GhosthuntersPage

WITH the REAL GHOST HUNTERS

One of the great things that has happened since writing The Case for Ghosts is that I have been afforded the opportunity to meet and talk with the real Ghosthunters, TAPS co-founders Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson. This came about through my association with Dave and Tim over at DarknessRadio, who afforded me the chance to speak at a number of their sponsored events, the most recent being the paranormal conference at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado. Both are great guys who are not only very knowledgable about the subject of ghosts, but alot of fun to boot. Here are a couple more shots of Grant and Jason with my family.

It wasn't all fun and games while we were there, however. Jason, Grant, and I did have some success getting one of the spirits at the Stanley Hotel to manifest for us. This is us intensely focusing our psychic energies on the materializing entity.

Actually, this is a sample of the superb paranormal photographs done by photographer Adam Blai. Adam does this stuff as an art form and is, as far as I know, the only person who does it. Very cool stuff. So how does he do it? Pretty simple, really. He had us stand around an empty chair while he "painted" the entity with light while leaving the shutter open in a totally dark room. This allows him to create some really eerie and spectacular effects. To see more samples of his work, check out his website at www.happyvalleystudio.com. Many thanks to Adam for doing this for me, and for Jason and Grant for playing along. Fun was had by all.

The Haunted Queen Mary?

My wife and I attended a paranormal conference onboard the HMS Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA in January, which proved to be some of the greatest fun we've had in a long time. Very haunted locale with great people and lots to do. The best part of the trip, however, was getting to meet the members of the TAPs team—Jason Hawes, Grant Wilson, Lisa Dowaliby, Chris Fleming, Donna LaCroix, et al—in person (actually, I met Jason, Grant, and Chris last November at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park). I didn't get a chance to talk to the guys much, but here are a couple of pictures I took with the girls of TAPS (also known as the "Divas of Darkness"). Click on the pictures to see them larger.

That's me with Lisa Dowaliby on the left and my wife, Carol, and Donna LaCroix on the right. Super gals who were nice enough to endorse my book and introduce me at the seminar. Definitely much better looking than Jason and Grant. Now I have even more reason to watch the show (if and when it comes back on the air again.)

By the way, the ladies are trying to raise money for breast cancer research (I guess Lisa had a little scare recently) and are selling calendars called The Divas of Darkness for $15 a pop, so if you'd like to help them out and get a way cool little calendar in the deal, go to www.Divasofdarkness.net and order it now!

Here's another shot of me and my wife with one of our favorite ghost hunters, Lisa. We were fortunate enough to sit next to her at dinner (and we didn't even have to bid in the auction for the opportunity. Pity the poor sucker who got stuck with Jason or Grant ;-)

Me with Dave Schrader, head honcho at Darkness Radio and organizer of the event. Nicest weird guy I ever met (his partner, Tim, is equally as weird and as nice. Well...maybe a little weirder.)

If you ever get a chance to stay onboard the Queen Mary, take it. It's great fun, way haunted, and an unforgettable taste of 1930's-era art deco luxury. It's a little pricey (around $120-$150 a night unless you can get a deal) battered—the thing is seventy years old after all—and the walls are paper thin, but overall well worth checking out.

Here's a shot looking forward from the bridge towards the bow. See the conning tower to the left of the bow? That's a little Alpha Class Soviet submarine that you can also tour. Interesting, but the thing is really a piece of crap. Built in 1974, it is more primitive inside than most WWII-era diesel boats I've been onboard.Really makes you appreciate how much more advanced our Navy is than theirs.

Okay, so I suppose you want to know if I saw any ghosts onboard. Well, you be the judge. On the left is a shot of our stateroom looking towards the portholes. Nothing much to see.

When I took the next shot from across the room about ten seconds later, however, not one but two little orbs appeared (click on photo to see larger version)! I didn't notice them at the time and was only able to see them once I lightened the photo and upped the contrast in Photoshop, but there they are! Not spooky...but very interesting.

Now I'm not a big orb fan, but I have to admit to being a little surprised and excited about capturing the first orb pictures I've ever taken in my life.

Everybody who follows this stuff knows that the Queen Mary's first-class pool area is supposed to be the most haunted part of the ship, which is why I snapped a few pictures of it during our ghost hunt. Not remarkably, this orb shows up drifting near the ceiling. I didn't see any of these things at the time and only discovered them later when I tried to lighten the photos. (The room is kept pretty dark which explains the poor quality of the shot. Really, it's not my fault!)

NOTE: Orbs are usually explained away as the reflection of the flash off of airborne dust particles or insects, which many of them probably are. However, I do wonder why of all the thousands of photos I've taken over my lifetime (and the hundreds taken with this camera) I only get dust reflections at haunted locales. I shoot pictures under many different conditions of weather and light and have never NEVER caught an orb before, so it does make me wonder if the dust particle hypothesis isn't just a little too simple. Definitely something to think about!

So what's my impression of the Queen Mary? Wouldn't be surprised if it's as haunted as Dracula's Winnebago. Go check it out for yourself if you get a chance...if you dare.

Finally, thanks again to Dave and Tim at Darkness Radio for inviting me to the QM and giving me a chance to pontificate to the crowds. You guys are great fun! (P.S. You would be a fool to not check out their show and website). Also, special thanks to Lisa and Donna for your very kind words of encouragement and the genuine enthusiasm you showed both for my book and for the work you continue to do so well. With you folks on the job, those citizens of the ethereal realm don't have a ghost of a chance of remaining hidden for much longer. Keep up the good work!

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