The Hidebehind
No one has ever seen the hidebehind. Whenever you turn to look, it's already slipped behind a tree.
What was reported
The hidebehind is one of the 'fearsome critters' of North American logging-camp folklore. It was said to stalk lumberjacks in the forests, always staying out of sight. However fast you turned round, it was already hidden behind a tree trunk, or behind you.
Lumberjacks who went missing in the woods were said to have been taken by it. Some versions say it could be kept away only by carrying alcohol, which it hated.
Explanations offered
The hidebehind was a tall tale, told to tease newcomers and explain the feeling of being watched in deep woods. It appeared in William Cox's 1910 book Fearsome Creatures of the Lumberwoods. That feeling of a presence just out of sight is a common one in forests at dusk.
- When
- Told in logging camps; described in 1910
- Where
- The north woods of Wisconsin, USA
- Witnesses
- Lumberjacks, who never saw it
- Status
- Tall tale
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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