Poltergeist Activity

A friend recently related a story to me about the place where he works. He said that some strange things have been occurring there. Voices can be heard after hours in an otherwise empty building. Items will go missing only to be found later in the most unlikely places. One morning he said that upon arriving to work early he had found numerous items scattered about the work area. Upon asking fellow employees if they had moved the items before they had left the night before, the response was "No".  The longer fellow employees work at this place, the more their personality seems to change. And not in a good way. 

Is this the result of poltergeist activity?

The Reveal.....

WOW! What an experience! 

Very surreal. 

If one wasn't a believer in spirits before, a ghost hunt at Miramont Castle would certainly make them a believer. 

The Ghost Hunt was led by the group The Haunted Dimensions. And yes, they used K2 meters, flir camera, and a nifty app on their pads - Ghost Radar. Ghost Radar works very much like the Ghost Box by scanning through radio frequencies quite rapidly and detects sound bytes which it then can translate into words. (a simplistic definition)

There were two groups of approx. 13 people plus at least 3 investigators. One group started at the top on the fourth floor. And the other group started in the basement. Each group worked its way through the Castle and eventually met up for coffee where we compared notes. We then split up into smaller groups to investigate our 'favorite' spot. 

While nothing like seeing an apparition or being touched by something happened to me, some of the night's attendees did speak of experiencing such things.  My night's remembrances are of flashlights. And questions being answered. The Lead Investigator would ask yes/no questions and ask for the spirit to respond by turning on the flashlight. This happened a lot! Some of the resident spirits were quite chatty. I guess you could say these were intelligent hauntings. On two occasions I volunteered to sit in one of the rooms by myself with only a flashlight, camera and recorder. I spent at least 15 minutes, maybe more, 'chatting' with a boy(?) from Europe who had been at the Castle because he was ill - perhaps ill with tuberculosis. Very surreal to hear the words on the Ghost Radar and to see this flashlight, which is positioned across the room with absolutely nothing around it, go on and off.

I had no doubt about the existence of spirits or ghosts before our trip to Miramont Castle. And what I experienced only reinforced those beliefs.

Brief History: Miramont Castle is located in Manitou Springs, Colorado and was built in 1895 as a private residence for Father Jean Baptist Francolon, a French born Catholic priest, and his mother. The Castle is an eclectic mix of architectural styles - from Byzantine to Tudor. The Sisters of  Mercy shared the property with the Father and operated a sanitarium, caring for people with a variety of illnesses who came to Manitou Springs for the 'miraculous healing waters' which flowed from the various springs. After the Father left for the East coast under a cloud of suspicion in 1900, the Sisters stayed on to run the sanitarium - tuberculosis was by now the main illness but recovering soldiers returning from the Wars would soon fill the rooms. The Castle eventually fell into disrepair but in 1976 the Manitou Springs Historical Society purchased the building and began renovation to the structure. Today Miramont Castle is on the National Historic register and serves as a museum which houses only a portion of the rich history of Colorado.

*** Note to Self : Add Daytime Tour of Miramont Castle to Roadtrip Bucket List ***

A Ghost Hunting We Will Go!

Exciting news! Hubby & I are scheduled to go on a Ghost Hunt tonight! **cue creepy music**

How exciting is that!

We will be two of the 20 people who will be investigating Miramont Castle in Manitou Springs with the Parahistorical Team, The Haunted Dimensions.

Check back on Tuesday for the big Reveal!

Ghostly Singles

Are you tired of Haunting alone? 

Has the fun vanished from those midnight wanderings in the cemetery?

Well, Ghost Singles is the place for you!

At Ghost Singles you can meet others from the ethereal plane just like yourself!

Find yourself a date for that Seance! Or just chat with someone of like interests - chain-rattling! walking through walls! scaring the pi$$ out of someone!

So don't attend the Hallowe'en Party alone this year! Go to Ghost Singles and find your perfect Spirit!

all images courtesy of Magickal Graphics

Roadtrip ~ Hotel Colorado & Cigar Smoking Man

Hubby and I spent our 'weekend away' at the Hotel Colorado. 

The Hotel Colorado was built in 1893 by silver magnate, Walter Devereux at a cost of $850,000. The architect designed the building as a replica of the Villa de Medici. Devereaux spared no expense in its construction and imported many things like the carpet and rose bushes but native stone was used in its construction.

The original design had a pond located in the center of the courtyard and guests could catch their own trout for a meal. Today a small koi pond with a lovely fountain graces the grounds.

I can only imagine what a sight this must have been to travelers of the Old West. 

The Hotel Colorado was a luxury resort and many famous people have walked its halls. The 'Unsinkable' Molly Brown, Diamond Jack Alterie (and other Chicago Gangsters), President Herbert Hoover, President William Howard Taft, and President Theodore Roosevelt.  

President Theodore Roosevelt liked the Hotel and the area so much he stayed there on several occasions. And according to legend, the Hotel Colorado was the birthplace of the Teddy Bear (not really sure what the true story is about how or why the teddy bear was created - I found three different stories).

In 1942 the Hotel was leased to the Navy for the use as a hospital. In the 4 year period it was utilized to care for those injured in WWII, it serviced over 6,500 patients. The basement was used as a morgue.

Walking through the Hotel, a person gets a sense of comfort that comes with age and familiarity. 

The wooden banisters glow from the multitude of hands which have run up and down them.

Entrance to restaurant made from native pink sandstone

I had read of stories of otherworldly happenings at the Hotel Colorado and wondered if we would get to meet any of the long-past guests. 

We didn't have long to wonder. Upon exiting the elevator and walking to our room, the distinct smell of cigar smoke could be detected. Nothing heavy like cigar smoke can be but something just ever so light. 

Hall outside our room

In the three days we were there, we encountered on many occasions the faint odor of cigars in the hall outside our room. On one occasion, Hubby had left to go outside and only moments after he had gone, I could smell cigar in the room with me! Now keep in mind that the Hotel Colorado is Non-Smoking!

Who was the cigar-smoking man? 

Let's get some rest, we're going 'caving' next week!

And just ignore any bumps or moans you might hear in the dead of night.....

Coffins and Other Chill Inducing Images

Some images from past Frozen Dead Guy Events ~ the Coffin Races, Polar Plunge and other "Chilling" Pics!

Source of Images

All Hallow's Eve

Halloween is a celebration of Spooks and Goblins, Spirits and Witches, Mysteries and Magick. What we now call Halloween actually evolved from an ancient European holiday known as All Hollow's Eve. This was the day supernatural spirits were known to wander the earth. It began as the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. Samhain marked the moment when the veil between the living and the dead was lifted and the inhabitants of the two worlds could commune. For about 2000 years, October 31st meant bidding goodbye to summer, welcoming winter and remembering the dead. Samhain marked the death of the old year and the birth of the next. It was a day of the dead, a night of magick and mystery, a time when ghosts and lost souls roamed the land. According to legend, every Samhain the souls of the dead were set free by the Lord of the Dead. It was believed that many of these spirits then roamed the natural world searching for bodies to possess. Families began dressing in scary disguises and noisily marching around their neighborhoods to scare away these immortal souls. This practice became the origin of the modern Halloween tradition of wearing costumes. So the next time you are choosing what to be for Halloween, remember all those spirits looking for a strong healthy body to inhabit, and pick a costume that is truly terrifying!

From Ghoulies and Ghosties.....

To Long-legged Beasties. And things that go bump in the night.

I would be remiss to not include some ghost stories ~ especially this close to Halloween.

I can remember my sisters telling me ghost stories when I was little, trying to scare me. Sometimes it worked. But mostly it made me want to hear more stories about ghosts and other oddities. I have lived in many regions of the country throughout my life and I have tried to collect ghost stories from each area. Many have a common thread running through them.

I am providing some links to stories of ghosts and other mysterious things I thought you might enjoy reading.

Haunted Arkansas
Hell's Half Acre
American Folklore
Legends of America
The Witches Way
The Moonlit Road

Do ghosts really exist? Only they know the answer to that question.

Happy Haunting!

Ghosts, Spooks, Haunts

One of the Art Groups to which I belong on eBay is called HAGS - Halloween Artists Gathering Spot. The Group has had a new theme every week beginning the end of September and continuing to October 25th. The members will create something in keeping with the current theme and then list the item(s) on eBay.

This week's theme is Ghosts/Goblins. I created three Fairy Doors with Ghosts for my submissions. All three of these Little Doors for the Fae Folk are currently listed on Ebay.

Even the Fae Folk celebrate Halloween! Happy Haunting!!