Devils Trampling Ground

Photo by Opus2008

The Devil's Tramping Ground is a place that holds a mystery and a legend. It lies in a forest near the Harper's Crossroads area in Bear Creek, North Carolina two paths lead to what seems like a perfect circle where nothing grows. If anything is placed in the circle it is moved the next day. It's unknown who gave it its name. 

One Legend says that the Devil walks up one path leading to the circle and tramps around and around thinking of evil thoughts and plotting for evil. 

A Second legend is that before the white man came the Native Americans would meet for feasts here and would do celebrations and war dances there. This caused the ground to not grow anything.

A third legend is that two conflicting Native American tribes had a battle there. It's said the one Chief Croatan was killed and buried there. Its said that the great spirits keep mourning their fallen leader 

However, a scientific explanation is that the soil had been tested before and held high salt content. This could lead to nothing growing there even though people have tried before. 

SOURCES:

Wikipedia

The Orginal Devil's Tramping Ground

NCpedia

The Holestone

Photo from Tours By Locals

The Holestone is one of the best-preserved Bronze Age standing stones in Ireland. It is about a mile outside of the village of Doagh on a rocky outcrop. It stands 5 ft tall with a smooth hole. It's unknown what the original purpose of the stones is. Some believed that it was a burial place or a pagan altar or even a meeting place for kings. It's now used as a love stone and people go to it for fertility and couples. 

It is said that the hole in the stone is only big enough for a woman's hand. A woman is supposed to put her hand through the hole and their lover or fiance and this bound their love forever. It said that if one is cursed.

SOURCE:

Atlas Obscura

Library Ireland

Tours By Locals

BoatHenge

 

Photo by Allen Gathman

After the flood of 1995 six boats were placed 1.5 miles north of Easley, Missouri at mile marker 164 which is only accessible on the Katy Bike Trail. It's near the Missouri River and is in a flood area. This attraction is now called BoatHenge and the artist who placed them there is still unknown. The boats are fiberglass and painted. They are placed into the ground vertically and placed in a semi-lunar formation.

SOURCES:

Obscure Atlas

Only in Your State

Roadside America

Georgia Guide Stones

In June of 1979 a man going by R.C. Christian, which was not his real name, approached the Elberton Granite Finishing Company. The man seemed to have an endless amount of money and was there for an unknown group. The only thing known about them was from an inscription"Sponsors: A Small Group of Americans Who Seek The Age Of Reason”. They wanted a monument built in Elberton, Georgia.

By the terms of the legal contract, all plans and information were destroyed. The reason, the group and the man who constructed the monument that is known as the Georgia Guide Stones are unknown.

The monument was built in Elberton, Georgia on March 22, 1980. It seems to have advice for a post-apocalyptic world. It contains 10 guides, a clock, a calendar, and a clock. The messages are in eight different languages.

1. Maintain humanity under 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature.
2. Guide reproduction wisely - improving fitness and diversity.
3. Unite humanity with a living new language.
4. Rule passion - faith - tradition - and all things with tempered reason.
5. Protect people and nations with fair laws and just courts.
6. Let all nations rule internally resolving external disputes in a world court.
7. Avoid petty laws and useless officials.
8. Balance personal rights with social duties.
9. Prize truth - beauty - love - seeking harmony with the infinite.
10. Be not a cancer on the earth - Leave room for nature

It can serve as an astronomical calendar. Every day at noon the sun shines through a narrow hole that illuminates the day's date on the calendar. There are placks placed above time capsules, but the date and time it is to unburied are unwritten and unknown.

The philosophy of the monument may have been based on the book by Thomas Paine called the Age of Reason. It's a philosophy book based of Deism and questioning the legitimacy of Christianity and the Bible. This leads people to believe that the stone was erected for occult reasons. 

SOURCES:
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/georgia-guidestones
http://www.radioliberty.com/stones.htm
https://www.zmescience.com/other/feature-post/georgia-guidestones-mysterious-instructions-for-the-post-apocalypse/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Age_of_Reason