GURDON, Ark. — Students at Gurdon High School are building a sign to help contribute to the rejuvenation of the Gurdon Light Trail.
The Gurdon Light is one of Arkansas's oldest paranormal mysteries, bringing hundreds of people to the small town every year. The trail to the light sits just off Highway 53.
"I mean, my grandfather remembers it when he was a kid and he's like 75 now," Matt Cary said.
The trail is where people have seen a mysterious light appear deep in the woods for decades. It's still unclear exactly what it is.
"Some believe it to be swamp gas, some say because we're sitting on a fault line, there are a lot of crystals under us," Cary said. "Others think it is the man who got his head taken off the night he was murdered."
"The way they describe it, is it floats from side to side across the tracks," Isaac Hulsey said.
The tale has brought thousands of people to walk through the woods to catch a glimpse. The city's mayor is revamping the area with the help of Gurdon High School.
"This project is a good way for all the students to get involved," Cary said.
Matt Cary and Isaac Hulsey are both seniors. The two are working on a class project to build a sign to help people find the trail a little easier.
"If you've ever seen them, it looks like the Game and Fish signs," Cary said.
The sign will be placed in a soon-to-be parking lot, which also happens to be an old graveyard.
"It has a bunch of numbers and rules and that kind of thing, so that way if anything was to happen, somebody would know who to call," Colby Leggett said.
Leggett is an agriculture teacher and head of the project. He said the $20,000 piece of machinery used to make the sign is helping his students learn a new trade.
"This is a piece of machinery a student can come out of high school, apply for a loan, and obtain and be able to make money for themselves," he said.
Both Matt and Issac said they've never seen the light, but are excited to leave their mark behind.
"To get to be a part of it is something I think is really cool, to get to add our own spot into the tale of the Gurdon Light," Cary said.
Leggett said the goal is to have the sign put up in the parking area near Sticky Road by mid-November.