The Devil's Tramping Ground

Off the beaten path of Highway 64, about ten miles from Siler City and as close to six feet under as you can get from the mortal world, two paths in the woods diverge into a circular clearing. In the circle, nothing grows; not flowers, not grass, not even a solitary weed. Dogs growl when they approach, and refuse to pass over the circle’s edge. Anything placed inside the circle before the sun sets – from discarded soda cans to occupied camping tents – finds itself violently thrown outside of the circle by the time the sun rises.

This is the Devil’s Tramping Ground. Legend has it that every night, the Devil walks the earth in this very spot. He paces in a circle, scheming, plotting, and coming up with new ways to cause havoc on humanity. There are a brave few who have attempted to stay overnight in the circle; none of them awoke in the same place they started, and none of them awoke with the same level of sanity they fell asleep with.

Maybe you don’t believe the Devil walks among us. Maybe you don’t believe that an old chieftain buried beneath the soil doesn’t want his grave disturbed, or that the soil was bleached by a landing UFO. Maybe you don’t even believe that the stories are true; maybe you think it’s a few conspiracy crackpots who want fifteen minutes of fame for pretending their tent mysteriously moved in the night. If you don’t believe it’s true, then why not see for yourself? Head down south of Siler City and plop yourself down in the middle of the circle to sleep. It may be the very last dirt nap you ever take.

---Delaney Guidi