The town library was located in the main street not far from the mall. It was housed in a single story brick building which looked like it was at least a hundred years old.
April and Sarah wandered between the shelves until they found the right row. Finally at the end of a corner shelf April found the title she was looking for, ‘Northern Wilderness National Park: A History’.
They sat down at a desk as April leafed through the pages.
“The park was gazetted in 1934 with an area of fifty thousand hectares encompassing the western half of the Eden Mountain Range,” she read out loud.
“See what it says about the mountain,” Sarah suggested.
April turned a few more pages. ‘The highest peak in the park is Mount Despair at 850 metres above sea level, so named because of a group of mountain climbers who became lost on the mountain in 1870 during several days of rain and fog. The climbers were safely rescued when the weather cleared. But the mountain has an even more interesting history. A mystery which has never been solved.”
April looked up. “This must be it,” she said.
“Keep reading,” Sarah urged.
“In the late nineteenth century when the nearby town of Eden Vale consisted of just a handful of houses and a general store, an immigrant family moved into the settlement.
Dutch born Hans Bergen, his wife and three small children moved into a cabin at the corner of a farm on the edge of the town in 1875. He worked for the farmer for several months, then one day he announced that he and his family were leaving the settlement and finding somewhere to live in the nearby mountains which were in a wilderness area. He said he was confident they could live off the land.
He bought two horses from the farmer, and the family packed up a week later and were gone.
After that the people in the settlement only saw Bergen about once every two or three months when he brought his two pack horses to the general store to stock up with supplies. He claimed he had built a log cabin halfway up Mount Despair where there was a glorious view back down the valley to the settlement. He said they grew vegetables, they had chickens to supply eggs, and he hunted wild boar and goats on the mountain for meat. Sometimes he brought one of his children with him, and on one occasion his wife.
This continued for about three years, then his visits to the settlement stopped. Some of the townspeople eventually became concerned that something may have happened to the Bergen family, so three men set off one day to climb the mountain and try and find the missing family. However after eight days when the men hadn’t returned another group left to search for them This time the men were armed with rifles as they were concerned that some sort of foul play was going on.
Three days later they returned with grim news. They had found the Bergen cabin halfway up the mountain on a flat area with a small stream nearby. The cabin appeared to have been abandoned for some time. A search of the area failed to find any sign of the family, but not far from the cabin was a fifty metre high cliff. At the base of it they found the bodies of the three men who had initially set out to search for the family.
Another expedition with horses and a cart and six men were sent out to retrieve the bodies. The three men who died were buried in the town cemetery. It was said that all three of them had apparently died with a look of horror on their faces. Something had terrified them enough to jump off the cliff to escape.
Rumours very quickly spread around the town that the mountain was cursed, that there were devils or monsters or witches living up there. For many years after the event no one from Eden Vale ventured anywhere near Mount Despair.
More recently a few people have braved the curse and climbed the mountain, and they all made it back without incident claiming there was no sign of the old Bergen cabin. It was assumed to have been burned in the forest fires which raged in the park early in the 20th century.
To this day the mysteries remain unsolved. What happened to the Bergen family, their bodies were never found, and why did the three men fall or jump off the cliff with looks of terror frozen on their faces after death?”
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April put the book down and looked at Sarah.
“Wow,” she breathed, “That’s a scary sort of mystery.”
“Yeah it sure is,” Sarah agreed, “but how does it tie in with the lights you’ve been seeing?”
April looked thoughtful. “Bergen told the people he had built his cabin halfway up the mountain with a view of the town. I can’t be completely sure but I think those lights are also coming from about halfway up the mountain. If I’m right they’re coming from the place where the cabin used to be.”
“Is there anything else in the book about the mountain?”
April turned a few more pages, then shook her head. “No, the rest of the book is about the geology of the mountains in the park, boring stuff.”
“Are you going to look for the lights again tonight?”
“Of course. I’m curious to see if they are there every night.”
“Okay, enough about the mountain,” Sarah said briskly, “Let’s go to the mall.”
That night after April had finished her homework and it was almost time to go to bed, she sat at her desk in her bedroom thinking about the mountain. She wondered if anyone else in the town had seen the lights. Maybe no one was ever looking in that direction at the right time to see them, after all they only appeared for a few seconds. She glanced at her bedside clock. Ten fifty two. Eight minutes to go. Would they appear again tonight?
Then she almost jumped out of her skin with fright as there was a loud rattling from her window. Sarah’s face appeared as she tapped on the glass.
April reached over and slid the window open. “Sarah, you scared the life out of me,” she exclaimed, “What are you doing here so late?”
“Are you kidding?” Sarah said as she climbed in, “I’m here to see your famous lights.”
Eight minutes later Sarah sat back letting out a deep breath. “Wow you were right. This is so weird.”
“Did you doubt me?” April asked.
“No of course not, but I had to see it for myself.” Sarah turned to look at her friend, “So what do we do next?”
“I have to know what’s up there,” April said looking thoughtful, “so….”
Sarah finished her sentence, “You want to climb the mountain.”
“It’s the only way to find out.”
“Maybe not,” Sarah said, “There’s a boy at the school, he’s a senior, who I sort of know. Anyway he told me a few weeks ago that he is training to be a part time park ranger. He works out at the national park on weekends. Tomorrow during lunch we’ll see if we can find him and ask him if he knows anything about the lights.”
“Awesome idea, but Sarah you better get home before your parents discover you’re not in your bed.”
“You want to know about the mountain?” Paul was a tall boy with sandy coloured hair and a serious look on his face.
“Yes,” Sarah replied, “What can you tell us?”
“Well I know this. There are no walking tracks up the mountain for good reasons. After you get about halfway up it gets steep and treacherous.”
“Yes, but people have climbed it all the way to the top,” April prompted.
“True, but they are experienced rock climbers.” He paused with a thoughtful look, “But girls I have to tell you what I’ve heard from the rangers.”
“What?” Sarah said, “Tell us.”
“There is an old rumour about the mountain being cursed. Not many people climb it these days, and those who have climbed it have told the rangers there is something creepy going on up there. Strange noises, weird sights like people walking around, and lights at night.”
“Lights, what sort of lights?” April asked.
“I couldn’t tell you, this is just what I’ve heard. Why are you so interested?”
“Um, we’re doing a geography assignment on the mountains in the park.”
“Okay, but whatever you do, don’t try and climb that rock, I don’t believe in curses, but something is not right up there on old Despair. Something spooky. Maybe it’s haunted, I don’t know. Just keep away from it.”
“Sure, sure,” April said, “but Paul do you know anyone who has climbed it in the last few years? Maybe we could talk to them and get some valuable information for our assignment.”
Paul thought for a moment, “I’ll ask the head ranger on Saturday when I’m out at the park, and I’ll let you know on Monday.”
