Skull Bones

Skull Bones Lake is a scary story about a group of boys who go on a fishing trip and end up with more than just fish.

Skull Bones Lake

In Alabama, there’s a place called Skull Bones Lake. It’s and old rock quarry deep in the woods, abandoned long ago by a mining company. At the bottom of that deep, jagged crater is one of the best fishing holes you’re ever likely to see. But none of the locals would dare swim in it. Everyone says the lake is cursed.

Back when I was a boy, I had never heard the legend of Skull Bones Lake and neither had any of my friends. All we knew was that it was a great place to fish. So when school let out for the summer, we all decided to head out to the lake.

Four of us went out to the lake that day. Marty, Jeff, Todd and I. As we walked down towards the lake, I remember the woods seemed to close in on us the deeper we went, enveloping us in a thick blanket of pine branches. I remember how still those woods were. Not a single plane could be heard overhead. Not a bird chirping, nor a fly buzzing – no natural sound at all. Just rows and rows of trees, stretching endlessly into the dark forest beyond. I wondered who, or what, must live back there in the darkness…

At the bottom was the deep, cool lake we’d heard about, its glassy surface undisturbed, not a ripple on it – as if waiting all this time just for us.

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We emerged from the water gasping for breath, and marched quickly back to the truck.

He told us that numerous drownings had occurred at Skull Bones Lake during the 1970s. Most had died as a result of head injuries after diving into the water from a raft on a deeper part of the lake, where you couldn’t see the jagged rocks that lurked just below the surface. But not everyone who drowned at Lake Skull had been on the raft.

On an August morning in 1977, a young man and his dog arrived at the bait shop at Skull Bones Lake. The man rented a boat and was soon paddling himself and his small dog toward the other side of the lake. He was never seen again. However, his dog swam safely to shore. As for the boat, it was found floating empty on the lake.

The lake was searched for a week, police boats dragged the lake and police divers searched in vain. The man’s body was never found.

Two weeks later, an elderly man fishing in his boat at dusk said he saw what apeared to be a human skull, floating on the calm water. A year later, another man fishing on the bank, hooked the skull with his rod. He was so startled by it that he threw his fishing rod into the lake and ran.

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Then we made the long, silent journey back home, leaving that swimming hole of death far behind.

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But every one in awhile, you’ll hear about a ghost hunter, a thrill seeker or some other crazy person who makes the long journey out there to fish. And they come back describing an odd and terrifying sight. When the moon is full, they swear that they see a reflection in that still, black water below – in the shape of a skull.