Month: May 2013

A Few of My Faves

The Ozarks has no shortage of interesting places with legends of haunts. Below are some pics from a couple of my favorite legendary locales (plus a couple photos from my absolute favorite haunt, Lemp Mansion. Yeah, it’s not in the Ozarks, but well within the range of a quick roadtrip!) What are your favorite haunted hot spots? Let me know in the comments below or on Facebook!

Ready to Investigate?

If you are experiencing activity in your home, it’s always a good idea to get in contact with a professional and trustworthy investigation group for assistance (see the links on the right for a good place to start!). However, this video gives some excellent tips for those who want to investigate on their own.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDLv0HIOFL8

Defining the Field

You may be wondering just what it is that a ghost hunter (or paranormal investigator, for professionalism’s sake) is really looking for or may accidentally find.

If you’ve ever watched an episode of Ghost Hunters, you probably have a good feel for some paranormal jargon, but here’s a brief intro into some common paranormal terms. Visit The Atlantic Paranormal Society for some more glossary terms, tips, and other information.

Anomaly: Occurrence or condition outside of normal experience. Basically, lots of experiences out in the field can’t be completely understood as fully normal or paranormal. Things like unexplained smells, touches, or feelings while in the field are anomalies.

Apparition: Manifestation of some quasi-physical entity. Though commonly reported, apparitions are tricky to catch on camera. So, capturing one on film is like the Holy Grail of paranormal investigation. But be wary of photos/videos claiming to feature an apparition: due to the relative ease of tampering with video and digital evidence, hoaxes are abundant.

Debunking: Dismissing or explaining a claim, experience, or so-called paranormal event as something normal or at least physically explainable through research.

Entity: Disembodied “consciousness” which may be referred to as a ghost, presence, apparition, or even demon (if obviously resentful or malicious).

EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomenon): Disembodied “voices” or other sounds imprinted on recording equipment. EVPs can be captured on tape recorders, but for less static and clearer sound, a digital recorder is an investigator’s best friend. EVPs are relatively hard to find, and take a lot of patience in order to sift through possibly hours of silence.

Floating Orb: Usually a whitish or even bluish spherical image that appears inexplicably on film or other photographic equipment. Again, be wary of “orb evidence,” as it’s easy for amateurs to mistake things like dust particles or even bugs that happen to show up in photos as orbs, due to exposure and flash. If you find an “orb” in one of your own photos, is it perfectly round, and quite crisp-looking? Congratulations, you probably caught a dust speck on film, or maybe even a small bug. If it’s a little uneven, mist-like, or a tad smeary-looking, you may have a legitimate orb.

Haunting: Ghostly presence or manifestation attached to a specific place or person. Hauntings are divided into four basic types–Intelligent, Poltergeist, Residual, and Demonic. (For more explanation of the distinctions between these hauntings, TAPS and ProofParanormal have great information!)

Materialization: A ghost or apparition forming visually. (This is something I haven’t experienced, but would love to!)

Matrixing: Natural human tendency for the mind to “fill in the blanks” or interpret visual, audio, or other sensory information as familiar. Matrixing could be responsible for less-than-stellar paranormal “evidence” like people seeing images of a face or something in a random picture, or for seeing faces (other than their own) in mirrors.

This is by no means an exhaustive list or anything, just some of the terms I personally find interesting. Learning about these terms can help you understand what’s easily misconstrued as paranormal, and help you appreciate the occurrences that may very well be paranormal. As an investigator, the key is to know what is considered good, legitimate evidence, and what is easily debunked.

I encourage you to get out there and dive into the world of paranormal research, even if you just start out surfing the web for famous cases or definitions. Have fun, and happy hunting!

Equip Yourself

For a paranormal researcher, equipment is a must. Good equipment means a better chance of capturing reliable evidence, and reliable evidence is necessary to prove or even debunk a potential haunting. Here is a list of basic equipment that any ghost hunter should have, plus some fancy-dancy pieces of equipment that I’m drooling over until I get my hands on them.

Notebook and pen/pencil: Never underestimate the power of old-school equipment. This is good for keeping track of personal experiences that you can’t capture on film, and for recording equipment readings. Also, it doesn’t hurt to take momentary breaks during a hunt to reflect on what you’re feeling or thinking and to journal a bit.

Measuring tape: This allows you to get a feel for room dimensions and distances relating to any paranormal sightings you may experience. Taking room dimensions before starting an investigation can also help during the evidence review process.

Flashlight: LED lights are my personal fave. Be sure to pack plenty of extra batteries, because there’s nothing less useful than a dead flashlight. Plus, some say that paranormal activity has the potential to drain batteries, as the spirits may pull energy from the surroundings to manifest. It’s not a proven fact, but a few spare batteries don’t take up much room. Better safe than sorry! I usually bring along a crank-light, but find that the awful noise mine makes is just too much for me to handle when I’m in investigation mode.

Digital camera: I use a small Canon, which takes some good pictures. I’m sure some investigators use fancier cameras, but most any digital camera will do. Some researchers prefer 35 mm cameras over digital, because digital photos are easier to tamper with. If you go digital, spare batteries are always a good idea!

Camcorder: I don’t have one, so I tend to use the video feature on my digital camera if I need to. But camcorders are great for capturing extended periods of the investigation, and make it easy to review evidence once the investigation aspect is over.

Digital recorder: These are much easier to deal with than tape recorders, and produce less machine-created background noise. Digital recorders are often used to capture EVPs, and can also be useful in documenting events of the investigation. I have two small Sony’s that work rather well, didn’t cost an arm and a leg, and have USB capabilities that allow me to easily transfer files from device to my computer for backup and review.

Digital thermometer: Temperature changes (especially dramatic cooling) can be associated with paranormal activity. Digital thermometers help monitor such changes, and can help identify “cold spots” associated with manifestations. Besides being easier to read than traditional mercury thermometers, digital ones are more accurate. This is on my wish list…

EMF meter: This, too, is on my wish list. EMF meters measure Electromagnetic Frequency. A high EMF reading can be associated with paranormal activity, or more natural causes like power lines or electrical equipment. By finding a location’s “baseline” reading, it’s easier to find potentially natural causes, or watch for possibly paranormal spikes.

Thermal camcorder: Besides the really cool tie-dye-looking effect, these ultra-spiffy cameras capture temperature changes visually, making it easy to identify even slight temperature changes or sudden cold spots.

These relatively common pieces of equipment are regularly used in paranormal investigations. You may already have some of them lying around, so preparing for an investigation really isn’t all that difficult! Happy hunting!

Leave a Light On

Joplin, Missouri has some claims to fame. Other than the tragic and deadly EF-5 tornado that ripped through the town in May 2011, it has some more lighthearted notoriety, like being mentioned in the script of The Music Man, on The Beverly Hillbillies, and being the filming location for Trick My Truck once upon a time.

But it’s also been home to a unique and unsolved legend for more than a century.

The Spook Light

Now known as the Joplin Spook Light, a small “ball of fire” was first spotted by Indians traveling the Trail of Tears in 1836. In 1881, a publication titled The Ozark Spook Light made the first “official” report.

The Spook Light is still reportedly seen to this day, and is often described as an orange glowing ball ranging from the size of a baseball to the size of a basketball. It is said to spin or dance down the center of the road, hover above treetops, and then retreat. Others have said it appears to swing side to side, like a lantern being carried. Locals say that the time between 10 p.m. and midnight is prime Spook Light viewing time.

The light is said to be seen along a four-mile stretch of gravel road called Devil’s Promenade by many locals. Although it’s most widely known as the Joplin Spook Light, other nearby communities also lay claim to the enigma. Some in Quapaw, Oklahoma have claimed to have seen the light. The light is also known as the Hornet Spook Light; Hornet is a small community near Joplin.
For years, people have been trying to find out just what the Spook Light really is. Countless paranormal investigators, scientists, and even curious locals have gathered on the gravel road near Hornet to try to catch a glimpse. Even the Army Corps of Engineers has tried to find an explanation for the mysterious light.

Some theories have been presented to attempt to explain the light’s origin, such as escaping natural gas, reflections of car lights, and even rotting organic matter. Even atmospheric electrical charges have been offered as an explanation.

But local legends were used to explain the light years ago. One of the oldest legends tells of a Quapaw Indian woman who fell in love with a brave, but her father wouldn’t let her marry him. The two eloped, but were followed by warriors. They joined hands above the Spring River and leaped to their deaths. Legend has it that shortly after this event, the light began appearing, and was attributed to the lovers’ spirits.

My Journey to the Light

Needless to say, I find the Spook Light incredibly interesting, and about four years ago, I set out with a friend to try and catch a glimpse. We traveled all the way to Joplin, with directions we printed off the internet and a GPS device (I didn’t have a smartphone yet!).

We eventually were led past the tiny town of Hornet, and to the four-mile stretch of road where the light is usually seen. We parked at a dip in the road, because our directions told us that was the best kind of place to see the light.

We quickly realized that we weren’t the only ones looking for the light. I guess I expected a desolate gravel road, with only my car searching for the Spook Light. But that’s not what we got. There were cars parked along both sides of the road, people standing out in the October chill with binoculars, and little kids running around with flashlights. A couple of times, I thought for a moment I saw something, but it was just a car coming over a hill maybe a mile away.

Although I didn’t get to actually see the Spook Light, I don’t think I can count it out as swamp gas or something. And I really want to get back out to Joplin and try spotting the Spook Light again sometime soon. If you’re ever in the area, it could be a fun adventure, and you can decide for yourself what the Spook Light might be.