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Posted: 22-04-2013 14:07 Post subject: Disappearing hikers

I've just been told a story by a friend that, while he was walking a path near the West Kennett long barrow (not the path leading to the barrow itself, but within sight) he and his son saw two hikers coming towards them who disappeared before reaching them. They were relatively elderly people and therefore they didn't remark on their quite old fashioned gear until after they vanished. He took me to the path and I must admit there is no cover apart from a small watchman type hut which he says they checked.

The reason I raise it is that I think that somewhere on here there is someone who reported a similar encounter near an ancient monument, but I can't find it. I was trying to remember if it was in the Avebury area or somewhere else. I've tried searching on 'hiker' and 'barrow'.

Posted: 22-04-2013 15:40 Post subject:

Could it be anything to do with this:

Posted: 22-04-2013 15:48 Post subject:

I thought we were going HERE

Posted: 23-04-2013 13:15 Post subject:

No, that's not it. The item I recalled from the past (not the story I've just been told) definitely involved a couple seen while someone was at or on the way to an ancient monument - I thought barrow, but could have been a white horse.

I'm slightly confused because someone else was asking about a white horse on the same day - the sun was out and everyone seemed to want to chat!.

Posted: 10-07-2013 15:59 Post subject:

In his book A walk in the woods about his hiking the Appalachian trail in America, Bill Bryson mentions a phantom hiker: All one day this hiker in old fashioned looking gear is just in view, always the same distance in front. The next day the same (apparently) hiker is just in view behind, never catching up or disappearing out of view completely. He never saw him again after that.

Posted: 10-07-2013 16:07 Post subject:

My parents claimed to have had a similar experience once on Chanctonbury Ring, a lcal site with all sorts of minor weirdness associated with it, which I think i've mentioned on here before.

Posted: 10-07-2013 18:57 Post subject:

Come on, lad. Spit it out. Laughing

Posted: 10-07-2013 23:00 Post subject:

It's not much to tell, really.

To the best of my knowledge, this would have been sometime before I was born, so I'm guessing early-to-mid '70s'. My parents were sat having lunch on the south side of the hill below the main wood ands they saw a guy, apparently another hiker, walking towards them across the slope off to one side. He disappeared briefly from view as the path went down a dip with a nearer contour of the slope obscuring it from them; they expected him to reappear... and he never did. Like I said, not much to tell.

The place is weird, though. I've seen dogs refuse to enter the wood, I've heard various rumours about occult stuff going on, and the atmosphere there is just... wrong. Not unlkike Clapham Woods just down the road, which has a much stronger reputation. But no disappearing hitchhikers that I've heard of.

Posted: 12-07-2013 05:55 Post subject:

I think that was the one I remember . Not West Kennet or Avebury. Oh well.

Posted: 12-07-2013 07:37 Post subject:

There's a short thread on Clapham Wood:
http://www.forteantimes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24250

..and a longer one on Chanctonbury Ring / Clapham Woods:
http://www.forteantimes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3152

(Chanctonbury Ring is also mentioned on many more threads.)

Plenty of reading for the next wet day!

Posted: 25-07-2013 12:03 Post subject:

I recall a couple of similar stories concerning the Rollright Stones but these had a tome slip element : one of someone seeing an old fashioned gypsy wagon approaching them along the road next to the circle only for it to have vanished without passing the witness. The other was of someone parking nearby next to a 50s style car only for the car to have disappeared in thetime it took the witness to get out of their car.
Could it have been the Rollrights Cochise?

Posted: 25-07-2013 13:31 Post subject:

Posted: 18-09-2013 02:43 Post subject:

On my mum's advice, I would have loved to pick my dad's brain to see what else he remembered about the Chanctonbury Ring sighting. Sadly, though, he died at the weekend, so this will have to remain as another unanswered question.

Posted: 18-09-2013 07:40 Post subject:

I'm sorry to hear that. Please accept my condolences.

Posted: 18-09-2013 14:42 Post subject:

Sorry to hear that, Discordian.