By Kacee Saturay, WNPF Donor Stewardship and Social Media Manager
For most people, Washington’s national parks can be the setting of beautiful memories and adventurous stories — but they can also bring tales of unsolved mysteries and even unidentified objects.
In this especially spooky time of year, pull up a stump by the campfire, grab your sleeping bag, and keep your headlight on as we explore just a few of the more chilling stories to come out of Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic National Parks.
Want to get spooked in person, for a good cause? For a fourth year, if you’re around the West Seattle neighborhood, the Nightfall Orphanage is benefitting Washington’s national parks by donating a portion of the entrance fees back to WNPF! Visit between October 18-November 2, 2024 for some scary fun!
Get the details here.
Did you know that the first official “Flying Saucer” sighting was in Washington’s very own Mount Rainier National Park?
On June 24, 1947, a private pilot named Kenneth Arnold was flying from Chehalis, Washington on a business trip when he got wind of a $5,000 reward for the discovery of a U.S. Marine Transport airplane that had crashed somewhere in Mount Rainier National Park. After searching over the park and finding nothing, he prepared to continue on his trip to Yakima.
Suddenly, Kenneth saw a bright flashing light in the sky over Rainier. Afraid he was dangerously close to another aircraft he looked frantically about him, only to find no one else was there.
Then, more bright flashes appeared – nine total. After testing multiple theories as to what these lights might be (geese? reflections from his plane windows?), Kenneth was at a complete loss as to what they were.
They quickly approached Mount Rainier and then passed in front of it, occasionally giving off bright light flashes as they flipped around erratically. Arnold described them as a series of crescent-shaped objects and likened their movement to saucers skipping on water. After reporting his findings to friends, and soon after, news outlets as well, the story gained national attention.
Due to his logical and detailed account of the event, he was found to be a credible witness. But as a witness to what, no one quite knew.
Now, 70 years later, we are still using Arnold’s depiction to portray aliens from another universe arriving in “Flying Saucers.”
Curious for more? You can find more about the history of Mount Rainier’s relationship to flying saucers at the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry website. And for other spooky places to visit by foot, be sure to check out Melmont, Fairfax, or Copper City Ghost Town.
Did you know you can hike to the ruins of the Northern State Mental Hospital outside of Sedro Wooley?
Established in 1909 and designed by the Olmstead Brothers, whose father designed Central Park in New York City, the hospital was a self-sustaining and therapeutic colony for the mentally ill. It even produced all of its own food and clothing.
The property is part of the Northern State Recreation Area and includes extensive trails that pass still-standing barns, a milking shed, and a cannery. The hike to get there and back is about five miles roundtrip.
The original facility — built in the Spanish Colonial Revival style — housed up to 2,700 patients at a time and included a water reservoir, sewage system, lumber mill, quarry, steam plant, greenhouse, gymnasium, library, laundry, dining room, bakery, dairy, a 700-acre farm, and a cemetery.
Though it officially closed in 1973, a few of the buildings are still in use for drug and alcohol treatment, and by the U.S. Jobs Corps.
Patients could be committed for a number of illnesses, most of which would be seen as common diagnoses today. They received then-popular treatments such as electric shock, insulin coma therapy, or trans-orbital lobotomies. Other less invasive treatments included working on the farm and living in the soothing environment of the snow-capped North Cascades.
The hospital has been exploited by so-called ghost hunters and others wishing to capitalize on the darker side of mental health institutions. But visiting the site doesn’t feel creepy at all to us. With one exception. The well house. We are not superstitious, but when we get close to this building it makes us feel a cold chill up the spine. So after a quick look, we beat it back the way we came. –Julie Stonefelt & Kevin Mack of Exploring History in your Hiking Boots
You can find a map and trail conditions for this spooky trail at Washington Trails Association (WTA). Also worth a read? The essay “Under the Red Roof, One Hundred Years at Northern State” by M. J. McGoffin.
In search of other spooky destinations? Consider a visit to the Monte Cristo or Barron Ghost Towns.
Did you know that early explorer Charles A. Barnes named the gorge on the Elwha River, now called Goblin’s Gate, after seeing faces in the rocks at the edge of the torrent? Perhaps he’d had too much Wild Turkey on that cold, wet day!
The powerful currents of the Elwha River stream through a narrow opening at this gorge, and in the dim light, these faces seem to be beckoning the weary travel over the edge and down into Rica Canyon. Mr. Barnes wrote in his journal that the rock seemed to have “tortured expressions” and a “gloomy and mysterious character,” and that the whole stretch resembled the “throat of a monster.”
A bridge has been twice attempted at the Gate and twice has failed. The first bridge washed away and the second one just seemed to quickly rot and fall apart. Perhaps there are spirits that don’t want Goblin’s Gate passed over.
Another creepy destination to cross off your list in Olympic? Check out Devil’s Punch Bowl and Spruce Railroad Trail to visit the site of a woman’s mysterious murder and the lake still haunted by her presence – famously known as “The Lady of the Lake.” National Park After Dark has a great podcast episode on this story. Check it out here or wherever you find podcasts.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on October 31, 2017. Cover photo by Corrine Alexander.