Ghost stories and scary tales can be found all around us, from the buildings we live in and objects we see to places in the natural world. If you love visiting haunted locations or learning about haunted history, you might want to know about some of the United States's most famous haunted parks! Have you been to any of these parks and trails? Keep reading for spooky tales that might make the rotation in your ghost stories around the campfire.
1. Yellowstone National Park, WY
Yellowstone is the oldest National Park in the United States, dating back to 1872. In part because it has such a long history, a few famous ghost stories are associated with Yellowstone. The most famous tale is The Headless Bride, which originated in 1915. A newly married couple stayed at the Old Faithful Inn, and later, the bride was allegedly found without her head. The head itself was later discovered in the Crow's Nest, a series of stairs and catwalks inside the roof of the hotel. While this story has been debunked as a tale from one of the hotel staff, people still reported seeing a white dress descending from the Crow's Nest. Other ghost sightings shared by staff and visitors include apparitions in the hotels and some ghost staff members dressed in dated clothing from the early 1900s.
2. Yosemite National Park, CA
Famed for its giant sequoia trees and granite cliffs, Yosemite National Park is a wealth of natural beauty—and ghost stories. The Ahwahnee Hotel, built on the floor of Yosemite Valley, is allegedly haunted by several ghosts. Some famous ghosts at the Ahwaunee Hotel include Mary Curry Tressider, who died in her living quarters on the 6th floor. There's also the rocking chair of John F. Kennedy Jr., which allegedly rocks on its own! The hotel also famously inspired Stanley Kubrick for many interior shots in The Shining. Aside from the hotel, Yosemite has a cemetery on site, with its own set of haunted sightings. Finally, we couldn't leave out the ghost of Grouse Lake! Visitors to the lake have reported hearing wailing sounds, which may be the cries of a young boy who allegedly drowned there.
3. Acadia National Park, ME
You know there will be some fun and spooky stories when you have a sea cave named the Devil's Oven. The Devil's Oven was a major attraction at Acadia National Park, but they've since stopped allowing visitors, as they could become trapped by rising tides. Legends say the sea cave was used for rituals, while others claim it was a portal to the underworld. Whatever the case, daytime visitors have reported hearing wailing or chanting sounds, while lights that flash and gleam have been seen at night. You may view the Devil's Oven by kayak, and it is possible to hike there at low tide, but sea caves should always be cautiously approached. Acadia also boasts a number of trails that are no longer in use by the National Park Service. One such spot is the abandoned ruins of George Dorr's estate, the father of Acadia National Park. Many people claim to have seen the ghost of George Dorr and his groundskeeper in the area!
4. Rocky Mountain National Park, CO
One of the most famous haunted hotels sits on the edge of Rocky Mountain National Park—the Stanley Hotel. It famously inspired Stephen King when he wrote The Shining. People have reported hearing ghost children on the 2nd and 4th floors, and the original owner and his wife allegedly go about their business in the hotel. In the park itself, you can visit Lulu City, a giant ghost town abandoned after gold mining failed in the area. The site isn't necessarily haunted, but ghost towns can be spooky in their own way.
5. Olympic National Park, WA
Not to be confused with the tales of Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, the Lady of the Lake in Olympic National Park is a famous ghost sighting around Crescent Lake. Many people believe the Lady of the Lake is Hallie Latham Illingworth, a woman who disappeared in December 1937. Her husband claimed that she ran off to Alaska with another man, but three years later, her body was found perfectly preserved in Lake Crescent. You can also visit Goblin's Gate in Olympic National Park. While not necessarily haunted, the rock formations poking above the water's edge look like little goblin faces. It's a fun hike if you love fantasy monsters!
6. Joshua Tree National Park, CA
If you like the idea of taking a scary hike, Joshua Tree National Park has a few haunted trails. The Lost Horse Mine Trail takes you to the remains of an old gold mine. Legend says that the area is haunted by a miner who was killed in a terrible accident and roamed the area looking for his lost gold. People in the area have reported feeling cold chills and hearing pickaxes striking rock. Then, the Wall Street Mill Trail takes you to another gold mining area with an abandoned mill. Allegedly, the ghosts of the mill workers still roam the area. Reports of shadowy figures, strange lights, and the sounds of footsteps have been shared. The final trail is the Barker Dam Trail, which takes you to an ancient water source for the Chemehuevi people. After being forced out of the area by settlers, hikers have reported various hauntings, including sounds of chanting and apparitions.
7. Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
Grand Canyon National Park is world-renowned for its natural beauty, from beautiful waterfalls to sheer rocky cliffs. However, the beauty comes with a side of danger! Hundreds of people have died in the Grand Canyon, as some of the trails are treacherous. Campers and hikers have heard strange noises and footsteps while entirely alone, among other phenomena. One of the most famous Grand Canyon National Park ghost stories is that of a young woman, her son, and her husband, who stayed at the Grand Canyon Lodge shortly after it was built in 1928. The woman stayed behind in the lodge while her husband and son hiked together. The two, unfortunately, were caught in a storm and fell to their deaths. Upon hearing of their fate, the woman died in despair in the lodge. People claim to have heard her wailing along the Transept Trail, looking desperately to find her husband and son. Another spooky hike involves looking for the ghost of John Wesley Powell at Phantom Ranch. Allegedly, there's also the ghost of a red-headed woman in the same area.
8. Badlands National Park, SD
Badlands National Park's name is derived from the Lakota name for the region, mako sica, which means "bad lands." While the area is beautiful, some parts make travel difficult. There are few natural water sources, and rain turns the clay into slick and sticky mud. Historically, the area was more for seasonal hunting rather than permanent habitation. Charles M. Skinner wrote Myths and Legends of Our Own Land in 1896, which included the "Banshee of the Badlands" story. The famous story stuck to the area but is not the only scary tale connected with the Badlands. The small town of Wheelock, North Dakota, borders the northern edge of the Badlands. This small railroad town had its share of troubles, with a deadly robbery and two mass murders in the area. Other railroad towns close to the Badlands, like Mondak and Marmarth, profited off the railroad but also had violent visitors who hopped the rails, similar to Wheelock.
9. Death Valley National Park, CA
With a name like Death Valley, you know there are a few grim stories to tell. Famous as one of the hottest places on Earth and the driest in North America, settling in the region has always been a struggle. The area was allegedly named for a group known as the Lost 49ers, miners who attempted to use it as a shortcut to the California mining fields. There are quite a few ghost towns, including Panamint City, which was mostly destroyed by a flash flood; Rhyolite, the largest town in Death Valley; and other mining towns, Skidoo, Greenwater, Harrisburg, Chloride City, Ballarat, and Leadfield. (Skidoo famously hanged a man twice so they could take photographs for the newspaper!) Then you have the ruins of Barker Ranch, where Charles Manson and the Manson family lived and planned their murders. If all of this wasn't enough, you have the creepy moving stones and numerous tourist deaths by GPS or lack of preparation. It's tough to go into detail with so many incidents, but these are all excellent grounds for scary campfire stories!
10. Everglades National Park, FL
Do you love stories involving ghost pirates? The tale of the Ghost Ship of the Everglades has been passed down since the 19th century, and it is truly a regional favorite. As the story goes, a pirate ship chases a merchant ship, which manages to elude them for hours. Upon catching the boat, the pirate captain was so furious that he made the skipper's wife watch as all their crew walked the plank. She cursed the pirates, which resulted in them roaming the area for eternity. However, other creatures reportedly roam the Everglades as well. Similar to Sasquatch, the skunk ape has been seen by tourists in the area, as well as in other regions of the Southeastern United States. If that's not weird enough for you, one corner of the Bermuda Triangle touches the coast of Florida. The Everglades are close enough to this famous region that there have been several mysterious plane disappearances in the Everglades.
11. Great Smoky Mountains National Park, NC
Like several other national parks on this list, Great Smoky Mountains National Park has its own ghost town, Elkmont. The origins aren't exactly creepy because the park purchased land where people had vacation homes that eventually went vacant. However, abandoned areas always have an unsettling feeling. Cades Cove is another area that had been settled and later bought by the park. You can see abandoned homes, churches, and cemeteries. Cades Cove has some spooky history linked to it, including apparitions caught in tourist photographs and the tale of the cussing cover. The story of the cussing cover involves a married woman living in the area who was afraid of being struck by lightning. She sewed a quilt they nicknamed the cussing cover. Just before her passing, she told her husband he could remarry, but he was not to sell her quilts or put them on a metal bed. He remarried, and later, the couple bought a new metal bed. One cold night, his new wife took an extra blanket, the cussing cover, to bed, where lightning struck her.
12. Mammoth Cave National Park, KY
Many people consider Mammoth Cave National Park the most haunted in America. It's forebodingly large—426 miles of mapped underground terrain, making it the most extensive cave system in the world! It served as a saltpeter mine during the War of 1812 and even temporarily served as a tuberculosis clinic. (Some of the patients' cabins can still be found underground!) Tourists claim to have heard coughing while wandering near the tuberculosis cabins or the feeling of being shoved. Then there's also the ghost of Floyd Collins, a caver who became trapped and died in Mammoth Cave. If you like the idea of taking an extra-spooky hike, you can take a tour lit only by lantern light.
13. Canyonlands National Park, UT
We have seen many stories about human ghosts, but what about ghost horses? According to local legend, a group of cowboys had wrangled up a herd of wild mustangs and brought part of the group to town for training and sale. However, they forgot about the horses they left behind in the paddock, who died due to their negligence. Visitors to Canyonlands National Park claim to have heard the sounds of the wild horses' ghosts who cannot rest. If you hear the stomping of hooves or the whinnying of horses, you might have listened to the ghost horses of the Canyonlands!
14. Cuyahoga Valley National Park, OH
The National Park Service Act allowed the government to buy and reserve land in Boston Township, Ohio for the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Unfortunately, this meant that some residents were forced to relocate, leaving behind what is now referred to as Hell Town. Of course, forced relocation led to plenty of theories and tall tales. A tiny white church in the middle of town seems to be the epicenter of some of them, including housing a group of practicing Satanists who participate in ritual sacrifice. Others think the town was abandoned because of a chemical spill that mutated nearby animal populations, resulting in stories like the "Peninsula Python". Confusing roadways and dead ends only lend themselves to additional theories about their intention to confuse and trap visitors.
15. Great Sand Dunes National Park, CO
Great Sand Dunes National Park boasts the tallest dunes in the country and a beautiful landscape of rolling sand hills. However, it's also famous as a hotspot for UFO sightings and an unexplainable rash of cattle mutilations in the 1970s. A favorite location for UFO-spotting is on top of Star Dune. You also have reports of a ghost train that winds through the park even though there are no rails in sight. Others have reported seeing a ghostly figure walking on the dunes, which some believe is the ghost of a Spanish priest who used to visit the area.
16. Indiana Dunes National Park, IN
Some ghosts remain anonymous, while others become very famous. Indiana Dunes National Park was home to Alice Marble Gray, who lived in an abandoned shack in the Indiana Dunes that she named "Driftwood." She was an intellectual with a college education and loathed modern society and the need to work to earn a living. She left for the dunes in 1915, fleeing a conventional life. Papers called her "Diana of the Dunes", which stuck with her long after her death. People still claim to see her ghost jumping into the waves of Lake Michigan and running along the shore.
17. Gettysburg National Military Park, PA
Tales of ghosts are often linked to violent deaths and other stories of misfortune. It's not surprising that ghost stories would surround Gettysburg National Military Park, the site of the Civil War's deadliest battle. Sightings of ghost soldiers are common throughout the park, although the area with the highest concentration of sightings is known as the Devil's Den. This rock outcropping served as a Confederate sniper nest and saw some particularly vicious fighting. One ghost soldier with long hair, a floppy-brimmed hat, and no shoes has allegedly been caught on camera several times. Other ghosts of note include the phantom regiment, the lady in white, and the Tillie Pierce house girl. There's so much to discover about Gettysburg National Military Park's haunted side that we couldn't mention all of it here!
18. Antietam National Battlefield, MD
Antietam is another Civil War battle with a horrible history. September 17th, 1862 is the single bloodiest day in American military history, with 22,727 soldiers dead, wounded, or missing. One of the most haunted spots in the area is Bloody Lane, a sunken road where a clash between Union and Confederate soldiers took the lives of 5,000 men. People have reported ghost sightings, hearing gunfire, and the smell of gunpowder. Rohrback Bridge, renamed Burnside Bridge after General Ambrose Burnside, marks the spot where the Union general pushed back Confederate soldiers, albeit after several failed attempts. Dead soldiers in the area were quickly buried in unmarked graves. People have reported seeing floating lights and the sound of battle drums here. Other notable allegedly haunted sites include the Pry House, the Piper House, and St. Paul Episcopal Church, which was converted into a hospital for wounded soldiers.
19. Big Ridge State Park, TN
We have shared plenty of National Parks, but local parks and trails can also have their share of hauntings. Ghost House Trail in Big Ridge State Park is one of the most famous spots. The trail takes you by several reportedly haunted sites. One such area is the Norton Grist Mill, allegedly haunted by a witch hanged near the mill. The Ghost House Trail also takes you past the ruins of the Hutchinson family farm and cemetery. There, you may encounter the ghost dog of Mary Hutchinson, a young woman who died of tuberculosis. It reportedly howled upon her passing, although people usually report hearing panting noises from the ghost dog.
20. New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve, NJ
The New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve is famously known as the Pine Barrens. The Pine Barrens are home to one of America's most famous cryptids, the Jersey Devil. Tales of the Jersey Devil make excellent campfire stories, especially if you stay in the area. Still, the Pine Barrens have even more scary stories to share. The Pine Barrens include over 1.1 million acres of preserved forest, which spans seven counties! There are several ghost towns and abandoned buildings in the Pine Barrens from failed industries like bog iron, glass, and paper making, and people finding their fortune out West. Then you have several ghosts famous in the area, including a boy killed in a hit-and-run accident who roams Burnt Mill Road, a blonde woman, a white stag, a black dog, and the headless ghost of Captain Kidd.
Hopefully, you have enough ideas for new campfire tales to make your National Park trips more entertaining! Do you love to find fun ways to celebrate Summerween? Do you love learning the history behind ghost towns and why the people left, or are you all about ghosts and cryptids? We can't fault you if you agree with all of the above, either! If you're in the spooky spirit, check out our favorite scary costumes to make your own scary stories this Halloween.
