Episode Transcript
[00:00:07] Good evening. I'm Ben and welcome to the show where you and I gather around this campfire to hear some of our fellow campers scariest experiences. So whether you're a new or returning camper, I'm happy to have you. Tonight we're headed to Amicala State park in Georgia to hear Marcus Delany's story about working as a chef at Amicala Falls Lodge. As always, before we begin the show, if you want to check out our camp's bonus episodes, head over to patreon.com do you want to hear a ghost story? You'll also gain early ad free access to episodes, get a shout out at the end of one, and much more. Now, without further ado, do you want to hear a ghost story?
[00:00:53] Around here they say mountains hold secrets, and after nine months at Amicala State park and Lodge, I can tell you this, they are not lying. I walked in as a seasoned chef, confident in my skills and ready for whatever challenge a mountain resort kitchen might throw my way. But what I wasn't ready for was the darkness that seemed to cling to the walls seeping from every corner of this establishment.
[00:01:21] It started with small things, annoyances, really, that I could explain away, at least in the beginning.
[00:01:29] A misplaced knife here, an elevator deciding to take me on its own to a floor I didn't ask for. You might think old buildings have quirks, electrical systems have glitches. I, too tried to tell myself the same, but Amicala's quirks went beyond a finicky elevator or poor maintenance. Nighttime was the worst. After the last plates were washed and stacked and the final guests had retired to their rooms, a silence settled over the lodge, a silence that had weight like a thick blanket pressing down on you. I'd hear the kitchen elevator rattle on its own, the faint ding echoing through the empty halls, and then watch as the doors opened without reason, as if something unseen had called for it.
[00:02:18] More than once, I felt it. An unmistakable chill, the kind that crawls up your back when you're sure you're being watched. A feeling that something dark, something deeply wrong, lurked just beyond the reach of the yellow kitchen lights.
[00:02:32] It wasn't long before these small occurrences grew into something I couldn't ignore. I would set a jar on a shelf, turned my back, and hear the distinct sound of glass hitting the tile. A jar that had been placed perfectly securely, now shattered on the ground. Utensils would slide off hooks with a force that wasn't natural, I swear. Once a kitchen's knife lifted and flung across the prep Area embedding itself into the far wall. There was no one else there but me. I stopped staying late to prep for the next day. Something or someone clearly didn't want me around. But it wasn't just the kitchen. It was the entire lodge.
[00:03:14] There was this unmistakable feeling, like an invisible hand pressing down on everyone and everything.
[00:03:21] Staff turnover was like nothing I had ever seen before. Anger seemed to infect us all. It was a silent rage that built over the simplest things. A forgotten order, a misplaced key, a guest's complaint would all explode into arguments that left us all shaking with frustration. I've worked in kitchens for over a decade. Over 10 years of late nights, missed holidays and underpaid, overworked chef's hours. I know stress. But this. This was something more. It was as if the lodge fed on our fear, anger and frustration, like it thrived on the chaos it sowed.
[00:04:04] I remember the night I truly came to understand this curse of immaculate. It was around 3am and I was finishing up some paperwork in my small office, tucked away from the main kitchen.
[00:04:16] Outside my window, I heard footsteps. Heavy, deliberate. I froze, listening, knowing full well there shouldn't be anyone out there at this time. The footsteps stopped. And then the whispers began. Angry, low voices, muffled but distinct enough that I knew they weren't friendly.
[00:04:35] I forced myself to look out the window, expecting. Well, I don't know what I expected, but there was nothing. No one. Just darkness. The whispers continued, though fading only after what felt like an eternity. My heart pounded, my hands shook. I wasn't alone. I knew that I was. But whatever was there, it was angry. I tried to ignore it. I tried to push through, to be the professional I'd always prided myself on being. But the lodge had other plans.
[00:05:09] The darkness continued to feed on us, driving the staff to leave one after another. Thirteen food and beverage managers, and just in just three years, I was either the eighth or ninth chef to come through. In that same span of time. I thought I'd be the one to break the cycle, to withstand this curse that seemed to cling to every part of this place. But I was wrong. No matter how hard I worked, no matter how much of myself I poured into this job, there was no success to be found here. Only failure. Only darkness.
[00:05:44] I could feel it affecting me. My temper growing shorter, my energy drained. Even after a full night's sleep, the lodge was sucking me dry. People who came in with bright eyes and big hopes, they left hollow, angry and defeated. It made us all crazy. Like rats trapped in a maze with no Way out. I began to see things too late at night, when I should have been long gone but stayed behind, stubbornly clinging to the idea that I could make a difference here.
[00:06:16] Figures just out of the corner of my eye, slipping between shadows. Once, I thought I saw a man standing in the hallway near the kitchen.
[00:06:24] He was tall, dressed in something dark, his face hidden. I called out, hello. But he didn't move, just stood there, watching me. When I blinked, he was gone. I didn't sleep that night. I couldn't, knowing whatever I saw was still there somewhere, now, out of sight.
[00:06:44] There were stories, legends really. Whispers among the staff about the lodge being built on sacred land. I don't know if it's true, but it makes sense. I could feel it. The anger, the resentment. It was in the air. It was in the walls. I think about all of the people who have come and gone, all of the failures, all of the fights. It's like the Lodge won't let anyone succeed, Especially not people like us, outsiders, trying to profit off of something we don't understand, something we don't appreciate. The land is angry, and, well, if you ask me, it has every right to be. We're just interlopers, trespassers on something that wants us gone. I took another job. I had to. I couldn't keep putting my family through this, couldn't keep pretending that things would get better when every day I felt darker than the last. I was the longest standing chef in three years. I don't say that like it's a badge of honor. It's a warning. I left before whatever darkness haunts that place could take more from me. And I feel sorry for whoever came next. I know they wouldn't last. The lodge wouldn't allow it. Because I know now that it's not just cursed, it's damned. People have died there, and I'm sure of it. You can feel their presence late at night when the halls are empty and the wind howls the trees outside. I'll never forget my last night. The whispers outside my office came back. Louder this time, angrier. It was like they knew I was leaving and they were trying to make me break one last time.
[00:08:23] I heard them in the kitchen. Rising voices in a furious argument. Pots clanged, metal against metal. I ran in, half expecting to see a night crew fighting, but the kitchen was empty. Everything was in its place. And then the lights just flickered. The voices had stopped as soon as I stepped through the door. The only sound now was my breathing, ragged and terrified. I turned and walked out. I didn't look back. Amicalola Lodge is cursed. It's not just haunted, it's something worse, squeezing until there's nothing left but anger and fear. I got out. I don't know if the next person will be so lucky. I only hope they see the sign sooner than I did. I hope they run before it's too late.
[00:09:08] Thank you Marcus for allowing me to share your story. It's funny because this sounds a lot like my last job. However, there my coworkers and I were just haunted by bad management. But in all seriousness, this sounds like a horrible place to work for a lot of reasons and I'm glad you were able to find a new job and get out for show announcements I want to address the lack of sound design in my last few episodes. I have honestly just been incredibly busy and have just been on the mission to keep the show up and running these last several weeks. The sound design is what I enjoy the most most, but it is also incredibly time consuming and I unfortunately have just not had the time to dedicate lately.
[00:09:47] However, it will be back soon. If you want early access to ad free episodes, a shout out at the end of one and more, head over to patreon.com do you want to hear a ghost story? I'm glad to have you all as campers on this journey. Please keep sharing the show with anyone you think might like these stories or someone you're just trying to scare. If you're enjoying it, go ahead and leave a review. I would love to hear from you. Until next time.
