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On a weekend in mid-July, my pregnant girlfriend and I set out for a camping trip from Vancouver, WA, to a campsite just past Yachats. Excited to spend some quality time in nature, we had planned this trip with much anticipation. However, upon our arrival at the campsite, our excitement quickly turned to disappointment. The site we had hoped to claim was already taken, leaving us with no place to pitch our tent.
Undeterred, we decided to drive about 30 minutes south in search of an alternative spot. Tired and exhausted, we eventually parked on the side of the road to rest for a while. It was 2 a.m., and the world around us was still and serene.
Suddenly, our tranquility was shattered by the aggressive barking of our dogs, rousing us from our slumber. Confused and alarmed, we peered outside the car to discover the source of their agitation. Our eyes locked with a sight that would haunt us for nights to come.
A man stood in the darkness, just beyond the reach of our headlights. He seemed anything but normal, his skin unusually pale or perhaps even gray. But what horrified us the most were his bloodied eyes. It appeared as though he had cut his own eyelids off, leaving his eyes completely exposed in a way that seemed alien.
My heart pounded in my chest as I listened to his eerie questions, directed not at us but seemingly at someone else as if he conversed with invisible companions. He asked how to get into our car to kill us, and his intentions were chillingly clear. The man was unhinged, and we were now his targets. Amidst his bizarre ranting, he even mentioned a person named “John” and that we should let this John know that he “found it”, uttering words that made no sense in this nightmarish scenario.
Fear gripped us, and I mustered the courage to shout at him to stay away from our car. His response was unsettling—he sprinted back to a red car, the one he had driven to this desolate place. With panic rising, I hurriedly got into the front seat, intending to escape this nightmare as quickly as possible.
But our assailant had other plans. He aggressively reversed his car, blocking us against a steep cliff. He emerged from his car again, moving in the most peculiar manner, almost like a crab standing upright. His threats grew louder, and he made it clear that our lives were in grave danger once he got inside our car.
As desperation took over, I considered ramming his car and fleeing to safety, but my phone was dead, leaving us stranded and unable to call for help. The man seemed to take delight in our terror, repeatedly vowing to catch us and kill us both.
Summoning every ounce of bravery, I tried to reverse my car once more, but he darted back to his vehicle, continuing his menacing pursuit.
Fearing for our lives, I made one last attempt to escape, aiming to force him out of the way. Miraculously, he veered off, barely avoiding the cliff’s edge before nearly colliding with the opposite rock wall. We seized this fleeting opportunity and sped off in the opposite direction.
With adrenaline pumping through our veins, we drove as fast as we could, leaving behind the terror of that dark coastal road. The memory of that night would stay with us forever—a chilling encounter with a man who was far from normal and who had threatened to extinguish our lives without a second thought.
The following morning, we reported the incident to the police, but they were unable to locate the deranged man. All we could provide were details of a red and white car, but no name, no address, and no explanation for the madness that had unfolded before us.
To this day, the haunting memory of that night serves as a stark reminder that danger can lurk in the most unexpected places.
