The sun is ready to set and the sky is a pale dusty blue. You are taking a peaceful walk to breathe in some fresh air in a tiny forest-like area, and enjoying the smell of nature and the feeling of your shoes slightly sinking into the muddy, wet ground. As you continue on your stroll - WAIT - you abruptly stop because of the confusion of what is in front of you. A giant rusty locker in standing in the middle of the woods.

Yes, it’s true; there is a locker in the wooded area along Erie Avenue in Rutherford, New Jersey. Ironically enough, this locker is sure an “eerie sight,” mimicking the name of the street itself (albeit the spelling).  Accounts by students that attend the nearby high school have stated that this locker is haunted by a ghost who has, in its past life, died because he attempted to make the locker his new home after fleeing home. At midnight every night the ghost will take the life of any soul around; thus the name Devil’s Locker was given to the frightening locker. With this story in mind, I felt my heart jump a few beats when I came across the locker alone for my first time. The smell of rust brought chills down my back.

I walked around it, wondering what was inside. Yet, there is a wooden board behind the closed doors - so that whatever is inside, no one can find out. The rough peeling and rusting plates of the locker are dispersed in the forest and mixed with the rotting leaves. Alongside the locker are railroad tracks covered in lifeless plants and leaves. Could the locker and the railroad tracks be related in some way?

Around my small town, finding a haunted locker in the middle of a pint-sized forest is something strange but intriguing. If you're able to disregard the frightening story, the locker can actually be an interesting object to photograph. The outer plates of rust have a unique beauty and color when reflected in the daylight. However, at night be aware of the haunted spirits!

Brianna Nema is a member of the Youth Travel Blogging Mentorship Program

All photos courtesy and copyright Brianna Nema