Blood red swamp gas

[Keith13]

Okay was talking to the old timers this weekend and now they have me wondering if the white lightning might have been flowing.
Talking with my mother aunts and uncles this weekend, we got on the subject of ghost and other weird unexplainable things they saw growing up. Well the conversation quickly spiraled down to talk about the Light that used to be out in the swamps around Rosedale, LA. The story of the Light is
Years back an old train conductor was riding on a train and lost his footing. He fell from the train, and had his head removed and of course was killed. I guess to understand why a conductor would lean off the train remember that it was back in the 30’s and 40’s when train conductors leaned off the train with their lanterns to see, any way. You could drive down this long road through the swamp; it was a very narrow road with only 3 places to turn around, one in the beginning, one half way, and naturally one at the end.
So, the story of my parents was something like this. My father was up from New Orleans and naturally skeptical of the whole headless conductor thing. Well he and my mother my aunt Beth and her boyfriend decided to go see the ghost. As they started down this road not much was occurring, so it turned into a bunch of men trying to scare the girls B.S. going on. It wasn’t until they passed the 2nd turn around that my aunt Beth noticed a light coming down the road towards them from the end of the road. The light was still about 200 300 meters down and away so it was hard to make out but, it definitely got everyone’s attention. By now my father had stopped the car and all four of them were staring straight ahead towards this light. All of the sudden the light vanishes, and the reappears about 100 meters closer, close enough to where everyone sees this is a light not mistaken it for anything else. So the girls are starting to get a bit nervous and very ready to back back to the 2nd turn around and get the heck out of dodge. But my father wants to know what this is so he waits to see what this light will do. All at once the light begins to move towards them bouncing and changing colors blue, to green and shades of red, but always coming back to the color of red blood. Well my aunt Beth has had enough she is screaming and clawing my father’s head and neck trying to get him to put the car in reverse and back out. As my father relents (he on the side after the story told me he was almost frightened stiff when this thing was bouncing towards him) and starts to back up,  the light is bouncing towards them it got to within about 50 feet of the car and disappeared. All four sat there in silence not quite sure what to do so my father begins to back the car the 100 feet or so back to the turnaround when the light shows up behind them. My dad said when this thing showed up behind them that was all he needed he slammed the car in drive and shot forward like a rockets he said he had every horse under that hood in a full gallop. My mom later said they all used to ride back there to see the light sometimes you would see it out in the swamp sometimes you would see it on the road and sometimes you didn’t see anything but she said one thing she never saw again was the city kid from New Orleans go down that road again.

True story I have heard it many times told by 3 different people and the story stays consistent.
Later talking to them they had a bunch of scientist come out from LSU and tried to determine what it was this “Light”. They determined it was swamp gas burning off.

Anybody ever heard of anything like that?

Keith

[Jerrymac]

http://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/2003/11/61284

"Swamp gas is formed by decaying organic matter that has been naturally transformed into a luminescent gaseous form, Knight explained. No one knows why the gas globs sometimes appear to track and pursue humans. Some assume it's an optical illusion caused when headlights or flashlights illuminate the gas, but others aren't so sure."

[dragonfly]

My husband was from Plaquemine, and has seen that light on 4 different occasions and 4 other lights within a 50 miles radius of there, close up.
 By the way, there used to be a bar down the Light Road. It was called the Light Bar. One of my husband's parents' dear friends was from Rosedale.

I've heard lots of swamp light stories.

[Keith13]

My husband was from Plaquemine, and has seen that light on 4 different occasions and 4 other lights within a 50 miles radius of there, close up.
 By the way, there used to be a bar down the Light Road. It was called the Light Bar. One of my husband's parents' dear friends was from Rosedale.

I've heard lots of swamp light stories.

Do you ever hear of any one still seeing the gas anymore. Most people I spoke with said once I10 went in the no longer see it. Would be cool to see it now

Keith

[dragonfly]

He hasn't lived there in over 27 years, so he doesn't know if they are still seen or not. He  says the famous one is in Gonzales, and there's also one in Rougon.

Next time he talks to one of his friends back home, I'll try to remember to get him to ask.

[Keith13]

Thanks

[defcheetah]

Okay, this is funny I live in texas...we have our own ghost light and it has the same story of a conductor losing his head and the white - red light is his latern looking for his head.  So anyways I went down to saratoga to see the ghost light last night....the weird thing is their are no swamps near the area.. you can see footage of our light on youtube.com under saratoga lights.  The weird thing is the road it appears on is an old railroad track... and their is also an old track in georgia where a similar light is sighted and has the same story. The light down here has been seen for over 100 yrs. and their was even a city ordinance by the sheriff in 1906 preventing people from shooting at it.  I did see it last night.  It was spectactular  kept appearing infront and behind us.  I just thought this was all interesting to see this.  Actually, I did additional research their are the early lights, the maco lights, the guordain, all in nc, georgia, and arkansas, they all have the same story of an engineer losing his head and the tracks being by a swamp....so maybe it is swamp gas.  But to me it's weird the gas will float around infront of you for 4 mins... you get in your car to chase it, it dissappears.

[johnnybigfish]

Wow, you guys!!!
These are great stories!
I live near the red river and have heard of lites floating arond on the river bottom. Unfortunately, Ive never seen them myself, but I do believe they are there!
I suppose, its possible that there tons of heads along railroad tracks from years gone by...With all the safety measures in place now a person would really have to work at getting their head whacked off from a train....But, back in the old days, you did what you had to do to get the job done.
 I mean, dont some of you remember running into trees and clotheslines when you were a kid?? And being yanked right off your feet?
..Well, I like these stories, true or not ...I like believing in the unknown!

your friend,
john