Scary Stories For A Rainy Night - Ep. 322 - The Fog

Podcast: Scary Stories and Rain
Host: Being Scared
Date: February 17, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode of Scary Stories and Rain weaves together a series of unsettling, true (or allegedly true) personal accounts, told with calm narration over a background of soothing rain. Each story explores real-life fear—from menacing strangers on secluded beaches and horrifying online encounters, to chilling memories from the past and brushes with inexplicable dangers in the wilderness. Recurring themes include the unpredictable power of animals, the hidden darkness in otherwise ordinary people, the dangers that lurk both in the wild and online, and the deep, inescapable fog—both literal and metaphorical—that can descend when you're most vulnerable.

Key Stories & Discussion Points

1. A Dog Named Parmesan Saves a Family on a Deserted Beach

[00:42–17:33]

Story Breakdown:

• The narrator recounts a family camping trip to a remote beach, made unusual by the absence of the usual crowd. The family arrives at dusk, feeling unsettled by the isolation.
• While setting up camp, a car circles the area repeatedly, eventually stopping. An intoxicated man with a large knife confronts the family, behaving aggressively and threateningly.
• The family dog, Parmesan—a rescue with a history of abuse—senses the danger, jumps through the car window, and attacks the man, saving the family from imminent harm.
• The family flees, only to encounter the attacker later at a gas station. A tense car chase ensues, but they ultimately escape, running on empty fuel.
• Police later reveal the man matched a murder suspect’s description.

Notable Quotes:

• On Parmesan’s intuition:
  “I think the saying is I never trust a person who doesn't like a dog, but I always trust a dog when they don't like a person. They have a very good understanding of human body language and I think she must have understood how dangerous this guy was.” (16:43)
• On gratitude:
  “If I hadn't been so insistent on getting a dog, I might be dead.” (17:10)

2. The Nightmare Coffee Machine

[17:34–20:15]

Story Breakdown:

• Narrator purchases a too-good-to-be-true coffee machine via Facebook Marketplace.
• Hears a strange ticking noise and, after days, investigates, only to find a massive cockroach nest inside the machine.
• The infestation requires professional exterminators, making the bargain the most expensive coffee machine of their life.

Notable Quote:

• “Sometimes you get what you pay for with a nest of cockroaches thrown in as a creepy crawly freebie.” (20:08)

3. The Prestige Family: The Haunting of a Town

[20:16–31:32]

Story Breakdown:

• A small British town remembers the odd, reclusive Prestige family—particularly Lewis, their only child.
• Increasingly peculiar and abusive behavior culminates when Lewis appears at school in new clothing, more confident and social—right after his parents’ mysterious disappearance and a town-wide double murder.
• Years later, it's revealed: Lewis killed his abusive parents. Chillingly, friends may have visited the house while the bodies were still there.
• Reflections on the reasons and aftermath, and how trauma and abuse can twist a person.

Notable Quotes:

• “The horrible thing was looking back on the event years later and sort of piecing together the puzzle ... All the times he had invited us back to his place ... his parents would have been dead in the upstairs bedroom.” (29:51)
• “The fact that a kid killing his own parents could make him so happy, that is something I have never been able to truly understand.” (28:42)

4. When Online Threats Get Real

[31:33–36:27]

Story Breakdown:

• Narrator shares their experience with a menacing stranger who contacts them through Facebook, sending a chilling message: “I'm going to kill you 🤠”.
• Discovering disturbing posts and videos on the stranger’s profile, including threatening rants and potentially local scenic photography.
• Anxiety and paranoia ensue, with fears that the stranger may have traveled to their town.
• Story ends with a call for caution over social media privacy.

Notable Quotes:

• “Like the idea of him hunting me down or whatever was unnerving enough ... he had enough info on me to ... ambush me at a dozen different places.” (34:42)
• “There could be literally anybody out there just lurking on our profiles.” (36:12)

5. Boy Scouts’ Smoky Mountain Terror: The Legend of Spearfinger

[36:28–44:30]

Story Breakdown:

• A former Boy Scout recalls a camping trip to the Smokies, where their Scoutmaster terrifies the troop with the tale of U’luntü’ta (Spearfinger), a Cherokee monster with a stone finger who preys on children.
• That night, a fellow scout plays a cruel prank, scaring the narrator into a humiliating panic.
• The experience leaves a lasting phobia and a macabre sense of humor about the story.

Notable Quotes:

• “I kept imagining that if I did [sleep], Spearfinger would come rip my tent open and stab me in the heart with her long, sharp, stony finger ...” (39:38)
• “Ever since then, I have never been able to hear the words ‘Smoky Mountains’ without remembering that Boy Scout camping trip.” (43:17)

6. Geraldine Largay: Lost in the Fog of the Appalachian Trail

[44:31–53:01]

Story Breakdown:

• The tragic real-life disappearance of Geraldine (“Inchworm”) Largay, a hiker lost less than a mile from the Appalachian Trail in Maine in 2013.
• Stranded after a wrong turn, she survived for nearly a month, unable to successfully contact her husband despite sending several texts.
• Despite extensive searches, she wasn’t found until two years later by accident.
• The story is a meditation on how wilderness can still swallow people whole, even in the modern world.

Notable Quotes:

• “It is quite simply terror inducing that even in a country as populous and settled as the United States, a person can still go missing on a simple mountain trail and vanish almost without a trace ...” (52:18)
• “[Geraldine’s last note:] 'When you find my body, please call my husband George and my daughter Carrie ...'” (51:19)

7. The Artist, the Goat Head, and the Dark Side of Instagram

[53:02–1:02:11]

Story Breakdown:

• “Honey”, an artist, finds unexpected Instagram success by posting “darker” art during a period of depression.
• A wealthy admirer offers an astronomical sum for a commission and strikes up a friendship, eventually revealing his own macabre sculptures—modified animal skulls and, eventually, plans for a human skull.
• The artist is both fascinated and horrified, realizing the danger lurking not only in their DMs, but in exposing too much of their location or life online.

Notable Quotes:

• “It was the idea that the corpse of an animal had been so horribly disrespected just so he could try to make some kind of art out of it.” (56:59)
• “What if he decides it’s my head that he would like to use to complete his magnum opus?” (1:01:47)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• Parmesan the dog’s heroics:
  “In that moment, Parmesan was the apex prey predator large canines represent in nature. She got him good by the arm and clamped down hard, ripping his jacket and shredding the skin underneath.” (09:10)

• On scams and what they really cost:
  “Still, with the few hundred that we had to spend on exterminators, turned out to be the most expensive coffee machine I ever bought.” (20:01)

• When social media goes from fun to real fear:
  “He could have screenshotted all my stuff too, so it didn't matter if I blocked him or not. He had my name, my school, where I hung out … everything.” (33:15)

• Spearfinger’s chilling legend:
  “Spearfinger was also said to be able to take on the appearance of her child victim's family members, often taking the form of a kindly old woman to trick her victims...” (38:20)

• Geraldine Largay’s last entry:
  “When you find my body, please call my husband, George, and my daughter Carrie… it will be the greatest kindness for them to know that I am dead and where you found me, no matter how many years from now.” (51:19)

• On the dangers of art-world connections:
  “It looked like a goat's head in a jar of some kind, and the fluid it was floating in looked sort of greenish black ... it was the idea that the corpse of an animal had been so horribly disrespected just so he could try to make some kind of art out of it.” (56:54)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Dog saves family from knife-wielding stranger: 00:42–17:33
• The infested coffee machine: 17:34–20:15
• The Prestige family double murder: 20:16–31:32
• Threatening Facebook messages: 31:33–36:27
• Spearfinger and Scout camp terror: 36:28–44:30
• Geraldine Largay tragedy: 44:31–53:01
• The Instagram necro-artist: 53:02–1:02:11

Tone & Delivery

• Calm, Intimate, Reflective: The narration maintains a steady, unhurried pace—softened by the ambience of falling rain—even as the stories build horrific tension.
• Personal & Vulnerable: Many stories are recounted in first person, often with honest admissions of fear, shame, or trauma, and a willingness to confront the irrational alongside the truly dangerous.
• Matter-of-fact with a Twist of Dark Humor: Narrator occasionally relieves the tension with dry observations or wry comments, especially in the aftermath of terror (“the most expensive coffee machine I ever bought”).

Summary

This episode of Scary Stories and Rain presents a broad spectrum of real-life fears—where the fog isn’t just meteorological, but a metaphor for those moments when the world grows strange, the rules no longer seem to apply, and you must trust your instincts, your loved ones, and sometimes your animal companions to find your way out. Whether describing the split-second courage of a dog named Parmesan, the insidious invasion of cockroaches, the harrowing outcome of childhood abuse, or the unexpected horror of a DM from a fan, each story urges listeners to respect the unknown, cherish those who protect us, and never, ever underestimate the darkness that can lurk in unexpected places—even in the rain.