10 great places to go on a haunted hike

OK, so it's a little early for Halloween, but it is National Park season
— and Andrea Lankford is just the person to take us to the spookiest
corners of those parks.

Lankford, a former park ranger, is the author of the newly released
Haunted Hikes: Spine-Tingling Tales and Trails from North America's
National Park System (Santa Monica Press; $16.95; hauntedhiker.com). She
tells Ron Schoolmeester for USA TODAY about some of her favorite
getaways for ghosts, paranormal events and other things that go bump in
the night.

Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historic Park
Maryland
The Gold Mine Trail begins at the Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center near
Potomac, Md., outside Washington, D.C., and passes by the site of an
explosion that killed a miner in 1906. After the accident, spirits known
as "Tommy Knockers" were said to haunt the dark recesses of the mine.
The mine closed two years later, after a night watchman encountered "a
ghostie-looking man with eyes of fire and a tail 10 feet long" crawling
out of the shaft. 301-739-4200; nps.gov/choh

Yosemite National Park
California
A wind with a weird name is the spooky thing here. The Miwok Indians
believed Yosemite's spectacular waterfalls were haunted by an evil wind
called Po-ho-no. The wind, they said, entices the unwary to the roaring
brink of the falls and then pushes them off the edge. "Which explains
why the National Park Service has fortified the falls overlooks with so
many safety railings. The topside views have been as deadly as they are
sublime," Lankford says. 209-372-0200; nps.gov/yose

New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve/Wharton State Forest
New Jersey
"Since 1735, hundreds have seen or heard a yellow-eyed creature with a
bat's wings, a dragon's breath and a kangaroo's tail that, according to
legend, makes the Pine Barrens its home," Lankford says. To improve your
chances of spotting this UBE (unidentified biological entity), she
suggests hiking a section of the Batona Trail, a 49-mile route
connecting Batsto Village and Ong's Hat. "This path ventures deep into
prime New Jersey Devil habitat." 609-894-7300; nps.gov/pine.
Or609-561-0024; www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/wharton.html

Virgin Islands National Park
St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands
The idyllic Jumby Beach and many park trails are haunted by mischievous
spirits the locals call "jumbies." Men, they say, have the most to fear
while on the self-guided nature trail to Annaberg Sugar Mill Ruins.
"This historic plantation site is stalked by a female jumby who is
looking for love in all the wrong places," Lankford warns. 340-776-6201;
nps.gov/viis

Mammoth Cave National Park
Kentucky
With more than 150 documented paranormal events, Mammoth Cave is one of
the spookiest natural wonders of the world. "On the Violet City Lantern
Tour, park rangers guide you into the cave using old-fashioned kerosene
lamps," Lankford says. "And during such trips, rangers have reported
seeing apparitions resembling the slave guides who led visitors into the
cave before the Civil War." 270-758-2180; nps.gov/maca

Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve
Colorado
"Nature's giant sandbox is also a flying saucer hotspot," Lankford says.
Since the 1950s, visitors claim to have seen black triangles,
cigar-shaped red orbs and multicolored lights hovering over the park.
"For the best UFO-watching, climb to the top of 750-foot Star Dune on a
moonlit summer night," Lankford says. 719-378-6399; nps.gov/grsa

Oregon Caves National Monument
Oregon
Kids will especially enjoy the fright factor at this gem of a park.
"Tour the cave to see 'moonmilk,' which is made by space aliens or cave
gnomes, depending on whom you ask," Lankford says. "Hike the Big Tree
Trail where, in July 2000, a psychologist witnessed Bigfoot spying on
his family. And spend the night at the cozy yet creepy Oregon Caves
Chateau where Elizabeth, the ghost of a jilted bride, startles guests."
541-592-2100, ext. 262; nps.gov/orca

Grand Canyon National Park
Arizona
Park employees have long told stories of the North Rim's "Wailing
Woman," Lankford says. "Wearing a white dress printed with blue flowers,
she floats along the Transept Trail between the lodge and the campground
on stormy nights ... crying and moaning over the son and husband she
lost to the canyon." 928-638-7888; nps.gov/grca

Blue Ridge Parkway
Virginia
In November 1891, 4-year-old Ottie Powell vanished while collecting
firewood in the forest. Five months later, a hunter found his body near
Bluff Mountain, where a memorial for Ottie can still be found.
"Backpackers say the toddler's ghost haunts the Appalachian Trail
leading to Bluff Mountain and that his youthful spirit annoys those
brave enough to spend a night inside the Punchbowl Shelter," Lankford
says. 828-298-0398; nps.gov/blri

Big Bend National Park
Texas
"If you hear peculiar noises while camping in the Chisos Mountains,
you're not alone," Lankford says. Chisos means "ghosts," and park
rangers say hikers often report hearing "things" in the nightly winds.
"Among the ghouls wandering this desert range are a betrayed Indian
chief, a troop of long-dead Spanish warriors and a ghost steer seeking
revenge against the cowboys who branded him with the word 'murder.' "