Devil's Stomping Ground

According to stories dating back to the 1800s, a spot in the woods near Bennett, North Carolina is where the Devil can rise from the depths of hell and come to earth. There he paces in circles on certain nights, plotting new horrors to unleash upon mankind and bringing evil into our world.

This place, called the Devil’s Stomping Ground, is a barren, circular patch of land about 15 feet across. Supposedly, the spot is hostile to life, as nothing can grow in the circle and animals shy away from it – one visitor’s dog choked itself on its leash trying to get away from the center. Others claim to have witnessed small animals dying on its edge. Furthermore, the state’s Department of Agriculture once analyzed a sample of the soil and determined it to be completely sterile due to a high salt content.

It is said that no one can spend the night inside the Devil’s Stomping Ground. According to the legend, anyone that tries will find themselves and their belongings moved outside the circle come morning. The same applies to items – many locals swear that anything left in the circle overnight is moved by morning.

In 1998, a sceptical journalist named Ethan Feinsilven decided to disprove the stories by pitching his tent in the spot and spending the night there. Indeed, he was able to stay in the circle until morning, but the night was constantly disturbed by ”ghostly”, ”kind of muffled” footsteps, as he described them. He came out of the experience conviced that there was indeed something sinister in the area.

One alternative theory states that the spot’s phenomena are caused vengeful spirits. Native Americans were supposedly massacred and buried there hundreds of years ago, and their spirits now haunt the place, killing everything that lingers on their graves for too long.

Whether the Devil’s Stomping Ground is a mere myth brought to life by people’s imaginations or a genuinely otherworldly place is quite uncertain. If you want to find out for yourself, directions are here.

Image by opus2008