The Not Deer of Appalachia: Cryptozoology

The Dark History and Hauntings of Epping Forest

This week on Nature Obscura, we explore the haunted legends of England's Epping Forest. Once a royal hunting ground and refuge for outlaws, the forest is home to tales of Dick Turpin's ghost, a phantom headless horseman, the mysterious Suicide Pond, and centuries of folklore that continue to captivate visitors today.

The Alaska Triangle: Thousands Missing in America's Last Frontier

Over 20,000 people have disappeared within Alaska's infamous Alaska Triangle, vanishing at a rate nearly double the national average. In this episode of Nature Obscura, we explore the real cases that turned this remote wilderness into one of America's greatest mysteries, from missing planes carrying politicians to runners and hikers who were never seen again. We also dive into the stranger theories surrounding the region, including UFO encounters, energy vortices, a rumored underground pyramid, and the shape-shifting Kushtaka of Indigenous folklore. Is the Alaska Triangle simply an unforgiving landscape where nature always has the upper hand, or could something far more mysterious be at play?

The Big Muddy Monster: The Illinois Police Investigation That Captivated the Country

In this week's episode of Nature Obscura, Marissa and Grace investigate the Big Muddy Monster, a towering cryptid said to haunt the woods and riverbanks around Murphysboro, Illinois. Following a series of sightings in the 1970s, local police launched an investigation that generated witness reports, physical evidence, and hundreds of letters from people across the country. We dive into the original case files, eyewitness encounters, and the strange public fascination that turned the Big Muddy Monster into one of the Midwest's most enduring cryptid legends.

Michigan's Most Credible UFO Case: 300 Witnesses and Weather Radar Evidence

On a cold March night in 1994, hundreds of people across Western Michigan looked into the sky and saw something they could not explain. Strange lights hovered over Lake Michigan, moved in impossible formations, and were witnessed by families, police officers, pilots, and even a National Weather Service meteorologist who tracked them on radar. More than three decades later, the Lake Michigan UFO incident remains one of the most compelling mass sightings in American history. In this episode of Nature Obscura, we explore the eyewitness accounts, radar evidence, and enduring mystery of the night the sky above Michigan came alive.

Japan’s Gateway to the Afterlife: The Ghosts and Mediums of Mount Osore

In this week’s episode of Nature Obscura, we explore Mount Osore, Japan, a sacred volcanic landscape believed to be where the dead gather between worlds. We dive into the history of the mountain, the haunting folklore surrounding yūrei, yokai, and Tengu, and the centuries-old tradition of the Itako mediums who are said to communicate with the spirits of the dead.