haunted
Haunted Halloween Harvest
Atlas Obscura Scares Up the Best of the Season
October is our favorite month to celebrate the macabre, the mysterious, and the monstrous. Join us on a wild ride through a landscape of unsolved hauntings, terrifying legends, and hidden places almost too creepy to be real. It’s going to be ghoulish good fun.
Tales of Terror: Ominous animals, a dinner to die for, exploring an ancient netherworld, and more.
astronomy
In October, Our Night Sky is Full of Scary Stories
Stargazers in the Northern Hemisphere can find the demon star Algol, a murdered monster, and victims of vengeful gods.
military history
How Gremlins Went From Fairy Stories to Warplanes to Hollywood Legend
Meet these slippery, mischievous reflections of our anxieties about technology.
An Extra-Creepy Atlas: Create your own Road Trip of the Damned with these unsettling Places you can visit IRL (in this life or the next).
Gardner, Massachusetts
S.K. Pierce Mansion
This historic Victorian mansion is allegedly so haunted that a signed waiver is required to enter.
New Delhi, India
Feroz Shah Kotla
The ruins of a medieval citadel believed to be haunted by a ministry of wish-granting djinns.
Paris, France
Catacombes de Paris
The vast, legendary catacombs hold secrets much stranger than stacked bones.
You Are Fearless. You Have Scrolled Deep Into the Atlas Obscura Crypt.
Venture even deeper into the shadows for more spine-tingling Stories, positively paranormal Places, and other spooky surprises.
Scroll down at your own risk
monsters
The Rougarou, Beast of the Louisiana Bayou, Gets a Makeover
One man hopes to turn the wolfish cryptid into a mascot for saving the state's imperiled wetlands.
cryptozoology
Beware Montana’s Shunka Warak’in, the 'Rocky Mountain Hyena'
Is one of these crafty cryptids on display in a small museum?
lighthouses
5 Haunted House Stories That Will Make You Scream
There are jump scares, tragic tales, and even real estate angst.
museums
Getting to Know Edward Gorey
A visit to the home museum of the famous oddball artist, 30 years after meeting him there for tea.
haunted
How Sexism Haunts the Haunted House Industry
And the sociologist and actors trying to exorcise the gender stereotyping demon.
witchcraft
The Ancient Art of Kitchen Divination
How to try tasseography, cromniomancy, and other mystical gastronomic arts.
Still hungry for more mischief and mayhem?
Satisfy your appetite for all things Halloween, from tasty treats to unsolved mysteries, with these classics from years past.
Explore now