I met a ghost grandma in the woods and I'm still not ok

so I'm gonna preface this by saying I genuinely have no idea what happened that day and it's been eating me alive ever since.

I hike every weekend after work. It's my thing. Summer was coming and the mountains were gorgeous, so I decided to hit up this really popular trail that's super well-maintained. like, beginner-friendly vibes. I just wanted to chill and decompress, you know?

Weather app said clear skies. Full sun. So I didn't even wear a hat, just threw some sunscreen on and headed out. And at first? genuinely perfect. Birds singing, breeze was crisp, the shade from the trees looked pretty. Peak nature moment.

But then I did something stupid. I wanted better photos, so I stepped off the trail. Just a little bit. Into the woods.

And dude. that's where everything got WEIRD.

The second I left the trail, it was like a different world. Trees packed so tight the sun barely got through. The air felt heavy and humid. But there was this smell—grass and wood and something else, really strong. At first I thought it was nice, like 'oh cool, that's what the forest smells like' kind of vibe.

then the birds stopped. Just. stopped. Complete silence. I'm standing there like 'okay what the fuck' looking around and there's nothing. just trees and grass.

And then I felt like someone was watching me.

I turn around. nobody's there.

So I'm like 'okay I'm being paranoid' and I try to keep going. And that's when I see her.

This old woman. Standing right in front of me.

She's wearing these ratty, falling-apart clothes. Her hair is all matted and gross. And her FACE. She's scowling so hard it looked demonic. The whole vibe around her was just. wrong.

I jump back and I'm like 'oh my god I'm so sorry! I got lost off the trail.'

She just stares at me. Dead silent. Then in this raspy voice she goes 'do you know where you are?'

I'm already freaked but I manage 'yeah... I just lost the trail...'

And she smiles. But it's not a normal smile. She goes 'you're lying. you didn't get lost. you came here on purpose.'

I felt my skin crawl. I'm like 'no, I really did get lost!' trying to explain myself.

But then she says something even worse. 'No one just comes into this mountain. What business do you have here?'

And her voice is GETTING LOUDER. The trees around me start shaking. The wind picks up. I'm genuinely terrified.

I try to turn around and run but my FEET won't move. Like they're rooted to the ground. I'm pulling desperately trying to get free and she laughs and goes 'it's too late now. you're already part of this mountain.'

I'm losing my mind. I can't scream, I can't move. She's getting closer. Her face gets meaner. And I swear to god her eyes start glowing RED.

I'm panicking so hard I think I'm about to pass out. I keep telling myself 'this is a dream, this is just a dream' but it doesn't feel like a dream.

Then suddenly there's this bright light and everything goes white.

When I come to, I'm back on the actual trail. The old woman is gone. The birds are singing again. Everything is normal.

I was shaking. I literally sprinted down the mountain.

I told my friend about it when I got home and she was like 'you probably just imagined it' but then I found posts online saying 'the spirits in that forest appear to people' and I LOST IT.

But here's the thing that really got me. A few days ago there was a youtube video about that mountain and someone literally said 'sometimes you see an old woman in tattered clothes there' and I nearly threw my phone. The comments were FULL of people saying they had similar experiences.

Looking back now I think I know what I did wrong. I disrespected the mountain. I went off-trail without permission. That place has something sacred about it and I just stomped around like I owned it.

Anyway. Don't go off-trail. Ever. Especially not at that mountain. seriously some things aren't meant to be messed with and that place is one of them. The experience was absolutely terrifying but at least I made it out alive so. yeah. thanks for reading this I guess. KEKEKE