If you lose your way here, you just may lose your head.
VALLEY OF THE (HEADLESS) DOLLS
Accessible only by air, water, or overland travel from the town of Tungsten in the Northwest Territories, the Nahanni Valley spreads out over 250 acres of unspoiled nature in far north above the 60th parallel. Because hot springs and sulfur geysers keep the valley warmer than the surrounding areas by about 30°, a mist shrouds the valley year-round.
STRUCK IT RICH? NOPE
The region of the South Nahanni River specifically carries the eerie nickname of the Valley of the Headless Men, which started at the turn of the 20th century in 1908. In 1906, two brothers—Willie and Frank McLeod—set off through the valley to make their fortune in Klondike, where the gold rush was in full swing. For two years, nothing was heard about the brothers. Those who knew the duo thought they must have struck it rich finding gold. But in 1908, an expedition through the valley discovered two bodies that turned out to be the McLeod brothers—and they were both headless.
Sure, two decapitated fortune seekers is creepy, but it’s not enough to give an entire region such a macabre nickname. In 1917, a Swiss prospector named Martin Jorgenson was found lying dead next to his burned cabin. Again, the head was missing. Much later in 1945, a miner from Ontario was found in the valley, dead in his sleeping bag. Once again, his head was nowhere to be found.
WHO’S TAKING ALL THOSE HEADS?
So with four tales of unexplained decapitation and 44 reported disappearances, the Nahanni also gained the name “Valley of the Headless Men.”
There have been many theories on the decapitations and disappearances. Some blame hostile natives; others say it could be the work of the Waheela—a wolf-like cryptid reported to live in the Nahanni Valley or possibly prehistoric bear-dogs that have somehow survived in the wilderness. Some even suspect a murderous . . .Sasquatch.
St. Paul, Alberta, has an official UFO landing welcome pad.