I thought I was alone on Coastal Highway. Then I saw antlers. This is the story of how a moose turned a quiet walk into an Olympic-level panic sprint.
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It was just another day in The Long Dark.
I was walking the road near Quonset Garage on Coastal Highway. Light fading, stomach grumbling, the usual post-loot shuffle home. Everything felt quiet. Calm. Deceptively safe.
Then I saw it.
Not a charging bear. Not a distant wolf. No, this was worse.
A moose.
It wasn’t running. It wasn’t stomping. It was just… standing there. Behind a tree.
Image taken from The Long Dark Wiki. Mainly because I didn’t think to take a screenshot or a video when it happened
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Staring at me like it had been waiting for its cue in a survival horror play.
And then—it took the stance. The head lowered. The hooves shifted. You know the one. The “say the word and I’ll flatten you” stance.
That was my sign to go.
I turned and ran for the nearest building like I’d just insulted its family. My survival instincts kicked in, my inventory was forgotten, and my dignity stayed behind by the tree.
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Final Thoughts
The Long Dark Wiki says that moose in particular has a 5% chance to spawn for 48 hours. This one spawned right behind a tree and in front of my will to live.
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Got a favourite chaotic moment?
Let me know in the comments or tag me on social—I’m always looking for new disasters to celebrate. And if you enjoy these shorts, consider sharing the page with a fellow survivor. Because nothing says “friendship” like a moose silently judging you from behind a tree.
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If you enjoyed this story, please check out my other: Survivor’s Shorts
Today’s mission was simple on paper: lighten my pack, loot like a professional, and avoid becoming a decorative frozen lump in a snowbank. The first step was Quonset Garage inventory triage. I dumped food, meds, spare clothes, and every non-essential item into my storage stash — keeping just enough to keep me alive. Travel light, loot heavy. The survivor’s paradox.
First stop: a nearby building that greeted me with the holy grail of kitchenware — a cooking pot and a skillet. Outstanding finds. Unfortunately, they also weighed roughly the same as my survival hopes, so back to Quonset I trudged, muttering about my endless loop of “find loot, dump loot, repeat.”
With the weight off my shoulders (literally), I decided today was going to be about exploration — specifically, mapping Coastal Highway like a cartographer with too much time on their hands. I hopped between fishing huts, pausing every so often to scribble charcoal marks on my map like an artist who only draws squares. The wind bit at my face, ice groaned under my boots, and somewhere in the distance, a wolf howled just to keep me humble.
Loot highlights of the hut-hopping adventure included: a book on fishing (because nothing says “immersive reading” like reading about fishing while fishing), a hunting knife that immediately earned its keep on a nearby deer carcass, and — drumroll, please — a revolver.
Three bullets. Enough to be dangerous, not enough to be reckless.
Yes, an actual revolver. Even better — it had one round chambered, and earlier in my fishing crawl I’d picked up two loose bullets. That’s three shots. In The Long Dark, that’s not just self-defense; it’s a small-scale munitions miracle. Of course, in my infinite wisdom, I’d left the rest of my ammo back at Quonset, so for now it’s more of a moral support weapon.
While the deer meat cooked in one of the huts, I dashed over to a nearby trailer to drop off the hide and gut for curing. Nothing says “I’ve made it” like casually starting your own rabbit and deer leather collection. Resource management, baby.
By evening, the weather had shifted from “brisk” to “why are you outside, you fool?” A blizzard swept in just as I reached the edge of the lake. I wasn’t about to attempt a hero’s march back to Quonset in that, so I ducked into the nearest house. The place was cold, abandoned, and smelled faintly of damp socks — but it had loot, so it met my standards.
Looted the place, harvested some extra clothes (accidentally shredded a perfectly good hat, but we don’t talk about that), and collapsed into bed before the fatigue meter could nag me into a penalty.
End of Day 5: One revolver, three bullets, a map full of fishing huts, and the creeping suspicion that Coastal Highway might just be my new favorite spot — assuming the wolves don’t hold a vote on the matter.
Survivor’s Dread is now live! A new hub for survival horror playthroughs, starting with Dark Waters: A Dredge Survival.
I’m very excited (and slightly nervous) to officially launch Survivor’s Dread: the newest corner of Survivor Incognito where survival horror games get their own home.
Here you’ll find my permadeath playthroughs and survival horror experiments—where the games aren’t just about food meters and blizzards, but also sanity meters, strange noises, and questionable life choices.
We’re kicking things off with Dark Waters: A Dredge Survival, where I attempt to survive fishing in waters that absolutely do not want me there.
The first official Survivor’s Dread series begins next week on Survivor Incognito. I’m diving blind into Dredge, armed with nothing but poor judgment and permadeath rules.
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What Is Survivor’s Dread?
A new weekly series where I explore different corners of survival games—where horror, tension, and terrible decisions collide. Which was originally going to be called Friday Fright, but I preferred the sound of Survivor’s Dread, and also means I can change the day it is released.
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So What Game Are We Starting With?
Dredge.
A fishing game, allegedly.
It’s foggy. It’s weird. I’ve only played the demo. What could possibly go wrong?
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The Twist: Permadeath
I’ve made a custom permadeath ruleset called Dark Waters: A Dredge Survival. If the boat dies, the run dies. I go into the fog, and I don’t go back.
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When Does It Begin?
Next Tuesday at 1PM GMT, the nightmare begins with Day One of Dark Waters.
Dark Waters: A Dredge Survival begins Tuesday at 1PM GMT.
I’ll be heading into the fog with nothing but a fishing rod, a poorly thought-out permadeath rule set, and the vague hope that the sea won’t immediately chew me up and spit me out.
Want to play along—or just judge my decisions from a safe distance? You can grab the full rule sheet here:
I return to Shroud Hearth Barrow to face a “ghost,” discover it’s just a deranged frost mage, clear out undead, remember how to zoom with a bow, and miss Lydia more than I expected.
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The Ghost Isn’t Real, But the Frostbite Is
The day begins with a voice echoing through the ruins of Shroud Hearth Barrow, telling me to turn back. I don’t. Obviously. If I turned back every time a disembodied voice told me to, I wouldn’t have left Helgen.
Inside, I find frost-covered halls and a frost-wielding “spectre” who turns out to be a man in a robe with a superiority complex. I resist the urge to shout, “You’re not even undead!” and settle for fire spells and potions instead. Frost resistance does most of the work. A few spells later, he’s dead—and not the kind that gets up again.
Turns out he snapped from isolation and decided to LARP as a ghost. His journal’s full of ramblings, paranoia, and bad decisions. I should probably relate, but instead I loot his body and move on.
I can’t help thinking Lydia could’ve handled the distraction while I circled behind. She was good for that—charging in recklessly while I fired off spells and arrows from the shadows. It hits me again that she’s gone. Permanently. Not resting in Breezehome. Just gone. And for the first time, that feels like more than an inventory loss.
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A Quick Detour to Town
I return to the inn with the ghost-faker’s journal. The innkeeper’s relieved to learn the place isn’t haunted and rewards me with the Sapphire Dragon Claw—because apparently the correct response to surviving a haunted dungeon is to send someone deeper into it.
Not one to refuse free ancient loot access, I eat some food, warm up, and head back in.
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Back to the Barrow
The second half of the barrow is more undead and more danger. I find a sleeping bag tucked beside some barrels and take the opportunity to rest. One hour’s enough to regain stamina and level up. I put the point into Health and choose Light Armor for the perk—mainly because I’m tired of dying in three hits.
The claw fits the puzzle door and grants access to the barrow’s inner sanctum. I shift into stealth mode and start clearing the area with arrows and fire spells. It’s during one of these fights that I finally remember: I can zoom in with my bow. (Hold ZL to aim, click right stick for zoom.) This information would’ve been helpful literally four days ago, but better late than dead.
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New Magic, New Words, Same Cold
Along the way, I find an Oakflesh spellbook. Boosted armor without metal? Yes, please. It pairs well with my current sneaky-bow-mage playstyle, especially since I’ve yet to find decent armor that doesn’t clank.
At the very end of the dungeon, I’m greeted by a Word Wall. I approach and learn Kyne’s Peace, which… sounds like something the Greybeards might want to chat about. I haven’t seen them since I shouted at a mountain goat near Whiterun, so I imagine they’re still waiting patiently on their high stone perch.
Before I leave the crypt, I rest again and hit another level up. Health gets another boost (cold and axes both hurt), and I drop a perk point into Sneak. Because what’s better than being hard to kill? Being hard to find in the first place.
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Day 5 Summary
Defeated fake ghost in Shroud Hearth Barrow
Acquired and used the Sapphire Dragon Claw
Cleared out all skeletons and draugr
Remembered I can zoom while aiming with a bow (finally)
Picked up Oakflesh for magic armor buffs
Learned Word of Power: Kyne’s Peace
Leveled up twice: +2 Health, Light Armor +1, Sneak +1
Missed Lydia more than expected
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The barrow’s empty, the loot is mine, and the Greybeards are probably wondering if I’ve died in a ditch. They’ll get their answer tomorrow—assuming I don’t freeze to death first.
Day 1 of a Customloper survival test in The Long Dark. Spawned in Coastal Highway. Made gloves out of scraps, got hit with a blizzard, and somehow didn’t freeze to death.
I put in the Customloper settings, picked my character, set the spawn to random, and named the file Day One. I spawn in Coastal Highway – specifically right next to the path leading to The Ravine.
I think about going that way for all of five seconds, I choose life instead and head toward the Train Unloading Trailer I know is nearby
Spawned in cold, sprinting for shelter. Train Unloading it is
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Inside I grab what I can, including a second pair of socks. Then hit the tunnel corpse – and score a hatchet.
My loadout after looting the trailer. No gloves, great.
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From there, I billy goat my way down a nearby cliff, grabbing sticks while the temperature plummets.
Alternative route, gravity assisted travel
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I find another trailer. It’s warmer, but still not warm enough. And I didn’t spawn with gloves, so my hands are freezing.
I cut across the road, stop at a car, then head toward the Fishing Camp.
Note: I had to double-check the name using my own Map Hub — I knew where I was, just couldn’t remember what it was called. Proof the hub’s not just for readers.
I loot what I can — some food, but not enough to carry me far. In the first house, I grab cloth and craft handwraps. It helps, barely. In the second, third and fourth houses, I scrape together enough to make a makeshift hat.
Then I step outside.
I step outside. Weather steps on me
—
I retreat and sleep for three hours to warm up. When I wake, the blizzard has cleared. I push toward Jackrabbit Island and manage to snag three rabbits — finally, a win.
Inside the house, I raid the fridge and score water. I harvest the rabbits for meat as the sun drops.
Then I head outside, light a fire on the first try, and cook everything. I even remember I have herbal tea, brew it, and drink it to recover some condition — which was down to about 50%.
Back inside, I scavenge the place and find a pair of wool mittens, climbing socks, and a pair of boots.
I go to bed warm, full, and genuinely surprised I made it through Day One.
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Next week, I start my actual Customloper run. I start in a new area, and will attempt to explore the whole island before I succumb to The Long Dark.
A new survival series is surfacing on Survivor Incognito this Friday. It’s cold. It’s wet. And it wants to be seen. Welcome to Friday Fright.
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You’ve braved the cold. You’ve dodged dinosaurs. You’ve survived Skyrim without socks.
Now it’s time to confront something older… and deeper.
This Friday, Survivor Incognito plunges into the unknown with the launch of a new weekly series: Friday Fright – where survival meets suspense, and things don’t just go bump in the night—they slither, stalk, and stare back.
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What to Expect:
New Friday posts exploring the eerie, the strange, and the just plain cursed corners of survival gaming.
Permadeath challenges with a twist—when the danger isn’t just wolves or weather, but something… weirder.
Short stories from the edge of logic, sanity, and safe game design.
The first entry will be revealed this Friday at 5PM GMT. Hold your breath. Not all horrors come from the land.
The Day One Diary of Customloper is coming—and no, I didn’t freeze to death immediately. Spawned in with Interloper-level weather and a backpack full of questionable decisions. There were snacks. There were was lots of snow. There was looting in the dark like a confused burglar. Find out what happens tomorrow at 1pm GMT.
Because apparently, space is just as chaotic as survival on Earth. —
I wake up to the cold void of Zuwan 58/E6
It’s -54.8°C and my thermal protection is already falling apart. I’m standing on an unfamiliar world, surrounded by snow, rocks, and the kind of silence that suggests no one’s coming to help. The scanner is offline, and the only way to fix it is by gathering ferrite dust.
Cue 30 seconds of frantic mining laser use. It feels like hours. Rocks explode. The scanner gets patched up. Victory—briefly.
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Sodium, sabotage, and a slap from nature
With the scanner online, I locate some sodium-rich plants glowing yellow in the distance. I sprint over like they’re the last snacks at the end of the world. Just as I reach one, a hostile plant lashes out and takes a bite out of me. Rude.
I grab the sodium anyway, recharge my thermal protection, and make a mental note: not everything green is friendly.
Then a new signal appears—500 units away.
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The Radiant Pillar and the repair list from hell
The signal leads to a crashed starship: the Radiant Pillar BC1. The ship’s still mostly intact, but running a diagnostic reveals both the launch thrusters and pulse engine are out of commission. Typical.
Luckily, I already have enough ferrite dust to patch together some metal plating and get started. Then the distress beacon hands me a planetary chart that points toward a hermetic seal—only 900 units away. I head off to get it.
Halfway there, the planet unleashes a blizzard. The temperature drops to -97.3°C. I barely make it to the building in time, where I warm up, collect the hermetic seal, and take a much-needed moment to question my life choices.
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Navigation error: user
With the seal in hand, I’m ready to head back… if only I remembered where I left the ship.
The scanner’s broken again. This time it needs carbon. So I laser some nearby plants—none of which try to bite me, thankfully—and repair the scanner. The ship’s marker reappears and I make my way back, scanning every rock and shrub along the way like a distracted tourist with a scanner addiction.
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The great resource hunt and escape
Back at the ship, I finish the pulse engine repair. The thrusters need pure ferrite, which means crafting a portable refiner. That requires dihydrogen and oxygen—time for another impromptu gathering mission.
Once the refiner is placed, I process the ferrite dust into pure ferrite, patch up the launch thrusters, and climb into the cockpit.
Moments later, I leave Zuwan 58/E6 behind. I don’t know where I’m going, but I’m not freezing anymore. Probably.
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Day 1 complete
Status: Launched Planet: Hostile Ship: Mostly duct tape Next Goal: Figure out how not to die in space
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If you enjoyed this one, why not check out my other Day One Diaries
This week at Survivor Incognito: dino disasters, cosmic chaos, a return to Customloper, and two new Survivor’s Shorts. Here’s the full lineup of what’s dropping and when.
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Monday – A Double Hit to Start the Week
Day One Diary: No Man’s Sky Cold planet, no scanner, and a plant that bit me. Welcome to Zuwan 58/E6.
Survivor’s Short: The Doedicurus Incident One spear. One armadillo. Zero survivors. The best (worst?) five seconds of ARK you’ll ever read.
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Wednesday – Into the Cold
Day One Diary: The Long Dark – Customloper Coastal Highway just got colder. My custom difficulty is set to “help is a myth” — and this diary is where it begins. This is a taster of what is to come next week
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Thursday – Skyrim Survives Another Day
Skyrim Survival – Day Five My Argonian’s back, colder than ever, and probably regretting their life choices again. Expect sneaking, sniping, and the occasional panic shout.
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Friday – Frostbite & Fur
The Long Dark – New Entry in A Voyageur’s Tale The Cold Chronicles continue with more frostbite, slightly less dignity, and whatever’s left in my food stash.
Survivor’s Short: The Moose Encounter He saw me. I saw him. Only one of us had antlers — and it wasn’t me.
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Plus: This Site Just Got A Bit Update
All entries for The Long Dark, Skyrim, and Day One Diaries have been turned into full posts (not pages!) so they’re easier to find, share, and follow.
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Thanks for Reading – And Surviving
Bookmark the blog, subscribe if you haven’t, and remember: in survival gaming, it’s not about thriving — it’s about laughing while everything falls apart.
Survivor Incognito 