Chickie's Rock

Chickie's Rock from Paranormal Insiders
Chickie's (or Chique's) Rock is on the Susquehanna River in Lancaster County, located between Columbia and Marietta. It gets its name from the Susquehannock Indians, who called the spot Chiquesalunga, the place of the crayfish (We guess surf and turf in Native kitchens was crayfish and venison...)

The first legends were passed on by the Indians, who saw ghosts roaming the area back in their day. They have a couple of tales of star-crossed lovers meeting their doom there. One was a mutual suicide pact, where two lovers took the leap off the 200' precipice when forbidden to marry.

Another concerns an Indian girl who fell for a white man. Her Susquehannock lover was outraged and slit the man's throat, then threw the girl off the cliff.

More recent spooks include a mummified ghost - he's armless, and has arrows sticking out of him. The shore sports the spook of a man that died in a riverboat accident roaming its banks. Then there's the shadow person that wanders the woods at the top of the rock, decked out in a fedora and cape.

The spirits of men have been seen at the foot of the cliff, appearing and then vanishing before your eyes. They're supposed to be the apparitions of dearly departed RR and canal workers. And let's not forget our favorite gremlins, the apple-loving albatwitches that call Chickie's Rock home.

These four foot tall humanoids like to sit in trees and snack on apples, particularly those of unsuspecting picnickers. They even throw the cores at them after chomping the fruit. In fact, that's how it got its' name - albatwitch is the local jargon for apple snitch. They also date back to the Susquehannocks.

Oddly, the best known phenomena is the mist that forms on top of the rock and morphs into a spook. Teens admitted making up the story in 1969, but it's still the most widely reported sighting. Nothing like the power of suggestion, hey?

So for a scenic and spooky day trip, take a run to Chickie's Rock State Park and check out the sights. Oh, and don't forget to bring a bag of apples if you go...