5 Unbelievably Creepy Haunted Locations in North Carolina to Terrify You

The Omni Grove Park Inn is an absolutely stunning resort, complete with sprawling hotel accommodations and a luxurious spa complex. This structure, built from boulders dug from a nearby mountain, is also one of North Carolina's most haunted hotels.

In the 1920s, a woman fell—whether by accident, jumping, or a more sinister push—to her death in the hotel's atrium. While the origins of her spirit may be called into question, there's no argument she's still hanging around. Called the Pink Lady for her appearance as a pink mist or figure in a pink ballgown, this friendly ghost has made a home on the fifth floor. If you book a stay in room 545, you may fall victim to her pranks.

Those who encounter this playful lady report air conditioners and lights turning on and off. It's also said that she rearranges objects in rooms. One contractor working in room 545 was overcome by chills after feeling an unusual presence, then bolted when he felt a tug on his ear.

One of North Carolina's most popular landmarks, the historic Biltmore Estate was built in the late 1800s. A young George Washington Vanderbilt was paying a visit to the area when his mother, Maria, became enamored by the surrounding Blue Ridge Mountains. Constructing a lavish mansion across 125,000 acres of land, the grounds housed not only a library filled with rare editions, but also Vanderbilt's famed art and artifact collection.

Vanderbilt died on the property in 1914, but that doesn't mean he left it behind. Whenever the weather gets gloomy, visitors to the mansion—now a tourist attraction—can find Vanderbilt's shadowy figure in the library, where he used to retreat to during storms.

George himself isn't the only ghost haunting the premises. In fact, his wife, Edith, seems to be far more active. Some guests report her whispering her husband's name in the library. Others report her shouting his name across the estate. Quite the hostess during life, Edith's wonderful post-death soirees can be heard by the pool, complete with music, laughter, and the clinking of glasses.

Visitors have also heard some activity in the pool area, including the sound of splashing and disembodied voices. Others have seen a headless cat stalking the property at night.

The Brown Mountain has been home to a strange phenomenon for centuries. A series of peculiar, inexplicable lights dance above the mountain's peak after sunset—changing in size, shape, and color.

The first recorded reports of these lights came from the Indigenous Cherokee and Catawba tribes in 1200 AD. Legend explains these lights as women searching for their husbands whose lives were lost in a battle between the two tribes. If this were true, then these loyal widows have been searching for their husbands long after their own deaths.

To date, there have been thousands of sightings of these strange mountain lights. The U.S. government has conducted several studies, as have multiple independent sources. Some claim the star-like dots are a result of marsh gas. Others say locomotive headlights. Less reputable avenues claim aliens.

No logical conclusion has been reached for the Brown Mountain Lights, though the most commonly held belief falls back on these spectral wives of warriors.

This haunted locale is the fodder of urban legend! Just outside of Greensboro, Jamestown boasts two historic bridges forever changed by a tragic tale. The railway bridge of E Main Street sees the consequences of this fateful day, while the now abandoned bridge adjacent to it was the site of the calamity.

Lore states that in the early 1920s, a young couple was on their way home from a dance. The car crashed while crossing the bridge, and the boy died on impact. The girl—Lydia—survived the collision, but was left scared, insured, and alone. Though she tried desperately to flag down some help, none ever came. It was up there on the bridge that Lydia succumbed to her injuries.

Today, Lydia can still be seen on the bridge, waving frantically for someone to pull over. Most of the time when cars get close, she simply disappears. Some drivers say that she actually waits to be picked up, but upon arriving at her house, her seat is empty.

Lydia is most commonly seen on rainy or foggy nights. Visitors may find the formal-clad damsel searching around under both of the underpasses.

Tucked away near the Tennessee border, Paint Rock is famous for being one of the best Indigenous pictographs in North Carolina. It's also one of the state's most eerily haunted locales.

The scenic Appalachian trail is home to the typical haunted fare, such as the spirit of a Cherokee man seen wandering through the woods. But there's a much more chilling legend in the depths of the water.

Legend has it that men have gone camping in Paint Rock, only to awaken to the sound of enchanting singing. As if lured by a siren song, the men walk to the water's edge to find themselves staring down at the reflection of a beautiful Cherokee woman. Those who reach for the woman meet a nasty fate, pulled to their deaths by a mysterious creature.

One of the more notorious locations in North Carolina, including it on the main list felt a bit like underselling it. This area isn't so much haunted as it is—reportedly—deeply cursed.

The Devil's Tramping Ground is located about 50 miles from Greensboro, just outside of Siler City in Chatham County's pine woods. Beyond low-level ghosts, it's said that the devil himself frequents the area. A barren 40-foot circle of grass is where he paces each night, contemplating all the chaos he can bring.

Defying all efforts scientific and otherwise, no living thing can grow in this circle. People have experimented with trees, flowers, and weeds, yet nothing takes hold. All transplanted vegetation shrivels up and dies.

There have been reports of animal carcasses littering the trail up to the circle. Those brave enough to visit the site at night say that if you leave something in the circle it will have vanished by morning.