La Garita del Diablo (The Devil's Sentry Box)

0:20 A Ghol friends, It's me Adrian or Aiden. Either way, I am still your host and you are still listening to Sustal, the podcast of Ouki spooky scary story centered on paranormal folklore from Latin American and Hispanic cultures. Welcome back, Ghol friends. Thank you for being here. Now, right off the bat, I am just going to give you a fair warning address the little elephant in the room. I am not feeling totally one hundred percent. I don't know what's happening. Listen bronchitis and now this. I feel like it may be a slight cold. So what I'm trying to say is I might sound a little off, a little stuffy. If I do, I apologize. I'm so sorry.

1:03 Who knows it? Could it could be my Phoebe Bouchet moment right where she's sick and she's like, I love you, my baby, I love you my girlfriends. Also, if you are a best girlfriend on Patreon, you are watching me do this right now, doing my Phoebe impression, which for some reason involves tapping my fingers together with my pinkies out. I don't know either way, Thank you for being here. I'm happy to see you, possibly for you to see me looking into my eyes. I'm happy to be in your ears, in your closet, under your bed, all that good creepy stuff. Before we do get into today's episode, I do want to kind of address something. I don't have a ton of updates, but if you follow me on social media that's at Sustal podcast on every platform, you may be seeing me post some things about what's happening out in the world right now. And I have always held SUSTAL very close to my chest as this space where we can kind of forget all of the real life horrors. And that's always been intentional. Part of my reason for that is because I used to do this kind of I get I'll call it work. You know, I was very involved in social justice movement, in speaking out loud, whether it was about my own experience with HIV, where I put myself literally in front of hundreds of maybe thousands of people speaking at the local, state and national level, being a part of a PSA and bringing my family and Jeff into that too at some points, to going out protesting and being you know, putting my body between motorcycles and people to protect them, or trying

2:37 to diffuse situations. I'm just saying I have been on the streets. I have done this kind of work before, so I know how important it is to have a space that is free of all that. But maybe it is selfish. Maybe it's because I see it happening more closely to my community, because the work that I have done in the past, it wasn't always directly quote about my community. But if you have been involved in this work, then you know that it all affects each other. Right, There's no liberation for all of us without one of us. I've always believed that, and so I don't know. It's just something about what's happening right now with immigration, with the ice raids. I heard recently that ice was in my hometown, and even before I heard that, I have been posting stuff on social media. So all that to say, I feel it would be irresponsible if I didn't use SHUSTO to talk about those things, especially because of the stories that I am covering where they are from, and that it is my people, whether or not we fall in the same area of the diaspora. Immigration it affects not just Mexicans, it affects everybody within, not even just the Latin American kind of community or the Hispanic community.

3:47 Are there are more than just i'll say, Spanish speaking immigrants, right, But I just I want to say, I am posting what I can on social media. I am trying to share information. There will be a link to aclus Know Your Rights a website in the show notes of this episode, because regardless of immigration status, whether we are in the streets, at work, or in fucking school for some reason, we have rights and it is important for us to know what those rights are. So please visit those links. And in case it was not clear for whatever reason ever, let me make it abundantly clear and say it now. Fuck Ice, Fuck what the Republican administration is doing to our country right now, and fuck anybody who condones that and encourages it. I've seen some nasty things from people, whether it is racist white bigots who are like, yeah, get them out of our country, or even I think what hurts a little bit more are the people in our own community, in my own community, people saying well, I have my papers, i'm documented, we did it the right way. That doesn't affect me. The only reason it may not affect you is because out of sheer dumb luck were born on the quote right side of a made up fucking line, and don't ever forget that they see us all the same way, regardless of status. That's what I'm going to say about that here, because again I do want this to continue to be a space where we can come and kind of put those real

5:20 life monsters away for a second, but not to completely forget to them. Hopefully I didn't lose too many of you. Hopefully I don't piss off too many of you. But again I don't know why it wouldn't have been clear before. I have always kind of spoken subtly about these things, but I think again it would be responsible to not say it explicitly and out loud and boldly. The time for I think trying to compartmentalize spaces. If you understand what I'm saying, it's honestly been long gone. And that may be a shortcoming of mine, because again I selfishly wanted to keep this free of all of that, but it's we cannot afford that any longer. We never couldn't afford it a long time ago. I think if I have ever fell short, if I have ever fallen short of doing what I could. I do apologize, and I'm going to leave that where it is. I don't want to take up too much of your time because we are here to have a you know, a good, scary, fun little time. But again, it's it needs to be said, and I will continue to say. I will continue to share stuff online, especially so if you ever need information, please do not hesitate to reach out to me. I am always open to sharing resources and whatever I can, whatever I have access to with other people. So well, go ahead and move on. Thank you for sitting through that.

6:39 If you did, if you didn't, hey, that's fine. I understand. And we're going to go ahead and get into today's episode. This is another Jeffrey original. We're calling it now a Jeffrey original for SUSTO, and I just want to put a little note here before this story, he says. This story is a combination of two separate myths about La Garita the album. It combines the story of a soldier known as Sanchez who disappeared with the story of an unrelated boy who ventured into the Garita at night and also disappeared. I took creative liberty by connecting those stories as father and son and by adding the scenes of them interacting with the devil. There is also a very boring version of the story where the soldier didn't get taken by the devil, but instead simply ran away with his girlfriend. So thank you Jeffrey for putting this story together for us. We're gonna go ahead and jump into it again. This is the story of the devil Sentry Box or La Garita the Dia. High above the shimmering Atlantic Ocean, the majestic Castillo San Cristoval stands as a sentinel over the historic city of San Juan Port Dorrico.

8:01 Built in the late seventeenth century, the fortress was designed to protect the city from invaders and pirates. Stretching over twenty seven acres, it remains one of the largest fortresses built by the Spanish in the Americas. From its defensive walls, visitors are treated to breathtaking views of Old San Juan, with its colorful colonial buildings, narrow cobblestone streets, and bustling plazas. Beyond the city, the turquoise waters stretch to the horizon, their beauty both mesmerizing and dangerous. The sea's rhythmic crash against the rocky cliffs creates a soundtrack that has accompanied countless generations. At night, under the glow of the moon and stars, the fortress transforms. The cool breeze carries whispers of the past, and the ancient stones seem to murmur secrets long forgotten. It is as a place both beautiful and haunting, filled with centuries of history. Among its many defenses, the Garita del Diablo, or the Devil's Sentry Box, stands apart.

9:13 Perched precariously on the fortress's edge, this small stone outpost offers a commanding view of the coast. Built during the early sixteen hundreds, it was one of many sentry posts designed to keep watch for enemy ships. But unlike the others, this particular Garita became infamous for the dark legends surrounding it. Whispers of ghostly voices and unexplained disappearances plagued its history. Superstition gripped the soldiers, many of whom refused to be stationed there. After sunset, the sea below seemed to echo the fears of men, its restless waves crashing violently against the cliffs, as if warning them to stay away. Despite these chilling stories, there was one man who was not afraid.

10:06 Sanches a devoted father and loyal soldier, often only called by his last name, Sanches was well respected among his comrades, as he would protect the Castillo Sanchrislovad with pride since he was first stationed there in sixteen eighty three. Though many feared the sentry box, he dismissed their tales with the wave of his hand. There's no devil here, he would say, confidently. The sea is the only thing to be wary of. Unlike his fellow soldiers, Sanches's only fear was the ocean. Its unpredictable waves and hidden dangers had always unnerved him. Still, he never let his fears interfere with his duty. Sanches was loyal to both his duty as a soldier and to his role as a father.

10:56 He particularly took pride in his young son, named Me, A curious and spirited boy who adored his father. Miguel, always looking up to his father, had always begged to visit the fort at night when his father was working. Sanchez, out of duty for his station and for fear of how close he worked to the water, had forbidden it. The waves are dangerous, he warned. Promise me, you'll stay away, Sanches often found himself stationed at the Garita del Diablo. On some nights, Sanches would whittle toys out of wood to give his son the next day, delighting in the joy it would bring Little Miguel. Usually to pass the long, lonely nights, he brought his guitar. As the moon rose over the ocean, he would sit on the edge of the garita, strumming gentle melodies that drifted through the fort.

11:51 The other soldiers found comfort in the music, knowing that as long as Sanchoes' guitar was playing, he was safe. His songs became a part of the fort's nightly rhythm, until one fateful night, when the music abruptly stopped. On a moonless night, Sanches took his post at the sentry box. The air was heavy with the scent of salt, and the waves crashed more violently than usual. Undeterred, Sanches sat on the edge of the garita, his guitar resting on his knee. As the hours passed, the familiar sounds of his music floated through the fort. The soldiers listening from the ramparts felt at ease, lulled by the gentle melodies But as midnight approached, an eerie stillness settled over the sentry box. The wind died and the waves seemed to hush.

12:49 The whispers returned. They swirled around Sanches like an ominous chant, growing louder and more insistent. He paused his fingers hovering over the strings. Out of the shadows a figure emerged, a monstrous being with eyes like burning coals and a grin that gleamed with malice. It was the Devil himself, drawn by the defiant soldier who had dismissed his legend. Sanches stood his ground, gripping his guitar as if it were a shield. There's no devil here, he whispered through bated breath. The devil's laughter echoed through the fort. Brave, aren't you? The creature hissed. Before Sanches could react, the devil lunged forward. The guitar strings snapped, and Sanches was gone, dragged into the abyss. The last sound the soldiers heard that night was a sharp, discordant twang of the broken strings, then silence. When dawn broke, Sanches was gone. The only trace of him was his musket, abandoned on the old stone floor. His guitar had vanished with him. The whispers ceased after that night, and the soldiers believed the devil had claimed Sanchez as his prize. Finally satisfied, the soldiers returned the musket to Sanches' family the next day. After

14:20 his father's disappearance, grief consumed Miguel one moonlit night. Determined to uncover the truth, he crept out of the house and made his way to the fort. The wind howled and shadows flickered along the walls, but Miguel pressed on, clutching the small wooden horse his father had carved for him. As he neared La Garita del Diablo, an unnatural stillness settled over the fort. The boy shivered, but stepped forward, calling softly into the darkness, Baba. The temperature plummeted, and the ground beneath miguel feet seemed to tremble. Suddenly, the devil emerged from the shadows once again, his fiery eyes gleaming with hunger. Another Sanches, the devil hissed, perhaps I should take you too. Terrified, Miguel tried to run, but the devil's clawed hand reached for him. In that instant, a soft ethereal melody floated through the sentry box, the faint, haunting sound of a guitar. The devil paused, his grip, loosening as the music grew louder. A second figure emerged from the shadows. Sanches, his spectral form, calm and radiant, run Miguel. Sancho's commanded, but Miguel, tears streaming down his face, refused to leave. I won't leave you, Papa. Knowing they

15:54 could not win this fight, Sanches knelt beside Miguel and placed a protective arm around his son. Sancha shouted, there is no devil here. The devil, realizing the father's love would be too great for him to be able to take both of their souls, hissed in frustration. Before returning to the shadows. The devil cursed them to be trapped together in the Garita del Diablo. Sanches and Miguel remained in the sentry box, bound together by love and loyalty, forever beyond the devil's reach. The next morning, the townspeople searched frantically for Miguel. They combed the cliffs and scoured the fort, but the boy was nowhere to be found.

16:41 Near La Garita del Diablo, they found only a wooden toy horse that had once been whittled by Sanchez for his son Miguel. Realizing this meant they were both gone, The townspeople were heartbroken and mourned the loss of both father and son. Years passed, and strange sightings began to surface. To this day, visitors to Castillo San Cristoval claimed to see a shadowy figure patrolling the sentry box, a spectral soldier with a musket in hand. Sometimes the sound of a child's laughter echoes through the night, and fleeting shadows dart along the walls. Many believe it is Sanches and Miguel reunited in death. Bound by love and loyalty, they became eternal guardians of the fort, watching over those who ventured too close to the cursed sentry box. The whispers never returned, for the devil had been vanquished by their unbreakable bond, and on rare quiet nights, if you listen closely, you might hear the faint, haunting melody of Sanches's guitar carried on the wind, a reminder that he still stands watch, protecting La Garita del Viablo with his son by his side,

18:18 Welcome back, Ghoul friends. I that story, round of a round of a cause, A round of a cause because a round of applause for Jeffrey for writing that story. Wow, what a beautiful story. And again I love that he used these two kind of different stories and melded them together. And we had sort of it's weird to say, like, oh, we met about it because that's my roommate. Just kidding, because hello, we live together, and so we're just like, you know, we kind of talk randomly and we bounce ideas off of each other. Now that he writes some of the stories, and so when he brought this up and we're kind of discussing it, these two different stories, and ultimately we thought, yeah, let's just mix them together because that's what I've kind of always done on two story is kind of pick pieces from different stories and mesh them together, and then we talk about kind of breaking it apart afterward. So speaking of we have some sources here to go through. So the first one, of course, is a Wikipedia link, and this is about Castillo Sancristoval, where this is located. So again this is a real location and I'll be putting pictures and stuff up in the video if you are a best girlfriend on patron dot Comusto podcast and you can see those up here, but some pictures will also be in the social media post for this. This Wikipedia entry says not to be confused with Castle of San Cristoval or Santa Cruz, the the nei Fe or Fort San Cristoval in Spain. This says Castillo San Cristoval is a fortress in the historic district of old town San Juan, Puerto Rico, known as the largest fortification built by the Spanish in the New World,

19:48 dating back to defense expansions following attacks by the English in fifteen ninety eight and the Dutch in sixteen twenty five, so according to these dates, Sanchez wasn't there until after the English and Dutch attacks. It was first built in sixteen thirty four as the Garita la Viablo or the Devil Sentry Box and an artillery platform. Over the next one hundred and fifty years, especially in the reign of King Charles the Third of Spain, it continued to be developed into a bastion fort to reach its largest size in nineteen seventy, rising one hundred fifty feet from the Atlantic shoreline. The three level edifice stands on a hill at the northern coastline of San Juan Islet. Islet islet isl e T I'm not that's an Isolet. I'm gonna say Isle like island or Isle. So San Juan Islet guarding the land entry to Old San Juan, San Cristoval, alongside El Moro, La Fort Lesa and other forts part of the walls of Old San Juan protected strategically and militarily important Puerto Rico or La Jabre de las Indias, or the Key to the Indies from invasion by competing world powers during the Age of Sail. It was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in nineteen eighty three.

21:03 And this is I mean, it's gorgeous. I always think like these kinds of historic places they just look cool. But this being set like in Puerto Rico, it's beautiful. It's coastal, there's like green kind of mound around it, and it's yeah, it's just an old building or structure, and so that's really cool. I for sure would go visit. With this kind of lighthearted quote lighthearted, you know, warm fuzzy feeling story that we have here that we put together. I would go visit it with that story in mind. I think that's really sweet. But again, you know, history is it's impacted by these big events or places in history or are impacted by these large events. So of course this is a major kind of space for that, for these energy impressions as I've come to believe them here on SUSTA. But I would definitely go visit this place.

21:52 It seems like, you know, it's touristy enough, So let me know, let me know in the comments or somewhere if you would, if you would go visit the Castillos Grislova more specifically e. The next source we have here is from American ghostwalks dot com and they this is an entry from twenty twenty three, actually by Chris Gallagan or yes that's a G. Gallagan, it might be C. Callahan, I'm sorry, Chris simply titled the Devil's sentry Box. And this is yes, it's got the stories that we kind of used to put this together, but as individual stories, right. So this first one is the story of the Cursed Soldier. It says in this chilling story, the sentry Box was cursed by a Spanish soldier named Sanchez, who is betrayed by his comrades. It said that the soldier was stationed at the box one fateful night when his fellow soldiers attacked him and left him for dead. As he lay wounded and dying, the soldier cursed the sentry box and the fort swearing that they would be haunted forever by the devil himself. His curse was so powerful that it has lingered for centuries, and to those who spend too much time in the sentry Box are said to fall under the devil's spell. The cursed soldier's restless spirit is said to roam the fortress, seeking vengeance against those who wronged him. A slightly more palatable, if equally mysterious version of the soldier's story relates that Sanches was a talented guitar player who would pass away his time on duty at the sentry Box by strumming his guitar as the waves rolled in. One night, a fellow soldier called down

23:25 the line to Sanchez, checking in on him, but heard no reply. The soldier alerted the night watchman, who claimed to have not seen anyone pass by. Perturbed, the men concluded that something sinister was afoot, but were too scared to check it out until morning. When the sun rose, the watchman headed to Sanchez's sentry box, only to find his musket and side arm abandoned. Scared that Sanches had been accosted by the devil, they refused to stand guard there. Ever. Again, it's said that on quiet nights you can sometimes hear the soft notes of a guitar being carried on the wind. So this is interesting because nobody. My mind goes too that he was over it. He was done. He didn't want to be there anymore, so he left up and vanished.

24:06 Everybody around him was like it was the devil. Bro they said, essen it's the devil. I don't know. I think maybe he was just like over it. He didn't want to be a soldier anymore. He didn't want to be stationed anymore, so he just left. Although the people around him said they didn't see anybody so he If that's true, he would have had to have been sneaky right and kind of tiptoed out of there. There's another part of it here that says the Devil's bargain. The devil sentry box is also rumored to be the site of a sinister pact with the Devil. This version of the story goes that a Spanish soldier stationed at the Sentry Box made a deal with the devil in exchange for wealth and power. However, the soldier soon realized that the devil's bargain was not worth the price he had paid, and he tried to break the deal. It contracts a contract, my guy. Sorry. In retaliation, the Devil cursed the sentry Box and the fort, promising to haunt them for the rest of time. Those who enter the Sentry Box are said to be at risk of being trapped by Diablo, their souls taken his payment for the cursed soldier's treacherous deal. Okay, okay, hold on, but now why are we in it. I could understand maybe cursing this soldier's bloodline, right and his predecessors, And even then I'd be like, well, that's not fair.

25:19 That's his deal, take his soul, right, But anybody, anybody who goes through there, we got to pay the soul toll. That's going to be a sticker, the soul toll. That doesn't seem fair. But also, when doing business with the devil, none of it is fair. The last one here is and I'm'm assuming this is where that second part of the story came from, the spirit of a tormented boy. This is perhaps the most disturbing theory behind the Devil's Sentry Box. The story concerns a young boy who was locked inside the box as punishment for a minor offence. All that's sad. The boy was never released and eventually died of starvation trapped in the dark, cramped space of the sentry box. Who put him in there? It is said that the boy's tormented spirit now haunts the sentry Box, seeking revenge against those who wronged him, of course, and he should have it. Visitors to the fort report feeling an eerie presence when they enter the sentry Box, as if the boy's spirit is still trapped there, hoping one day to exact brutal revenge on his captors. Okay, two things, how do we free him? And two how do we help him get his revenge? Poor little boy for a minor offense? Death? Starvation, that's terrible. This continues. There are many theories behind the double Sentry Box, Yet there remain visitors to the Castillo San Crisovald who believe the hauntings are nothing more than a figment of the imagination. Whether there's any truths to the tales is up for debate, but many people who spend time their report feeling a dark or foreboding presence, almost as if the devil himself were watching on. Myths and legends play a huge part in Puerto Rico's culture and society, and you can read the storytell of Loorona here. There's a hyperlink Puerto Ricos Orona.

26:49 I'm gonna read that one. For more sinister retails from this colorful corner of the world, check out ghost Walks in Puerto Rico and that was also a hyperlink. Again, this is American Ghostwalks dot com. This looks like they offer tours or something. Do they do one in Austin? Destinations? Nothing in Texas? Dang their destinations listened here are California, Illinois, Hawaii, Maine, Minnesota, Puerto Rico, San Juan, New Orleans, French Quarter, and Wisconsin. American ghost Walks come to Texas, come to Austin. I would love to do one of these tours. The next source is from good Old Apples. App Apples a skibe if I could say that, right, good old Atlas obscura, my speech is obscurre ed right there. And this is an entry about Garita the album. Okay, now this gives a more clear picture. So and again these pictures beyond social media and the video. But the Garita it's literally like it's barely part of this structure. Like there's like a corner of it looks like a triangle that juts out into the water, into the shoreline. So this makes more sense in my head of it being a creepy space or people making up stories about it because it's so secluded, right, Like, this doesn't even look like it's part of whatever structure it's a part of. It's just literally just a tower on the very corner. So I can see how that feeling of seclusion can make someone come up with this spooky story. Right. But also, you know, war attacks, defense, you kind of like treacherous times in history along with and we as we all know, water

28:21 is a conduit for energy and this is surrounded by the ocean, right, Yeah, this just seems like a point of like a trifecta of spooky stuff. Also, this is like it's a stone structure. I don't know what it's made of. Hopefully we'll come across that. But depending on what it's made of, there's that kind of that stone theory, right, that it has absorbed energy too, So who knows whatever energy the ocean is bringing to the actual physical material that this tower is made of. But yeah, okay, so this is an entry in again Atlas Obscura. This is added by their user name is cd VV eight six. I'm assuming they're from but you got or no, there's a there's a we can flag in their profile photo.

29:01 But their little bio says, I'm interested in abandoned places, ruins and natural wonders CDVV eighty six. Honestly, yeah, those are great interests. I love this. Their entry here says, though it's often overshadowed by the older and more popular fort El Moro fort San Crisloval in Old San Juan is the largest Spanish fortification in the New World. As we've read, it was built to repel enemy attacks, and just like El Moro, features several garitas, or sentry boxes, where Spanish soldiers stood guard at night. One of these boxes, built in sixteen thirty four, stands out from the rest. It is surrounded by legends still today known as Zagarita Theatlo or Devil's sentry Box. It is located farther away from the others. Again that isolation protruding out into the ocean again, and these pictures show it perfectly. It's said that because of its remote location and the eerie sounds that were often heard, it wasn't popular among the Spanish guards.

29:52 That's another thing. So I'm assuming sound dampening and soundproofing these the walls of this sentry box, the structure. We're not on the priorities of the features for this building. So aside from all of that, you know, the waves hitting this thing, it must have been loud, and so yeah, it would be really safe to assume that someone's going to think they hear something with all of this constant like barrage of noise just hitting them. This continues. The soldiers in the sentry box would occasionally shout at each other at night to make sure everyone was all right and awake. Because the Goria Diabla was so far away, the soldiers had to shout louder to compete with the crashing sounds of the ocean waves and the howling wind. My mind I this is my first time reading through this, so I'm on top of it, you know. Ahem. One night, a soldier named Sanchez stood guard at the infamous sentry box.

30:41 Every call directed at him went unanswered. The other soldiers feared for Sanchos to safety, but no one dared to check on him. Until sunrise. They arrived to find no signs of the soldier. All that was left were his rifle and uniform. Oh, his uniform was up behind. This version interesting. The superstitious guards claimed that Sanchez was taken away by the double, and so the legend began. Okay, what if hear me out, I'm seeing some fanfic. I'm seeing a rom calm enemies to lovers. Somebody write this story for me, that the devil shows up and maybe woos him. We're getting a little risque here, a little racy. And that's why his uniform was left behind. He ran off with the devil, right, he went to live deliciously. Another theory just hit my mind. What if, you know, aside from abandoning his post or whatever, what if he I was gonna say, what if he fell into the water.

31:31 But then, in this version, why would his uniform be left behind. But in any other version of the story him disappearing I think could have been that he fell into the water, that it was an accident. You know, he was alone, he was bored. Who knows what he was doing. Maybe he was drinking something I don't know, and he got reckless and he fell over. This is a it's a really dangerous spot. So I'm assuming by the time people went to check on him, if he did fall, the body would have just washed away into the ocean. Right should have claimed her prize. This continues. Some locals at the time offered a more logical explanation. They claimed that Sanchez deserted his post to escape with the love of his life, the Devil just kidding, a girl named Theana. Sanchez would play his guitar and sing to her to express his love. However, neither his superiors nor Theana' stepmother approved the relationship. It's like a Romeo and Juliet. The couple agreed to meet one night when Sanchez was posted at the sentry box to make their escape.

32:20 Dianna brought him civilian clothes and they escaped unseen to a private cottage in Sierra de Rujuillo, Okay. So again this idea of abandoning the post, escaping it, but so he could be with his lover. Regardless of the verity of these stories, they were never seen again. Nowadays, the Heiditha Diablo remains inaccessible to the general public. Oh so we can't visit it never mind, but can be seen from the fort and the street in front of it. It is said that if you approach the sentry box at night, you might hear Sanchez's guitar as well as laughter. Maybe it's the sound of the happy couple, or maybe the Spanish soldier and his lover mocking the devilish legend around their disappearance. How fun. I don't I don't see a like an entry date of when this was written, but that is so cool. Published twenty eighteen, So I don't know. I guess then you can't visit it, which dang, that would be a fun spot on like the Soustal World Tour. We're building it, y'all, we're building it in our head, and I need to put a map together of all these spots, right, let me know if you'll be interested in that, all right. The next one is from factscology dot com and this says the Double Centry Box on Juan Puerto Rico, written by Hector Navado. Thank you Hector for writing this. This says something about podcasts.

33:31 Is a podcaster here about it? This looks like it's a it's a podcast episode, but I don't see a player, So if y'all maybe y'all can find it on this website again factxology dot com. And this is just another entry about our our haunted little Garrito. It talks about Castillo San Cristoval. Again. Some of the history that we've read the legend of La Garita leviabum. Let's let's read through this one and see if there's any variation. It says the most well known legend takes place sometime in the seventeenth century when a soldier named Sanchez was stationed at the isolated sentry box during the night. Sanchos was known to be a guitar player who strummed his guitar at his post to pass the time. Okay, so this idea of him being a musician, a guitar player, that's been consistent in all of them, so that's really cool to see. It says one night during roll call, a soldier all down to the dark hallway for Sanches, but heard no response. He waited to hear strums of the guitar, but all he heard were the whistles of the wind and crashes of the waves below. I don't know how they could hear anybody, though, I feel like it would be too loud to actually hear anybody if you're shouting or not. But this continues. The soldiers alerted the night watchmen that Sanchez had gone missing, and the watchmen claimed to not have seen anyone walk by. The men concluded or that could only means something took Sanches, but they were both too scared to check in the dead of night. Again, he had plenty of time to escape them if they were all too scared to go look. They waited un till morning, and once the sun rose they ran down to the sentry box. There they found Sanchez's rifle and clothes, but no sign or clues as to what took him.

34:54 Some claim the men could smell sulfur in the air, or that they found pieces of Sanches' clothes sin or burnt. So the sulfur I was thinking could be explained by gunpowder, right, isn't that what it kind of smells like I've never smelled it, so I don't know, but I would feel that's what I've heard. Let me know if I'm wrong or if I'm right. But the clothes being singed or burnt, that is an interesting little detail, it says. After this, the soldiers claimed it was the devil that took Sanchez and refused to guard the sentry box going forward. I wonder, now another theory would just hit my head. What if he was taken, but he was taken by enemies, like actual military enemies, And then they planted this story so that port was left vulnerable. I wonder if there were any attacks at that port after this story, because there was nobody there guarding it because they were scared. My mind, my criminal mind, this says. Several nights later, some soldiers claimed they heard the sounds of Sancho's guitar coming from the hallway leading to the sentry box. The soldiers guarded the hall all night. If something was there, it wouldn't be able to leave without them seeing. They watched intently, still hearing the guitar strings, and when the sun rose, they ran down the hall, finding the sentry box still empty.

36:02 After this, on some nights the sound of guitar strings could be heard, and on others, the sounds of a demonic laugh echoed through the halls. Other legends or other legends. Okay, so one variation doesn't name the soldier who disappeared, but after he disappeared, another soldiers brave enough to guard the sentry box the following night. That soldier then disappeared as well. It was at this point the investigating watchman smelled sulfur in the night and continued to do so for more subsequent nights. Okay, so that's smell lingered and more than one person went missing from there. Another variation involves Sanchez, but gives a possible explanation for his disappearance. In this version, again, it's the love story with Viana. People being against their relationship, so they ran off. He would play his music for her serenade her all that they escaped. Yeah, okay. The final source that I have here is from Fairweather Lewis dot com. This is a word press blog. This was published in twenty ten. Wow, fair Weather Lewis loves ghost stories, loves music. Enough set gotcha? Louis Naff said. This says one episode of the late Lamented History Channel series Haunted History.

37:07 Okay Gotta watch this featured stories from the Caribbean, stories of pirates, voodoo, murder, epidemics, mythical creatures, and this one little curiosity based around a guard check at El Castillo de San cris Lovade, one of the three fords built between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries to protect the quote rich Port the island of Puerto Rico, claimed by Christopher Columbus Boo for the Spanish crown in fourteen ninety three, and a US possession since the Spanish American War of eighteen ninety eight. This says, this particular sentry box is quite isolated from the rest of the Fortress of Saint Christopher. Again, that isolation perched as it is, on a rock above the sea. The fortress was completed in seventeen eighty three. I thought it was sixteen eighty three. We'll go back and check. And for some years thereafter all was relatively quiet.

37:51 Then in the mid nineteenth century a sinister legend developed around the little sentry box. On three separate occasions, so goo's the legend, A soldier posted to that box was seen to go in for his night watch around about midnight or in the wee hours of the morning. However, there would be a bright and mysterious flash of light from that sentry box. Oh interesting, that's a new detail. The flash of light sometimes accompanied by a cry of fear, and when other soldiers would go to check on their fellow, he had vanished into thin air and was never seen again. There were those who decided that this place was a portal to hell. Oh, portal to Hell is new and the helpless soldiers who vanished from it had been dragged away by the devil himself. Hence it acquired the nickname La Garita Leviado or the Devil's sentry Box the last There is some truth behind this legend, but it's a tale of discontent and romance without devilish involvement. Again, this is that that love story. Superiors were not okay with it, family was not okay with it, and then their idea was just to run off. This ends with the fortress of San Crisloval, after serving as an American military post in both World Wars, was turned over to the National Park Service in nineteen six one. The little sentry Box still sits above the sea and on misty days. It truly would seem to deserve its reputation. The legend has made sure of that, this idea, that new detail that it is a portal to Hell, and that flash of light.

39:14 I wonder what that is like. Could the flashlight be the portal opening? Could it be the devil showing up? He shows up in one of those like flash you know, those like cheesy kind of magician smoke bombs. That would be hilarious if that's how the devil actually showed up. Just ha ha. Welcome back, well friends, thank you so much for listening to today's episode. I really hope you enjoyed that. Wow again, another round of applause for Jeffrey Doyle for putting this story together. So much fun, so good again. I mean history in so many places, but when this is like I don't know something about like a documented not even military, but just like a documented kind of history, it's so fun when there is folklore or ghost stories attached to those places. As always, you can keep up with any and all updates on the show by visiting at Sustal podcast on every platform if you would like to hear your story shared ony Letters from the Beyond episode You can do so by visiting my website sustalpodcast dot com. You can visit my link tree that's link tr dot ee slash Sustal Podcast, and on both places there should be a link to submit your own story. To submit your own Letters from the Beyond using the official Letters from the Beyond Google form and you can type your story. You can even send in pictures, videos, audio recordings, any multimedia that you have

40:46 can go in that form as well. It's all very fancy, it's all very official, it's all very of the future. If you will so, please send your stories in and you can hear them on a Letters from the Beyond episode. That last batch of stories was so good. And once more, if you are a best friend on Patreon dot com slash Sustal Podcast, then you have the opportunity to watch this episode on video. I want to try and do more video episodes regardless of if there is a guest or not. Obviously there wasn't a guest this time, so I hope that you enjoyed this episode. Speaking to Patreon, there are plenty of perks that you can receive by signing up to be a Patreon subscriber, like listening to this episode early and ad free. That is one perk that everybody gets, regardless of which level tier they are on.

41:27 And last, but certainly not least, thank you so much to this episode's Patreon subscribers. Your support means everything to me. You are the light that I see from the watch tower in the darkness, and you are Liza, Sadie Rachel, Alejandra Luth, April d, Josette, Sam Mandy, Jules Louri, Genie Desiree a Ashes, Nedessa Rachel, Asusena Marlen, Chata, Laney, desire See, Cynthia, Carla archerd Gordo, Sera, Vanessa, Maritzas, Monica Iris and Volatile Void. Thank you so so much for your support. I truly truly appreciate it. You make sustal possible. And if you would like to support the show in any other way, the easiest way to support is by engaging wherever you are listening, engaging on social media again, easy, free, and it means so much to me as well. One final time, thank you so much for being here. I will talk to you in the next episode and until then notea souste is bye.