I hoist my backpack onto my back and start down the path that leads away from the parking area, so thankful that I wore pants. Well, yoga pants anyway, which might not fare as well as jeans would have, but they are definitely better than shorts. If I had worn those, I would have already been shredded to bits.

The old brush, leaf debris and tall weeds, along with fallen tree limbs and brambles make this path as difficult as the roads to get here are. I know I won't come out of this unscathed.

Now some of those signs are starting to make sense.

I bravely, if not foolishly trudge on, determined to find the Secret Garden or at least something special. Hell, I deserve it after everything I've went through to get here...and to think I'm just getting started.

What the hell am I doing?

After 15 minutes or so, I am hoping that the trail will somehow get better, or that I might find a different one, but no such luck.

I look up momentarily at the looming trees; they are all gnarled and sickly looking, their branches twisted and distorted like something out of a nightmare or a Tim Burton movie. This place has such a heavy presence; these old trees have an ancient look about them that seem out of place in Indiana. It's as if they have many secrets that will never be told.

Oh well, it's probably a good thing that the scenery isn't great to look at because I need to keep all of my focus on this treacherous trail.

I'm already exhausted, feeling as if I've climbed Mount Everest.

As I continue to slowly trudge along, I am suddenly struck with the feeling that I'm being watched.

The hairs on my arms and back of my neck begin to rise. I don't like it at all, but I keep walking, figuring that it's just my imagination or this God awful place finally getting to me.

I'm starting to think that maybe I should just cut my losses and head back to the car. This whole trip has been a complete bust.

I try to stay positive by thinking that I got out of the house at least.

Yeah...this positivity shit isn't helping.

Why those stupid people on the internet didn't just tell the truth about this place instead of writing all of the concocted hokum that they did, I'll never know. They sure could've saved me A LOT of hassle and disappointment. Gas money too!

Unlike those assholes though, I will write truthfully about this place when I get back to the library...if I make it back.

I'm thinking something along the lines of...DO NOT waste your time coming here. There's danger alright, but it's not monsters that you have to fear. No, it's far worse! At least 20 miles of roads awaits you that aren't paved or safe for travel, filled with car swallowing holes, coupled with equally dangerous, almost impassable trails and the worst scenery ever! It's SO bad that even the animals and bugs stay away. I'm sure this includes the boogeyman too!

I hate to have to spend any more time here, but I'm so tired, hot, sweaty, thirsty, and a little hungry. So, I wearily look around for someplace to cop a squat, desperately needing to sit. But in this place, it will probably be next to impossible to find.

Just as I'm about to give up, I spot a log about ten feet away. Although nothing here is welcoming, I'm hoping that it will be a decent enough place for me to rest and grab a bite to eat before the gruesome journey that I'm facing back to the car as well as home.

This trail...those roads...don't remind me!

Getting over to the log is a real struggle. The brambles seem to be thicker through here, not to mention that the ground seems oddly unstable in some places.

Great, that's all I need. Knowing my luck, I'll be swallowed by quicksand.

Does Indiana even have that stuff? God, I hope not. But if we do, it would definitely be in this infernal place.

Hopefully, it's just squishy because of all the damp debris.

I finally reach the log after a monumental struggle and decide to celebrate my victory by quickly plopping down on it. Ahhh! It feels so good to finally take a load off. Well, as good as sitting on a cold, hard, damp log can be anyway.

I don't want to get up, but I need to remove the pack that hangs heavily on my back as well as my hoodie, so that I can use it to sit on before my ass winds up getting as damp as the log which is already starting to feel like it is.

It's pretty shady here, so I take my sunglasses off and lay them beside me.

Reluctantly I stand, remove my pack and then my hoodie.

Just as I finish taking my hoodie off and righting my t-shirt, I get that feeling again like I am being watched. My skin prickles, goose bumps erupting all over me.

Maybe I should dig the pepper spray out of my bag...

My eyes dart around quickly in every possible direction and I see absolutely nothing or no one. I think I'm finally losing my mind.

Get a grip! Nobody is watching you, I chide inwardly. I try to reason with myself that there isn't even anyone at this wretched place to watch me, that I just felt self-conscious about pulling my hoodie off.

Yeah, that sounds about right. I'm a bit on the shy side, not to mention that I'm not as thin as I'd like to be, and it is kind of chilly here especially to my overheated, sweaty skin.

I shake my head, now even more tired than before. I try to blow a few stray hairs from my forehead. Lord knows I don't want to touch my face with my hands right now. Going back to school with poison ivy or oak all over my face while the other kids will probably be tanned from taking real vacations would only just prove their point even more about what a loser I am.

I bend to pick up my sunglasses and place them atop my head, so that I can lay my hoodie on the log.

Once the hoodie is spread across the log for my seating pleasure, I eagerly sit again, feeling like a queen upon her throne. Small mercies, I know. But in this place, a hoodie covered rotting log is a real treat.

After sitting for a few minutes, content to just be while trying to ignore the stinging pain all over my legs and hands thanks to the endless brambles and nettles, my stomach growls, reminding me that this pit stop isn't just about resting. I sigh exhaustedly.

I lean forward and grab my pack, taking out a turkey sandwich, a baggie of chips, and a nice, cold bottle of water.

I sit the sandwich and chips on my lap, so that I can twist the cap off the water bottle. I take a long, greedy drink, draining the contents by half, leaving me nearly panting. I guess I didn't realize how thirsty I am. I put the cap back on though I have yet to see a single bug, and then set it beside me.

I feel and probably look as if I have been through a war zone, so before I start eating I reach back into my pack and grab a couple of napkins and the bottle of sanitizer. It's no soap and water, but it's better than nothing.

I drown my filthy hands in the alcohol laden gel while saying a few choice words under my breath thanks to the painful stinging it induces. At least it killed some germs.

I spread one of the napkins on my lap, using it as a makeshift table, and then place my food on it.

I eat until I'm full, finish off my water, and then clean up my mess. Even though this place is horrible, I'd still never litter.

My legs are driving me nuts, so I pull the left, snagged, burr covered leg of my yoga pants up to assess the damage that all of the briars and brambles have inflicted upon me. My poor pants are toast which makes me sad. I love these things.

I look at my leg...damn! All of those thorns have sure done a number on me alright. It looks like I've crawled through barbed wire, and even razor wire in some places.

I'm riddled with numerous red, swollen, blood encrusted pin prick sized wounds as well as a lot of scratches, some of them pretty deep which doesn't surprise me. My legs have been hurting and stinging since not long after I got here, not to mention that I had felt the wetness from my blood and then my pants sticking to me.

I'm sure that my other leg looks no different. I have a few similar marks on my arms and hands, but my poor legs took the brunt of it. On top of the nettles, I'll probably end up with poison ivy on my legs too.

Fan-fucking-tastic.

My tiny first-aid kit unfortunately won't be of any use for this kind of carnage, so there really isn't much that I can do until I get home. Not to mention that I will probably add several more to these on my way out. Oh joy!

After pulling my pant leg back down, I start thinking, for the hundredth time...what the hell have I gotten myself into here?

All I wanted was to enjoy this beautiful day, get away from the house and the shitty town I live in and the shitty people who live in it. However, whether misguided or not, I wound up here instead.

I want to blame this place so badly, but I can't. It's my fault. I was stubborn and refused to heed the warnings both before and after I got here. Hell, the roads alone should've turned me away.

No use crying over spilled milk now though, I sigh.

As I sit, I am finally able to take in the surroundings again, only now with a more appraising eye.

It's weird because it looks more than just neglected or the act of nature taking its course. I've been through many different wooded areas before, but none were ever this bad. This place looks like some people do when they are severely depressed, only worse, like it's in self-destruct mode.

Since this is public land with trails, or in this case trail - and I use that term loosely, I have to wonder why no one is caring for it. I mean, this whole place is definitely an accident or a lawsuit waiting to happen. Surely the state or government wouldn't allow those stories or superstitions to keep them from maintaining their own property would they?

Although I must admit that this place does have a real air of creepiness to it.

Take the abnormal silence, for starters. Don't get me wrong, the quietness is nice, but this is more than that. I can't really explain it, but the silence here is almost deafening, if that makes sense, not to mention that my ears keep popping. Add that to the absence of wind, animals, and bugs, and it gives me the shivers.

I've got to quit thinking about this!

Anyway...maybe they aren't aware of the severe condition that both the roads and this place are in.

If I make it out of here in one piece, I am going to do my Good Samaritan deed and report it to the DNR before someone really does get hurt, or God forbid dies.

I sit for a few more minutes trying to prolong the inevitable which is making the daunting trek back.

With my thoughts still wandering, I realize that this place seems to be just as lonely as I am. Maybe that's why I was drawn here and disregarded all of the warnings to stay away. Misery loves company, I think sardonically.

I can relate to this place in a way. I have no one in my life, no one to love or care for, or to love or care for me in return.

How I long for it, dream about it. I've just never found it, that special someone, and I doubt someone like me ever will.

It probably doesn't help that I'm usually wrapped up in school, homework, chores, or my lousy after school job.

At 17, I've pretty much shut myself off from the world. I've always been shy, introverted, and I keep to myself. I've also always had too many adult responsibilities to be young, too many people who have hurt me and still do.

The fact that I'm alone makes days like today even worse though. Whether it's a good situation or bad, it would be nice if I at least had someone to share it with. I sure do miss my grandma.

I sigh sadly, my shoulders slumping in defeat.

Looking around again at the obstacles I've got to face again, or should I say brave, so that I can get the heck out of here, I close my eyes and take a deep, almost painful breath. God, I'm dreading this.

I open my eyes and wonder where my knight in shining armor is when I need him? Certainly not here, I chuckle bitterly at my inner musings, shaking my head.

I am torn from my thoughts when I hear a noise all of the sudden.

It sounds like a distant rumble, but grows in intensity so quickly that it becomes a thunderous roar and the ground begins to vibrate. What the fuck?!

Is this an earthquake? The New Madrid fault does run through here, and out of all the days it could rupture, of course it would pick today!

Scared out of my wits, I shoot up off the log, grab my pack and roughly jerk it onto my back.

I want to run, but there is just too much in the way. I start leaping like a frog as rapidly as I can through the maze of fallen limbs and brambles which is even harder than before since I now have to pee badly.

On my fourth jump attempt, my foot gets painfully caught in something, sending me hurling toward the thorn infested ground. I shriek and put my hands out to try to brace my fall.

However, the ground gives way...and everything goes black.

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