As the days grow shorter, and the autumn winds carry with them an unmistakable chill, we find ourselves on the cusp of that bewitching time of year known as spooky season. With Halloween’s eerie arrival just around the corner, we decided there was no better moment to unearth the tales of the uncanny and the unexplained from the unsung heroes of the highway: our fearless truckers.
We recently turned to our thriving Facebook community of truckers with a simple yet spine-tingling question: “Ever had a spooky or paranormal experience on the road?” What transpired was a collection of hair-raising accounts that offer a glimpse into the mysterious and the supernatural encountered during their journeys.
So, as the days grow shorter and the nights get longer, join us on a journey into the unknown because the road ahead is filled with tales that give you chills this ghostly season.
“Many years ago, I was passing through Downers Grove, Illinois. While sitting in traffic, I watched a man who had passed away being taken out of a hotel and put into the coroner’s van. Later that week, I was told my uncle had passed away. So, another week later, I went to his funeral. While at his funeral, I realized I was watching my uncle being pulled out of that hotel.” – Mike T.
“Had a car coming down the wrong side of NV160 in the early morning. At least, I think it happened. I saw it hit the guard rail and cement divider, flip, and land on the other side of the road. I pulled over and attempted to call 911 – no service. When I went to look for the car – nothing. But I definitely wasn’t seeing things. The car in front of me swerved to avoid the wrong-side driver. 🤷” – Robert O.
“Several years after my father died, I was driving through the night and heard my father tell me to slow down. As I rounded the next corner, there was a herd of cows in the road.” – James T.H.
“Saw a ‘Ghost Truck’ on I-80 once. It was on the shoulder. I saw the flashers, so I got over… Looked forward after checking my clearance… it was gone. Should’ve been another 10 seconds before I passed him. I got off the road shortly after. I was pretty tired at that point anyways.” – John S.
“I had a ghostly human form pass by my windshield, then between my mirror and whisper ‘STOP!!!’ At that point, a car came into my lane just as I pulled over.” – Randy S.
“My fiancé and I were team drivers. We’ve seen several UFOs — a couple in AZ and one that followed us from Las Cruces to El Paso. Also, I was driving into Vicksburg as my man was in the sleeper, and I heard hooves hitting the ground, like a lot of horses. Then a voice yelled, ‘Get down!’ At the same time, my fiancé was jolted away by a voice telling him to get out of there! We’ve seen a lot of apparitions among other creatures/cryptids. I guess if you are open to the experiences, they are out there.” – Nikki M.
“I was traveling on Pennsylvania Turnpike back in 2000, and I saw a man walk across the road and disappear into the darkness. Later on that morning, I learned that someone had died in a horrible accident.” – Ellen T.
“My son and I were driving through a state park in Arizona in the middle of the night when we saw a broken-down car, and in front of it, we both swear there was like a 15-plus foot man standing there with his hand up as if he wanted us to stop and help. Needless to say, we kept rolling.” – Carrie D.
“Saw a barefoot lady in a white dress on the highway by the guardrails, and my first thought was, why does she look so clean? Then I realized she had a slight glow to her as well. She disappeared, but the next time I rode by that same spot, I realized there was a marker there for a woman who had died. 🤷🏽♀️ Can’t explain i.t.” – Shy A.
“I was driving near a Texas state park in Alto, Texas, but you go by some Indian mounds first. I was driving by (this is the middle of winter, so I had the heat on all), of a sudden the cab went cold just for a moment.” – Chris W.
“When my husband was driving dump trucks, he was driving down a road next to a cemetery in a small town. He passed an old man walking his dog. The old man waved, and my husband waved back. After he passed the man, he looked in his side view mirror, and the man and dog were gone.” – Ali M.
“There was one night I was driving on 70 through Kansas. At some point, I decided I needed to stop and sleep. I pulled up Trucker Path to see what was ahead and found a place that had a wide-open dirt lot. Place had reviews and everything. I pulled in and there’s not a truck in sight. The gas station is closed for the night, and there’s a house kinda toward the end of the lot with a light on. I sat there for about five minutes and just had this really spooky feeling lingering, like something wasn’t right. I eventually looked at my app again and found another place about 10 miles up the road and left. Something about that place just didn’t feel right.” – Shawn C.
“Not in the states, but Canada, Hwy 2 between Woodstock and Fredericton in New Brunswick going east. There was a spot on that highway where it would become ice cold in the truck no matter how I cranked the heat up, the radio would go haywire, and I could feel a presence of someone, didn’t matter if I was on the phone or not, ended up saying rather loud: ‘It’s okay if you want to be here, but leave the temperature and the radio alone,’ never felt it after that.” – Sindri P.
“Drove by a wreck one night, and the passenger window rolled down by itself.” – Jay R.
“Longtime ago, in Texas, I pulled into a roadside pullout to park for the night. The truck parking was full, about 20 trucks or so, but there was one spot left in the middle of the row of trucks. I was like, ‘YES, a spot.’ Went to sleep, and about 2 a.m. I was woken up, felt like the truck was shaking or rocking a bit, and I could hear chattering voices. Only way to explain the voices was like goblins chattering or something, I was frozen in the bed; I couldn’t move, no matter how hard I tried. I was saying to myself, ‘I know I’m awake now, but I still can’t move.’ The truck was still rocking a little, and the chatter voices were even louder, finally, I broke free of my bed and was able to sit up. Just as that happened, the truck stopped rocking, and the chatter stopped, I was all freaked out, LOL. I nervously and slowly opened the bunk curtains, and peeked my head out to see WTF was going on 😳. It was 2:30 a.m. now. When I looked out, I was the only truck parked there. Where did the other 20 trucks go at 2:30 a.m. and all of them? Well, it didn’t make sense that they were all gone, and I was still freaked out about it all. I jumped in the seat in my underwear and drove away from there fast, LOL. I found another place to stop and went back to sleep 😴. Now, I get it may have been a nightmarish dream, but I still will never get why every single truck was gone at 2:30 a..m., but me, didn’t make sense.” – Dale L.
“I was walking into the men’s room at the old Pilot in Breezewood as my doppelganger was walking out.” – Scott F.
“Saw a triangular-shaped UFO outside Ozark, Alabama in October 1998. It was as big as a football stadium and just moving ever so slowly above the tree line. Watched it for 20 minutes till it faded out of sight. Incidentally, Ozark is near Ft. Rucker where the military stores its surplus of aircraft.” – Joshua A.
In wrapping up this hair-raising journey into the supernatural side of the road, we’ve discovered that the world of long-haul trucking holds secrets even more mysterious than we could have imagined. These experiences remind us that the highways and byways of our vast country are not only a thoroughfare for commerce but also a conduit for the uncanny and unexplained.
As we close the chapter on this fascinating exploration, it’s worth noting that there were many reports of truckers seeing a black dog along their journeys – a harbinger of the unknown and a ghostly companion on their long, nocturnal drives. These encounters, though not all shared here, add yet another layer of intrigue to the tapestry of trucker tales.
So, whether you’re a believer in the supernatural or a skeptic of the unexplained, these stories serve as a testament to the eerie and enigmatic aspects of life on the open road. As the seasons change and the nights grow longer, we can’t help but wonder what other secrets lurk in the darkness, waiting to be discovered by the brave souls who navigate the highways of the night.
Happy Halloween, and may your own journeys be free from the eerie and the unknown.
