Campfires encourage storytelling. If we’re fortunate, we remember scary tales that went well with the marshmallows and hot dogs we cooked while we listened. Chuck Riley has probably gone to the great campfire in the sky where hall of fame storytellers spin tales, but many years ago he made summer-camp kids like me believe monsters were in the Catskill forest just beyond the fire’s flames.

For those who don’t have that narrative skill, James Appleton, who also hosts “The 46 of 46 Podcast,” offers both fanciful and familiar stories in his “Adirondack Campfire Stories – Tales and Folklore from Inside the Blue Line.” There are nine campfire stories, and six folklore. It’s a collection both for reading and re-telling.

In “The Ghost Town of Adirondac,” Eve drives from Brooklyn to the trailhead at Tahawus, and sets out for a beautiful autumn hike. But she’s not alone — some workmen pass her on the trail, the snippet of their conversation seeming to be about seeking jobs building a new park in New York City: Central Park — which was started in the 1850s!

Further along the trail, “Eve moved through the branches toward the light … and suddenly a bustling village spread before her eyes.” Everything Eve encounters suggests she’s hiking through time and taken a step back to the middle of the 19th century. Confused, she wonders if she’s really back in Brooklyn dreaming weird dreams.

“The Five Ponds Bigfoot: A True Story” is a deer hunter’s first person account of the strange and frightening occurrences at his isolated camp. There are mysterious nighttime sounds, and the inexplicable disappearance of the deer carcass hung far off the ground between trees to frustrate hungry bears. But there’s no evidence of a foraging bear, and no evidence of the deer that’s no longer part of the pulley system.

These are typical campfire stories — local and unlikely, but engrossing and fun.

In the folklore portion, Appleton reminds us of some familiar Adirondack history. The discovery of Mabel Douglass Smith’s body near Lake Placid’s Pulpit Rock in 1963 has been treated before, both in fiction and non-fiction. But here it’s well-done — maybe not news, clear and still engaging.

I admit to not always understanding the distinction Appleton makes in categorizing stories as “campfire” and “folklore.” There seems to be some overlap, maybe just in tone. I also don’t think it matters. In his introduction, the author hopes “these tales bring just enough fun to your next outdoor adventure.” They do.