With stories all across North America, from Texas, the United States to Ontario, Canada, the urban legend of the Goatman is one that dates thousands of years ago. Way back when, he would’ve been considered a Satyr, a male creature that is half-goat, half-man, with an insatiable taste for women. Now, however, he’s seen as a figure of horror. Depicted as a large and beastly, humanoid figure with the goat-like features, he is said to lurk in the forests and prey on unsuspecting campers that have crossed onto his territory. 

Since there are many popular stories of his origin, from Old Alton Bridge in Texas in the 1930s, to the Goatman that haunts Prince George’s County, to sightings all over Maryland and Virginia, it’s hard to track down where he seemingly came from. The legend has been spun countless times, each a different story with its own special twist. Some say he means no harm, while others depict him as a vengeful spirit who drags off those who dare impose on his land.

Witnesses of these stories seemingly reported hearing strange sounds around their tent at night, glowing red eyes staring at them from far off into the woods, and most notably, how quiet the forest would get. No crickets, or birds, or wind, just the sound of hooves clopping in the distance that slowly grew closer. They would all feel the same sense of dread, an underlying fear that they were in the wrong place. Supposedly, the Goatman also had the ability to lure people into the woods by mimicking human voices, but I’m not sure if I believe that notion. 

I grew up with this legend and, to me, the Goatman seemed plausible because of a lesser-known story that happened here, in Ontario, Canada, and has personally happened to an old supervisor of mine up by Elliot Lake.

A few summers ago, on a camping trip, we were all gathered around the campfire about to call it a night and settle into our tents when one of our supervisors stepped forward. He asked if we wanted to hear a scary story. We, of course, said yes because who doesn’t like telling ghost stories around a campfire?

He started off by telling how him and his buddies back in 2017 went on a three-day camping trip to end off the summer. They drank, fished, swam, and ate copious amounts beef jerky. But then it got dark. So, they settled in for the night around the campfire much like we did and began telling their own stories. None of them had heard the forest grow quiet because, in my supervisors’ words, they were yelling around and being idiots. They hadn’t even noticed that someone else had joined them by the fire.

A few more drinks later, my supervisor turned to one of his friends only to realize he wasn’t standing beside his friend anymore, it was a man he’d never seen before. Tall and lanky with a weird look in his eyes, my supervisor described. He didn’t think much of it because there were other campsites around with people who were also camping in the area. He asked who he was and if he wanted a drink, and this caught the attention of his friends. They all began questioning him because they didn’t understand how they hadn’t notice him before, but the man said nothing at first and just stared.

My supervisor’s face had turned pale when he explained what happened next. He said when the man opened his mouth, it sounded like it was supposed to be human, but something felt off. It was quiet for a moment before one of his friends suddenly shrieked, “What the hell’s wrong with his legs?” And that’s when the man took off into the forest quickly. One second, he was there and the next, he was gone in a direction where no other campsites were situated.

They returned to their tents after that, chalking it up to a weird man creeping on campers, but my supervisor said he’d never forget the faint sound of hooves thudding around outside his tent. 

Whether the story’s real or not, I still get a small shiver up my spine when I saw how disturbed my supervisor seemed when recounting it. And whether the legend remains real or not, I do not want to find out.

Sources:

https://boundarystones.weta.org/2023/10/27/goatman-prince-georges-county

https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/goatman-denton-old-alton-bridge-texas-cryptids-lynching/#:~:text=The%20lore%20says%20that%20as,never%20does%2C%E2%80%9D%20Treat%20explains.

https://web.pdx.edu/~tdehart/Madam%20Mythos/Countries/Med/Profiles/Satyr/satyr.html#:~:text=%22Satyrs%20were%20male%20creatures%20who,known%20as%20Maenads%20or%20Bacchantes).

Peyden Mongrain has been a lover of the eerie and paranormal ever since she was young. She was born and raised in northern Ontario, but is currently enrolled in the Professional Writing program at Algonquin College in Ottawa. Her favourite thing to do is listen to scary stories either on Youtube, or reading them on Reddit. It doesn’t matter if they’re true or not because she just likes being afraid. She’s heard more than a few good scary stories and would be happy to tell them if asked.