Off the Trails

In July of 1991, 12-year-old Jared Negrete set out on his first overnight backpacking trip with a group of Boy Scouts in the mountains of Southern California. But somewhere along the way, Jared became separated from the group and disappeared into the rugged wilderness surrounding San Gorgonio Mountain. What followed was an extensive search, a handful of puzzling clues, and a mystery that remains unsolved more than three decades later.Sources:Wikipedia, NamUS, LA Times, Reddit, Find A Grave, Hiking Angeles ForestSupport us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month, with benefits starting at the $3 tier!Follow us on Instagram at offthetrailspodcastFollow us on Facebook at Off the Trails PodcastIf you have your own outdoor misadventure (or adventure) story that you'd like us to include in a listener episode, send it to us at [email protected]  Please take a moment to rate and review our show, and a big thanks if you already have!**We do our own research and try our best to cross-reference reliable sources to present the most accurate information we can. Please reach out to us if you believe we have mispresented any information during this episode, and we will be happy to correct ourselves in a future episode.

This week, we're heading back into the wilderness for Dark Trails Part II.We had so much fun sharing these firsthand accounts in our first Dark Trails episode, and since we've gotten requests for more, we figured it was time for another round!We'll be diving into more eerie encounters and unexplained experiences in the great outdoors that might just make you think twice about venturing off the beaten path.**To watch the video version for free, head over to Patreon or YouTube!Support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month, with benefits starting at the $3 tier!Follow us on Instagram at offthetrailspodcastFollow us on Facebook at Off the Trails PodcastIf you have your own outdoor misadventure (or adventure) story that you'd like us to include in a listener episode, send it to us at [email protected]  Please take a moment to rate and review our show, and a big thanks if you already have!**We do our own research and try our best to cross-reference reliable sources to present the most accurate information we can. Please reach out to us if you believe we have mispresented any information during this episode, and we will be happy to correct ourselves in a future episode.

Some stories stick around because they leave people wondering what’s true. Others stick around because people want them to be true. Today, we’re diving into a few bizarre stories that captured people’s attention but ultimately didn’t hold up under scrutiny. And even though they’ve been debunked, they’re still pretty fascinating to look back on.Sources:Wikipedia, History, CNN, Telegraph, TimeSupport us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month, with benefits starting at the $3 tier!Follow us on Instagram at offthetrailspodcastFollow us on Facebook at Off the Trails PodcastIf you have your own outdoor misadventure (or adventure) story that you'd like us to include in a listener episode, send it to us at [email protected]  Please take a moment to rate and review our show, and a big thanks if you already have!**We do our own research and try our best to cross-reference reliable sources to present the most accurate information we can. Please reach out to us if you believe we have mispresented any information during this episode, and we will be happy to correct ourselves in a future episode.

Today, we're looking to the sky. We have two stories involving strange objects appearing in remote wilderness areas—one that ended with a man missing for five days, and another that left behind physical injuries and evidence that investigators struggled to explain.Were these encounters with something extraterrestrial, secret military technology, elaborate hoaxes, or simply something we still don’t understand?Sources:All That's Interesting, Wikipedia, Raz's Midnight Macabre, Atlas Obscura, Wikipedia-2, Mysteries Uncovered: True Stories of the Paranormal and Unexplained by Emily Thompson, CBCSupport us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month, with benefits starting at the $3 tier!Follow us on Instagram at offthetrailspodcastFollow us on Facebook at Off the Trails PodcastIf you have your own outdoor misadventure (or adventure) story that you'd like us to include in a listener episode, send it to us at [email protected]  Please take a moment to rate and review our show, and a big thanks if you already have!**We do our own research and try our best to cross-reference reliable sources to present the most accurate information we can. Please reach out to us if you believe we have mispresented any information during this episode, and we will be happy to correct ourselves in a future episode.

We officially made it- today is day 13 of our 13 Days of Sunday Scaries, and with this episode, we’re wrapping up our trip through the archives. The next time you hear from us, we’ll officially be kicking off our brand-new Sunday Scaries for 2026!But before we get there, it feels only fitting to end the countdown the same way Sunday Scaries originally began- with some haunted hikes.For this episode, we’re heading onto trails across the country where beautiful scenery comes with some pretty unsettling history. We’ll explore a trail built around one of Missouri’s most infamous haunted roads, a cliff in Maine marked by the tragic death of a young girl, and a Grand Canyon trail where hikers say they can still hear the cries of a grieving woman.We’ll also head into the mountains of Virginia, where the spirit of a little boy is said to wander near the place he was found more than a century ago, before finishing in the forests of Oregon at an abandoned stone ruin known today as the Witch’s Castle. Support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month, with benefits starting at the $3 tier!Follow us on Instagram at offthetrailspodcastFollow us on Facebook at Off the Trails PodcastIf you have your own outdoor misadventure (or adventure) story that you'd like us to include in a listener episode, send it to us at [email protected]  Please take a moment to rate and review our show, and a big thanks if you already have!**We do our own research and try our best to cross-reference reliable sources to present the most accurate information we can. Please reach out to us if you believe we have mispresented any information during this episode, and we will be happy to correct ourselves in a future episode.