My Friends and I used to go Camping, this is why we Stopped

In College I met my friends Jane, Don, and Mark. We became friends because we were all avid campers. Whenever school would let out for break we would have a few days lined up for all of us to hop in the RV Mark borrowed from his dad so that we could ride out to some forest we’d decided to camp in. We viewed each camping spot as a new adventure to see new things. If only we knew what those things could be.

One day, shortly before our last fall break, Jane said she was on a paranormal forum online and that some people on there mentioned a supposedly haunted forest a few hours away from our college. She didn’t look too deep into what they were saying and just thought it’d be fun to camp in a quote unquote haunted forest. Because we were such avid campers we decided to check it out. None of us actually believed we would see anything. We thought at most some guy out there would try to scare us and we would have a good laugh about it. Boy, were we wrong.

We spent the first day of our fall recess packing. We grabbed the essentials: flashlights, tents, food, water, sleeping bags, blankets, a first aid kit, etc. The next day we all got into the RV and made our departure. A few hours after disembarking we arrived at our destination. When we arrived we noticed that the parking lot was empty. At first we weren’t sure if we had the right place, but after checking the RV’s GPS we knew it had to be. 

After we parked the RV we grabbed our stuff and began making our way through the woods. As we walked we could hear the occasional cracking of sticks or rustling of leaves nearby, which in and of itself wouldn’t be odd if it weren’t for how silent it otherwise was. No birds chirping or buzzing of cicadas. In all our time camping we had never had a forest that quiet. The others didn’t seem to notice however so I decided to ignore it. 

Upon finding a suitable campsite Don and Jane went out looking for firewood while Mark and I set up everyone’s tents. While I was setting up everyone’s tents I could have sworn I heard a whistle coming from the wood, one so quiet you could just barely hear it. When I asked Mark about it he said that he didn’t hear anything so I carried on. 

Some time passed and as I continued setting up the last tent I heard a sudden scream of a woman coming from somewhere in the woods. Mark and I immediately dropped what we were doing and began dashing in the direction of the sound, assuming it was Jane. As we were running the screaming suddenly ceased. We called out to Jane and began walking around in search of her. While doing this I noticed that since the screaming had ceased the whistling had as well. Eventually, Jane and Don shouted back to us and we regrouped. Despite Jane appearing unscathed I asked her if she was okay and she said that she wasn’t the one screaming. We all exchanged bewildered looks before deciding that it was probably some animal. 

When we arrived back at the campsite I noticed that our stuff had been moved. One of the chairs we brought had been knocked over. Our blankets had been scattered haphazardly around the site. One of the tents I had put together was now knocked over. Mark and I exchanged perplexed looks while Don and Jane grabbed a couple snacks and went back out while Mark and I began tidying the mess. 

After getting the site ready Mark and I grabbed some drinks and sat in silence. Well, it would have been silent if the whistling hadn’t picked back up, this time closer. 

After a couple minutes I finally spoke. 

“Do you think Jane is fucking with us?” I inquired.

“I don’t know,” Mark said in response.

We sat in the whistling for a couple moments before I asked

“Do you hear the whistling?”

Mark nodded awkwardly.

Neither of us spoke for a while after that. 

Shortly before Jane returned the whistling had stopped. I was beginning to suspect Jane was fucking with us. After she placed her collected wood into the fire pit Mark set up, he asked where Don was. She told us that they decided to split up and because of that she didn’t know where he went. I was frustrated by this because during one of our previous trips Mark had gotten lost and we had to do a lot of searching to find him. I told Jane she was stupid to split up with Don and that we needed to go looking for him when I heard Don’s voice to my left. I turned and stared into the dark abyss the night had created, only for it to stare back at me. 

Don’s voice spoke again. “It’s alright guys. I’m over here.” 

“What are you waiting for? Get over here.” Jane said.

“I think I hurt my ankle. I can’t walk. I think I need one of you to come get me.” 

Jane and I shared a look. I couldn’t see what Mark was doing but I could feel he thought something was off. If Don got hurt, how did he walk all the way back to the campsite and now all of a sudden needed help walking? And if he was already close by enough for us to hear him speak at a regular volume, why didn’t we hear him get hurt? Even ignoring all of those things something was still noticeably wrong. It was definitely Don’s voice we were hearing, but he didn’t speak in quite the same way. The pauses between his sentences were slightly off. His inflections weren’t quite right. Whoever was using Don’s voice wasn’t Don. It was then that someone appeared behind Jane and I.

I could feel his presence before I saw him. When I turned to look at Don he was clearly disturbed. That was the moment I think we all knew we had to get the fuck out of there. After we heard whatever it was run off we all began grabbing our flashlights, Mark grabbed the keys, and we all made a mad dash toward the RV

When we got inside the vehicle Don immediately locked the door. Mark’s attempt at starting the engine was met with a rapid clicking sound. 

“Fuck” Mark said.

“What’s wrong with the engine?” Jane asked, panicked.

“It’s old as shit is what’s wrong with it.” Mark replied, frantically.

That’s when we heard it. 

Just outside the RV a near perfect replica of Mark’s voice just outside the RV said “It’s old as shit is what’s wrong with it.”

We froze. Whatever was at our campsite was now outside the RV. And something told me that this time it wasn’t going to leave. 

As we sat there, terrified of whatever was outside, it began knocking on the door.

“Let me in.” it said in Jane’s voice.

A few moments passed.

“Let… Me… In…” it growled, threateningly. A few moments later it began to bang on the door with such ferocity I was sure it would break off its hinges.

Don ran over to the door and leaned against it in a desperate attempt to keep whatever was outside from getting in. Jane began crying while I just stood, petrified. Apparently at some point during this Mark had started trying to start the engine again and the RV began hightailing it out of there. We didn’t stop until we needed gas.

When we got to the gas station there was some guy filling up his car. He could tell we were distressed and came over to check on us. We explained what happened and where we were. He didn’t believe us.

That brings me to why I’m writing this. In recent years I have seen many online go to those woods. Some come back and post about how uneventful it was. Most don’t. I don’t want anyone else to get hurt because I choose to do nothing. I don’t expect everyone to believe me. But if just one person is persuaded by this and decides not to take the chance it will all be worth it. Please. If you hear about a creepy forest online, steer clear of it.