AOTP Campfire Tales Ep.8

Accounts of the Paranormal's Campfire Tales 

The Stalker Outside Fort Lewis

Eight soldiers on a training exercise in 1993 encountered something terrifying and unexplained in the Pacific Northwest woods.

Paranormal and mystery short stories told around the campfire, straight from our Accounts of the Paranormal YouTube channel! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9zKn4LcW3VJROe1-l9EAcQ

If you have an account to share and would like to be a guest on the show, email me at show@accountsoftheparanormal.com and tell me what you saw!

Accounts of the Paranormal -

Creator/Producer/Host: Gino Barreto

WEBSITE: https://accountsoftheparanormal.com/ 

YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9zKn4LcW3VJROe1-l9EAcQ 

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/accountsoftheparanormal/ 

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578228277599 

TIKTOK: https://www.tiktok.com/@accountsoftheparanormal

X: https://www.x.com/aotparapodcast

Accounts of the Paranormal (theme song) 

Written by: Gino Barreto / Produced by: Kobe Ofei

All music produced by: 

Kobe Ofei https://www.fiverr.com/kobeofei 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Welcome to Accounts of the Paranormals Campfire Tales. I'm Julia, your host and guide into chilling tales of the paranormal. Join us around the campfire for tonight's story. In the autumn of 1993, a small reconnaissance unit from the Army Base at Fort Lewis, Washington, now called Joint Base Lewis McCord, was sent deep into the forests near Mount Rainier for a week-long training exercise. Cold weather survival, navigation, recon patrols, nothing unusual. The Pacific Northwest Woods were already intimidating enough. Towering fir trees blocked out most of the moonlight, and the forest floor stayed damp even when it hadn't rained in days. And at night, the woods seemed endless. The squad consisted of eight soldiers led by Sergeant Daniel Mercer, a veteran who had served overseas and wasn't easily rattled. On the second night, one of the younger soldiers heard something pacing beyond their camp. Not walking, pacing. Heavy footsteps circled through the trees just outside the firelight. Mercer assumed it was a bear. Make noise and it'll leave, he told them. They shouted into the darkness, clanged mes kits together, even lit a warning flare, which made the footsteps stop for about ten minutes. When they came back, but now closer. The strange thing was the silence between the steps. No branches snapping, no brush rustling. Something massive was moving through the forest, with almost impossible stealth. One of the soldiers swept the tree line with night vision goggles, but nothing. By morning, nobody had slept. Mercer tried keeping morale up as they continued the exercise deeper into the wilderness, but things got stranger when Corporal Reyes found footprints in the mud beside camp. Not bear tracks, not human. The prints looked almost like oversized barefoot impressions, long toes, wide heel, nearly seventeen inches from front to back. Mercer ordered everyone to stay focused, but that night the creature finally showed itself. Sort of. Around midnight, the woods went silent. No insects, no wind, no owls, just silence. Then came a crack from the tree line. One of the soldiers spun his flashlight toward it and froze, when two eyes reflected back from between the trees, high off the ground, and at least eight feet high. The beam caught only part of the thing before it moved, dark hair, incredibly broad shoulders, massive shape. Then it stepped sideways behind a tree and vanished. But every soldier saw it, everyone. Mercer immediately organized a sweep. Four men moved left, four moved right, weapons raised, lights searching the woods, but nothing. No movement, no sound. But they all felt it, that horrible sensation of being watched from somewhere just beyond the trees. Then the rock started. Small stones flew from the darkness, striking trunks around them. One slammed into a soldier's helmet hard enough to knock him sideways. The men shouted challenges into the forest, but no response. Then came the scream. Not a bear, not a cougar. The sound was deep and unnatural, echoing through the woods with a strange human quality that made every soldier stop cold. One later described it as something angry trying to sound human. That ended the exercise. Mercer radioed command before dawn and requested extraction. When the trucks arrived later that morning, the soldiers packed in complete silence. As they prepared to leave, Corporal Reyes noticed something at the edge of the trees behind their abandoned camp. A dark figure, unbelievably tall and massive in width, standing perfectly still between two enormous firs, watching them. By the time he pointed it out, it was gone. The official report blamed wildlife activity and stress from extended field conditions. But years later, Sergeant Mercer reportedly told a friend what he didn't include in the report. He said, trained soldiers know what fear feels like gunfire, combat, ambushes. But whatever it was that stalked them in those woods outside Fort Lewis, it wasn't hunting them for food. It was enjoying the fear.com, where you can access full episodes and links to all our socials. And while you're there, be sure to sign up for our blog so you never miss show info or other announcements. I'll see you next time.