Too Close
The chilling sound ran through her entire body, turning the blood in her veins to ice.
She had already wandered far into the vast forest. If there was something else here with her, would she even be able to find her way back? It sounded frighteningly close.
Into The Woods
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Emily had always loved exploring the forest. It was far away from the humans who constantly judged her goth appearance and other quirks.
The woods was a place where her imagination could roam freely. The dark canopy of trees held so many thrilling stories and was a source of deep mystery for her. But she never imagined that this time, something waited for her there.
She Knew What She Was Looking For
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Although Emily didn’t know where it was, she knew exactly what she wanted to find. She’d read that the site was as far as 30 or 40 miles from any hiking trail.
recalling the words written by a Search And Rescue Official gave her a delicious thrill. She was looking for the staircase.
Hidden Staircases
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As the story went, there was a hidden staircase in these woods. For years, people had reported coming across them, but nobody knew what they were for or how they came to be in the woods. Stranger still, they are found in areas where no man has ever lived.
Some are made from cast iron or stone, and some are in ruins. But the sighting was always the same: it was just a staircase, no other structure.
The Confessions Of A SAR Officer
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Emily had first read about the staircase on Reddit. It had been found in the woods near her home in West Virginia. Emily’s heart began to race.
An anonymous SAR Officer posted his bizarre story on Reddit: “I don’t know if this is true in every SAR unit, but in mine, it’s sort of an unspoken, regular thing we run into,” he confessed.
Deep In The Forest
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“On just about every case where we’re really far into the wilderness, I’m talking 30 or 40 miles, at some point we’ll find a staircase in the middle of the woods,” he continued. “It’s almost like if you took the stairs in your house, cut them out, and put them in the forest.”
There was something so unnerving about the man’s account. Could you imagine something so out of place appearing in the middle of nowhere? Emily had to find it.
Deeper Still
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According to the Reddit post, one of the man’s colleagues had even seen a staircase that was “…flipped upside down. I guess it would be like if you had a dollhouse, and the stairs were a separate piece. Now take that, flip it upside down so the top step is stuck in the dirt, and put it out in the woods.”
Emily was wildly intrigued. She continued to search, venturing deeper and deeper into the woods. But something waited for her.
Imagination Runs Wild
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Emily’s plan was simple enough — she intended to spend the day wandering off the beaten path, letting the anxiety of the work-week melt away.
She was only a few miles into the woods and she already felt rejuvenated and connected to nature. She could imagine fairies and other fantastical creatures peeking through the brush. Then, she heard a sound.
A Loud Noise
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The screeching sound of metal against metal came in terrifying waves — it sounded like the old escalator in the rundown mall that nobody used anymore.
It couldn’t be a bird. Still, her curiosity was piqued. She stilled her pounding heart and walked toward the sound.
News Story
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The thrill was high and almost palatable, like the takeoff of a plane mixed with first-date jitters. She was Emily the Explorer – seeker of strange noises.
With each step through the thick underbrush, the sound grew more complex. But something then popped into her head that made her stop dead. It was something she had read on the news.
Missing Woman
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A girl had gone missing a few weeks ago – gone for a walk and never came back.
Emily suddenly became very aware of her surroundings. But that was in town, not the forest. So she was okay. Right? Besides, girls don’t sound like metal … and now deep, guttural rumbling.
Certainly Not Alone
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Emily stood frozen in the middle of the shadowy, pine-scented clearing.
To anyone, she would look like a witch in her natural surroundings – and that was just fine by her. But the vibrations that crawled along her skin didn’t feel normal at all. Fantasy melted away and reality began to set in. There was something out there with her.
Hello?
the United Nations
Every step closer was slow and careful. She held her breath as if the tiniest sound would signal her location and a monster would jump out and snatch her.
She thought of the missing girl and decided to do something risky. She cupped her hands to her mouth and called out a clear, loud “Hello?”
Boom
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The forest went still. As if her words had magically put everything to sleep.
Fear crept through her bones and the high of exploration melted into the falling sensation in the first drop of a rollercoaster. Suddenly, a loud echoing BOOM made her knees buckle. Whatever it was, it was close.
Look Down
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Their air smelled of wet earth and decay. The wind sat cold on her skin.
But despite the dread, she still felt herself moving forward. Boom and another boom mixed with the squeal of metal. The rumbling turned into a deep growl. Something was out there with her. And it was below her.
The Source
It would have been enough to make her flee – to run away like someone in a horror movie.
But, just a she was about to turn, a new sound joined the mix. It was whimpering. Like a hurt animal. She now knew what she had to do. Emily ran through the area until she found the source.
Deep Pit
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There, in the middle of a deep hole of illegally dumped garbage, was a big, black dog.
Its long fur was matted badly and she could see the chain had been on it for a long time. The boom was it jumping against sheet metal and the screeches from the rusted car door it was tied to.
Abandoned
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It wasn’t a monster. But whoever had left the dog there was definitely one!
She slowly moved towards it and offered the malnourished animal a stream from her water bottle. The growls instantly stopped. It crouched on the ground and whined. There was no question as to what she had to do next.
Vet Visit
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It was a slow process. But through a calm voice and plenty of pats on the head, she was able to lead it out of the forest and to her car.
Next was a visit to the vet and a call to the police. Whoever had done this had to pay! When news came back about the dog, she had already made up her mind.
New Home
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There was no one to claim it. But it didn’t matter.
Emily was already prepared to adopt him. His dark coat and big grin were adorable. The adventuring Goth witch had traveled through the mystical forest and found herself a familiar. It was the best walk of her life. But what about the mysterious staircase? Did she go back and find it?
Update
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“I came across the set in rural West Virginia. I don’t think I was quite 40 miles deep but at least 10 or better. I thought maybe a house had once stood there but there was no cellar or other debris that would indicate a home was there before,” Emily wrote.
“Just a set of stairs with a base that went up maybe one flight – 16 so steps if I remember right. And sturdy. Could barely shake them. I didn’t climb up though. Worried it might break or fall over and I was alone.”
Another Sighting
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Another Reddit user spotted some in Michigan. “An hour east of Iron Wood there is a clearing in the forest that has stairs,” he confessed.
“I was hiking and exploring with my cousins and we stumbled on a clearing about half a football field long. Had a few staircases but not against trees, just standing in the open”.
Bizarre And Unsettling
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“They looked like stairs from a normal suburban home. Kind of old though,” he continued.
“The older cousin decided to investigate. He walked to the stairs to see how they were being held up, couldn’t find anything which weirded him out. He made us all leave. Grass didn’t grow near the stairs either.” So, why are there stairs in the woods?
Theories
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There are several theories about what the stairs may actually be. Perhaps they are simply the foundations of fleeting and long-lost settlements, particularly from America’s 1800s gold rush.
Some sturdy staircases from that era have survived two hundred years of weather, rot, and erosion whereas wooden structures did not. But other Reddit users have more sinister theories.
Something More Sinister?
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A user named ‘oektem’ had a foreboding warning for those who come across the staircases. He writes: “Stairs in the woods are a thing where I’m from, but we know that we shouldn’t go near them and avoid them when we run into one. That’s what I’ve been told by my family”.
Perhaps they aren’t stairs at all, but a pulpit for a preacher, holding some kind of dark clandestine gathering. Perhaps they are a gateway to another dimension… or to hell. Nobody knows.