinking she just saved her daughter from this animal, maybe she was still in shock she thought to herself, she tried to hug and care for her daughter but she ran into her room and cried for the evening.

The next morning, mom went into the girls room to find her laying in a pool of sweat with an alarmingly high fever. After trying to lower the fever with some home remedies, she called the doctor out from town she got her new job in. Within a half hour the doctor arrived, he was rushed inside to take a look at her but he was totally perplexed by this. He said that she will have to be taken to hospital for further treatment. None of this made sense to the doctor.

He stepped out of her room to ring the hospital to inform them. By the time he went back inside the room the girl was dead, her breathing had stopped completely, she was as pale as someone who had been dead for days. Her mother went into a total meltdown, falling to the ground and screaming with pain over the loss of her little girl. The doctor covered the girl's body and placed her into his car, her mom sat in the back holding her in her arms, sobbing throughout. 

She stayed with her sister for week, she couldn't face going back to her house straight away. Her job was gone, she was in no way or form to attend for work. All she wanted to do was to sit alone in darkness and numb the pain she was feeling, but she knew sooner rather than later she would have to return home.

Her sister went with her and walked her inside, she was shaking uncontrollably and the tears once again flowed down her face. Her daughters room door had still been opened from that day and she decided she wanted to go in to her room, no matter how hard it was, she needed to go in. 

Inside she could smell her daughters scent still lingering, it was exactly as she left it, as if she was still alive. She looked inside her daughters bedside locker drawers to collect all her belongings, this is where she seen a sheet of paper with a drawing on it. It was a drawing of a grey-green grass snake and titled "Snakey" with a heart on it.

Mom quickly remembered the snake she killed the day before her daughter passed away and went out to check on it's dead body in the bag tied on the back door. She opened the bad but there nothing inside, no head, no body, no blood, nothing at all............

Epping Forest

On the border of London and Essex in England, lies a very large and ancient woodland area known as Epping Forest. It is said to be approximately 2.4 hectare big, with the valley of two rivers; Lea and Riding surrounding the woods. It is a former royal forest and managed now by the City of London Corporation, with an area of 1.7 hectare being a site of social specific interest and also used for conservation purposes. From north to south the wooded area is roughly 19 kilometres (12 mile), but from east to west at its widest point it is never any wider than 4 kilometres (2.5).

Numerous different species of wildlife hav been spotted here over time. The Grass Snake, Foxes, Squirrels, Rabbits, Rats and Mice, Shrews, Mink, Deer, Otters, Bats, Hedgehos, a wide rang of Freshwater Fish, Swans and various other types of Birds are all but a few to have been seen living amongst the great woods. Rivers, bogs , ponds and lakes take up a lot of the area, with over 100 lakes and ponds said to be found withing the forest. It is in fact one of these ponds that holds a very sinister and deadly side to it, one that should not be messed with, nor taken lightly.

It all started some 300 years ago when a young couple got together and decided to meet up in secret by the pond which in modern day has become more commonly known as "The Killer/Suicide Pool. Their relationship was forbidden by many but they ignored the orders of those close to them. When they met up they could hear a noise coming from behind them, a noise that turns out to be the girl's father who had followed her all the way to see were his inclinations correct. When he confronted them both he got into a fit of blind rage, punching and throwing the boy to the ground and accidently doing the same to his daughter who was trying to stop him. The thing was though when he had done so, she cracks her head against a rock and was killed instantly. 

The father, realising what he had done, preceeded to pick up her body and dump it in the pond. The boy, groggy and petrified sat sobbing in sadness and fear while watching her father run away back through the forest. A few moments later he decided he couldn't live with what he just seen, nor could he a life without his true love, so he decided to walk into the remarkably deep pond and take his own life.

When he did so, the pond water started to turn really thick and black. The vegetation around the pool died and all the animals that within a short distance of the pool had mysteriously dropped dead, the banks of the river especially filled with carcasses. 

A number of people after that day had committed suicide also by walking into the water. People who were with those when they done this had insisted that none of them had ever shown any signs of wanting to kill themselves. They were all described as happy and full of life people, but then they got to the lake it was like they were in a trance and the pond was calling them. Nothing they could do or say was enough to stop them from walking into the pond that day. 

Perhaps the most tragic incident was of a young servant girl called Emma Morgan who killed herself and her baby in 1887, the pond would reject no one. It is said that the wind would go quiet and then the water would start to turn colour and bubble. 

In 1959 the Essex Countryside magazine had held a competition to find the exact location of the pond, as it wasn't accurately known. One writer claimed she knew where the suicide pool was but refused to share the location. She would claim that the 'dank, evil and malignant' pool was evil beyond measure. She also went on to describe it as having an 'atmosphere unpleasant beyond description' and with the sunshine unable to penetrate the surrounding trees.

With the location never found and with there being over 100 of these ponds in the forest, you better hope that the day you decide to go for your relaxing picnic, might not be your last......

Midnight Bus 375

It was a very wet and dreary night on the 14th of November 1995 in Beijing, China. An older gentleman approached the stop which was the last one on that bus route from the Yuan-ming-huan bus terminus. He sat in the freezing cold bench next to a much younger man and started to make some nice gentle conversation.

They both chatted away for a couple of minutes before the bus arrived and they boarded. A few miles up ahead the bus driver could make out hands waving in the distance. As he got closer h could see that it was three men trying to gain his attention. Two of them were holding up another man by his shoulders, he looked to be either injured or highly intoxicated.

The bus driver decided to stop as their plea for his attention got more and more frantic. The doors of the bus opened. Blinding fog from outside took over the bus as the three men boarded, one of them paying the incapacitated mans fare. They sat half way down the bus, the only other passengers being the older man and the younger one from the bus stop who were sat individually behind the three new passengers.

The older man started to look on edge. He began searching his pockets frantically before standing up and shouting at the younger passenger, claiming that he stole his wallet. They argued back and forth before the bus driver got fed up and ordered that both of them get out. He pulled over at the side of some lonely road and threw them both out.

When they were off the bus the older man was no longer in a state of anger, he was more in shock at what he just seen. He told the younger man that he made the wallet story up as a ruse to get them off the bus, claiming he had saved his life. The younger man looking confused was then told that the two stable passengers who boarded after them had no legs, they were bodies that just floated and that their eyes were all black with no sign of life inside.They proceeded to then walk abruptly to the nearest town to go to the police about this, but they were laughed out the door as quickly as they rushed in. 

The very next day the bus company put out a statement to the police saying that "Last night, the final bus for route 375 had vanished, along with the bus driver and the ticket lady". The police quickly chased down the pair of so called "mentally unstable" people they threw out of the station the night before and asked for every little detail they could remember from that night.

The following day the bus was found. It was plunged deep in water inside a water reservoir, roughly about 100 km away from its destination - Xiang-shan aka fragrant hills. Inside the bus there were three very badly decomposed corpses, but the mysteries didn't stop there.

Inside the petrol tank was filled with human blood, the bus didn't have enough fuel to make it this far, the bodies were like those decomposed from someone dead for a week and not 48 hours and also the security cameras showed no evidence of the bus ever crashing into the reservoir. The police couldn't understand what had happened here and the case was eventually labelled as unsolved and put away somewhere in the back of their records. 

That route was renamed and there was never a bus 375 in that part of Beijing again. 

House Share

I will never share a house again, I now reside on the edge of a discreet town with just my cat Ollie. Over the years I have lived in all types of accomodation but I am a man who likes to move around. I get bored and things become stale after a while so often I seek a new adventure and with that brings a new place to live. 

I had just broke up with a girl I was dating for 8 months and wanted a fresh start so I looked around for properties to rent and found one about 4 hours drive from where I was living which was ideal, it gave me the chance to forget about everything that happened. It was affordable and when I say that I mean it was basically for nothing: about 40 dollars a week - 160 a month, but was a house share. Sharing with five other strangers was not something I normally would want but I went for it.

After all the formalities were over with I arrived at the house and remember it being a really hot day, I was soaked in sweat dragging in all my bags. The person who I had been dealing with over the phone and through email was called Nick. He greeted me at the door, shaking my sweaty hand and offering to help carry up my bags, which I was grateful for before showing me to my room and going over the house rules; washing, cleaning, bills, chores etc.... The first night went as smooth as I could have hoped for, I was in bed by 10 p.m doing a few crosswords from my puzzle book I got from an airport a couple of years back, but still yet to complete it. 

The next morning I awoke to the bright morning sun shining in my window directly on my face and the pen from my nights antics resting on my upper chest. I got dressed and went down to make breakfast to which I met two of the other housemates - Rob and Natalie who seemed nice but a bit odd and definitely both high, which I didn't have a problem with, I just wished I got their stoned inside jokes, but not to worry I thought to myself, so far so good I suppose.

As the day progressed I spent most of it up in my room just sorting and arranging it how I wanted. Next to my bed there was an old not in-use fireplace where I put all my valuables and pictures on. By the window, which was a bit stiff, was a desk where I done a lot of my writing from, amongst other things that single men like to get up to. The floor was wooden and a bit creaky at parts, the walls were plain white with the ceiling following that highly creative decorative trend, well it was mostly white with the exception of a few dark patches by the corners of the ceiling, I put it down to the previous tenant being a smoker.

Later that evening I went down to make some dinner. There was no one around, perfect timing I thought, so I cooked and ate it at the kitchen table and it was delicious. Just as I was cleaning off my plate, I heard the front door open and voices chatting in my direction moving down the hallway. It was the other two housemates who I haven't met yet - Rae and Kyle. It was a short meet and greet but these also seemed to be smoking some of the devil's lettuce.

10 p.m was getting closer, I was always an early sleeper, I could feel last the urge to finiahe last nights crossword creeping up on me, so I got into bed and the before I knew it, it was morning. This was the last night I spent in this house and nearly the last of my life.

As I was flipping my egg over I could hear a girl crying from the room to the side of the kitchen. I knocked on the door, asking if everything was alright but the only response was that of more crying, so I opened the door and there was Natalie sobbing into her hands. She didnt notice me, not even when I went right up to her and put my hand on her right shoulder. I just kept asking what was wro nothing, it was like I didn't exist to her.

I left her to herself, taking my eggs and returning to my room. A little while later I could hear crying again, this time from the room across from mine. Again, I went and knocked before entering, and this time it was Kyle and Rae sitting on their bed facing each other, tears flowing down their faces as they looked directly into each others eyes. No notice of me again so I went rapidly back to my room and locked my door. What the fuck is going on!! Were my thoughts exactly at this point.

It was then where the window blasted open and a strong swirling breeze came through, knocking off all the pictures and cards on the mantle piece. I went over to close it and it was then where I seen Natalie hanging from a piece of rope out in the back yard. Shock took over me as I just stood there, wind blowing through my hair like there was an invisible hair dryer right in front of me. Natalie didn't just hang there though, she opened her eyes and looked right at me, it was then where once again the crying started.

I didn't even have time to think when I felt a finger tap me on my shoulder, but when I turned my head the window slammed shut on my right hand, causing excruciating pain. Of course there was no one behind me. A fire pit from the fireplace, it wasn't just a few small flames, it was a massive roarng fire that felt like it was taking to me. It would road, then stop, then roar again. I tried to escape but the door handle had just vanished and the window was now stuck shut, there was no way out.

I tried to call but of course like you see in the movies, the signal was down. The heat was unimaginable at this point and the air felt like it was getting sucked out of the room. This was now full on panic mode! I kicked and hit every part of the room, desperately hoping that by some sort of magic room would open, a hope that never materialised. The worst part of this longest five minutes of my life was how I could continue to hear Natalie crying throughout it all, but they weren't tears of sadness, they were like tears of happiness. Something words can't describe. 

Breathing was getting harder by the second and the seconds were running out. I accepted it, death was coming for me and there was nothing I could do about it. A control freak without control was for those few seconds a rather liberating and free feeling. The end was here, except it wasn't. 

I somehow survived it, I woke up about a half a mile away from the house, without a scratch or burn on me. I never went near that house after this. The next bus that came I bought a ticket and never looked back since. Some time later I read up on what happened and it said that four bodies were found in the house, all with their eyes gouged out, but that wasn't the weirdest part. That accolade went to the position in which the bodies were found. The four bodies were found together, forming a cross sign, two vertical and one horizontal at each side. 

To this day I have nightmares about it all, I still don't understand how or what happened, all I know is that it did and I'm alive today. I sit at night, stroking Ollie while trying to keep the bad thoughts out, but one thing that keeps coming back to me is what ever happened to Nick? I didn't see him there the day it all happened and he wasn't mentioned in the write up on the paper, no mention of him at all. 

I tried to find any information on him I could, but I soon realised that I didn't know not could I find anything about this guy, not even a surname. All I had were a few emails exchanged to the name NicksNicksNicks@gmail.com. It was a lost cause, I just had to accept this, then my phone notification sound went off.........