Telling scary stories around the campfire is a tradition respected by endless generations of campers, back to the first campfires of civilization. We still love to jump and shiver at the thought of monsters in the woods and ghosts haunting their final resting places. When you’re out on an RV adventure and roasting marshmallows around a crackling fire, someone will suggest you trade scary stories. And this time, you’ll be prepared.
Today, we’re sharing four of our favorite ghost stories shared by campers across the states. Grab your flashlights and practice your deepest, spookiest voices.
1. The Ghostly Hitchhiker
A few years ago, a couple was driving home from a romantic camping trip in Yosemite National Park. They had hiked longer than they meant to and it was full dark as they drove down the empty country highway.
There were no other cars around and their headlights were the only lights for miles, which is why they were surprised to see a young woman walking along the side of the road, her thumb out to hitchhike.
The couple assumed she was a camper who’d experienced a break-down or gotten lost and pulled over to pick her up. The young woman climbed into the backseat with a smile and said she was headed to an address in Round Valley, an hour along the road. They talked and joked with the young woman, who seemed very nice, but the conversation eventually tapered into silence.
As they reached the first crossroads in town, the husband glanced back to ask the girl directions, but she was gone!
With their GPS, the couple found the address the girl had given them. They found an old couple who said that no young woman lived there, but that their daughter died in a hit-and-run years ago while walking home from camping. She’d died just up the road.
2. The High Beam Killer
This one also starts with someone driving home at night. A young woman named Alice was on her way home in the Texas Hill Country, driving carefully in the dark night on unlit country roads. Soon, a large truck pulled up behind her and began flashing his high-beams.
Assuming he was eager to get home (and a little rude), Alice sped up a little, to no avail. No matter how fast she drove or what side-road she turned onto, the truck followed her. Flashing his high-beams every few minutes. Needless to say, Alice was terrified, but drove home carefully.
When she got home, the truck was still right behind her, flashing his high-beams the whole way. Frightened, Alice quickly got out of the car… and the driver got out of the car too! To Alice’s horror, she saw the strange driver raise a gun. She screamed!
The bullet whizzed paster head and Alice heard a sickening sound behind her, followed by a meaty thud. She turned to see a dead man dressed in all-black, holding a butcher knife. The driver explained that the man had been in her back seat the whole time. He had been flashing his high beams at her every time the man appeared and raised his knife.
3. The Hook Stalker
Two Colorado teens drove to the Garden of the Gods one night as a beautiful place to do some making-out. They switch off the radio just as the newscaster is announcing an escaped murderer from a local prison. A murder who loves to kill unaware campers. Just as things were getting hot and heavy, they hear a scraping sound along the side of the car.
The girl is a little freaked out, but her boyfriend calms her, saying it must be a tree branch or the engine cooling. The two teens are at each other again and just as the boyfriend reaches for her bra clasp, they hear the sound again.
The girl is getting really scared now and calls off the make-out. Her boyfriend tries to comfort her, but she insists that she’s just too scared to keep going.
“Fine” Says her boy and hits the gas hard in frustration as he pulls out of their make-out spot. Only to hear a terrible screeching along the side of the car. Both terrified now, they race to her home. When he gets out to walk her to the door… they finally see it.
A bloody hook gouged into the side of the car!
4. Haven’s Rest
Not long ago, a mother and daughter were hiking through the Blue Ridge Mountains together. The mother, who used to camp here as a girl, had an old map of the trails and was delighting in showing her daughter all the birds that lived in the trees and naming the plants that grew along the trail. They were having so much fun that they didn’t realize that the sun had begun to set.
As it started to get dark, the daughter worried because they were far from their camp and any town. But the mother said everything was fine. On the old map was a little Inn marked “Haven’s Rest” that was sure to have a few spare beds and a warm meal. The girl was reassured and they walked together for another mile.
As it reached full dark, the girl became frightened but her mother said that Haven’s Rest was just up the way. And it sounded like a lovely place to stop. Soon the lights from the Inn were visible through the trees, glowing welcomingly from a cozy Bed and Breakfast that looked like it was built a hundred years ago.
They were greeted at the front counter by a kindly old woman who happily booked them a shared room and served them a hot supper. The two collapsed happy and exhausted into bed, determined to set out at dawn the next morning.
When they woke, the old woman (and anyone else) was nowhere to be found. So the mother left an envelope of money and a lovely thank-you note on the counter as they left.
On the way home, they stopped at a little gas station and mentioned the beautiful B&B up on the mountain. The gas station attendant looked confused and said there was no place called Haven’s Rest. Or there was, but it burned down many years ago and no one had rebuilt it because it was in such a remote area.
Sure enough, when the mother and daughter hiked back out to see the place again, there was no cozy old Inn. Only a burned-out shell. But there, in the center, was her envelope of money and the note they’d left.
