Jersey Devil

[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. Whether you're a new or returning camper, I am happy to have you. Tonight we are headed to New Jersey to hear Sandra's encounter with the infamous Jersey Devil. [00:00:26] As always, before we begin the show, if you want to check out our camps October bonus episode, head over to patreon.com do you want to hear a ghost story? You'll gain access to early AD free 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? [00:00:46] I don't know why it's easier to tell these kinds of stories late at night around a campfire like your show, or around the headlights of a car beaming off into the dark. Maybe it's because these shadows hold just enough mystery to make us believe that anything is possible. So let me first take you to a place just like that. The places you talk about on your show. A place where the possibilities always turn darker. [00:01:14] There was a field in a small town. My small town, nestled between a crumbling highway and an old forest. In my town growing up, we referred to it as Granger's Trough or Granger's Field, depending who you asked, though no one knew who Granger was, if he was even anyone at all. It was a wide, empty patch of earth fenced by a rusted wire, forgotten relic of farmland that led nowhere. Beyond that field stood a tall wall of trees, the kind that seemed to go on forever, thick with secrets and shade. The kind of place where children were warned to stay away from, but always dared each other to approach. [00:01:56] This field is where my story takes place. [00:01:59] I was a junior in high school, a real townie, born and raised like my parents before me. I had heard all the stories about the field, of course. Stories about voices drifting in on the night wind. Kids daring each other to sprint into the woods and not look back. And then that one about the boy. The boy who went in and never came out. It was the kind of urban legend every small town had, I suppose, repackaged for each new generation of bored kids. [00:02:28] My friends Tim, Josie, and I had heard the story a hundred times over. [00:02:34] One Tuesday night we found ourselves on the edge of the field, the moon high in the sky, spilling light under the frost bitten grass. It was Tim's idea, of course, as it usually was, to test our courage. I tried to laugh off my anxiety, to pretend it wasn't a Big deal. But the night air was cold and carried a sense of stillness that settled deep into my stomach. First one of the trees wins, tim said, already crouched, ready to sprint. Josie shook her head but smiled, her breath visible in the chilly air of the night. I sighed and dropped into the position beside my friends, ready to chase off beside them. Fine. But no playing tricks, Tim, Okay? We go, we touch the trees, and we come back. We don't look in there and we don't look back, right? Right. Tim grinned. Then off he was. Josie ran after him, her laughter loud and bright. I followed along, even though I wasn't the most athletic one of the group, the wet grass squishing beneath my sneakers as the wind howled around me. By the time I reached the edge of the woods, Tim had already vanished into the trees, Josie a few paces ahead of me. I stopped. I was out of breath and called out, tim. But my voice seemed to vanish into the forest, being swallowed up by all the pines. [00:03:56] I listened, straining to hear Tim, his usual taunting at me, but nothing. Tim. I called again, stepping past the first tree. Josie glanced back, her eyes wide. There was something about this silence that felt heavy, oppressive, as though the night itself had decided to turn off everything. [00:04:19] Where is he? Josie whispered to me. Her voice seemed wrong, barely audible, almost swallowed by the night itself as well. I looked around, squinting into the forest, the moonlight barely making its way in. That's when I thought I saw something move, a flicker of a figure, but it was only the sway of a branch in the wind. Tim, come on. I yelled into the forest. This isn't funny. A rustle came from deeper in the woods, followed by a low, almost imperceptible whisper. I turned toward the sound, my feet moving before I had time to think. Josie quickly grabbed my arm, her fingers cold and trembling. Sandra? No. But I shook her off, my eyes focused ahead. There was something there. I could see it, a figure standing just a few yards ahead of me, hidden by the shadows of the forest. I mean, it looked like Tim was just standing there. Something was off. He was standing so still, and his head tilted slightly at an unnatural angle. Tim. I called again. The figure moved, stepping closer. It wasn't Tim. The shape was too tall, its limbs too long, its movements too fluid, like a mass of water shifting in the dark. And then I saw its face, or rather the lack of one, a smooth, featureless surface where eyes, nose, and mouth should have been. This thing raised one of its arms, pointing back towards the field, its finger long and thin like a branch of a tree. I stumbled back, my heart now pounding. I turned, grabbing Josie's hand, and we ran. The branches seemed to reach for us. Or maybe it was the figure, the wind howling like a chorus of voices. Now we ran, and I didn't look back. I didn't dare look back. I could feel it still behind us, this presence, the weight of its gaze. If it only had eyes to see. We burst out of the woods, our feet hitting the open field, and we didn't stop until we were all the way back at the rusted fence, my hands gripping the cold metal. Josie was beside me, gasping for air, her face pale. We looked back. What? The woods were still, the shadows deep and unbroken. There was no sign of Tim. The town searched for him for days, combing the field, the woods, every abandoned building, every ditch, everything. But they found nothing. No footprints, no sign of a struggle, not even a piece of clothing. Everything. The woods were silent, never giving anyone any answers. [00:06:59] As for me, I never went back to that field. I never spoke about what I saw. The thing in the woods. The thing that looked like Tim. [00:07:08] But sometimes at night, I would hear what sounds like wings flapping on the wind, too big for any bird. And sometimes, just sometimes, I hear my name whispered. [00:07:21] The legend of the Jersey Devil is known in whispers throughout our town and much of New Jersey as an old wives tale that people use to scare kids about a creature that lives deep in the woods of the Pine Barrens. A story where a creature that's cursed lurks. I never thought much about the Jersey Devil until that night. I thought it was just another ghost story. But ever since that night, as I lay awake, I just imagine this faceless thing flapping around New Jersey. [00:07:55] Thank you, Sandra, for allowing me to share your story. [00:07:59] And I. Look, I know that I accept all of these stories on face value, but Sandra, I am sorry if you lost your friend that night, but I do hope genuinely that there was some measure of hyperbole to this story because. [00:08:16] Cause if so, this is heartbreaking. And I. I'm honestly shocked that I've never heard of it. I feel like this would have been in the news if this really happened. But that being said, the Jersey Devil is one of those things that has always fascinated me. And it does seem to be that anyone in New Jersey, or if you spend enough time in New Jersey that you know someone who knows someone who knows someone who's had an encounter with the Jersey Devil. [00:08:41] But that being said, I am looking forward to seeing you all in just a couple of days on Halloween. 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 anyone you're just trying to scare. If you're enjoying it, please go ahead and leave a review. I would love to hear from you. And be sure to check pack in a couple days for the Halloween special this week it will release on Halloween. I hope everyone has a spooky week. Until next time.