02/24/2013: Thanks the Sean Owen, who shares this story from Tar Hollow State Park in Ross County. Sean and his German Shepherd were hiking deep in the state forest when his dog started going berserk. Wondering why his dog was acting in such a strange manner, Sean tied the dog to a tree and hiked down the hill to investigate. What he experienced that day opened his mind to the paranormal world.
In 2004, I was hiking on a trail at Tar Hollow State Park with my German Shepherd, unfortunately I can’t remember the trail name because I haven’t been back since! We were way back deep in the woods, but near a farm. The trail turned to the right and headed down a steep hill into a little ravine. I walked with the dog towards the top of the hill when he suddenly stopped and started growling. I looked around thinking he had seen an animal, told him to come on and proceeded to start walking down the hill. He stopped again, growling and fighting the leash. I tried pulling him but he would not move. I went to pick him up because I am a determined hiker, to take him down the hill. He bit through my jacket into my forearm and started yelping like I had hurt him, which I didn’t. I examined my arm and decided that the wound could wait because I wanted to see what was down that hill and what was freaking out my dog. I tied him to a tree, made sure he couldn’t go no where, then started my descent down the hill. All I could hear was my dog going absolutely crazy, but there was no animal or person around that could be causing his mania.
Half way down the hill, I began to feel a coldness, and being that it was autumn, didn’t think much of it and continued. Before I could get to the bottom, and with my dog in full fervor, I stopped as if something was holding me to the ground. I couldn’t move and began to feel an overwhelming sense of agony and danger about me. There was no wind, but the air around me was colder than the mid-fifties of the outside temperature. I stood frozen and unable to move for about twenty minutes, then out of no where, a loud wailing came from the hills around me. Let loose from my stillness, I ran back up the hill, untied my dog and backtracked my way back to my truck. The dog remained uneasy the whole ride back to Akron, and wouldn’t calm down until we got home. I felt like I was being followed the whole time.
I am an avid hiker, and even though I don’t really profess a complete belief in paranormal things, I sure as hell have not and will not go back to that park ever again. I still have dreams about that day and that feeling and it has been 8 years. My dog went on to become a Sheriff’s drug dog, and I still hike. But now I get weird whenever I am out in any woods by myself. I have never heard of any kind of paranormal thing about Tar Hollow, and in truth, whatever happened that day opened my mind a little more. If you go there, plenty of trails, you will know the area when you get there if you have any kind of sensitivity to those things. Good luck and watch yourself because I truly think that whatever it was had a negative vibe.