bridge to craziness

bonus story: Guatemala's pachute bridge

Pachute is a small village of about 2.500 inhabitants in the municipality of San Carlos Sija, Quetzaltenango. The municipal head, San Carlos Sija, is only 5 kilometers from the center of the village, but to get there is necessary to travel a dirt road that is bordered largely by the river Samalá

The road between Pachute and the next village, Chuatuj-3 kilometres away-gets very dangerous. At the beginning of the journey, on one side of the road, lies the cemetery, which for many is a cause for nervousness. The winds that begin to blow from the north turn into spooky noises by rubbing the branches of the trees, while the scarce public lighting projects demonic shadows along the way.

Noises of something or someone who seems to splash from the river Samalá That by this time is more usual charged by the rains of September. At other times they hear a horse whinnying from the river.

People look at the edge of the road to see who is in the water. But as soon as they get close, the noises cease. As they continue their way, they hear the noise again, and they stop ringing as they approach a bridge.

What I'm about to narrate has happened repeatedly in the cursed bridges of Pachute. Many people have counted spooky stories about spectral beings suddenly appearing alongside a thick fog that springs from the waters under the bridge. They are the souls who are looking for a new soul to take its place.

Some say nothing, others laugh at the poor devil who appeared to him. Others scream or throw frightening howls to further thrill their victim. But all without exception traverse the body of the passerby and with it is marked. From that moment on, in a year or so, he'll be dead. And as if it were the "temptation" game will be in that same place the next year looking for the one who takes his place, or at least that's what they believe.

One of the unfortunate, Don Saturnino Mazariegos, counted on October 9, 2004 that the 19h30 appeared to him 2 strong lights at the same time on the bridge, but that only had felt that one of them touched him while passing with a great din by his side. Don Saturnino had contributed 3 years earlier in the construction of the bridge where his incident occurred, and he did not believe in those "tales". He tried to make sense of what had happened, and the most logical explanation for him was that a car passed him by rubbing but he could not see it because of the thick mist. Don Saturnino died in September 2005. Some of his relatives and friends think he had the misfortune to run into two souls. On the bridge is still the tombstone where his name appears next to other people who collaborated in the construction.

Another bizarre case occurred on October 28, 1997, to the 19h00. Mr. Juan Calderón was heading home riding his horse. About 30 meters behind him, Mr. Daniel de León also walked in the same direction towards his house, after having gone to buy some spare parts of truck to the headboard.

Mr. De León saw as he approached the bridge, the horse refused to keep walking and began to retreat. Don Juan hit the horse to move forward, but it took two steps and back again. Annoyed, Don Juan got off the horse and tried to pull him while telling him that there was nothing, but there was no power on Earth to make him walk.

Don Daniel was approaching willing to help, but suddenly a mist began to envelop Mr. Calderón and his horse. Determined to leave that place, Don Juan rode back on the horse and gave him several chicotazos, but it was in vain. Suddenly, a kind of shadow pounced on Don Juan. The horse was frightened and stood on two legs, precipitating Don Juan to the ground. The shadow only reached the touch of the horse.

In the dark, Mr. De León only heard the gallop of the horse fleeing terrified the place. Terrified of what he had just witnessed, he dared not come nearer and ran in the opposite direction to seek help. A few minutes later he ran into a couple of men who were on a pickup and told them what happened. Upon returning to the bridge they found Don Juan dead with a shattered skull. He was believed to have died instantly by hitting his head with the edge of the bridge when he fell from the horse.

But this strange story doesn't end there. Don Juan's horse was found the next morning by some neighbors. He was visibly restless and was not allowed to tie. A few months later, the horse died. It is said that it was marked by the soul that tried to get the Alma of Don Juan. There are those who think that when you hear a horse neighing on the river Samalá near a bridge of Pachute, it is the spirit of the horse of Don Juan.

Since then the people close and family closed that bridge because of the death of Mr. Juan and placed a cross with his name, which says "rest in peace Juan Calderón." A new bridge was built on par

Fifteen years later, a similar event occurred to Don Daniel himself. One night in October 2012, he told a nephew to have seen strange things on the bridge that leads to the village El Rodeo, adjacent to Pachute. He did not give further details of what he saw, but became a very stressed person who went out for several hours at night, and sat on the road with his gaze lost in the direction of the bridge. The night outings caused him trouble with his wife who suspected of an affair. Don Daniel de León died in June 2013 for a tumor in the head. There are those who say that it was the Revenge of Don Juan.

Just as these there are several stories of people who have witnessed spirits, lights, shadows and other rare things on the bridges of the village Pachute. With the exception of the case of Don Juan and his horse, all the victims walked alone and ended up dying for various causes over the course of a year.

There is no known case that occurred after 31 October. The legend says that the souls return to their resting place on November 1 to receive the food that their relatives take to the cemetery.