Something Large Lurks Behind the Benign

The Mire. A world colored in hues of red and gold. 

God rays filter through towering tree tops, casting a golden glow on tall, coarse grass; making red leaves glow from within as if they're on fire. Murky swamp water sparkles in the intermittent rays of sunshine, dust mites dancing in the air above; a fantasy utopia. Large, coral colored vines snake through this paradise, wrapping around trees in a lover's embrace.

The Mire. A photographer's dream, the lighting otherworldly, creating snapshots of a fantastical world on another plane. 

But it exists here, on this planet, in Appalachia. 

Beware, wasteland travelers! The beauty around disguises dangers lurking within! 

Monsters abound within the waters of the swamp, living amongst the towering giants of the trees; a buzzing whisper on the wind, a roar in the storm. 

Tall tales ride through the night, a frightful warning to those brave - or foolish - souls who dare to walk where angels fear to tread. 

One of our reporters even encountered a very large, very odd creature.

"Dusk began to fall as I walked the abandoned interstate. I'd already begun scouting out a good place to camp for the night, lured by the beauty of the Mire, unsuspecting how dangerous it could be. Up ahead, I spied what looked like the back of a destroyed bus advertising a restaurant. I moved closer, intending to *coughs* slip inside the back door. Sorry, I get a little choked up thinking about it. *sips water* So, as I was saying, I tried slipping in the back and…it MOVED! Shook and shimmied, wobbled back and forth and I watched, frozen in horror, unable to move as something rose up out of it…something so large, I couldn't wrap my mind around it." 

At this moment, I had to give the reporter time to calm down with what I surmised to be trauma from their inauspicious experience. 

I was wrong. 

"It was truly a sight to behold! So large, rising up into the last golden rays of the sun. Then, the front of the bus swung around to face me. Something large exploded from the front; ginormous...monstrous in size! The bus housed a mutated hermit crab! I couldn't believe my eyes but at one click of a claw, my fight or flight instinct kicked in. I've never run so fast in my LIFE!" 

Readers, you've just read an account of only one tale of the monsters lurking in the Mire. Travel with care, in groups if you can, and watch your surroundings, for the most benign objects could be the very death of you!