Borego Phantom

A skeletal apparition that appears to potential gold-seekers between Borego, Arizona and the foothills of the Superstition Mountains. It manifests itself as a humanoid skeleton, standing well over eight feet tall and appearing only after darkness falls. Within the Phantom’s chest is a fiery lantern that burns brightly, swinging slowly from side to side from the rib from which it hangs. Despite this, the apparition appears without warning and appears suddenly from the darkness.

In most cases, the Borego Phantom seems uninterested in mortal affairs and simply wanders past terrified onlookers. Its feet may touch the ground and kick up sand, but no footprints of any kind are ever left behind, nor can it be followed for any amount of time. But when traveling through cactus stands, over boulders, or through narrow tunnels, the Borego Phantom has exhibited incredible agility that is rare among the undead.

The Borego Phantom may be an aimless wanderer, but the irrefutable fact that it appears only to miners and prospectors indicates that the apparition may in fact have some sort of motive. The lantern in its chest and its choice of witnesses indicates that the Phantom was once a prospector who had died while searching for the legendary Lost Dutchman Gold Mine, but it is also possible that the Phantom is a “collective phantom,” created and empowered by the ghosts of the innumerable people who perished in pursuit of the Lost Dutchman.

 References 
 * Blackman, W. Haden. The Field Guide to North American Hauntings: Everything You Need to Know About Encountering Over 100 Ghosts, Phantoms, and Spectral Entities. New York: Three Rivers Press. Copyright (c)1998 by W. Haden Blackman.