The "The Legend Of The Albatwitch...It Really Is True! Story

It was an ordinary day.  Walking through the wooded hills along the west bank of the Susquehanna River in Columbia, Pennsylvania.  A bit to the north is the town of Marietta while Columbia lays to the south.  In the past I have written about the small park along the Susquehanna known as Chickies Rock County Park and the beautiful views one has of the mighty Susquehanna River from that location.  It's a short drive from the main highway to the park and the photographs you can take are remarkable.  But, there is a second parking lot along the main road which requires you find your way through the dense woods to the top of Chickies Rock.  And, that densely wooded area is said to be home to the dreaded Albatwitch (alba - twitch).  Now, I realize that the Albatwitch is just a local legend, but if you find you must walk through the woods, he becomes more real with every step and noise you experience.  

A photograph of an alleged Albatwitch taken
near Chickies Rock near Columbia, PA.

The Albatwitch is alleged to be a small (about 4 feet tall), manlike creature which supposedly lives in the wooded hills along the river.  At one time the Susquehannock Indian tribe roamed these hills and were said to have painted a small apelike monster on their war-shields.  Their home allegedly was at the base of Chickies Rock where the ruin of a village and burial grounds were found at one time.  Could the figure on their shields be the Albatwitch?   But, there have been other sightings of the Albatwitch all along the shores of the river in the area close to Columbia, PA.  The creature is named for the habit it is said to possess; that of being an "apple-snitch."  He, or she, has been known to have stolen apples from picknickers, occasionally throwing them at the startled people.  The creature has been sighted sitting in the treetops, coming down only to look for food.  But, the legend also says that the Albatwithes either became extinct or were driven nearly into extinction in the later years of the nineteenth century.  But, in the 1950s to the 1970s, a small manlike creature was once again sighted in the woods along the Susquehanna.  Plus, the crack of a whip also accompanies the sightings.  Could it be that the Albatwitch has returned?  A vague report concerning the sighting of a hairy humanoid came from Lancaster in 1973 with another report of a sighting in Annville (about 20 miles to the north) in the same year.  Across the Susquehanna, to the west, is the town of Wrightsvile which is part of York County.  They, too, have had sightings while looking across the river during times when leaves were off the trees.  I also read that the Pennsylvania Dutch brought the legend with them when they settled the area around the banks of the Susquehanna River.  The Albatwitch may be nothing more than Germanic folklore.  In the 21st Century, the Albatwitch has become a tourist draw to the area.  Reports of hairy creatures still abound, but nothing like the Albatwitch.  So, a group is now taking people on a "Ghosts of Columbia" walking tour.  That's after they offer them apple fritters, apple dumplings, caramel apples and apple pies.  I sure hope they know what the are doing!  The tour begins as dusk!  To tell you the truth, I don't care much to visit the area by myself anymore.  I make sure I have someone, such as my wife, make the trek with me from the car to Chickies Rock.  Just in case!  It was another extraoridnary day in the life of an ordinary guy.