25 Nightcrawlers Reveal the Scariest Things They Ever Saw
We've sourced AskReddit for one of the creepier pieces we've put together. We've collected stories from those who enjoy being out at night. Call them night owls, nightcrawlers, whatever you will. Here are their terrifying tales.
1.
“There was one night where a car stopped up the road, a girl got out, yelled for help, then got back in and they drove off. I have no idea of it was serious or not, considering she got right back in the car…” -abetherigh
2.
“Holy shit, I've got one for this! Grew up in Japan, not too small/not too big city. Worked a job that had me coming home daily at 2-4ish AM. I preferred to walk the backstreet that paralleled the main street home because it felt more cozy and peaceful. Nothing of note happened until one day…
I turn the corner onto the side street and about halfway down there was a young woman. She wasn't doing anything, just staring at the sky. Staring straight up, STRAIGHT up, neck at a 90 degree angle, mouth slightly agape, long black hair hanging. I hesitated but decided that, since nothing weird has ever happened here before, it'd be fine. So I went to walk by. I get up next to her, it's a narrow road so not a lot of room to maneuver, and pause to look at her.
She hasn't moved or reacted to me, she's just staring away. So I fight my instincts and ask her if she's okay. She doesn't react. I look up to see if she's looking at something but there's nothing there. So now I'm thinking there's something medical going on, so I reach out and touch her on the shoulder. She jolts and and looks at me like she's just noticed me. I ask if she's okay and she just stammers and says sorry before hustling down the street the same way I was headed. I decided to smoke a cigarette to let some distance get between me and her, but towards the end of the street, she stops and stares at the sky again. Doesn't move for the whole five minutes it takes for me to finish my cig. I walked down the main street for the next couple nights.” -Post-Alone0
3.
“During winter in a rural no cell service kind of area. Completely dark, no street lights nor anyone in sight. Temperatures were around 20 and it was snowing. I was walking my dog with a flashlight. Then I heard someone start screaming bloody murder. Flight or fight kicked in; it truly sounded like someone was being stabbed to death for what seemed like forever.
I chose to find out what the hell was going on. What I found instead was beyond anything I expected. He was a 5 year old boy wandering down the road all alone. All he was wearing were light flannel pants and a thin t-shirt. No shoes or hat. And screaming so loudly it echoed through the hills. I dropped my dogs leash and walked up to him slowly; gently and repeatedly telling him that I’m a mom and that he’s going to be ok. I wrapped him into my arms and carried him to a neighbors home to warm him by the fire and call for help.” -BlueRaining
4.
“One time I turned around to see what was behind me just out of intuition, and I saw someone step behind a tree rather quickly and try to hide from me. I stood there for a second to confirm this, then I speed-walked home. F**king creepy." -THCRANGER
5.
“I’m an overnight security guard. One night I was watching cameras and saw someone underneath a grass tarp where some landscaping was taking place on our property. I was guessing this person had probably tried to stash something before they went into detox which is next door to our property. I get over to the tarp and don’t see the guy anywhere. So I start walking over the tarp and lifting it to look for any stashed items. Well I ended up stepping on the poor homeless guy, scared the shit out of me. He was cool though and we fist bumped and he went on his way.” -Doch1112
6.
“One time I was walking around my relatively safe neighborhood with two of my friends after midnight (we were probably 16 at the time). This loud red truck speeds by us, which is normal for the road we were on. Then a few minutes later the same red truck drives by the opposite way going much slower. Again just a couple of minutes later he drives by but this time stops a hundred or so feet away from us and just sits there.
Realizing that this is not normal we booked it through the yard to the next street over. For the next 20 or so minutes we see this truck creeping up and down the neighborhood while we hid behind some bushes and when we finally thought he was gone, we booked it to my house. He turned the corner onto my road just as we were about to open my front door.” -mattyb584
7.
“Almost 100% sure I witnessed a kidnapping. I was going to get my mail late at night while living in an apartment complex and on the way back I noticed a woman in her pajamas surrounded by a few men right by a car. There was an argument and looked like they forced her in the car and drove off, I found her slipper nearby on the grass. I of course called the police and they came and I let them know what I saw but I never found out what actually happened.” -kinetochore21
8.
“I worked night shift for 7 years. One night a young, thin blonde woman was walking down the street at 2am with no pants or underwear on and a button up shirt open. I tried to ask if she needed help and she just stared forward, slowly walking staring forward. I called the police and they came and stood infront of her and she slowly walked into the cops hand and stopped. I didn't stay and went back to work. I still think about her and what the f**k was going on. I tell myself it was sleep walking on Ambien or something, and that she wasn't just assaulted and in complete shock. I'll never know. But she was very pretty, and seemed well groomed. Was very strange.” -IndIka123
9.
“Dead body on the side of the street with a sign around its neck saying "I'm a cellphone thief, don't be like me." This was maybe 20 years ago in Manila, Philippines.” -Godfreee
10.
“Not me, but my friend was near downtown at 3am on acid and was almost kidnapped. There’s a lot of young female kidnappings where we’re at and because he’s petite with long hair, he was mistaken as a female target. He managed to run away, but it was of course very traumatizing for him.” -flotsamjr
11.
“I worked night shift on Kadena AB on Okinawa, Japan. I started walking to work because I didnt have a car. I really enjoyed the walks. It was a good way to wind down after work as the nights were cool and quiet and I could listen to my music without worrying about anyone else around. One night while walking home I heard some rustling in the jungle of trees on the way home. Next thing I know all of the lights went black and all I heard/felt was a loud wooooosh coming right at my head. I screamed like a little girl, ran, and dropped my ipod (it broke). Once I made it past the trees I realized it was one of the giant bats that lived on Okinawa. It scared the ever living sh*t out of me.” -akroses161
12.
“I once saw tiny hands reaching out of a sewer grate. Took me a minute before I realized it was a raccoon.” -realbigexplosion
13.
“An old man who walked very aggressively. Like Jason from Friday the 13th but sped up. I was ready to run but I walked past him and nothing happened. Put me on my toes but holy sh*t change your walking form man.” -micho6
14.
“Found a guy who hanged himself in a park. Called 911 and answered some questions, was a long night." - FSD-Bishop
15.
“I’ve never been afraid of the dark. Grew up in the countryside, where the nearest streetlight was 10 miles away, so I’m comfortable in dark places, so much so that I often take my dog for a walk at around midnight just because I like the peace and quiet of the night. I live in a city now so something about the dark is just soothing to me.
That being said, one of the scariest things I’ve ever experienced, I genuinely have no explanation for. Living in a city I used to drive out 20-30 miles into the country to do some astrophotography. As I’m driving out one night I see this guy walking at the side of the road with no lights, reflectors and a big backpack. Didn’t think much of it other than it being a little odd. 5 miles later, I see the same guy walking again. I haven’t changed directions, turned, and I’ve been doing 50mph. As I drove past he looked and waved at me. I was pretty spooked but I drove on. I must be imagining things. It can’t be the same guy. I get to my field in the middle of nowhere, park up and get the camera out, and turn off all the lights so my eyes adjust to the dark.
All is going well, and for 30 minutes I’m content, and starting to relax. Suddenly I hear a rustling near the hedge by the road. Crunching leaves, grass being kicked. It was footsteps. I immediately get a feeling of dread, like I’m in severe danger and something bad was going to happen. I grab my camera, toss it in the car, get in, lock the doors and turn on the headlights. When I turn out of the field. I pass where I heard the noise and saw fresh footprints in the mud but no sign of anyone. I race back home, driving double the speed limit, constantly checking my mirrors for anyone. I park up around the corner and wait in the car with the lights off for 30 minutes, watching. Nothing shows up, I get home, lock all the doors and sleep with a knife under my pillow that night. I honestly don’t know what really happened that night but part of me knows that creepy guy I passed on the road twice was in that field.” -Rhavoreth
16.
“Was up on a hill in the countryside at midnight when a man with a rifle came out of nowhere, ran right past me, and wasn’t seen again. I went home shortly after that.” -WindingLostWay
17.
“Was out for a late walk in the rain, always enjoy it because it's peaceful, smells great, quiet and never see anyone. Walked off this trail back into the road and saw a big pile of garbage under a tarp at the end of the cul de sac the trail ends in, got a creepy chill like "that could be a dead body or something and I'd never know" just got a weird feeling that snapped me out of my calm walk.
Picked up the pace. About 500yds away parked car with a guy sitting there, in the dark, in the rain, like 11pm-ish car off, just sitting there. Got super creeped out at this point and changed my route back to the main road and hurried home. Turns out it was a dead body someone had dumped under that tarp, was under there for 4 days before someone investigated it. The guy in the car turned out to be just a random dude, guy lives there and totally unrelated to the body. Still, took a few months off from my late night walks alone in the woods.” -Marmoticon
18.
“What I thought was a body in the woods, and after a bit of back and forth on the phone with the police I returned with a few helpful coppers to find a slightly miffed drunk person who’d had an argument with his misses.” -dizietembless
19.
“A 7ft tall male brown kangaroo in the middle of the footpath. Buff as f**k just staring me down. You bet your a** I turned and went the other way, he just went about his business.” -curryandmilk
20.
“I saw a tarantula use a crosswalk as if it was a law abiding pedestrian.” -streetperformer
22.
“Living in a rural village I was taking a late night walk with my gf, when suddenly we hear a loud what we thought was a human scream. Turned out is was a sheep, jump scared us hard though.” -Bfortbattle
24.
“A bear right up the street; or, maybe, an empty baby carriage on the side of the road.” -Gcwrite
25.
“Over 25 years ago, I was walking in a park at night. It was pitch black in this park, no lighting, other than the moon & the stars on a beautiful autumn night. I couldn’t see very well, but I knew the area, & was walking along the road, which ran parallel to a small river. The moonlight would bounce of the water, & all you would hear is the trickle from the slow running river & slight breeze in the trees.
I loved those walks. That was until the one night, in the dead silence & pitch black, I distinctly hear a mans voice out of the woods say very clearly: ‘Young girls shouldn’t go walking alone in the woods at night’. I FROZE. I looked in the direction of the voice & couldn’t see a damn thing. I RAN HOME. That was the last evening walk I took in that park.” -dammitarlene
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