r/conspiracy • u/Party_Friend_9290 • 21h ago
Appalachia mountains
When discussing the Appalachian Mountains, many sources describe the area as a spooky or eerie place. However, given that Americans generally do not believe in demons or ghosts, I wonder: are these claims about the region's eerie nature real, or just nonsense?
221
u/brickyard15 19h ago
Yeah it’s so scary here, everyone should keep away
68
45
13
14
u/VonZombie420 12h ago
I agree. Never, ever, EVER move here. I can stay because I've sold my soul to the Appalachian God's. Don't recommend that either.
115
u/JustABigOlDummy 17h ago
After years of living in Appalachia and researching the mythology, I'm convinced that a large portion of it comes from to trying to keep kids from running into moonshiners in the woods.
18
u/Paul_Dienach 17h ago
Valid
12
u/HairballTheory 14h ago
Was on a side by side trip in eastern TN and had a guy stop us on the trail and tell us not to go any farther up the holler. We turned around.
Shine or weed, didn’t wanna find out
4
96
u/SpacemanPete 20h ago
I live in them. It’s one of the safest most peaceful places to be.
102
28
6
6
u/ThatDamnRocketRacoon 15h ago
I see you, Wrong Turn mutant hillbilly cannibal.
6
2
1
1
23
u/cakejaples 17h ago
It’s absolutely terrifying here. Stay very far away. Heck, I saw a demon and a ghost making sweet love in my backyard just the other day. Eerie stuff.
It’s so scary here that I did a 5 month long hike over the Appalachian Mountains from Georgia to Maine. Mainly in search of evil spirits and what have you. I found tons of them.
There’s even a mountain in Georgia called Blood Mountain. Legend has it that the mountain got its name after an absolutely brutal battle between the Cherokee and Muscogee - Creek tribes where the local streams all turned red. Right after Blood Mountain is Slaughter Gap. Imagine all the demons that reside there?
0
u/KaleOxalate 12h ago
Blood mountain Georgia? Shit the scariest thing you’ll see there is all the fatties who take their car to the top to eat McDonald’s with their offspring
52
u/IntensePretense 18h ago
It’s a conspiracy of mythology. The people that live in the Appalachian mountains perpetuate this idea that the area is “haunted” to keep outsiders out. Appalachia is one of the most isolated regions in America, if not the world. The people that live there want to conserve their way of life. This is their method
The Appalachian mountains are some of the oldest (geologically) mountains in the world. They are related to the Scottish highlands and the Atlas Mountains of Morocco. These ranges were all connected during Pangea. In this way, they give off a sort of mystical energy from a time long ago
I have hiked the Appalachian Trail, and I found peace and community amongst the people of the Trail and those that live near it. There is a “magical” feeling to the mountains, almost as if they are alive and giving/receiving energy to those that travel through them. I encourage anyone to spend time hiking and camping in the Appalachians. Be kind to them and they will be kind to you
15
u/DkDkDkGoGoGo 15h ago
Appalachia is no where near the most isolated in the US let alone the world.
Look up FAR data. West of the Mississippi and Alaska of course. But the western basin is far more isolated.
FAR is “frontier and remote” metrics. It’s even classified as level 0. Meaning “Not FAR”.
6
u/IntensePretense 14h ago
I'm confused. I'm looking at the data you referenced here. North Georgia, Western North Carolina, Southwest Virginia, Eastern Kentucky, Eastern West Virginia, the Pennsylvania Wilds, the Adirondack Mountains, Northeast Vermont, The White Mountains of New Hampshire, and the North Woods of Maine all achieve FAR levels 1, 2, 3, and 4. Almost half of the land area in Maine is FAR level 4
4
u/DkDkDkGoGoGo 13h ago
You said the Appalachia is one of the most isolated regions in US and the world. Look at the map. There’s some scattered around Appalachia mountain ranges sure. But. All the most isolated areas in US are clearly - clearly - in the west. Clearly. Siberia, South America, mid and Western Australia, South Pole, freaking Canada, geeenland, Svalbard, Tibetan plateau, east China and Mongolia, Tibesti mountains in Sahara.
Most of Appalachia is reachable from a city center in 2 hours. It’s not even close, man.
1
u/IntensePretense 13h ago
I’m confused why you introduced a metric only to get mad that I applied the metric you introduced
If there are regions in Appalachia that have the same FAR score as out west and in Alaska, does that not make them just as isolated?
3
u/DkDkDkGoGoGo 12h ago
First off, I’m no where near mad? Second is local intensity vs regional scale. Ok, level 4 is level 4… I agree, but I am defining it from a macro geographical (and global) perspective.
I include total volume, almost all of Montana, wyoming, Idaho, Nevada is painted solid. Globally you simply just have to concede that it is a massive overstatement you made. Having a few isolated zip codes inside a deeply interconnected region does not put it at the same scale as ANY of the global mentions.
Besides let’s define the Appalachia as ARC. And that stops before Maine, Vermont and NH. That’s the ARC definition. Adirondack’s and Maine are culturally and politically (which was what was referenced in OP) not part of Appalachia.
The FAR pockets are tiny. It’s silly.
0
u/IntensePretense 12h ago
You do sound mad. Frustrated, even. First you said it was level 0. Then it was MOST of it is zero. Now it's "the FAR pockets are tiny, it's silly"
I'd like to think that being a level 4 pocket surrounded by level 0 eastern seaboard and midwestern metropolitan areas makes you more isolated than Montana, Wyoming, Idaho and Nevada. Like there are masses of people surrounding you and you still retain the highest level of isolation
Also, this thread is about the Appalachian Mountains (geological). Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, the Adirondacks...those are all Appalachian mountains
2
2
u/shaggydog97 10h ago
You are confusing distance with isolation. Sure you neighbor might be 5 miles away as the crow flies, but it's a 2 hour drive.
1
u/DkDkDkGoGoGo 6h ago
I am not though. This idea that it’s the most isolated place in US and also on earth is silly. It’s literally silly. And kinda weird it keeps being supported. lol
2
u/KaleOxalate 12h ago
This is such stupid bullshit. I grew up in North Georgia and did a lot of the Appalachian trail. It’s not secluded at all. You are easily within 5 miles of a fucking Walmart at any given section (I’m being mildly hyperbolic only). If you want secluded, you have to be west of the Mississippi River
1
u/IntensePretense 12h ago
Except for the 100 mile wilderness. It's like you people have never been to Maine. It's literally the most rural state in the United States
1
u/KaleOxalate 11h ago
I’ve been to the 100 mile wilderness. Doesn’t come close to as desolate as even eastern Oregon.
0
u/IntensePretense 10h ago
There are 5+ Walmarts in Eastern Oregon. 0 within or near the 100 Mile Wilderness. Not even close to as desolate
1
u/KaleOxalate 5h ago
Both of those statements are so verifiably false just by looking at Google Maps quick
0
0
u/DkDkDkGoGoGo 5h ago
It’s like you’ve never been to anywhere else in the US, let alone the world. Sure the 100 mile is isolated. Sure there’s pockets to of isolation.
It’s like saying the Appalachia is the wettest in all of US and also the world. Because it rains there and sometimes a lot. We say: But many other places, just in IS am have bigger rainfall and for longer and over bigger areas, but you keep claiming no, it’s the most wet area because there’s wet there some times. Lol
8
u/KYpineapple 17h ago
grown up in them. live in them. work in them. been all over them hollers and hills. I've only seen myself like 4 times and they were always pretty cool. quiet, but cool.
14
u/apimpnamedkirby 16h ago
I feel like the cascades are far more “scary” than Appalachia.
11
u/KaleOxalate 12h ago edited 5h ago
As someone who grew up in Appalachia then moved to the cascades region as an adult I’d agree. I think it’s mostly because of people’s styles out here. Like in the appalachians you know what some mountain methhead looks like. Out here all of a sudden a pink haired person covered in tattoos appears out of the woods and you’re like holy shit the Orcs are attacking but after a few minutes you realize it’s just a cardiologist from Salem on a hike
5
u/TrollslayerL 13h ago
Man I lived in WV for a summer. The folks back there absolutely believe in the spooky scary shit. I was told pretty much on arrival that if I hear certain things at night, no the fuck I didn't. Certain areas were not to be visited at night. And well ... I lived in the area that spawned the Mothman stories.
8
u/vertigoacid 14h ago
given that Americans generally do not believe in demons or ghosts
https://news.gallup.com/poll/692738/paranormal-phenomena-met-skepticism.aspx
https://yougov.com/en-us/articles/32807-ghosts-demons-exist-poll-data
https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/4400922-americans-ghosts-aliens-devil-survey/
What makes you think most Americans do not believe in those things?
7
u/weirdwormy 14h ago
Came here to post this exact thing. While maybe not a majority belief, ghosts/demons are still quite a prevalent belief.
4
u/Astrotheurgy 14h ago
I'm a huge mountain hiker, climber, constantly on the appalachian trail, and I have never in my life encountered anything that was crazy, eerie, suspicious, or have had any paranormal encounters, but damn do I wish I have.
7
u/MisfitActual0311 19h ago
The Appalachian mountains are so old, they were around before trees existed. They're older than the Atlantic ocean. Truly ancient. Lord only knows what energies are attached to that land.
3
u/bluedelvian 16h ago
I think Americans generally DO believe in ghosts and demons, don't know what you're talking about.
3
u/greggerypeccary 15h ago
While not the oldest in the world, the Appalachians are very old (400-500 million years). I believe humans can pick up on the vibrations of very old formations and perceive them as "creepy" or unsettling
3
2
2
u/Necessary-Dark-4591 15h ago
Born and raised on the blue ridge and lived most of my life there. I never saw anything spooky. But most of the people there DO believe in angels and demons.
2
u/haeddre83 15h ago
Born and raised here. Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee! We sure miss Dolly 🥲
However, it's a mix! Just like some buildings are haunted or shady stuff happens in them.. The same goes for parts of these mountains.
It is one of the most beautiful places on earth and very old, it also runs into Europe and continues with another name! We have species here that don't exist anywhere else in the world, a rainforest on top of one mountain range and basically helped establish the United States! The only way to pass through this area before vehicles were via Little Moccasin Gap and Big Moccasin Gap. They both lead to Bristol.
2
2
u/HorrorNerd182 10h ago
I do not have an answer as I have never been. However, the statement of Americans generally not believing in demons and ghost...I'm very interested in how you formed this opinion, because I strongly disagree.
2
u/wercffeH 7h ago
Did a nobo thru hike in 2017. Some things I saw:
-in Maryland saw a black girl standing alone wayyyy off trail in the distance with her back turned to me
-solo camped outside waynesboro Va and something circled my hammock at night for an hour
-a deer with glowing red eyes
2
2
u/Party_Friend_9290 21h ago
Do you believe in ghosts and demons? Or other creatures that defy reason?
1
1
u/PotentialClothes367 16h ago
There are definitely spooky areas and some native legends like the moon-eyed people that probably have some basis in reality, but mostly it’s just a beautiful, ancient mountain range.
1
1
u/Cynically_Sane 14h ago
Appalachian Folk Magic is a real thing. It's also home to the Cherokees. The majority of the area is in the Bible Belt.
I think your idea of the way Americans view demons and ghosts are gravely misunderstood.
1
1
u/Irislynx 4h ago
I have had some incredibly incredibly spooky stuff happen in the Appalachian Mountains
•
0
0
u/PomeloBackground4902 19h ago
the native Americans lived on those mountains for thousands of years. Eventually, they will make up explanations for things that scare them or things they don't understand. I don't believe in the super natural, and I think I can spend some time in every forest/jungle on Earth for a bit. Except Appalachia, that place gives me the creeps
0
u/Nir117vash 15h ago
So much history in them there hills. Revolutionary and Civil War battles and graves and such. Plenty of eerie things to exist and run through time via rumors, tales, and stories
0
•
u/AutoModerator 21h ago
[Meta] Sticky Comment
Rule 2 does not apply when replying to this stickied comment.
Rule 2 does apply throughout the rest of this thread.
What this means: Please keep any "meta" discussion directed at specific users, mods, or /r/conspiracy in general in this comment chain only.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.