April 20, 2007
Footsteps in the Snow
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Francis Grant, Arapaho National Park, Colorado, December 14-20,
1995
This happened to me when I was twelve, when I met a spirit. My grandmother
lives near the Rockies, almost on the border of Arapaho National Park. I was
visiting her for Christmas, and stayed in her cabin along with my two
cousins and my cat, Sophie.
The first strange thing happened to me on the second day of visiting. I was
still unpacking with my back turned to the door of the guestroom. I had the
door closed, but when I turned around, it was wide open. I got spooked and
nearly fell over. I peeked into the hall and saw nothing. I asked my
grandmother why it happened and she explained that her house was built near
an Indian burial ground, and that peculiar things regularly happened. She
thought that a certain ghost was haunting her house.
She said that the last person who owned it was a young man of about 35. She
said that on a dark winter night, he was driving home when the car slipped
off the road and crashed. He was in the hospital, but didn't make it. She
thought he came back because he missed his home. I didn't believe her,
thinking she was pulling my leg, but was I wrong.
One night, it was particularly cold and my cat was sleeping with me. It was
around 1:00 AM and I woke up to find my cat staring out the window. I got up
to see what she was staring at, and was shocked to see a man standing in the
snow, looking up at the window. He waved at me and walked back into the
forest. I grabbed my jacket and went after him. When I was outside, he
already disappeared. I had a feeling my grandmother wasn't pulling my leg,
but that wasn't all.
Me and my cousins were going on a hike through the forest and it was still
snowing. Halfway through the trail, I wandered away toward the burial
ground. When I got there, I only saw a clearing covered in snow. I turned
around to find my cousins when I heard footsteps from behind me, walking
slowly through the snow. I turned around and saw something rustling in the
bushes. A man emerged, looking pale and with a smile on his face. We stared
at each other for a few moments until he politely asked, "Hey, could you
help me?" He looked okay and he led me to the road, where a car was smoking
fumes. It looked like it ran into a tree.
"Is there anyone you know around here who could help me?" he asked.
"I'm not sure. Follow me, maybe my cousins can help you." I led him back
into the forest, the air still and silent.
After about 15 minutes, we finally found the trail. My cousins were waiting
for me, angry that I wandered off. "Well, this guy needs help," I said. I
turned to show him to them, but he was gone. I looked in disbelief. "Yeah
right," my cousins said. I went back, but only found my footprints, and
nothing else. But I could still hear him walking behind me when I found the
trail. He just disappeared from sight, just like that.
