I’ve never minded working a night shift. Or at least, I’ve never minded working a night shift as a park ranger. Night shifts here are drastically different from most other night shifts. I’m naturally more of a night person, and there’s nothing better than being a night person and being able to be outdoors at night, especially in the desert.
Like many things, nature truly comes alive at night. Forests do it, jungles do it, and the desert certainly does it. Unlike the other two, deserts not only come alive, but drastically change. It’s quite literally like a different terrain, as the scorching heat becomes cool. No matter how many times I’ve experienced it firsthand, it never ceases to be something like no other.
The night air was crisp, cool, and dry as I hopped in my car. As I headed down the road, I could hear a coyote sounding off out there somewhere in the distance. The sound never fails to give me chills, and I hope it never does. It’s one of those primal experiences that reminds you of the stunning power of nature. Better still is when you hear one coyote, and then you hear a different one responding to it. I love nature documentaries but experiencing that firsthand is in a league all its own. And the few times I’ve heard it, I cant help but wonder what they are saying to each other. Having worked as a ranger my entire professional life, I suspect I have an idea, but I will never know for sure. And that’s the beauty of nature. You can dedicate your whole life to it, and still find new things to discover.
Although you do have to be extremely careful because rattlesnakes are very common around here. I can’t tell you how many I’ve stumbled across in my time. We do keep plenty of antivenom on hand, but I still have no desire to stumble into a nest of them. I’ve seen plenty of individual rattlesnakes over the years, but never a nest of them. Marco has, and he will never approach anything out here the same way again.
I’d been assigned to check out an area with some other rangers. Things were typically quiet in the park out here, but that didn’t mean we didn’t get the occasional bit of the unusual.
The terrain was dotted with cactus plants, and I never failed to enjoy the sight of them, as the massive variety we had here was one of my favorite things to see, especially as the Sun sets. Some of the terrain out in this part of the state, especially at night, looks like something straight out of a movie. There’s nothing like building a fire with a saguaro cactus looking down on you from the canyon. And I was due to meet my fellow rangers at the main cactus attraction in the whole park, a feature I always enjoyed seeing.
The road dipped lower as I descended further into the park. As the road slanted down, there was a magnificent view of the cactus garden that was carefully maintained and went on for several acres. During the day, the cactus garden’s gate was wide open, and the path was open for anyone to leisurely stroll through. But even though it was currently nighttime, the gate had been unlocked.
My car bounced over the dusty roads, kicking up clouds of dust in its wake. Just ahead, I could see the other ranger vehicles all parked in front of the garden entrance. I guided my car right alongside the others before I got out and approached my colleagues. As I did, Jonathan gave me a wave.
“Evening Peter,” Jonathan said.
“Evening Jonathan,” I nodded in return before the other 6 rangers and I exchanged a brief greeting. They were all people I’d known and worked with for a while. The path to the cactus garden evened out as I had approached them, and now I was on an impeccably paved path that led inside.
“Alright guys, here’s the deal. We’ve been seeing signs someone has been trespassing on park land. We’ve never actually seen the person, but we’ve seen footprints in odd places, and occasionally, we’ve seen things out of place.”
“Understood. So why are we here?” Veronica asked.
“Because we suspect here is where they may be hiding out.”
That was a good idea. During the day, the space under the complex would provide some cover from the intense desert heat.
“So we just thought we’d do a quick search of the place.”
“Sounds good to me.” Jonathan nodded. “Let’s do it.”
I had only been in the cactus garden once before at night, but it was stunning. The lights in various colors helped illuminate the flowers and needles, giving the whole place a surreal vibe. My shoes lightly thudded on the impeccably tiled pathway as we all walked along, having split off in pairs from there. We don’t go off searching alone if it can be helped, so I was paired with Jen, who I’d always had a good rapport with. So it was no surprise the two of us made casual chit chat as we strolled along, flashlights out, and looked for any signs of trespassing. I asked about her two grown children, who were in college, and she asked about my parents, who were retired and living in New England.
I was in the middle of telling her about the time I went out fishing with them on their boat when I turned the corner, and saw something. I wasn’t quite sure what it was at first, but then I realized it was a very faint opening in the wall behind a row of small cactus plants. Ironically, it was the darkness and evening light that made it visible. Because of the contrast it provided, I was able to see what looked like a cupboard or something inside.
“Do you see that?” I asked Jen.
She nodded. “Sure do.”
Then she stopped, held up her hand, and quietly gestured for our colleagues to come here. They did, and before I knew it, we were all looking at the opening in the wall. After Jonathan had radioed our superiors about what we’d stumbled upon, he gestured for us all to come closer.
“Ok,” he whispered. “Veronica, Frank, and I will carefully approach, while the rest of you keep watch. Keep an eye out but stay put unless something happens.”
We murmured our agreement and the three of them approached the opening in the wall. I watched as they gently pulled on the section, so it opened further, and I heard the creaking and groaning of wood. Within moments, the section of the wall opened further, revealing that section was flimsily attached to the rest of the structure.
The passageway was just large enough to accommodate one person at a time if they crouched down like a crawl space, which is exactly what the rest of us did when they gave us the all clear to come inside. Inside there was the interior foundation of the building housing the cactus garden, but apart from that it was just a tunnel with empty rock walls, as the cactus garden was built into a side of the canyon. We all took our flashlights out after more radio calls back to our superiors. A quick check back at the ranger station revealed that part of the park was originally used as a mining camp, which was no surprise to anyone. But that was where the official records ended, so we had to investigate the old-fashioned way.
The tunnel didn’t have any tracks or other signs it had been regularly used by miners such as old equipment, so that didn’t give us a clue about what we’d find. But after a few minutes of following it, the tunnel ended and came to a dead end. Or so we thought, because hidden behind some dust and gravel, was a gap in the canyon wall, and we were all able to step through it. Within moments, we were standing in an open space that was enclosed by the canyon walls. It took a moment for the flashlights to properly illuminate enough for me to make out what I was looking at, but when I knew what this was, I had never been more excited in my life.
The buildings had long since ceased to function, but there was no mistaking this was a ghost town. It was small, and there weren’t that many buildings, but I’d been in plenty to recognize one when I saw it. The wooden foundations of buildings stood there silently, while the walls surrounding them had long since been reduced to their most basic layer of bricks. I wasn’t surprised, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t exhilarated. I’d grown up hearing about one ghost town legend or another, and who knows what story this place was apart of. Nor was I alone with my excitement, because all my colleagues started chatting excitedly amongst themselves, with me joining in.
“Ok. Let’s split off in pairs again and see if we can find anything,” Veronica said.
She didn’t need to suggest it twice because we all couldn’t wait to explore. As we all went off to walk through the remnants of buildings, I had no idea what I’d find. There was no telling who, or what for that matter, could be lurking around.
The lack of natural light gave everything a slightly spooky feel. Because a flashlight, while essential, always seems to give everything a more unnerving mood.
A brief double check with our colleagues back at the ranger station revealed that this place, whatever it was, had never been logged into any record before. Records of all abandoned towns in the area are kept pretty up to date, and there was no indication at all this was out here, so that meant this place was undiscovered, and we were the first people to set foot here in who knows how long. This naturally led to the question of what was this place, and why had it been abandoned?
Jen and I chatted happily about what this place might be while I cast my flashlight around for any of the telltale signs of relatively recent human inhabitants. Trash, footprints, and the smell of food were just a few of the most common ones. So far, there was no sign of any of that, as the area seemed to be extraordinarily clean. For a moment, I ceased to be a park ranger, and had become an archeologist, as I was breathing air, taking steps, and looking at things that hadn’t experienced human activity for what looked like ages. And I was this excited from just looking at the surface. Who knows what would be found when people started to comb this place more thoroughly?
We stepped over what was once a stone wall and found ourselves starring at what was left of some building. From it’s place in the center and the fact that the structure’s foundation seemed to be the largest, I suspected it was probably some sort of meeting place.
Veronica and Jonathan had already gotten there, and the others were there right behind us. It didn’t take us long to figure out that no one had found anything, so we all carefully approached the last building.
Although it looked just like all the others on the inside, this one made me feel like I was beginning to get a headache. From a look at my colleagues, I could tell they felt the same way, as they all grimaced unpleasantly as they looked around. There was nothing in here aside from something small near the wall facing the entrance.
Our flashlights revealed it to be a statue, and a closer look showed that it was made of stone and carved to resemble what looked like a scorpion.
That was no surprise, because anyone who’s ever spent time out here knows to be very careful around scorpions. I’ve never been stung by one, but I know people who have, and they said it was beyond painful. And we’re in the age of antivenom.
We all stared at the statue for a moment before Veronica informed the ranger base what we’d found. After a moment, they told her, and the rest of us, to let it be, and a professional team experienced in handling artifacts would retrieve it in the morning.
Good enough for us. So with that, we slowly walked back the way we came through the cactus garden. The fresh air felt amazing after being in that confined space, and I happily took in several deep breaths. Especially since the longer we were in there by the ghost town, the worst I felt. But now that we were out of there, I felt invigorated like I always did by the desert at night.
It didn’t take me long to say goodbye to the other rangers, and then it was the end of my shift. Then I left the park, picked up a sandwich, and headed home. Once there, I ate my sandwich with some chips and crashed on the couch. I must’ve dozed off because I woke up several hours later. But something was off. It took me a moment, but I realized that some sounds coming from outside had woken me up.
I felt every muscle in my body tense up as I realized it was the sound of people outside. I lived in a single-story ranch house, so it wasn’t like I was in some apartment high in the sky where no one could break in. I listened more carefully than I’d ever listened to anything in my life, so I would have some clue as to what was going on. The voices were whispered, but I could make out at least three distinct people talking. There may have been more of them nearby. I had no idea what they were planning, but I was sure it wasn’t good.
All of this took place in the span of a few seconds. As quietly as I could, I got off the couch, grabbed my phone, and headed to my bedroom, where I kept several things I could defend myself with. As I crept as quietly as I could to my bedroom, I got through to the police, and I told them as quietly and clearly as I could what was going on. They told me to sit tight, and they were on the way. I thanked them, then tried to listen carefully to see if whoever was outside had heard me at all. Fortunately, they didn’t seem to. So all that was left was for me to listen carefully and wait.
But moments later, I heard an angry cry from outside, which was followed immediately by a loud crash. Then, several more different shouts joined the first one, which was then followed by several more. Fear had temporarily been joined by puzzlement and curiosity. I knew the sounds were sounds of agony and pain, but from what, I had no idea. My first thought was that someone had accidentally dropped their gun and it fired and hit the people outside, but aside from that I was clueless.
Then all was silent, and I was left alone with my thoughts, which raced through my head. The quiet was both calming and unnerving, so I was on edge for what seemed like an eternity. I didn’t dare step out of my room until I saw the telltale lights from outside and the knock on my door announcing it was the police. I was greeted by two officers, while several more stood outside.
“What happened here?” One of the officers, a gentleman with a thick white mustache asked.
I told them briefly what I’d said them on the phone.
“Yes, we know that. I mean what happened here?” He turned and pointed towards the side of my house where several hedges were. I followed them and saw three people in ski masks lying motionless on the ground.
“I……I don’t know. After I called, I heard the sounds of yelling and screaming from outside. No idea why. I thought someone had accidentally shot themselves.”
He nodded, and took a step closer to the three masked strangers. But them he immediately jumped back, because in the artificial light from my garage, I could see several small shapes scuttling around by the hedges. Now I knew why there had been screaming. My unwanted visitors had stumbled upon several Arizona Bark Scorpions. I’d recognize them anywhere.
The cops did too, because they immediately called for an ambulance and informed them about what had happened. The medics didn’t mess around, but the intruders won’t be out of the hospital for a while because they had all been collectively stung dozens of times. It wasn’t pretty.
The strange thing is that I’ve seen that scorpion a million times, but never around my house. In fact, I’d never had a problem with any scorpion at home before. I asked my neighbors about it, and they never had the issue either.
I eventually forgot about the incident and life went on. The professional team came and took the scorpion statue to a museum for further study, and a different team came in to fully catalog and document the ghost town. I wasn’t there when it happened, but it went off without anything odd happening. But sometimes, some of the park rangers have reported being off on a job, or being off the clock, and having an unusual encounter with a scorpion. Like Jen, who looked over and saw one on the floor of the backseat of her car, and inadvertently crashed her car because of it and later found out had that not happened, she would’ve been in a horrible accident just a few miles away. Personally, I’ve only seen a few scorpions since the incident at my house, but I swear, I could feel them studying me.