Haunted Locations on Vancouver Island

My new book The Haunting of Vancouver Island is now available. Many of these stories are told in full, complete with images.

Haunted Vancouver Island

The following is a list of haunted locations on Vancouver Island. It only covers areas north of Victoria. I’ve created a separate post for the Greater Victoria area. The Gulf Islands, between Vancouver Island and the British Columbia mainland are included.

The list is source based, meaning locations are added if they’ve received enough oral, media, or online recognition. They’ve been organized into three sections, Part I: Generally Considered Haunted, Part II: Less Verified Hauntings, and Part III: Giants of the Wood, Monsters in the Water, & Lights in the Sky, listed geographically from the south of the island to the north, as one would be driving from Victoria.

People across Vancouver Island have left comments about their experiences at the bottom of the page. If you’d like to share your own, please feel free to do so. Subscribe to the blog if you’d like to be notified when new posts are available.

Part I: Generally Considered Haunted

Haunted Vancouver Island
First Nation Village. 1878

Bedwell Harbour, Pender Island An apparition of a traditional First Nations warrior has been reported. A Yew tree in the harbour is also said to be haunted by the spirit of a First Nations woman. It should be noted that in some cultures, the Yew tree is associated with the dead. Activity occurs in a nearby pub as well, where “mist” and “fog” apparitions are seen, voices are heard, and poltergeist activity is reported.

  • Ghost Stories & Mysterious Creatures of British Columbia by Barbara Smith (1999)
  • Ghosts: More Eerie Encounters by Robert C. Belyk (2006)

Harbour House Hotel, Salt Spring Island (open) Audible phenomena and poltergeist activity is experienced. Spirit is believed to be Walter Herzog who is said to have been murdered in 1973. Electrical appliances are problematic. Moaning and whispering have been heard as well.

  • Ghost Stories of British Columbia by Jo-Ann Christensen (1996) – according to the author, a local psychic is fighting to have the hotel exorcised while hotel staff oppose, believing that the spirit has said it wants to stay.
  • Ghost Stories & Mysterious Creatures of British Columbia by Barbara Smith (1999) author also speaks of the rights of spirits.
  • Hotel site (not on haunting)

Black Nugget Museum, Ladysmith (closed) Poltergeist activity is reported and footsteps are heard. One psychic-medium claimed that the spirit is that of a First Nations woman whose remains are in the museum. Neighbours have seen an apparition in an upstairs window of a man with a handlebar mustache. The piano sometimes plays “a few notes,” as well.

  • Ghost Stories of British Columbia by Jo-Ann Christensen (1996)
  • Ghost Stories & Mysterious Creatures of British Columbia by Barbara Smith (1999)
  • CTV Vancouver Island: Ghost Stories From the Gold Nugget Museum (video)
  • Nanaimo Discussion thread – Haunted Places in Nanaimo

Valdez Spit, (Valdes) Island A dancing First Nation warrior’s apparition has been reported, similar to the Pender Island apparition. Cedar Point, De Courcy Island, and Valdez Island are all connected to the historic Brother XII cult, which has been linked to paranormal activity around the historic properties on these islands as well as in Cedar.

  • A Gathering of Ghosts by Robin Skelton & Jean Kozocari (1989) – Brother XII
  • Ghosts: True Tales of Eerie Encounters by Robert C. Belyk (1990) – First Nations

Newcastle Island Park It’s commonly stated that this island’s “the most haunted island in the Pacific.” Many people have died in the mines beneath Newcastle, and at least one person died when it was briefly a smallpox colony. This forested park’s most famous ghost, however, is that of Peter Kakua, a Hawaiian axe murderer who killed his wife, in-laws and infant daughter. No cemetery was available to him, so he was buried in an unmarked grave on the island to which he had fled. His last night alive was spent in the Bastion (see next entry). His spirit is said to roam the beaches at dusk. There are many urban legends of teenagers disappearing, etc.

The Bastion Fort, Nanaimo (open) Audio and poltergeist activity has been reported since the 60s. The apparition of a woman in a long dress was seen by at least one witness. In 2004, Vancouver Paranormal Society claimed to have captured some video evidence and the image of a bearded man in “the grain of the wood.” Kanaka Pete was incarcerated here before he was hanged.

Globe Hotel, Nanaimo Previous business’ staff had seen the apparition of a woman in an old-fashioned dress “gliding” down the stairs, or in the kitchen. Crying has also been heard upstairs. The spirit is said to be a former head dancer who was killed when the location was a strip bar, but there are no records of this and it would not explain the old-fashioned dress. In 2005, a medium was brought in to clear out the spirits, but incidents are still said to occur. Poltergeist activity has also been reported as well as people not feeling alone.

  • Spirits & Ghosts of Downtown Nanaimo CD by Donna Hill & Bruce Angus (2007)
  • Nanaimo Daily News: Harbour City Full of Ghost Tales

Beban House, Nanaimo (Previous Tourism Nanaimo building) “Several” apparitions have been seen and poltergeist activity has been reported. Doors open and close on their own, and are often locked unexplainably. An Asian boy in old-fashioned dress has been seen by many witnesses – especially children – bouncing a red ball. An RCMP police officer is said to have seen the apparition of a woman. Beban House is the current office for the Nanaimo Clippers Junior Hockey Club.

  • The Haunting of Vancouver Island by Shanon Sinn (2017)
  • Ghosts: True Tales of Eerie Encounters by Robert C. Belyk (1990)
  • Nanaimo Daily News: Storied Nanaimo Landmark New Chapter
  • Creepy Canada, Season 1 episode 6 (video)
  • CTV Vancouver Island: Ghost Stories from Beban House (video)

Qualicum Heritage Inn, Qualicum (closed for development) The list of reported activity reported at the Qualicum Heritage building is long. Multiple apparitions have been reported and poltergeist activity is said to be epidemic. A man in an old-fashioned military uniform, a boy who staff have nicknamed “Buddy”, and a woman have all been seen. Multiple witnesses claim to have seen or experienced phenomena (more).

  • The Haunting of Vancouver Island by Shanon Sinn (2017)
  • Ghosts: True Tales of Eerie Encounters by Robert C. Belyk (1990)
  • Keira-anne Blog: Island Profile, Haunted Hotspot
  • Creepy Canada, Season 1 episode 3
  • A walk around the boarded up property (video) 

Cameron Lake Various hauntings are reported in this area. The smell of pipe smoke, strange feelings, etc. are believed to be Grandpa Bonny at one cabin. Ghost lights are seen along the old lake trail as well. A highway apparition is also reported here. The Cameron Lake monster from section III (below) is reported here as well. There have also been Sasquatch sightings in the area & unidentified lights have been reported over the mountains to the north. The lake is less than 5 km from the mysterious monkey sighting (MDA) as well. If there’s ever been a place where all types of paranormal activity occurs, then this has gotta be it!

Pachena Point, Bamfield (Ghost ship. SS Valencia) A phantom ship has been reported 12 km south of Bamfield where over 100 people died during a 1906 shipwreck. The area’s part of the Graveyard of the Pacific. Other ships have claimed to have seen the Valencia since it’s perished. Also, a First Nations party exploring caves reported a life raft “full of skeletons” nearby. An unidentified ship with people clinging to it has apparently been seen sinking off of the same rocks as well.  The haunting’s generally accepted as current, even though the most recent recorded reports are historic (also see Keeha Beach below).

Schooner Restaurant, Tofino (open) An apparition of a male has been reported. “Quirky” or strange incidents have occurred, believed by owners and staff to be the ghost of a deceased chef named Morris Shank. According to Historic Tofino: a Walking Tour, the building was part of a military hospital and then was a Masonic Lodge. It became a restaurant in the 80s.

Siwash Hill Road & Cemetery, Comox Usually said to be in Courtenay, Siwash Hill seems to also be Comox Hill listed below (source). Furthermore, the Siwash Hill entities may actually have been two separate spirits. One was of a green cloud-mist near the cemetery (probably Pioneer Park), which was only seen over a short period of time. The second was of an apparition of a woman with a hideous face “nothing like a human face” without arms and legs. She’s believed to have been a casualty from an ancient First Nation battle. A road crew is said to have found her skeleton and the haunting stopped.

  • Ghosts: True Tales of Eerie Encounters by Robert C. Belyk (1990)
  • Ghost Stories & Mysterious Creatures of British Columbia by Barbara Smith (1999)
  • Ghosts: More Eerie Encounters by Robert C. Belyk (2006)
  • Historic Haunted America: by Michael Norman & Beth Scott (2006)

Comox Avenue (Comox Hill Road), Comox The apparition along this road is known as Dancing Mary, a First Nations woman who lived in the early settlement. The legend says that after she disappeared, people believed she was murdered by her abusive white-pioneer husband (sometimes fiancé). He would tell people that she left him so no charges were ever brought against him. Mary’s been described as beautiful, and is seen dancing along the road “inside a blue mist.” A soldier during the 2nd World War drove his bike through the mist and reporting a freezing cold sensation. This may have been the last sighting.

  • Ghost Stories & Mysterious Creatures of British Columbia by Barbara Smith (1999)
  • Ghosts: More Eerie Encounters by Robert C. Belyk (2006)

Sandwick Manor, Courtenay (heritage site) Apparition was believed to have been “Aunt” Anna Duncan who had passed away in 1927. Two 12-year-old girls had seen her, as she appeared and told one in 1938 that her family was safe, & later appeared to the other girl in 1998. A misty glow has also been seen in the past. Lightbulbs had been found unscrewed. No activity has been reported following renovations. This heritage site will likely be a commercial business in the near future.

  • If More Walls Could Talk: Vancouver Island’s Houses From the Past by Valerie Green (2004)
  • CTV Vancouver Island: Ghost Stories from Sandwick Manor (video)

Forbidden Plateau, Strathcona Provincial Park There’s an old First Nation legend that says evil spirits killed and ate unprotected women and children here. Some have doubted the validity of this legend. Historically, several people have, in fact, met strange deaths in this park, and there have been some Sasquatch claims as well. The ski resort had a fire and was never reopened. Interestingly, the strongest recorded land earthquake in Canada is usually said to have had its epicentre here. It measured 7.3.

Heriot Bay Inn, Quadra Island (open) The apparition of a man in old-fashioned clothing is reported. Poltergeist activity such as lights turning on and objects moving has been noted as well as a spirit believed to be a woman. The male spirit’s believed to be a logger who was once killed in a bar brawl and buried outside the property (comment with account below) (more).

Zeballos Hotel, Zeballos (destroyed by fire, new hotel on site) The apparition of Susie Woo, a Chinese hotel maid from the 1940s, had been seen on several occasions. She’d died in room #1, and poltergeist activity was later reported in the same room. The new hotel is the Post & Beam Lodge (new activity said to be occurring by commenter near the bottom of comment section).

  • Ghost Stories & Mysterious Creatures of British Columbia by Barbara Smith (1999)
  • Ghosts: More Eerie Encounters by Robert C. Belyk (2006)
  • Times Colonist: Fire Destroys Historic Island Hotel (Oct 9, 2008)

 

So Mote It Be

Part II: Less Verified Hauntings

Haunted Vancouver Island

Hastings House Hotel, Salt Spring Island The original builder buried a clay pot beneath the hearth to repel witches. The Farmhouse has been said to be haunted for some time, as well. The “translucent” apparition of a woman in white was seen by at least one server and poltergeist activity has been reported, as well. One web page previously mentioned one building’s occult history, but this information is no longer available.

Weston Lake, Beaver Point Road, Salt Spring Island The apparition of a drowned First Nations man from the sixties has been seen by at least two separate witnesses near the lake. He’s now believed to be “at peace” due to a First Nations-style tree memorial built by one of the witnesses. Also, on Beaver Point Road an orchard is said to be haunted by Mrs. Peavine who’s believed to have succumbed to a beating from her husband that also killed their unborn twins.

  • Ghosts: More Eerie Encounters by Robert C. Belyk (2006)
  • Times Past: Salt Spring Island Houses & History (1983)

Mount Tzouhalem, Duncan An apparition of a First Nations warrior has been reported, believed to be Chief Tzouhalem (forum). Some report creepy feelings of being watched on the mountain and near Butter Church. Chief Tzouhalem was a mystic who talked to spirits including a “cannibal” spirit that helped him kill people. He once led an unsuccessful attack on Fort Victoria and his powers are said to have been feared by First Nations people along the east coast of the island. He had a cave he retreated to on Tzouhalem mountain, where it’s believed he meditated, fasted, and conducted rituals.

Sicker Mountain, Chemainus There’s a local legend that a headless woman’s apparition has been seen at the old Sicker town’s site, which is now a ghost town. The story states that an early miner found his wife cheating and killed her, either by accident – when he tried to kill the man – or on purpose. He then cut her up and scattered her remains across the site. Now she’s searching for her head. I originally heard the story from one source (comment below), and was able to find another second-hand claim on the following thread. Also, a UFO enthusiast disappeared here in 1980 and is believed to have blown himself up. The mountain is reported to be an active Sasquatch area, as well (comments with accounts below).

Calico Tea House, Nanaimo (open) Psychics read tea leaves for customers at this location. The older male spirit reported is said to be friendly on the owner’s site, but also “miserable” on the forum site.

Hunt Estate, Nanaimo (aka Strickland or Harbourview House) In the following forums many claim to have had personal experiences at this site. There are claims that the previous owners left suddenly, abandoning all of their possessions including a car. Unfortunately, this grande heritage home had a squatter fire and was torn down before 2007.

Courthouse, Nanaimo (open) During the trial of Brother XII, a type of spiritual warfare was conducted between Brother XII & the disenfranchised members of the Aquarian Foundation and others who dared to bring him to court. Brother XII was said to have used discarnate spirits in order to attack witnesses using a type of “black magic.” Eventually, a group who brought him to court used First Nation spirit-medicine (magic) to retaliate, and won their case. People have heard unexplained footsteps in the courthouse or have felt unnatural cold patches, as well. An old dismantled elevator has been heard moving even though it should not be possible. The following CD narrator claims to have captured images of orbs in the courthouse, as well. Interestingly, Francis Rattenbury designed the building, and is said to haunt two of his other buildings in Victoria.

  • Brother Twelve by John Oliphant (1991)
  • Spirits & Ghosts of Downtown Nanaimo CD by Donna Hill & Bruce Angus (2007)

Nanaimo Travel, Nanaimo (open) Items have been known to be moved, unexplained footsteps are heard, and doors are said to open and close on their own. Staff have claimed that they often felt a presence in the building.

  • Spirits & Ghosts of Downtown Nanaimo CD by Donna Hill & Bruce Angus (2007)

Bastion House, Nanaimo (Hair Salon & Space for lease) The building is on the site of the Old Mechanics Literary Institute (1864) which became the city hall (1886). Over the years, it was also the old jail and a school. It was demolished in 1972 and a new building was built on the site. “The Flying Dutchman” Henry Wagner from the Butch Cassidy gang is said to have been hanged where the parking lot is now. Doors open and close, rattling chains are heard and items are moved without explanation.

  • Spirits & Ghosts of Downtown Nanaimo CD by Donna Hill & Bruce Angus (2007)

Franklyn Street Gymnasium, Nanaimo (Aboriginal Friendship Centre’s Youth Drop-in Centre)  Built in 1922, the gym has a reputation for being haunted. A security guard had unspecified experiences which is shared second-hand in the forum. There is also a story of a person having a ball thrown at them. The gym is mentioned at other places but the story is likewise not really elaborated upon.

  • Nanaimo Information Forum: Haunted Stuff & History of Witchcraft in Nanaimo

E & N Train Station, Nanaimo (Fibber Maggee’s Irish Pub) The E & N Station suffered massive damages from an unexplained fire in 2007. Previously, witnesses had claimed to have heard unexplained noises inside the station and were particularly uncomfortable in one of the rooms in which a man confined to a wheelchair had lived. The building underwent massive restorations and was reopened in 2012 as Fibber Maggees. No new activity has been reported.

  • Nanaimo Daily News: Harbour City Full of Ghost Tales 
  • Nanaimo Information: Haunted Places in Nanaimo

The Occidental Hotel (Oxy), Nanaimo (open) Poltergeist activity has been observed by multiple witnesses in the kitchen. It’s believed that the spirit is the original owner Sam Fiddick’s son, who was scalded to death in the kitchen in the 1890s.

  • Nanaimo Daily News: Harbour City Full of Ghost Tales

Gallows Point, Protection Island This location – where Nanaimo’s first hanging took place – is said to be haunted by two First Nation men who had been hanged here for murder. The point was originally called Tide Staff Point but was later named Execution Point. Eventually, the spot became known as Gallows Point. On the CD listed below, an older lady realized that two men in old-fashioned clothing she’d seen as a kid were the ghosts of the hanged men. They had been hanged at the entrance of the harbour as an example for all to see. Since then, they’ve been seen here “over the years.”

  • CD Spirits & Ghosts of Downtown Nanaimo by Donna Hill & Bruce Angus (2007)

South Crescent Street, Port Alberni There are rumours that this whole street is haunted. Incidents include poltergeist activity and people experiencing being touched. One site claims that shadow figures have been seen here as well. The forum site is not well moderated.

Stamp Falls & Somass River, Port Alberni Stamp River is a tributary of Somass River. At the Stamp River Falls there are reports of ghost lights, some of which appear aggressive. There is a local legend of a female First Nations apparition which is seen on the Somass River at Paper Mill Damn Park. One commenter said she saw a woman emerge from the Somass River. This apparition appeared fully dry, and after looking at her and her friend for a moment, is said to have vanished (comments with accounts below).

Keeha Beach (Bay), Bamfield There’s an oral tradition on Vancouver Island of this beach being a sacred or holy place where several people have had personal experiences. Hippy and new-age-type people have made spiritual quests here, most notably the rainbow gatherings from roughly 1992 – 1997. The island at the mouth of the bay is said to have been used as a First Nation Cemetery. The village of Kixx?in, which is thousands of years old, to the north of the beach, was abandoned after a massacre. There are believed to be spirits there, as well. The location where the S.S. Valencia (above) ghost ship sank at Pachena Point is just over 5km (by water) south. While camping in 1998, I myself witnessed strange lights at the south end of the beach (more below).

Old House Restaurant, Courtenay (now Locals) Poltergeist activity’s been reported in this restaurant, which used to be – surprisingly – a house. The previous owners believed the spirit is a maid named Lena, who’d drowned in the nearby river. She’s described as being playful. One woman reported having her hair pulled, and other people have claimed to have seen candles blow out, or becoming lit on their own.

  • CTV Vancouver Island: Ghost Stories from the Old House Restaurant in Courtenay (video)

Owen Bay, Sonora Island The original settler of the island disappeared and was never found. Footsteps were heard walking above people who were sleeping on a moored boat, as well as heavy chains falling. Several boats left the bay in the middle of the night when this occurred, presumably spooked by the same experience. The sound of oars in the water was heard by another witness when no boat was present. A candle was seen lit on shore in an old shed when no one was there, either.

Shoal Bay, East Thurlow Island A logger wearing cork boots is said to haunt the bay of this island. Descriptions of him are vague, but he’s said to have been improperly buried.

 

So Mote It Be

Additional:

The Diplomat Motel, Nanaimo (open) The white figure of a man in military attire was reported in a forum that no longer exists.

Mermaid’s Mug, Nanaimo (Yours & Mine) In the same forum, a previous owner claimed customers had reported seeing an apparition. The spirit was not described but was said to have interfered with electronics, especially music that he didn’t like.

Tombstone walkway, Nanaimo There’s a lesser known Nanaimo legend that claims there was a walkway made from children’s headstones. As a result, the property’s four-plex became haunted. This haunting’s more often said to have occurred in Coquitlam, however, and is most likely a Nanaimo urban myth (link)

There are several other hauntings reported in the comment section below. I don’t plan on using these comments as a source for this list, even though some of them are amazing. They would need to have book or media sources to be added.

 

So Mote It Be

Part III: Giants of the Wood, Monsters in the Water, & Lights in the Sky:

Cameron Lake. 2012

Cameron Lake Monster, Cameron Lake A lake monster has been reported by multiple witnesses on Cameron Lake. Sometimes nearby Sproat Lake is mentioned as well. The serpent-like creature is sometimes believed to travel back and forth in underground water tunnels connecting nearby lakes. The lake itself is often said to be “bottomless,” but is listed as being 40 meters (131 feet) deep at its deepest point in Russel Mussio’s 2008 edition of Fishing Mapbook: Vancouver Island. There are multiple ghost reports listed above at this location, as well.

  • CTV News story: What Lurks at the Bottom of BC’s Cameron Lake (video)
  • John Kirk talks Sea Monsters on Urban Rush (video)
  • CBC News: Mysterious Creature lurking in Vancouver Island lake

Campbell River Sea Monster, Campbell River Campbell River dubs the creature  “Klamahtossaurus” but may also be “Caddy” from the next listing. Creature was reported as early as 1962.

Sea Serpent Caddy, Vancouver Island Coastline A sea serpent is said to haunt the coasts of Vancouver Island, having been reported by multiple witnesses as early as 1932. Some have speculated that this may be a surviving creature such as a plesiosaur, others suggested that it may be an oarfish (video). There have been several reports of this creature on both sides of Vancouver Island. It’s named after Cadboro Bay in Victoria, which in turn is named after an early HBC vessel the Cadboro. There have been several reports of this creature on both sides of the island.

Sasquatch (Bigfoot) Sightings are reported all over Vancouver Island. Monster Quest dubs Vancouver Island “Ape Island.” The sightings are said to have preexisted coastal-recorded history within First Nation Legends. There are many Pacific Northwest First Nation stories of a large hairy cannibal witch, or wild woman, who will eat children. Wildlife biologist Dr. Bindernagel – who appears in many of the videos below – relocated to Vancouver Island in order to be closer to these sightings. Meares Island, Strathcona Park, Tofino, Campbell River, & Port Alberni are named specifically. Forbidden Plateau & Mount Sicker (both above) are named, as well. There are multiple reports from all over the island (comment below).

UFO sightings There have been sightings across Vancouver Island of unexplained lights in the sky. There may be an overlap between  ‘Ghost Lights’ and ‘UFO’ sightings, depending on what the viewer is interpreting or due to elevation. There are some interesting accounts given in the comment section below. Here are some examples of Vancouver Island UFO sightings:

 

So Mote It Be

For a list of other Vancouver Island Haunted Sites please visit Haunted Locations of Victoria.

If you’re aware of any other haunted locations on Vancouver Island, leave a comment, or send me a private message. Thanks to you who already have!

Until next time, darkest nods!

 

 

*Spirits & Ghosts of Downtown Nanaimo by Donna Hill & Bruce Angus (2007) is an audio ghost tour of downtown Nanaimo. Donna Hill is a local historian and states each haunting has been verified by at least three witnesses. Besides being historical, the CD also comes from a medium perspective, describing what spirits actually are and citing Sylvia Brown, etc. I can’t find a current web page for Hill or Angus. The CD was purchased at Central Drugs in Nanaimo at the Bowen road location. I’ve recently seen it in Nanaimo at Lobelia’s Lair (newer web page) as well.

Author: Shanon Sinn

The Spirit of Vancouver Island. Nature Beings, Shapeshifters, Ghosts & Ancestor Spirits. The Earth is Sacred.

282 thoughts on “Haunted Locations on Vancouver Island”

  1. On sept 2014 myself and my brother stayed at green point campground . I woke with sleep paralysis as 2 large white orbs floated towards us. An encounter I will never forget and my brother also witnessed it.

    Reply

    1. Thanks for sharing this Keith. I never knew anyone had experienced anything there before. In my book I share an experience I had at Keeha Beach with a light. There is a lot of activity on Esowista Peninsula and in Ucluelet. It doesn’t surprise me you had this experience!

      Reply

  2. Hi Shannon, I wondered if you heard of the show Haunted that had an episode about Crofton, BC and specifically the Croft Mansion. A haunting they say happened due to Mr. Croft to a family who rented. In my searches I haven’t found anything to support it? Is there any history you have come across to support this?

    Reply

    1. Hi Kelly, if it was the Haunted show on Netflix “Haunted by Henry” I have not watched it. I did hear the house was haunted, but nothing specific. I don’t usually write about houses as it can bring unwanted attention. I once did some light research on it when I was looking for a home for a fiction story I was writing. I looked through my notes and couldn’t find anything specific. I can’t remember if it was for sale, or if someone was expressing they wanted to buy it… I just did a quick search and there is already fake info online since the episode.

      If I was more interested I’d ask Cowichan tourism for information. First about the house in general – not mentioning the haunted episode. Once you have the historical info you can ask about the episode and mention the haunting as a follow up question. This is the best approach, usually. People get messages from ghost hunters, twelve year old kids, curiosity seekers, etc. There’s a spike in interest after a show like this and not all of it is always respectful. I am curious what you might find! I will watch the episode in the near future and if I come across anything I will post another answer to your comment. Thank you for letting me know about this I had not even realized it would be about Henry Croft!

      Reply

      1. Thank you for your thought on it and the advice to look further into it. It’s a show that is called “Haunted” (only) on Netflix. It had many things in it that would seem could be fake (news paper articles still lying around in a shed after so many years?) but I thought there MIGHT be, something true it originated from. And I thought of you being the person to ask!

        Reply

        1. Thank you Kelly! I’m looking forward to watching that episode now. I’ll keep my eyes open and let you know if I come across anything else about the home of Henry Croft. Mount Sicker has a ton of lore, of course.

          Reply

      2. I live in Crofton. There is an old abandoned house built in 1910. I’m wondering if this was the house talked about in Netflix series the Haunted. It was for rent in the past. Now for sale. Needs TLC. It’s across from the mill that Henry croft owned. The town founded 1902 by Mr Croft. You can see mill from the property. Cannot find any real info on property.

        Reply

        1. Thank you for the info Ida! Doing some basic research it looked like Netflix made up some of the facts in that episode. It would be cool to find out more information on this house. There was a discussion about it on this on this reddit thread you might find interesting if nothing else.

          Reply

          1. I’ll give you the address to the brown & white wood house. 8188 Shasta Rd. Just upside of Crofton, near Canco gas station, ( use to be shell gas) turn left on Cecil str. Road is a die end. There are some farms there. Like I said I don’t know if that’s it. Let me know if you find more info.
            Thank you Shanon.

          2. Thank you for sharing! If it looks like it is a private residence, I will likely hide (edit out) the exact address so the house doesn’t get stigmatized and the people aren’t harassed as can often happen. I’ll let you know if I uncover anything more 🙂

          3. That’s good idea. Nobody lives there. I noticed windows are broken. Thank you again. Ida

        2. Hola Ida, Has comparado si la casa abandonada que tu conoces coincide con la de Netflix,? En el episodio se hace un recorrido claro y detallado del frente de la casa y alrededor. En la parte inicial cuando llega el coche con la familia a la mansión y luego el niño sale a explorar bordeando la casa hasta llegar a la escalera que lo lleva a la sala de las muñecas la cámara hace un paneo completo de la casa por fuera. Se la ve vieja y abandonada pero me encanta la casa.

          Reply

    2. I lived in Crofton, as my family moved there in 1972. My parents bought a 60-acre farm with a huge abandoned farmhouse that hadn’t been lived in for 10 years. My parents had it completely renovated. While living there as a teenager in the ’70’s, there were many paranormal strange things that happened. My parents ended up selling the property as Osbourne Bay Regional Park, and had the house moved to an adjacent lot, where it still sits today. I remember this being the old Smith Estate. Curious where the Croft Mansion was.

      Reply

      1. That must have been spooky Julie! I would love to know if the paranormal activities continued on with the house or stayed with the property once it was moved? When I was a kid, we lived in Metchosin and next door there was an old farmhouse (that has been fully renovated now) and a barn that was torn down later. The people who lived there said they saw the shape of a person near the barn several times. I am just fascinated by these things.

        Reply

      2. Osborne Bay Park was formerly the Morton Family Farm. The original farmhouse was situated on top of the rise in the open field close to the bench by the parking area. A few fruit trees and ornamental trees mark the garden. The house was moved to the property bordering the north side of the farm. A member of the Morton family still farms part of the property for hay.

        This above, was put out by the municipality of cowichan, the history of the Osborne bay regional park. l believe this maybe the Smith Estate you mentioned.

        I live in Crofton, I’m trying to figure out about Crofts mansion, also.
        Thank you for more info.
        Ida

        Reply
  3. Pingback: Extra AF: Vol 6. – The Historical AF Podcast

  4. Hi Shannon — Beacon Hill Park. I just moved here and was biking through the park…the hill area, south of Superior St. I saw a woman staring at me intently. I saw a young female child near her playing. She was dressed differently, but the colours were very bright. I felt unsettled at this person looking at me so intently…until later, when I realized she was an apparation. I had seen her but she knew that not everyone could. Not sure if the child was hers, or an earlier version of herself….

    Reply

  5. Hi Shanon, I am just in the middle of reading your book – it is great so far!

    My husband and I have both had various supernatural experiences, although he seems to have some stronger ties to the otherworld than I do. He grew up in Langford, in one of the oldest houses still standing, and for the past 30 years his family has experienced many things. They have seen a fully black figure of a man walking through their house. He has never caused harm, but does frighten my mother-in-law somewhat. They have had the tv change channels on it’s own, taps turn on and off and things disappear just to reappear days or weeks later. From what they know of the history of the house, it was built by an old man, who was a priest or something of that effect. They have also witnessed his figure sitting high up in the corner of the ceiling by the fireplace. They are unsure as to why he sits so high up, but have heard secondhand that he died by the fireplace. My husband and I also had a spooky experience in the house during our first winter together. We were sleeping by the fireplace in the living room, and both awoke to the sound of a car pulling into the driveway. We saw headlights, heard the car pull in (his driveway is dirt and gravel), heard the car turn off and heard someone get out. We both heard steel toe boots walking up the front concrete steps towards the front door, and heard someone put their hand on the doorknob. At this point, my husband got up and looked out the window of the front door – and there was absolutely no one there. We were so confused, as we both heard it clear as day. We were later told by an older relative who grew up in Langford that there was once a car fire in the front yard of the house and a man who lived there perished in the fire. My husband has also had other experiences in that house, some of which are too dark and eery for me to discuss in an online forum like this. These experiences have shaped him drastically. I should also note that he has experienced very dark things in homes in Nanaimo as well and has seen/heard sasquatches plenty of times while out hiking deep in the forest, although for privacy, I will keep the locations a secret.

    I personally experienced things at a home on Triangle Mountain. My friend lives in a home that he claimed for the longest time was haunted. I stayed over there a number of times and many creepy things occurred. At one point, my friend took a photo in his kitchen – a photo which I saw firsthand – at the table was a woman in a bathrobe. She had scraggly hair and looked very thin. If you look closer at the photo, you notice her face is just bones and she has no skin, as well you could see through her. It was a terrifying photo. My friend also claims that he has seen faces in his wall. He told me that him and his sister have seen and heard a little girl in the downstairs hallway playing with a ball and calling for her mom. One day I made the massive mistake of using a Ouija Board at his house. The first spirit to come through claimed to be this little girl. She said she was looking for her mom and she was scared. I then tried to contact my deceased grandfather through the Ouija Board and someone else came through pretending to be him. After figuring out this was not in fact my grandfather, the spirit told me that he was malicious and wanted to kill. He said his name was Red, which I later came to find out was the name of a man who was in a band with my grandfather 50 years ago when my grandfather lived down the road from where my friend was living.

    We have also seen numerous ufos. My grandfather even took a photo of one in Sooke, which a magazine tried to purchase off of him and which he ended up selling to a close friend just before his death.

    These are just some of our experiences.

    Reply

    1. Thanks for reading my book Jaclyn! I hope you’re enjoying it so far.

      Thank you for sharing all of your experiences as well. I find it especially interesting, the figure sitting up higher in the corner. Whatever these types of experiences really are, I believe odd details – where things don’t make sense logically – probably hold the most clues. I’m also always interested in seeing photos like the one you’ve described too. If you ever have a means to share it.

      Reply

  6. Have you ever explored Coal Harbour, near Port Hardy on northern Vancouver Island? There is an old school there – I believe it’s now used as a community centre – that has a wonderful energy to it. I may or may not be haunted, but it’s a special place to visit. My hubby, son and I used to go there to pick the blackberries that grow along the edges of the property. There is also an old, unused playground. I don’t live in the area now, but it was my favourite spot on the island.

    Reply

    1. I’ve been to Coal Harbour but don’t think I ever went to the school property. I’ve camped in the area and been to Holberg of course and once to Raft Cove and Cape Scott. Beautiful part of our Island. Thank you for sharing your memory of the school. Next time I’m in the area I will have to try to find it!

      Reply

  7. The old mine in Courtenay that is referred to as “dracs castle” is actually just off Tsoulam River road.

    Reply

    1. There are actually two places around Courtenay called “Drac’s Castle.” The first and original one is the remains of the #8 Coal Mine buildings close to Bevan and Puntledge, on the logging road that goes to Comox Lake. The second one, which is the remains of an old mill, is located next to the Tsolum River, on Farnum Road. However, it is very close to Tsolum Road.

      Reply

        1. I have another clarification. Drac’s Castle in Merville was actually the power house for a mill that was never built. (Thanks to my boyfriend who grew up here and knows just about everything about the valley.)

          Reply

  8. Try Lynn Maur Resort just south of courtenay, closer to union bay, the logging csmp waass here and the cabons still stand and rented. This place is definitly haunted, beds moving sideways or head to toe, sttrange noises. Quite a history here. I am sure someone must have been murdered here. One resident disappeared from his cabin and never found, i liveed here when that happened , like ufo came and he was gone, everything in his place in order. Also of note The Alders resort, creepiest place i have ever stayed, i think its a native thing. Vanccouver Island is Rife with ghostly paranormal. But Lynn Maur espescially, a lot of people have lived here nigh on 120 years.

    Reply

  9. Hi I’m Linda from Powell river . I have always had an overwhelming sadness and heavy feeling when I drive thru Black creek and Oyster River. I dont feel it anywhere else on the island and I’ve driven all over the whole island. I know a few other folks that feel it too. Is there any bad/sad history in those areas? Thank you in advance for any information.

    Reply
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  11. Am interested to find out if you have any knowledge about supernatural occurrences on Hornby Island.

    Reply

    1. I can’t think of any stories from Hornby Island off the top of my head. Stories from several of the other islands though. I’ll let you know if I come across anything by posting it here beneath your comment. If you hear anything feel free to let us know as well!

      Reply

  12. Shanon, have you done any exploring into Kakawis Indian Residential School on Meares Island (across from Tofino)? I’ve heard some interesting ghost stories from a woman who worked there long after the Residential School closed.

    Might be worth looking into further. The amount of history there is insane.

    -Alana in Zeballos

    Reply

    1. Thanks for your comment Alana always appreciate any tips! Vancouver Island’s residential schools do have ghost stories attached to them. I knew about Kakawis/ Christie School and land, but not specific stories like what you’ve heard. I bring up Nanaimo’s “Indian Hospital” in The Haunting of Vancouver Island in connection to the VIU theatre haunting (because the hospital was located across the road). I also mention how the schools have ghost stories attached to them because of the brutal history. I’m reluctant to go further than this as it would feel exploitive. I am always interested in hearing the stories–like yourself–but don’t feel it is my place. The schools’ history angers me especially as there continues to be a lot of racism on Vancouver Island and some of the murderers and child abusers are still alive and have never been punished. Plus it’s an extremely difficult topic for survivors. Ahousaht has done a lot to heal the land and area you’re talking about including ceremony and opening it up as a campground. It has a Buc Miis/Sasquatch theme you might find interesting 🙂

      Reply

    2. A First Nations Tloa-o-qui-aht Tribal Parks leader told me a Buc Miss (Sasquatch) story from Meares Island on Friday. I thought of your comment so thought I’d share. I never asked permission to use his name, but he said it was “9 or 10” feet tall and was seen running away along the beach. It had been reaching through a window for food. This happened quite a while ago.

      Reply

  13. Samuel Fiddick is my great great great grandfather on my mom’s side. I’ve been meaning to check out the Oxy for awhile.

    Reply

    1. That’s really cool! Some of the pub staff know a lot about the history, and they all seem to have a ghost story or two 😉

      Reply

    2. I think he and my great great grandfather were friends in Cedar. There’s some old photos, and that name is mentioned in one of my family’s histories. My great great grandfather was Isaac Emblem, and he also frequented the Oxy. It was interesting to see that name popping up in my email.

      Reply

  14. I have no evidence or proof this happened, but I assure you this was not a dream or nightmare even when I was younger I could easily tell the differences between both. I know my comment is quite late as well, but… I want someone to know what happened that night, in my haunted house… Up until a few years ago I had lived in Nanaimo my whole life and I had always felt watched, never alone wherever I go… One night I was laying in bed and my tv was on the volume off. I was almost asleep when my television screen changed, all green and white… The screen had become a identical mirror of my room and it showed me that I wasn’t alone just as I thought… The screen showed me laying in be, again just like a mirror, but with the addition of white ghosts too. It never went away, I spent hours staring down my tv until I blacked out not being able to stay awake any longer I believe, before that time my memory was truly amazing too. Mind you I had been about 8 or 9 at the time, I’m currently 14 and live on the mainland… I’m unusually sensitive to things, people describe them as catlike senses and reflexes although I did grow up with cats… Anyways, I simply wanted to share that first story and… If anyone can explain how that happened, if people in Nanaimo are really sensitive like me and any history of Meadow Lark Trail that would be nice… I have another story that happened multiple times to me… I’ve been able to guess things that’ll happen in the future (I’m unsure how to describe this honestly), like the fort Mc Murray’s wildfire… I had a nightmare of just fire… Fire everywhere…. Before the whole thing happened and even after which caused me to believe I could have stopped it and I felt very guilty afterwards… Other times I’ll have the feeling I’ve forgotten something and will need it later on in the day or when something bad will happen… I am still afraid of the dark since it seems to just swallow me up without enough light to “protect me” too, I really don’t know what’s wrong with me and I need someone to explain these happenings… And the most recent experiences are the past months… I’ve been seeing and hearing things, I would hear something fall but nothing did for example… Oh and this one day I saw this floating head of a darker skin colour twice just floating and watching… I have a thing for attracting… Whatever these things are…. And I just heard a footstep outside my room… My family just left ten minutes ago…. What…. Someone PLEASE I’m begging you explain these things… Am I going insane? Or am I simply too sensitive? I have no proof of anything, but I swear to anyone who reads this I am not lying and I’m terrified of these happenings…. I’m so scared and alone….

    Reply

    1. Hi Kyra, It sounds like your perspective leans heavily towards New Age. Llewelyn is one publisher that deals with this type of outlook. I am a skeptical believer, so I don’t accept or dismiss anything as “real”. I record the stories as a folklorist. If this happened to me however, I would tell myself the TV incident happened too young to take seriously. It is proven that memory changes, meaning it is malleable and not fixed. So even if you had a dream about fire, it is not specific enough to take seriously either, unless you journaled about it beforehand. Also, even if you knew where and when this would happen, you could not have stopped it. No one could have. On top of that, it could have been far worse death wise. Nothing to feel guilty about. Keep a journal, find the blogs of Llewelyn authors, and keep reading until you find someone who thinks like you do. Amazon reviews can also hold clues as well. Hope this helps! Thanks for sharing your experiences.

      Reply

  16. Thumbs up for this list.Just amazing and the most haunted places in the world you mentioned here.

    Reply

  17. There’s a pub on the way into Sooke called, The 7 Mile. It used to be the home of a woman who offered a place to sleep for travelers, and later she turned it into an inn and pub. Unfortunately she was shot while tending to the bar, you can still see the bullet holes in the wall and sealing.

    Reply

    1. Thanks for the comment MC. Do you mean the 17 Mile Pub? It is supposed to be haunted. None of the owners were ever shot and killed there though.

      Reply

  18. The Hummingbird Pub, on Galiano Island. I’ve created The Islands Paranormal Research Team to investigate the building and compound, with remarkable success, and we have only just begun.

    Reply
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  21. My husband had the exact same experience as the one described at the Franklyn St Gym, Nanaimo. Several years ago whilst working as a security guard, he entered the gym at night and his flashlight went out. In pitch blackness he heard a ball bouncing towards him and it hit his foot. He had to feel his way out in the dark. As soon as he got outside his flashlight turned back on. It was well known as being haunted by the rest of the staff.

    Reply

  22. You mentioned a haunting at Stamp Falls. When I visited this place about 20 years ago, I got a really creepy feeling, like someone had been murdered there. I’ve felt the same type of creepiness where the Cruikshank River meets Comox Lake, too.

    As for the Sasquatches, I’ve spent a lot of time in the bush, especially around Comox Lake, and have yet to see one. Dr. Bindernagel has mentioned he has heard “ape-like whooping sounds” behind Comox Lake.” However, there are two native creatures that make these sounds: both of them birds and I have encountered both species in this area. One is the male blue grouse, which blows air in and out of his chest sacs to attract a mate, during the spring day light hours. The other is the common nighthawk. At dusk in the summer, the males show off to the females by zooming upwards after power diving. During this maneuver the notched feathers of his wings produce a whooping sound as the air rushes through them.

    As for the “Haunted Cumberland” Halloween horse and buggy ride, that happened for about one season in the late 90sd, and is no longer offered.

    Reply

    1. Thank you Charlotte this is all great information! Would explain why I couldn’t find the horse and buggy tours in Cumberland, but it must have been pretty cool back in the day. Good information about the birds as well. I’ve heard the grouse before but haven’t heard the nighthawk’s wings you’re talking about. Would be cool to compare.
      That is very interesting about Stamp Falls. When I went there I wasn’t expecting it to be the way it was and there were a lot of people around. Would have liked to be there when there were less for sure. I’ve never heard that about Cruikshank River, so will have to make a trip there with that in mind. How long ago were you there, and did you have the “murder” vibe there as well?

      Reply

      1. When I was at Stamp River Falls, it was daylight. When I felt the same creepy feeling at the Cruikshank River it was after dark sometime in 1996. I drove around Comox Lake with two friends and at dusk we stopped to take a walk under the Cruikshank River bridge. Two of us felt extremely uneasy so we turned around to walk back to our vehicle. I then noticed a large oval shaped energy form following us, so we got the hell out of there in a hurry. I’ve been through there numerous times but haven’t noticed it in the day time.

        Shannon, what exactly did you mean by “I wasn’t expecting it to be the way it was”? Did you feel something different about Stamp Falls even with all the people there?

        Reply

        1. That’s very interesting especially about the oval shape. Did this look like a shadow or was it more like an apparition of some sort?

          As for Stamp Falls I guess I was expecting it to be more remote with less tourists. When I was there last year the salmon were running so that’s probably why. Also, the concrete fish ladders or dam or whatever, it sort of has an industrial feeling to it with the wire fence, which surprised me given it is a nature park.

          Reply

  23. Hello. I lived in ,Parksville, Bowser and Courtenay /Comox area for 20 yrs. I know of another place that is haunted. That would be Cumberland. Many buildings are haunted as is the graveyard. They give horse and buggy tours at Halloween and show you where all the haunted places are. Also there is a sasquach in Bowser that the locals call old Cece…Cecil and the Cumberland forest area has been listed as one of the biggest hot spots for sasquach. I believe it was the sasquach hunter guy with the tv show. Hope this gets added.

    Reply

    1. Thanks for your comment Tamara! There are some other comments about Cumberland as well, I just haven’t come across anything in books or print. As this is a source-based list there are several places on the island that haven’t been added yet. Do you know of any newspaper articles that talk about these places?
      I did not know about the horse and buggy tours! Now that is cool. I couldn’t find anything online about them either. Do you know who this is through?
      Would be interested in hearing more about the Sasquatch Cece as well. Even if you could point me in the direction of who I need to talk to about it. Don’t usually watch any of the TV shows, but Dr. Bindernagel — who I’ve written a post about –speaks about this area as well.

      Reply
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  25. I find it surprising that Forbidden Plateau in Strathcona Park is included here. I hike there frequently doing solo outings all over the area and have not come across anything unusual.

    Reply

    1. All places with stories attached to them are like that. Some people who work every day at a small site never claim to experience anything ever. Forbidden Plateau is large. As above, it’s about the story being attached not evidence.

      Reply

  26. off of jingle pot road on lee la lynn road there is a property at the end on the left hand side there are a bunch of buildings that look like churches and I had a girl and a guy with me the first time I pulled on the road millions of frogs appeared only on that road then we made it to the end and all of a sudden 3 big dogs came out of the driveway trying to attack us and the dogs had blood running out of there mouth we sped out of there and the truck I was driving was covered in blood. a couple of weeks later we decided to go back cause no one believed us so I loaded up the back of my truck and there was 11 of us and when I got to the road everyone bailed out except 3 plus me so we squished ourselves in the truck and went down the road. we locked the doors and made it down to one of the driveways and my friend said to drive up and we get on the property and the first chapel was full of people all in white and they had there faces covered except this one and he looked like a big biker with a beared and he had something bent over and was screwing it he stopped and pointed at us and we turned around and they hopped in this old pickup and chased us he kept ramming the back of my truck I ran the stop sign on east wellington road and cut off the car coming and the guys chasing us hit the car and didn’t look back. two of the guys that were with me were crying and shaking cause we thought they were going to kill us and I know that 3 people died in the truck cause a bunch of ppl were in the bed of the pick up. I never went back and looked into the history of the area in nanaimo and there was many pppl that did satanic things and there still is groups that are around still doing sacrifices but they do it low key so be careful around the jingle pot area they are crazy this happened 20 years ago and we all still remember it like it was yesterday

    Reply

    1. Three things wrong here:
      – Maps show no listing for a “lee la lynn road” anywhere.
      – Can’t find any records of a fatal accident at Jingle Pot Rd & E.Wellington between 1995 & 1997.
      – What happened to your 8 friends you left behind?

      Reply

    3. Joey…..I one hundred percent believe you. This sounds almost exactly like what happened to my sister and her friends in the late 90’s. Its on a road called Lynn la Rann in Nanaimo. The dead animals, satanism rumours, weird church on property…they went to snoop as teenagers. My sister and her friends were chased by men in a Ford bronco. The bronco came out of nowhere and managed to smash into one of her friends vehicles and blocked them. There were also 2 men I believe who jumped into the box of one of her friends trucks and were trying to open the doors. Scary stuff. The police were up there pretty quick.

      Reply

  27. Thanks so much for all these stories I love reading them 🙂 My mom has had so many scary things happen to her over the years and still doesnt believe in ghosts!….. I didnt see anything about Camp Homewood on Quadra Island… My bestfriend and my mom and I were there for a few nights doing a scrapbook retreat…. my mom and I were in separate bunkbeds and friend in queen bed across room … mom had gone to bed early and friend and I not till 3am …. well I had fallen asleep and my friend was asked by someone in the pitch black if it was ok to sleep in top bunk tonight- she said yes…. when we woke up no one was in bed…. mom said why were you guys shaking my bunkbed last night… now really why would we do that…..she said it was shook really hard…. when we went up for breakfast and started to ask around about what happened they all said oh ya the ghosts always climb on top bunk… I havent been back since

    Reply

  28. Really! …..just that it seems out of place there! …..it just seems a awfully expensive way to move cows is all! …. I am familiar with how underground structures are constructed and the amount of labor,equipment and materials and the cost involved! ….Hmmmmm!

    Reply

    1. Hey Jack! As this list is source based we need a newspaper story or book reference to add it to the list. Are you aware of any because I haven’t had any luck? There are some comments below about this site as if you are interested as well. Thank you for bringing this up. I’m still hoping to find something that I can use to add this – maybe I’ll just mention “multiple comments below” or something

      Reply

    2. I grew up in the valley and always remember hearing things about witch’s that would steal babies and sacrifice them there.

      Reply

  30. Hi I was just wondering if you’ve heard of the haunted old Hydro Building near Courtenay? Which supposedly has underground tunnels that weird things happen to people in? My co worker told me about it but i can’t seem to track it down online.

    Reply

    1. Hi Ed, I haven’t heard about it being haunted or that there were tunnels underground. I’ll keep my ears open as long as you promise to share if you find anything else out 🙂

      Reply

      1. The only thing I’ve been able to find out lately is that it is somewhere off Forbidden Plateau Rd area or Piercy rd area and there’s just 4 walls standing. I’ll keep searching for more info and let you know if i find out more. Cheers!

        Reply

  31. I use to live in a small town about 30 minutes past Duncan called “Lake Cowichan.” I find it weird I never see anything on the town as it was super creepy!!! The one school I went to was called Stanley Gordon it was about 100 years old(it’s shut down now,but the building is there) that school was super creepy. Everyone always said it was haunted but I didn’t believe them. One time I was in the washroom and I heard some voice saying “bang,bang,bang” it creeped me out so I looked under the stall. Only to see shoes that were way too old and rugged/dirty and SMALL to be attending that school. All sudden the toilets all started flushing and the taps turned on. Nothing was automatic back then!! I ran like hell. Other people experienced activity throughout the school. Not to mention other weird stuff like a man just going for a walk through the woods and he vanishes!! Never to be seen again. No sign of animal attack. His coat was still there,coffee mug and his dog even made it home but not him. Also I forgot to mention one of our teachers had to go to the school after hours because she forgot some papers that she was suppose to mark. She said she saw lights flashing on and off inside the building and never went in due to fear.

    Reply

    1. Those stories are super creepy! Thanks for sharing. The list here is source based, meaning that I only list sites that I can reference in book, newspaper, online articles or television. Also not private homes or addresses. There are many haunted places not on the list due to this. Many are here below in the comment section. Many people have told me about haunting all over the island that haven’t been listed. Pretty much every residential school site for example, beaches where First Nations battles took place, pubs, hospitals you name it. That being said, thank you so much for sharing this as it is the first time I remember hearing about Stanley Gordon School 🙂

      Reply

      1. Stanley Gordon was closed years ago, but the current high school (now K-12) is directly below it on the hill. There were all sorts of spooky happenings there. I once saw a basketball bouncing alone in the empty gym. The whole place is a little strange, to say the least.

        Reply

    2. My mother was the janitor at Stanley Gordon, and when I was a kid I’d be there in the library upstairs, and I swear I’d hear things in there, especially the computer room section! Same with that room downstairs with the canteen area! Also heard weird tapping and whispering noises in the bathroom just outside the gym when LCSS was using it.

      Reply

  32. THESE ARE SO CREEPY I DO NOT LIKE HOW CREEPY THEY ARE.ONE TIME ME AND MY SISTER WHERE HAVING A STROLE WHEN WE SAW THIS WIERD GUY THAT WAS FOLLOWING US THERE WAS NO TURNS OR NO PLACE TO GO THEN TO GO STRAIGHT AND THE GUY DISSAPERRED

    Reply

  33. When I lived in Chemainus, it was in a small townhouse complex above the schools. I woke up one night to the kitchen door open and a blue figure walking through the house. It seemed to be made of veins. It walked in, stared at me for a few moments, then left through the door overlooking the schools. I was petrified.

    Reply

  35. I think you call it Nanaimo Travel in your list (I assume) but I work at the Aldred House in Nanaimo’s Old City Quarter. It has housed a few different organizations, but seems to be an “active area”. I have seen dolls move, dolls be undressed and their wigs removed, heard noises and footsteps, and had weird electronic anomalies. Nothing particularly threatening, just active. Lots of people stop when they see us in the back lot to ask questions, or share their own experiences. A fun one indeed!

    Reply

    1. Thanks for your comment Cody! Creepy dolls damn! I’ve come across other reports from the Aldred House before (not the same as Nanaimo Travel) but don’t remember hearing directly from anyone working there. Some of the lesser-known Nanaimo places aren’t on here because I would like to create a separate list at some point. There are a lot more stories here than most people realize!
      The Aldred House did make the paper in the early 2000s. Most fascinating, was a witnesses description of the apparition of a man wearing a fedora and pin-striped vest. Also, electronic problems and issues with a door that wouldn’t lock. I would love to talk to you more about your experiences if you’d be open. I can also get you a copy of that news story.

      Reply
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  38. does anyone notice on the trans-Canada highway close to the Petroglyphs outside Nanaimo on the east side of the highway across a hay field there is a single-door, hardened concrete entrance protruding at the edge of the wood line, it can be hard to spot if you drive to fast on that straight portion of highway there!

    Reply

    1. Hi there. I’m really curious about this door. Could you give me a bit more information on it’s whereabouts? Thanks!

      Reply

      1. Hello, Carmen…..the location of this door is about 3/4 of a mile north of the Cassidy rest area and Hotel that would be on your right hand side looking north….this is a totally obscure doorway that seems totally out of place there, has no roads going to it but would be accessible with military vehicles.

        Reply

  39. Ever heard of a place named Horne lake? It’s a gorgeous little lake, and has a public caving area. There’s tons of cabins and a campsite, I’m fourteen and my family has two cabins out there side by side, the one beside mine is my aunts. I love my cabin, even if we use a lot of candles and lanterns. Anyways, Horne lake isn’t perfect. Apparently, a long time ago, a little girl was camping with her parents friends, and in the middle of the night went out onto a dock and ended up in the water. They found her the next morning under the dock. I don’t know the details, when it was, or where on the lake.
    But something else weird happened.
    My cousin, he was drunk one night, and out on the road, and was walking towards the cabin, and there’s a window looking out towards the woods, and there’s a kids room where the window is.
    My cousin says he saw a girl or something, staring at him.
    There was no one in the cabin, and I don’t know what he saw, but it doesn’t make sense.
    I don’t know how old the girl that drowned was, but why would she go out on a dock in the middle of the night?
    Why did my cousin see a girl?

    Reply

    1. The little girl that drowned In horn lake her name is Melissa she was like a sister to me so I don’t talk about her much but she was little when she drowned and she did not know how to swim Melissa was camping with her parents when she did not come back home with her parents I knew something had happened to my best friend I did not know what until her mom told me she drowned by the time they found her she was gone…Rip Melissa xox miss you so much :'(

      Reply

  40. Not sure if you have ever heard of a town called port Alice but if u have time u should go there one day. People are quite upon about the mill being haunted… There is a little Chinese cemetery quite close to it which is made up of many many young children. Said to be because of a plague. The town was called rumble beach it is now gone and a golf course and mill along with the cemetery is now there. Many mill workers have felt or heard things and even seen apparitions even to this day.

    Reply

    1. Camped at a campsite on the way into Port Alice and had odd vibes or feelings from this place, barely slept and at day break got outta there in a hurry, nothing was seen nor heard, but the aura of the beautiful camp ground was eerie to say the least..anyone else ever mention this?

      Reply

      1. I take it was Marble River campsite, a darkish place closed in by tall trees, not very cheery. Heard people say weird things like red eyes in the darkness around campfire, and something making hoots and strange noises, rocks being thrown at camper unit in the night. No other people in the campsite.

        Reply

    2. Had many paranormal experiences working in the mill from 2006 to 2015, taps on shoulder, apparition, people disappearing instantly etc.

      Reply

  41. There is a house on Pine st., Chemainus that I used to live in, that apparently was where an acquaintance’s uncle killed himself. One night a few friends and I played ouija board, and asked it to appear. I also asked it to possess me. Do you know anything about exorcisms?

    Reply

    1. Hi Kris thank you for your comment! Catholics perform exorcisms if the events meet certain criteria. Some other religious groups and individuals use the word exorcism as well. Most famously on Vancouver Island would be Robin Skelton and Jean Kozocari who called themselves exorcists at times and they were Wiccan. Some sensitive-types claim to have these skills as well, though I am unsure – maybe case-by-case? I remain unconvinced that it is ethical to charge people for these services which is usually the case. I’ve come across stories of First Nations exorcisms as well as a Buddhist one.

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  42. As for the little Satanic Church in Jingle pot. It exists. When I was 20 I delivered Pizza there oddly enough. I remember getting directions to it and stopping and handing the food to the oddest man in a robe. Not the kind your thinking. Bath robe. Weird dog. and very odd church structure on the property. What was distinctly vivid about meeting the man was I got the vibe it was time to get out of here after he took the pizza. I remember backing out of the long drive way and never really being able to find it again and probably for good reason too. Intuition is a good thing sometimes. I remember as a kid growing up and hearing of Satanic and cult activities in the jingle pot area and from what I have heard second hand from one of the home owners in the area. Its a subject that they wish wouldn’t be asked. Basically eluding to it happened or still does, now forget about it and leave us alone. I’ll post other strange things that have happened to me in nanaimo and surrounding areas when I have time. Enjoy. Side note. The area in Jingle that was really dark was called Shady Mile and Yes it was super creepy.

    Reply

    1. Looking forward to hearing about some of your experiences Joe! Nanaimo has such rich ghost lore but unlike Victoria — where people embrace it — a lot is swept under the rug so to speak.
      Was it the really, really small church you delivered pizza too, like I’m talking the size of a person’s living room? There were open satanists in Nanaimo in the late 90s. They were an odd Crowley-infused gang, but mostly all about attention and defying boundaries. Not sure what happened to them. A couple conformed I’m sure, like most everyone else. There were, and still are, some great pagan people but not so easy to confuse the two groups unless a person was ultra religious.
      I loved Shady Mile! It still is kind of cool around Halloween, with all of the Jack-O-Lanterns on old wooden fences and gates… but it used to be so much more witchy! I know it was a favourite area for certain rituals — or like you say so the story goes — but not sure what happens around there now. Thanks for your comment and looking forward to your stories.

      Reply

      1. Very true Nanaimo does have the ability to sweep things under the rug. Also true we do tend not to embrace anything different around here. The church was indeed small as in living room small and the man scared the crap out of me to be honest as I was about 20 at the time. I would venture to guess he was of the Crowley infused variety. Among the odder area’s of Shady mile was the Jamieson Road area. Creepy place in the late 90’s. I remember hearing growing up about animal sacrifices and I too did hear of rituals in the area your talking about. Funny part about the area your talking about is that if you go into certain parts of Jingle pot even closer to the city. the remoteness is quite astounding. Also frightening too. Back to Jamieson road myself and a friend once witnessed a wolf that was absolutely massive walk up to our car. Now on a whole a wolf is not that big a deal. When we first noticed it. It simply was a dark object moving towards our car and assumed it was a stray day. Although a rather large dog. Then I turned on my head lights and when they hit the Wolf, Now normally I would say the eyes would shine like any other animal when light is put on them at night but the oddest thing was that there were no eyes at all. even with a light on them…….Needless to say we left the area quite fast. On another occasion We started realizing how creepy the area was when we started noticing a lot of houses in the area had red porch lights which is odd? Any idea about that?

        Reply

        1. Joe. I love the wolf story. That is an amazing account. I’m a ludicrous wolf nerd so you’re bringing two of my favourite things together here: an unusual account AND a wolf story! While you’re right there are wolves on Vancouver Island their range is nowhere near Nanaimo usually. A couple of years ago there was a report of wolves heard howling between Horne and Spider lakes. Also, a wolf was blamed for biting a donkey near Qualicum. Jingle Pot Road. Wow. That is nowhere where they’ve been seen for a very long time. A wolf’s eyes should also shine at night when hit with light just like any other dog/canine. Also, if you are 100% sure it was a wolf, I can guarantee you that it’s bad if they approach people. Either habituated or rabies etc. Never good.
          As for red lights I found this discussion that mentions several possibilities. The one about insects makes sense to me, but some of the others could be legit as well.

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          1. Seeing no eyes at all but simply dark holes was quite scarey! Creepy area of the island. I remember once talking to a friend who owned a Wicca store in chemainus and her telling me even down in the chemainus duncan area there are bad Witches in practice in that area but would not elaborate. Also an addition to Mt zhaulem. I remember speaking to some first nation members from the area and there oral hisory of the evil chief stated he would throw people off the mountain. Sometimes that included his wives, children and anyone else.

          2. I live in this area and can vouch for hearing those wolves howling. I had a friend that lived up Horne lk rd and he had a couple of wolf/dog hybrids. He said they howling was right by his property and he figured they were interested in his unfixed female at that time. 🙂

        2. My mom told me that when she was a teenager (roughly 1989) that her and her friends were driving down Jingle pot, it was later in the night, around 9-10pm and they were listening to music, enjoying the night and all of a sudden something fell onto the top of their car and her friend that was driving hit the breaks, they all got out and there was a huge dent on the roof but nothing was there, so they parked off to the side and started walking down the road, they came to what they thought was another road but turns out it was a drive way, with a little dark brown cottage type looking house, they stood there for a few minutes debating weather to go back down the other way or not and they started to hear chanting so they continued to stand there and listen, then about 7-8 people in all black robes came from behind the house.. they could see my mom and her friends but chose to ignore them for whatever reason and kept chanting, louder and louder.. she said that they all had hoods on and she couldn’t see any of their faces, she also said that the trees in the front yard had random things hanging off them and these people were walking around the trees, chanting things she didn’t understand. They ran as quick as they could back to the car and left. The next day she explained it to my grandparents and her siblings, her brother decided he wanted to go out there and look around with her, my mom took him to the spot where they had pulled over and they searched around, didn’t find anything, so she got him to park on the side road and they started walking down towards the drive way.. here’s the crazy part. The house was GONE! just gone? The trees were there, the driveway was the same, it was all the same, just the house was gone? They started to walk closer to the back yard area and there was a huge fire pit that still had heat coming off it.. they were going to keep looking around but a man shouted out from the beginning of the driveway behind them and he said “That is private land, you know?!” So they walked up to him and my mom said “Do you know what happened to the house that was right here?” and he said “You shouldn’t snoop around on someones property, you never know what could be there” Creeped out my moms brother quickly said “My sister had an encounter with someone last night and we were just coming to talk to them but I guess we have the wrong house” and the man smiled and said “No, this is probably it.. You wouldn’t believe the crazy things that happen out here” and then he started walking away.. To this day my mother has not gone back. I’ve done so much research and I’m interested in hearing more information anyone has 🙂 This town has a lot of hidden secrets and like you mentioned, most don’t want to talk about it.

          Reply

          1. I’ve heard of the place you are talking about. It isn’t on jingle pot road; it is off a short road off of jingle pot road. It has a very small church with a upside down cross on the top of it. Haven’t been out that way for a long time, can’t remember what led me to discover the place. I do remember that there was a house near the church.

    2. I have tried many times to find this church, and have failed. Ive driven and walked and google earthed it and just cant. In the same area on google earth there are some strange circle designs around. Like crops shaped in circles and swirls and intricate designs. Pretty creepy. I hope one day i can find it!

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  43. Hi there.

    I’d like to leave you with a… Interesting story.

    In the summer of 2014 I was walking home from a buddy’s place at about 9PM. On my way home I ran into another friend and decided to hang with him and his brother for a while. As the night drew on they offered to walk me home. Things were pretty normal up until that point. This is where things get really weird.

    My friend’s brother stopped to take a leak by the side of the road, my friend and I were chatting about various things. We both looked up into the sky, and just above the treeline we watched as two “Streaks” (I really don’t know what else to call them.) go over the trees then… Explode into an extremely bright flash of yellow light.

    At first I thought I was just imagining things but, my friend turned to me after I had loudly said, “What the fuck was that?!” He asked, “You saw it too, huh?” “That really bright yellow flash?” He nodded. We looked at each other for a few moments, both of us a little unsettled by the experience.

    This was up on the Northern tip of Vancouver Island, in Port McNeill. I don’t know what we saw that night, and I don’t talk about it often because people don’t seem very keen on discussing the unexplained.

    Reply

    1. Hi Justin! I don’t know enough about these sorts of things to comment with any sort of authority. I’ve seen things I can’t explain over Vancouver Island, and of course a lot of other people have as well. Lots of videos have hit the news too. Could it be something burning as it fell? I don’t know. Sounds creepy to me anyways. Especially because there were two (?) side-by-side (?). Really interesting. There are comments below about activity over a lake between Port Alice and Port Hardy up there as well. One commenter has shared a vivid account over the Malahat you might find interesting also. I appreciate you sharing the experience. I may write beneath here some time in the future for you if I come across something similar so be sure to subscribe to the comments!

      Reply

  44. Interestingly enough when I was a teen in 97 my family and I went and stayed at the lodge on Shoal Bay because my friend’s dad was the caretaker. That lodge has since burned down (unexpicably) and been rebuilt. My friend and I spent the night in room #1 which was reportedly haunted. Creepiest room. Stayed freezing cold all night even with the heat cranked. Then there was the story to go along with it… my friend’s dad was there alone and he had been in room 1 changing the sheets and making the bed. He left the room and realized he’d left his coffee in there. So he went back in and someone had sat on the bed. Like I said he was alone in the building so it freaked him out. He smoothed the bedding and left. Went by a while later and someone had again sat on the bed. So he smoothed the bedding again and yelled “don’t sit on the bed.” This time no one sat on the bed.

    My friend’s dad is an ex military guy and was visibly freaked out by the experience. He also said he’d seen a big guy lurking behind the lodge a few times when he knew no one else to e around. He said sometimes the guy was with a large white wolf/dog type animal. If he saw the two together he said he usually went inside immediately.

    Reply

    1. Thank you for sharing these stories Kim! It’s really interesting about the bed looking to have been sat on, because many people have reported similar observations in other places reputed to be haunted. I’m really interested in the story about the dude with the wolf/dog too. If you ever get a chance to ask more about this or remember any more details please feel free to share. It’s a very unique account for sure 🙂

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  45. Cameron Lake also had an entire train go off a trestle with no survivors I have been told. Personally the lake gives me the creeps and I felt that way before I ever heard any stories. I’m also surprised the Cassidy Inn didn’t make the cut. A roadhouse where whores and gambling cheats where hanged in the basement.

    Reply

    1. For sure Damien! Cameron Lake is a pretty cool place — in a creepy sort of way. I’ll have to look into that train-disaster story. I’ve never come across it one while conducting any of my research, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. As for Cassidy Inn being haunted, it has come up in the comments section below including personal accounts. This page’s list is source-based though, meaning that the story should be traced back to books, newspapers stories, other articles, etc. So if you know of any stories that would qualify about the Inn I could add it especially as you aren’t the first person to bring it up. It’s an interesting story about the hangings in the basement, but I’m not so sure that ever happened. Similar tales usually evolve by word of mouth over time from pretty humble beginning. Some – like the ax-murderer ghost of Peter Kakua — are based on actual accounts though.

      Reply

      1. the driver of the train and two brakemen died in the train derailment at cameron lake….two diesel engines ,3 cars,and a caboose all went down there….supposed to be a great place to fish….also lots of wierd activity under the same trestle nearby…

        Reply

    2. I grew up and lived in the Cassidy Hotel. Never ever heard of any stories about whores or gamblers. A man from Powell River died in one of the rooms on the second floor around 1970. Heard later his ghost was there, but nothing ever confirmed that.

      Reply
  46. Pingback: The White Lady of Thetis Cove (With Video) - Living LibraryLiving Library

  48. My family and I are new to Port Alberni, as of May 2014. We hadn’t known anyone or had even been to Port before we moved here. We are in a house up at Sproat Lake, that has a view of Mount Klitsa, and a bit of Massacre Island. My daughter is 3.5 y/o, and ever since we moved in has mentioned a little boy named Kedeit (she pronounces Key-deet. Not sure the spelling). I used to hear her talking to someone a lot more than recently, but used to say that he told her to go look for him. One day during the summer, I was calling for her and couldn’t hear her, so I looked around outside around the house (we have a wrap around balcony and yard) she was gone maybe 2 minutes, and my neighbour said that she was walking down his drive way (that’s the way we walk down to the lake). I was scared to death that something worse had happened but thankful that she’d only gotten to his driveway. She said that she was going to look for Kedeit. That also cared me, because I not only have to worry about her following or going with strangers but also spirits. (We had a big talk about not leaving our property with ANYONE, unless she has permission too).

    I wanted to know a bit more about the history of our new home and its town, and happened to pick up a book on Sproat Lake “Sproat Lake Reflections” and read about how east coast tribes would raid the Hupacasath band at their fishing and hunting sites. The chief thought it would be safer to move to Massacre Island, known to them as “Chauke”, because then their food would be safe from animal and other tribes. Unfortunately his plan did not work, and the other tribe invaded them ( 1856) and massacred all the woman and children (hence the name massacre island) What’s really trippy, is that when I asked my daughter about Kedeit, she said that he lives on the Island in front of our house, and usually says that we need to find him. I of course have never told her what I read, because she is 3 and she didn’t need to know details about the history here yet. I’m not certain that the spirit of this little boy is in fact a spirit of one of the children massacred, but it goes along with what I have learnt. I also read into the fact that there were and are 50,000 children missing from residential schools that were here in Port as well.

    I know that children are more open to spirits, and my daughters paternal grandfather was a medicine man (he has passed and we don’t know much more than that about him) do you think she could carry on in life seeing and feeling the presence of spirits, or will she lose that in time?

    Reply

    1. Hi Mary. Thank you for sharing your daughter’s experiences and your research as well. I’m interested in picking up the book you mentioned and giving it a read. I don’t know very much about the history of Sproat Lake, but the raids did indeed take place all along the coast and across the Island. Massacres were very common, unfortunately, and there are stories of spirits attached to some of these places for sure.

      I’m not an expert, but generally speaking, children do seem to lose these abilities as they grow older. Whatever these experiences really are — contact with the dead, psychic insight into past events, or something far more mundane but as of yet unexplained — many children have reported similar encounters. My nephew talked to an “invisible man” who just happened to have the nickname of his dead grandfather who once lived in their home (my nephew had no access to this knowledge), so I have come across something similar in my family as well. Many of us in my family have had lesser experiences as adults, but even as my nephew gets older, it seems like whatever he was experiencing is being forgotten. So I would guess your daughter might lose this too.

      Parents who want to encourage this “gift” are often very careful not to tell the child that the experience is imaginary in the hopes they will continue to experience this to the same level. I’m not aware of any instances where this has actually worked, other than the claims of a couple of authors who I take with a grain of salt due to book sales, etc. All of this being said, most cultures have strong warnings about trusting the intentions of spirits. Even some of my own experiences lead me to believe that whatever these experiences/entities really are, there is a need to be wary and self protective. I think your instruction for her not to leave the property is smart. I would also suggest that she stays away from the water when she’s “playing” with him if you’re not around — but I’m sure kids that young are always monitored swimming these days. Some stories — unverifiable really — suggest that the entity wants the child to cross over so they have someone to play with on the other side. These types of stories go back centuries and are the basis of the old fairy abduction stories as well. Wether these encounters really are with the dead or something else including something as of yet psychologically unexplainable, I think it is helpful to have some sort of protective measure if possible. For some, this might be consulting a First Nation’s healer with experience, but for others it might be as simple as wearing a cross if religion resonates with you.

      I hope this is helpful. Like I said, I don’t consider myself an expert by any means (I’m distrustful of those who say they are really), but I have researched the folkloric aspect of ghost stories for most of my adult life so maybe some of this will be helpful to you. I look forward to hearing more about your daughter’s experiences if she has any more as well. Thanks again for sharing Mary. Hope you’re having a great week!

      Reply

      1. Thanks Shanon,
        I picked up the book at one of our local corner store/ liquor stores, but I’m sure you can find it at any book shop around here, or at a library.
        That is very interesting and a bit scary, about the influences spirit children have on ours (as well as adult spirits im sure). I will definitely keep that in mind. I was wondering about some of your experiences, if you don’t mind me asking. I did read through the site yesterday so perhaps I already read about them.
        Thank you for your reply, and I will be posting more stories if they come about. Awesome site btw!

        Reply

        1. Very cool, Thanks again Mary!
          If you’re interested, here’s an older blog post about some of my earlier experiences. I also wrote another post about some of my experiences at the Bay downtown in Vancouver. Hope you enjoy 🙂

          Reply

        2. I feel like the ghost child, by wanting your daughter to ‘find’ him, may be that he wants his body found so he can finally rest. I’ve heard stories of ghostly encounters where the body is found and laid to rest and the hauntings stop.

          Reply

  49. Do you have any information on the “International Gravity Circle” at the Gulf View Picnic site just off of East Saanich Road on the Peninsula?

    As a teenager my friends and I uncovered a raised concrete circle hidden away on top of somme bedrock covered in brush with a plaque reading “International Gravity Circle.” Always wondered what that was… No explanation to be found online.

    There is a geocache hidden next to the ring as well.

    Reply

    2. That’s interesting. Did you ever take any pictures? I would guess that it would have something to do with WWII? I’m guessing that if it was conspiratorial in nature, someone would have just got rid of the sign.

      Reply

  50. I just wanted to touch base regarding the incident that happened to me at the Malahat viewpoint lookout rest stop on August,28 2010 at approximately 12:30 .am.
    Employed as a truck driver working short haul on Vancouver Island I was heading north on the Malahat highway where I had to stop to relieve myself there because there was really nowhere else to go that time of the morning.
    I proceeded to stop the truck get out and proceed to relieve myself, ….a moment later out of the corner of my eye I seen two blue and white lightened orbs, side by side in the air about 500 feet off the ground, off about a mile or so off to the south east and moving in my direction slowly!
    When I seen this I was in awe at first but, wanted to run away when these things started coming towards me,….I ran to my truck to get in and the door was locked with the keys inside (I always stopped for this reason and NEVER locked the door behind me) Anyway, I started to panic picked up a rock broke the drivers side door window cleaned off the glass that was on the seat, started the truck and took off out of the parking lot heading north, just at that moment the blue and white lightened orbs were moving beside each other no more than 10 feet from the back of my truck, regardless to say I floored it down the highway going through the gears,…just then as I was speeding down the highway about no more quarter of a mile away from me on the Malahat heading south was a R.C.M.P police cruiser and just drove by me as if nothing was happening.
    I finished my shift, and got reprimanded for the window,…and mentioned nothing of what happened to me to friends or co-workers in fear of ridicule.
    Thing is, as a matter of fact I happen to reside very close to where this incident happened and when I got home from work, my Mother who was living in my house at the time mentioned there was a unusually high R.C.M.P presence in our quite little Malahat bedroom community.
    Finally, there was a really bizarre lightening storm outside my house exactly three years to the day, exactly August, 28 2013 where the lightening stayed inside of clouds and made absolutely NO thunder whatsoever.
    Concluding, walking my dog at night I have seen other strange things at night around here!
    Thank-you for your time and attention!

    Anthony Takacs

    Reply

    1. Thanks for sharing your account again Anthony! Hopefully more people will come forward who have had similar experiences on the island. I also appreciate you taking the time to be so detailed. Hope you’re doing well!

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  51. I’m from the Coombs port alberni area and I’m curious if anyone on here has any information about a large abandoned building right around the Coombs junction. there’s a little Chinese food restaurant and te abandoned building is a bit down that road and on the other side of the street. I’ve heard a story from a friend that said they broke into the building and in the basement there was all this old weird radio equipment or some kind of old government related things. apparently there was a large metal door down there and when they tried to open it thy said an alarm stared going off from somewhere outside of the house. so they ran out and later after they said they saw An older man checking out the area afterwards. the building has a no trespassing sign and all the entrances are boarded up or so it appears. but there is an outside light that has electricity… the friends that broke in said they had to go around the back of the building and managed to pry a sliding glass door open and get inside. I know this isn’t ghost related but I’m just wondering if any locals have any info or know anything about this suspicious building

    Reply

    1. I believe I have seen this building, it is at the Alberni Cut-0ff, close to the Mid-Island connector….sounds like a Government facility!

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        1. its an old army building….lots of old radios,chest freezers,the outside of the building is fake…it covers up an old house…has a wrap around staircase with plush white carpet…looks like a drug house

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  52. this one time about 8-9 years ago i was swimming across Mcivor lake in campbell river & about halfways to the other side something big & white swam under neath me.
    the water got colder & i got scared & didnt move until i couldn’t see it anymore.
    of course being around 8 years old i was obviously scared.

    Reply

    1. That must have freaked you out! Thanks for sharing Catie. From what I can tell there shouldn’t be anything in Mcivor Lake other than trout and at times salmon. How big did you think it was? There are a lot of serpent claims on and around Vancouver Island — like a ridiculous amount. The most famous lake one is the Cameron Lake Monster, but Oyster River south of you has one dubbed “Klato” from the 40s. First Nation oral traditions have stories of giant serpents as well. Caddy (Cadborosaurus) has been seen all around the island by hundreds of people (Campbell River calls it Klamahtossaurus). If their’s something to these claims, who says they can’t swim up rivers or streams into lakes? video

      Reply

    2. Reminds me of what happened to my GF. She says she was swimming @ Campbell lake looking down while wearing googles. She saw a beaver swim underneath her. It scared the crap out of her, and seemed huge to her. She was a kid when this happened to her as well. Doesn’t explain the the figure being white though, but she did mention the water getting more cold

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  53. Somewhere near Caycuse (sorry for my lack of spelling, if it’s incorrect) at the northern tip of Lake Cowichan there is an old abandoned school for first nations children. Apparently the janitor hung himself there a long time ago.On weekends we would drive around the lake at night and one time we stopped and I was with a buddy that was not easily intimidated and quite muscular. Anyways all of a sudden he had tears just flowing down his face and at that moment a child’s ball (resembled a beach ball almost but smaller) bounced off the roof and landed right near us. Needless to say, we got in the car a booked it! On another note, my older cousins have childhood pictures (taken roughly in the 80’s) of them in a cave at Pacheena bay holding some skulls they found in some sort of box or treasure chest type thing. You wouldn’t catch me handling those things in fear of some sort of curse!

    Reply

    1. Thanks for sharing Adrien! I’d never heard anything about the school before this. Do you know if it was a residential school?
      About your cousins… man… that would have been a First Nation’s grave site. Considered pretty disrespectful to open one up – though I’m sure as kids they had no idea. A First Nation’s tour guide was just in the news for opening one of these boxes up and letting people take pictures of the remains: First Nations groups blast tour guide for opening burial boxes and revealing ancestors’ skeletal remains

      Reply

    2. My brother found a skull at our place by the spit in Comox and for a number of years the skull sat on a desk in the living room. It was checked by an archeologist as being ancient native, not a police matter of someone recently killed. I realize that nowadays such a find would be returned to the Comox band but back then nobody was interest once it was determined to not be recent. I’ve always been sensitive to weird energy in places but I really liked the skull and as a kid, it’s presence made me feel safe if no one was home. At some point, it was decided that it should go back into the ground. I don’t know if there is any connection, but years later I became extremely spooked by an energy in the basement bathroom that persisted over many years. Our neighbours rented our house for awhile and confirmed this haunting decades later with a comment “what about that ghost in the basement bathroom?” It is known that the hill by the spit is a native burial site for those who died of smallpox and couldn’t be buried in the traditional site as they would contaminate the living. I can’t help wonder if the the spirit of the skull was just happy be acknowledged and jokingly wonder if the bathroom haunting started when the skull got put back. Many places on the island give me a bad creepy feeling too. One side of Schoen Lake and the back of a friend’s property in Bowser. Both these places are felt by others too. I really hate what happened to the native people and it’s no wonder there are ghosts everywhere here.

      Reply

      1. Thank you for your comment Brian. I appreciate you bringing up the topic of Indigenous burial hauntings in a sensitive way. Many burial sites turn out to not be true (all of Victoria built on Indigenous burial grounds, for example). In your case, it sounds like there might be an actual connection as you had human remains in your home. Hauntings blamed on Indigenous burials is an area I have been researching as the most prolific type of urban legend in North America. From Amityville Horror to Stephen King, questionable mediums to sensational paranormal investigators, even cartoons like South Park and the Simpsons. Some of it is “settler guilt” (a lot of bad things happened, as you say), some of it is Indigenous spirit belief (ghosts are accepted as real and part of daily life), but much of it is latent Christian ideas about who goes to heaven and what ground is sacred and which is tainted (colonist Christians felt Indigenous spirits were pagan, evil, and earthbound). If your haunting is related to the skull, it wouldn’t be the first case of this I’ve heard on Vancouver Island. A Snuneymuxw Elder told me about activity in their home while taking care of recovered human remains.

        Which side of Schoen Lake did you feel was creepy? I never heard of any stories from there before.

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  54. My Dad retired on Saltspring Island and in mid summer of 2004, I was standing on top of a hill and saw a red light, moving diagonally then hovering, then shooting off, then hovering always visible. I called my Dad to see it, neither of us had ever seen anything like it. We watched for almost 45 minutes and finally went to bed. We both checked the local paper, The Saltspring Driftwood to see if others had reported the sighting, but nothing.

    Reply

    1. Thanks Sharie! There have been a number of similar sightings I’ve come across regionally. The red description is surprisingly common as well. It’s always nice to share the experience with someone else. Less likely for you to question your own memory after the fact!

      Reply

    2. Hi Sharie that sounds an awful lot like the lights i saw over the straight between Nanaimo and the mainland. Red lights Pulsating moving from east to west slowly while heading south. Never saw a flashing white light, no green lights or any other lights just pulsating Red Lights. Saw these on 2 different occasions about 8 months or more apart. I also saw a strange light in the sky towards the South West of Nanaimo. It was stationary at first looked just like a star. Looked to be a part of a cluster of 3 stars. So i assumed it was very high in altitude. Anyways I turned back and looked at the cluster of 3 stars and the one on the top left started heading East, gained a lot of speed then poof! Out like a light turned off. I tracked it visually for about 30 secs. My buddy saw it too. It travelled in a straight line and moved very rapidly.

      Reply

      1. Ed and Sharie, I posted a video from Nanaimo of a red light in this blog post. I wasn’t sure if I was going to share it or not originally (“hey isn’t that the guy who says he saw ghosts AND UFOs?”), bust here it is for your viewing pleasure. Some comments on Youtube as well https://livinglibraryblog.com/?p=2271

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  55. Hello, Does anyone have any information on Haunting/Ghosts in Port Alice, As I currently live here, and have heard quite a few comments of MANY Children Passing away here in Old Port Alice, as Well, My Husband and I work at the Pulp Mill, Est. in 1917, Very Old Mill/ Meuseum you could say. Many Many “rumors” of Ghosts in the Mill in Certain Loactions.
    Many Landslides back in the day.
    Port Alice seems it has alot of History.
    Anybody have more information? I would greatly appreciate it !

    Courtney~

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    1. Thanks for your comment Courtney! I’ve been doing some digging and haven’t come across anything at all yet. Would love to hear more about what you’ve heard. It’s the first I’ve been told of a haunting in Port Alice. I came across a few of the older pictures. The mill really is old, so it wouldn’t surprise me if there was a story or two there as well. I’d be really stoked to hear what you’ve been told.

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      1. I worked at the mill it seems fine to me but the hotel is something else I saw the strangest phenomena on more than one occasion! and the drive in also was strange a vehicle in front of me just disappeared!!!! I feel its not a place where one should go.

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        1. Thanks for your comment Donna. Since this comment I did talk to one person who works at the mill who said he thought it was haunted as well. He had said one of the valves kept getting turned when no one was there. I don’t know if everyone would ever agree 100% on any one place though. Everyone has their own experiences — or not.
          Strange about the vehicle for sure! And I will have to check out the hotel! Anything in particular you’ve heard or experienced?

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  56. In Nanaimo, BC there is a supposedly haunted road. It was called Jingle Pot mile when I was growing up. It is part of Jingle Pot road. There were some satanic rituals that took place in the woods there. Driving through there at night you made sure your lights were on. Stopping could be scary as things were seen and heard in the woods.

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    1. Thank you Barb! There is a discussion on Nanaimo Information about this particular stretch of road. I haven’t been able to find anything in print yet. Any personal experiences you’d like to share?

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    2. Was the section called sleepy hollow? Homes are built there now. There is also. Satanic Church, as far as we remembered, just off jingle pot as well.

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      1. I think you’re right Jae that rings a bell! Do you mean the really small church? or is there another church in the area?

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  57. I worked at the Calico Teahouse for about two years. I was the cook so I was there early in the morning when no one else was there yet. The tea cups would rattle on the shelves. I’d tell the ghost to find something useful to do and the rattling always stopped. Would see a black and white dog from time to time, as well.

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    1. Thanks Teri! Do you know if anyone else saw the dog? or do you know if there ever was a dog living there?

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  58. The Dorchester Hotel in Nanaimo as well. I don’t know much about it but I always hear that it’s haunted.

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    1. Thx Rae I’ve heard this as well! During last year’s Lantern Tour, the program director for the Nanaimo museum shared a personal experience she had in the lounge. Several people were inside the room when a glass flew off of the bar. The bartender, in shock, asked if anyone else had seen it and several people said they had including her. It’s a very old hotel. It’s had a few names, but it used to be the Windsor (old pictures) and was attached to the opera house. Travelling mediums etc. would do shows there during the spiritualist era.

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  59. I have never seen anything on Dracula’s castle as it was once known on the comox lake logging road if its still there. Used to be a common area for satanic rituals. Very evil grounds.

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    1. I’ve never heard of this. I’ll see if I can dig something up. Was it an actual stone building?

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      1. I was there less than 3 months ago for a photoshoot with a couple of friends because we admired the art there. I didn’t really pay attention to any spiritual like things because I didn’t even know dracs castle was haunted, but now that I think of it i deffenitly felt an unnatural cold and weird wind sounds almost like whispering

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      2. Hmm, been there many times while dirtbiking, partying or 4x4ing…It is pretty erie feeling. Never knew much about it, as when I used to go there, maybe about 15-18 years ago it was just an open stone or concrete building with walls that were broken down. It was always a big area, so something was defiantly built there a really long time ago. Id be interested in hearing more about it.

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      3. Stone buildings. Some state it was an old sawmill, some state mining buildings. There are underground tunnels which could be from either type of structure. Courtenay was both a mining town and sawmill town with railway lines from the mountain lake area (Town of Beban) down to the ocean near Royston. Drac’s Castle is a made up name from sometime in the 70’s, early 80’s; don’t know why. Yes there were rituals performed there with animals, parties (raves), etc. Haunted, don’t know about that. Just because it is old, abandoned, and deep in the woods, makes the myth grow. Hope you can find some information on this somewhere, it would be nice to keep the history alive.

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        1. Thank you all for your comments! I’ve been digging around, but haven’t come across much as of yet. Rob, your theory does sound pretty solid to me. Some of these places are more urban myth than fact, especially as one starts to do the research. Sadly, that can be the case in some of the more “accepted” haunted sites as well; which is why I list the folkloric story while not making claims as to wether or not the place is truly haunted. Dracula’s Castle has the story for sure, but I haven’t been able to find a reference to the legend anywhere in print or online, which is why it’s not really on this list yet as I like the sources (though this many comments…). If anyone comes across any leads it would be much appreciated. Loggers or miners? I know you’re reading this haha

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          2. thanks Justin those are some amazing pictures! I’ve never found it so now I know what to look for 🙂

    2. I remember hearing about this place but never went. I have friends that checked it out when we were teenagers in the 90’s

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        1. I’m not from comix but , we did vist this place in the late 90 and I swear to god there were dead birds all over the place and a 2 deer skulls that had been painted and hung on tree, obviously do e by ppl but the whole place has bad bad energy

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        3. Courtenay. At the end of Lake Trail Road (on your way to the old ghost town of Beban) as it hits the Comox Logging Road (Comox Lake Road) that goes out to the Rod & Gun Club/Comox Lake. It is a large forested area that is encompassed between Lake Trail Road, Comox Lake Road, and the Inland Island Hwy.

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          1. Thank you Rob. I see we already had an answer but your guess was solid! Wish I could say the same about my memory

    3. drac castle, i remember rumors of that place growing up as a kid in campbell river. tried to find it but never could

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    4. I lived very close to Draculas castle, and I saw many weird and mysterious things. The satantic rituals were real, I saw them at least 5 times. Creep place!!

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      1. Wow, that’s intense. Do you know for sure they were satanic, as opposed to wiccan or something else? Just curious what exactly you saw and how. Did they know you were there? Thank you for sharing Coleen.

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        1. I’ve also been to Drac’s castle. When I was there in the mid-90’s it definitely felt haunted by someone or something. It was one of the most creepy places I’ve ever been to. One night I saw an elk’s head with antlers and flesh still on it, but the skin all rotted off, resting on one of the low walls surrounding the old mine-head. I think this prop was way too creepy to be part of a mere Wiccan ritual.

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          1. I’d say! That’s brutal. Sometimes when a site gets a reputation people will mess around just to screw with / freak out other people. Hopefully, this is the case and not a sacrifice (I can’t see anyone being able to legit sacrifice an elk). If there’s ever been a lamer religion than Satanism I don’t know about it. Too scared to leave the confines of Christianity, but rebellious enough to shake a fist at it.

        2. I am not sure if it was satanic or wiccan, I did see a deer skull on a tree with a metal cup hanging off the antlers. I also saw people in robes moving around a fire,chanting. VERY CREEPY

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  60. I have friends that used to always go up to Mount Sicker to get freaked out. One time they went with a few girls and decided to freak them out so one of them hid under a sleeping bag in the back of the truck and when they got up there they all got out of the truck and the guy under the sleeping bag got in the drivers seat and started driving around and the girls were screaming “LEAVE US ALONE, STOOOOOP IT” and one almost had a total meltdown before my friends said it was someone in the car.

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  61. I saw an apparition in Nanaimo about 4 years back. I had never seen one prior and it really took me off guard. I was standing outside the Patricia Hotel on Haliburton Street around 10:00pm at night. I was looking down the street towards Farquhar Street when I saw something rolling down the road on Farquhar Street. At first I thought it was someone on a motorized disability scooter but then I noticed there was no one on it and it was shaped like horizontal rectangular box. It was very clearly outlined and as it rolled up to the telephone pole it disappeared not reappearing on the other side of the pole. About 3 seconds later it appeared in the middle of the street and continued rolling down the hill for about another 5 seconds but then just vanished into thin air. I couldn’t believe what I had just seen, but I know I absolutely saw what I saw. I realized it was an old coal cart that I had seen rolling down Farquhar Street. Perhaps others have seen something similar around there which is why I wanted to share.
    I volunteer for an animal rescue in Nanaimo and ended up getting a call a few weeks ago from someone in an apartment behind an abandoned building at the corner of Farquhar and Haliburton Street. They had seen a cat going in and out of the abandoned building and they were worried about it because the building is planned to be demolished. I found myself back at the spot where I saw the coal cart apparition years ago and became curious as to what the abandoned building was and why would I see a coal cart going down the street. The abandoned building was a very popular store called Manson’s store back in the coal mining days. The building was constructed in 1876. “The building is prominently located on a corner lot and serviced the commercial needs of miners who lived in the adjoining residential area.” Sadly the family that owns it are going through hard times and aren’t able to afford for repairs so it looks as though this heritage building will be demolished. It seems the Manson’s were very kind to the miners and would help them out in hard times. It’s sad that the family will now lose it because they aren’t able to repair it. With further investigation I learned of the coal mining explosion killing 153 people. The opening to this shaft was just down the street from the store. I tried to see if coal carts actually came down Farquhar at some point but I couldn’t find any specific information. Perhaps underneath the street? The building really has a personality. When I was walking around in the snow looking for cat prints it just seemed alive with pride; although it couldn’t do anything to stop itself from aging. The front wood porch stairs are crooked with weathered time. The door looks as though it refuses to age. The street numbers on the porch’s wood post cannot be seen from the street because of the shrubs but the “2” on the top has turned upside down and covers the number underneath it.

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    1. Thanks for sharing! I haven’t heard of this type of encounter before. I haven’t been able to find any mention of Farquhar Street and coal carts but I’ll look a little deeper when I get the chance. If I find anything I’ll attach it to your comment here. There were over 600 mining deaths in the area believe it or not, but the one you’ve mentioned was the biggest. Nanaimo has a very tragic history.

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    2. On my 21st birthday..I had a conversation with the cowboy ghost in Cumberland..it was detailed..a message from my father who I never met. My girl friend came out to the side of the road on dunsmuir in front of the Cumberland hotel..asked me who I was talking too..I replied this cowboy..I turned around and he was gone..wasn’t til 12 years later reading an article in the local comox valley paper about the cowboy ghost in Cumberland that walked the main street dunsmuir that I put it all together..Nanaimo is similar to Cumberland with coal..I lived on Halliburton.never had the fortune of seeing anything there

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      1. Thx Felicity. I’d never heard of the cowboy ghost before. That’s awesome. I’ll have to try and find that article. Since your last comment I did find out about the Pioneer Museum and a couple of private home. Thank you for sharing this!

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  62. The WWII hangar at the Port Hardy airport is generally thought to be haunted by those who work at the airport , with many reported strange goings on from pilots and other airport workers. I write a history article in the North Island paper and I have been meaning to do a write-up on this one for a while.

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    1. I really hope you do! I’d be interested in hearing a lot more about the airport. This would be the first Port Hardy ghost story I’ve come across. Thanks a lot for sharing! You have an awesome blog and I look forward to reading more of your work

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  63. Today, I went and checked out “The Butter Church”. I don’t know if it’s mentioned anywhere on this blog. It’s not far from Providence Farm, another old church still in use for day programs for the mentally disabled.

    The Butter Church is in the shadow of Mount Tzouhalem. It was built in 1858, and abandoned 1870. Nothing to weird happened except I may have heard some chanting x2. The first time when I first walked in the church. It was breezy, and it sounded like it was buried in the wind for lack of better words. The second one was while I was walking back through on the way back, but it wasn’t as pronounced. I got some pics of the church and property if anyone is interested. I also took a 1 minute video as well.

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    1. That’s awesome Steven! The church is mentioned as part of the haunted area, usually, and Shalyn talks about it in her blog on haunted Vancouver Island hot spots. Would love to see some pictures. When you leave a comment does it allow you to post pictures? If so that would be great! Or if you post them anywhere else you can include the address. It sounds like a very cool experience. Did you check out any of the trails?

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        1. Here are four of the pictures that Steven took of Butter Church mentioned as part of the Mt. Tzouhalem entry above. According to one writer – Shalyn – the church was mentioned in an older Ripley’s Believe it or Not article. The legend is that everyone who helped build it died and that the First Nation people of the area didn’t like to go near it. Picture one. Picture two. Picture three. Picture four.

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          1. I live used to live near this church just of the reserve land it has a sad history and is defiantly haunted as is mt tzouhalem I live very near the top of the side overlooking maple bay and we have seen and hears many thing here heard drums that were not the kid next door but old drums in a native rhythm , almost everyone in my family including my new husband how moved here this past year have seen thing and he had no prior knowledge of the mountain , but we were sating in my parents 5th wheel in the back yard , the have 5 acres of tree and we both would get totally spooked some night the point we would close all the window even though it was hot ,because we could both feel something I was pregnant the whole time we stayed out there and I think it made me more sensitive to the stuff out here it was really scary some nights ,
            we started taking pictures of the trailer and there were tons of what ppl call “orbs” neither one of us ever had the guts to take a pic outside at night though lol .

          2. Thanks for the comments and sharing your personal experiences! Do you still have any of the pictures with orbs that you’d like to share?

    2. I used to work at heriot bay inn. Some clients would always come back to have the feeling of searching for the spirits. Working the nightshift at the front desk, sometimes you’d hear someone running in the upstairs hallways, you’d go check and nothing was there and no doors would close? Also working the am shift opening up the hotel, tourism, gift shop, dining room, pub you could hear chairs moving around when they were clearly left place up on the table from the cleaning staff. Also, pots and pans moving, lights turning off and on; one day working the morning shift I opened, no a soul or sound everything sleeping sound asleep at 5am, just came back to the front desk from opening the pub and gift shop, was walking…and a lady said “my name, hurry come!” I went upstairs to accounting to see of anyone was up there, no one, as well as the pub and dining room and kitchen. Walked through the upstairs hallways from one end to the other and it was cold and listened for someone by their room, nothing. Once staff arrived I asked each one “hey you place a trick on me this am?” And all said no, just arrived.

      My story. Heriot bay inn is a lovely and wonderful hotel, adventure centre, pub and dining room, many many people from all over the world always come through spring and summer.

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      1. Thanks for sharing! How long ago did you work there? Your first comment”feeling of searching for the spirit,” do you mean that they felt as if they were being watched?

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    3. I am a member of a group called medieval chaos that is larp group in cowichan bay. My friend started it about ten years ago and it runs every Saturday from 3pm till 11pmmost weeks. The location us near the butter church and we have mass battles weekly with 50 to 100 people attending. To those of you who don’t know what larp is it means live, action,role ,play. That is these people dress in medieval cloths and have pitched battles. Now I read about disimbodyed voices from the church and can’t help but think that what people hear is us. Also as for seeing ghostly natives on tzouhalem I know for a fact that the natives dress in old clothes are winter and do rituals on the mountain and can’t help but think people are seeing real people on the mountain and not ghosts.

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      1. Interesting. I wonder how many of the reports are from incidents that took place Saturday from 3 to 11? How many years does this go back? That would be interesting to know as well. It is possible for sure. Much of the church’s legend/reputation stems from older inaccurate settler legends about the building etc. Completely made up. Many do think that the building is haunted though.
        As for Tzouhalem I would think that is less likely. Though if someone was extremely naive and saw a person in traditional dress it might explain one or two. First Nation people especially would be able to tell the difference. Elders have stories. If I’m not mistaken every telling I have heard of the haunting has come from First Nation people. It’s often a fear of the spirit he consorted with.

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  64. Have you heard/read anything about the waterfalls at elk falls provincial park in Campbrll River?
    Took my cousins dog for a walk there one day, he stopped about 50 feet from the lookout and growled/barked like crazy (that was the first and only time I heard him bark).
    I heard stories after that that witchcraft is practiced there at times as well.
    Curious if you/any one has had similar experiences or heard stories.

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    1. I haven’t actually. Of course there have been Sasquatch reports from the Elk Falls Park over the years. Somewhat nearby, there’s a lesser known water monster dubbed “Klato” that was reported in 1942 in Oyster River, but I’m not sure if your dog would have been barking at the actual water or not? He may have sensed a cougar, wolf or bear you weren’t aware of as well? Anyways… sorry for the preamble.
      No ghost or witchcraft stories I’m aware of. You might be interested to know there have been searches such as, “Haunted Areas in Campbell River Woods” (Oct 14, 2013). If that wasn’t you, then other people are interested in the woods around Campbell River as well. Thank you for sharing Anna! If I do come across anything I’ll post it attached to this comment for you!

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        1. Thank you for your comment Alice. It’s comforting to know that diversity of belief exists on Vancouver Island outside the places one might initially expect. Our forests need stewards from all walks of life, and some paths have proven — to me at least — to be more respectful than others.

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  65. I live in Port Hardy on the north end of the island. I went to port Alice for dinner one evening with a friend. It is a 45 minute drive to Port Alice from here and nothing but logging roads and lakes the whole way there so it is very dark at night .Blah Blah Blah…On the way home it was really dark but in the trees I could see a really bright white light. I told the friend was with that it almost looked like the moon but way too bright and White. He said it was just the lights at the nearby airport. I have driven this road a million times and the airport light does NOT look like that. well we drove for probably 15 more minutes when i realized that it is behind the trees not above them and I am telling my friend that we are following it. I wanted to know what the hell it was. So as we get to Beaver lake just before the Port Hardy turn off my friends says holy crap its above the lake!! So of course I made him pull in and we get out off the car and walk down to the end of the dock.. I tell you…I have never in my life been so in awe of anything> You know those electricity balls where you can see the currents? this thing in the sky was perfectly round and looked similar to one of those but the bright white would pulsate and electricity like lightening would rip out of it and not even kidding…I could see the bottom of the lake every time it pulsated. It was hovering maybe 100 feet above the lake. This lake is cedar water and normally you cannot see the bottom during the day. I actually got scared and we decided to leave. I reported the incident but never heard anything back. I was however standing in my bank a few days later where a lady was talking about her brother telling her a story the same as mine but he never investigated and turned out it was the same night I saw it. still curious as to what it was. Whatever it was…it was just as beautiful as it was frightening and I wouldn’t mind seeing it again.

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    1. Did you see Anthony’s (original) comment/experience below? He also mentioned the lightning thing. His experience was in the Malahat in 2010. I’m becoming more and more certain I need to do a post exclusively on UFO encounters on Vancouver Island; especially with the parallel to some of the First Nation myths regarding the thunderbird… I don’t take the show too seriously, but I like checking out Ancient Aliens once in a while (there’s actually a drinking game? It’s a good time). What I’ve actually learned from watching too much mindless television, is that UFO sightings over lakes are actually quite common for some reason. Obviously, I have no idea why, but it’s an interesting thing. I really like your account because the location is so specific and others had made the claim as well. I’ve found very few accounts of anything from the Port Hardy area online and I don’t know anyone from there at all, so I appreciate that aspect of your story well. Thanks Crystal!

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      1. Yes I read Anthony’s story and am sorry he lost his job over it. That’s too bad!! I have told many people my story and don’t care if they think I am crazy. I saw what I saw as Anthony saw what he saw. What they think doesn’t change that! I don’t have bad dreams but I find myself thinking about that night and it feels like I go into a trance like state for a few seconds. I haven’t spoken to the friend I was with since then other than in passing and saying hi. I almost feel separated and blank when I think about it much like I felt that night. I was kind of scared but too caught up in what I was looking at and running didn’t seem necessary. Hard to explain. Everything about it was just strange.
        My boyfriend works at a fish plant in port hardy and was working an evening shift when he saw 4 uniformed orange lights in the shape of a diamond (length going from left to right). The lights were hovering above the water and just suddenly disappeared. He called me to tell me about it. I giggled because he was so excited. but no one else saw it so we still know nothing about it.
        Also someone mentioned Port Alice. There is an old graveyard behind the pulp mill from the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. buried there are people who died of illnesses from the pollution the old mill used to produce and of course natural deaths too. but most were probably due to the pollution. have gone out there a few times and it is so surreal you almost want to whisper so as not to disturb this quiet resting place. Port Alice used to sit beside the mill where Seven Hills Golf Course is now. The town was relocated to where it is because of the pollution. Of course the mill is completely updated and no longer toxic to work at or be around. I do know that one could go to the Municipal hall in Port Alice and ask for a copy of the Port Alice reunion and you will have a wonderful read about the history of the town and the big landslides. With all that has happened in that little part of the world I would be surprised if there were no stories of hauntings.

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  66. Regarding the Sicker Mt. experience. I was on the remains of the hotel floor, and felt the typical chill associated with hauntings, despite the August weather. Several people in my party saw ‘something’, my Dad described it as looking through old glass, my uncle just ran down the trail, and would never speak of what he saw. My Dad’s girlfriend, who claims to have psychic ability, said she saw the form of a woman in a barrel hoop dress, beside me, and was headless. I believe!

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    1. Brutal! So several people have had experiences at the same time? I don’t know if you saw Sam’s comment below about the Mt. Sicker road and the appearance of a woman who appears in front of vehicles? Very interesting. Was your experience during the day? How long ago was it? I never knew the hotel floor was still there. Pretty wild area!

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    2. Hi Larry, I just sent you an email but wanted to comment here to make sure you get it. I have a book coming out this fall and I am planning on using your comment. I would like to send you a copy of the book as a thank you. Also, to make sure you are okay with your name in the book as well.
      Thanks again for your comment.

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  67. I hear you, I lost my job over it so, I gained SFA out of this so I have little motivation to make up stories.
    Another thing is, there were other people stopped at that rest area who must of seen what I did, I wish they would come forward to corroborate this incident.
    Finally, I decided to discuss this incident here because ever since this incident I have had nightmares because of it and strange occurrences that have happened to me since that may or may not be related.

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    1. Thanks for sharing Anthony. I can only imagine how difficult this must be. People have made similar claims regarding other UFO-type incidents all over the world so you’re definitely not alone. Many have stated the same reluctance to make reports in cases of hauntings or seeing unidentified creatures, as well – for fear of not being believed. As it’s still relatively recent, hopefully it’ll get easier in time. I’ll let you know when I do a UFO/Thunderbird blog post by email as I would share a portion of your comment there as well. Hope you’re having a great weekend.

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  68. Paper mill dam park in port alberni has had a lot of sightings of weird coloured light orbs and shadow figures. I won’t go there in the dark anymore.

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    1. The orbs, are they the same as what people say they see at the falls? I’m not sure if you saw Nelda’s comments below. She shared about the dam as well. I never realized that so many people have had experiences there! Thanks Kevin!

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  69. The Cassidy Hotel, is another well known place for hauntings.. I used to work there and ive felt someone tapping me on the shoulders, and when i turn to acknowledge then, there’s no one there.. Swinging doors, strange sounds, and people claiming to see a lady dress in, white walking into the corner bathroom. The Cassidy Hotel has also been on a popular tv show, called Creepy Canada..

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    1. Is that the Inn with the ivy growing on the side of it? I’ve always thought it looked creepy. Did the staff have any theories about who she is?
      I’m stoked that you mentioned it was on Creepy Canada as well. That means I can add it to this list if I can find the episode. It might be tough, though, because it’s not listed as one of the segments and I’ve never seen that episode. Would you happen to remember what the other stories there were on that episode? That would be help too. Thanks for sharing Marlena!

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    2. I worked there too. I could hear footsteps upstairs when no one was there and the tvs turned on and off all the time. Don’t even get me started on the dungeon! Cool, creepy place

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    1. Thanks for the link Andrew! I see a few of my fellow BCGHRS members have already liked your page as well. Some beautiful images. Looking forward to seeing more of your work!

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  71. Quite interesting as I grew up on the Island and Cameron Lake has always held a special aura for me. The issue I have with this article is the use of the word “hung”. The correct past tense of the word hang, when pertaining to hanging a person or persons, is “hanged”. Go ahead, look it up.

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    1. Thanks for pointing out my shitty spelling Jason! 🙂 I wouldn’t worry about it too much, or you might be here a while. I’d hate for you to have any lingering issues though, so I changed it just for you. Most spelling comments get ignored but I like you Jason Wilson. You’re all right.

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      1. Well to be honest it is a real bad peeve of mine lol and I like you and your article as well. If it was just the one spelling mistake I know those happen…I think it was around the third “hung” instead of “hanged” my left eye started to twitch…no lingering issues that you can resolve unfortunately…I tend to correct the spelling errors on the bathroom walls…yeah I got issues 🙂

        I have always had an affinity towards spirits and see, feel, and hear what others cannot. It does make for an interesting life experience.

        A number of years ago I was doing a lot of construction work and commuting to Port Alberni from Nanaimo. I was going through the motions of a bad breakup and I always felt so at peace driving though the Cameron Lake area until past Cathedral grove. It is almost like I was not fully there when I was supposed to be concentrating on driving. Kinda glad nobody got killed now that I think about it.

        There is definitely a power in the Cameron Lake area, one that I hope to explore one day but now isn’t the time…

        Having been from tip to tail of the big island and many remote places on the other islands I can honestly say there are many places that are not necessarily “haunted” but definitely spiritual.

        Did you know there is an abandoned Dutch settlement on the hike out to Cape Scott? It was quite a place to visit as well.

        I will be following this article as I think I might just make a trip itinerary based on your findings.

        Take care,
        Jay

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        1. Thanks Jay! I know what you mean about Cathedral Grove and Cameron Lake areas. I’ve found a lot of places on the island really have an intense vibe. If you’ve never been to Keeha Beach area it’s really impressive. As I’d mentioned above, there’s an abandoned First Nation village quite close to it, as well. The site of a massacre. I felt very watched there. Intense place. I experienced a sort of spiritual peace on Keeha Beach that has been hard to replicate in my life. I’m aware of the Fisherman River area settlement, but I’ve never been there. I’ve only been to Cape Scott once, and I still have to visit many of the smaller less accessible Gulf Islands as well. In due time hopefully… I do have a few eye twitching moments when I read other people’s stuff (patients vs. patience, etc) so I get it. I don’t mind when my fails are pointed out to be honest, as long as someone’s contributing to the conversation such as yourself. It’s the people who call me an idiot without adding anything that get ignored… because, well, that just seems a little harsh.

          Reply

  72. I had a strange experience happen to me August,28 2010 while I was working as a Truck Driver for a Courier Company at approximately 01:00 hours of the morning.
    I had stopped my Truck at what is called the view-point rest area located on the Malahat Highway as I was heading South.
    I left the cab of my Truck to go relieve myself of to the side roadway and I noticed of in the distance two slow moving blue lights off in the distance, then all of a sudden the 2 blue lights moved towards me together….Shocked at what I was seeing, I ran toward my truck to get out of there. I tried to get into my truck but, the door was locked (I never locked that door for that kind of stop) I was so scared I used a rock to break the side window of the Truck to get in and got out of there A.S.A.P, and just as I was driving my Truck back on to the Highway I seen the Two Blue,White and Black teardrop shaped orbs hovering over the Highway between the two rock Bluffs and soon as they seen me, they took-off together in a instant as I sped away. Thing is, just as soon as I was driving North again, I was approached by a R.C.M.P police cruiser that drove right past me with a smashed out driver side window plain to see.
    I continued on to Duncan and my deliveries and reported to my employer that I accidentally broke my window and withheld the other details of the accident for fear of ridicule from my Employer and co-workers.
    In addition to that, when I returned home (not far away from the scene of the incident) I noticed in that approximate direction Lightening in the sky but, there was “No Thunder” and this went on until just before daybreak.
    A loved one who lived with me at the time said She had gotten up during the early morning and witnessed the lights and R.C.M.P cruisers patrolling our otherwise quiet neighborhood several times that morning.
    Finally, just last year, 3 years to the day of that incident happening the same lightening with No-Thunder happened again witnessed by everyone who lives around here.
    Really, I reported the incident to M.U.F.O.N but got no response and this is the only other time I have discussed the incident (except with loved ones) I have no reason to lie about what I witnessed, because of it I lost my job so I gained nothing from it.

    This is what happened to me August,28 2010

    Reply

    1. Thanks Anthony! I’m sorry to hear that you lost your job. That’s really shitty. Part of your story sent chills up and down my spine; the part about the lightning. When I interviewed Chief James Swan he told me a story about a man following the thunderbird into a cave and seeing a man come out of his chest link. He believes this thunderbird story may be an old UFO claim. Interestingly, there’s also a First Nation story from Alert Bay that was recorded by Boas in 1895 that sounds like a UFO account as well: A man who flew from “above the sky” visited them, and “his house stood on stilts in the water.” There have been UFO claims on the island for a long time. Your detail about the lightning and Chief Swan’s comment about the thunderbird is food for thought. I’ll have to write a post about this specifically someday. Hopefully soon. Thanks again Anthony!

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    2. I had a experience just like that and I dont talk about it.. It seems crazy to me so why would people believe it…. 🙁

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  73. I just wanted to say that I am thrilled to see am web page dedicated to this! I’ve lived in the Coombs/Qualicum area my whole life and have experienced multiple hauntings in many buildings including places that you have written about on here. The local history and experiences prompt me to create a Paranormal Investigation group with a few close friends and have evidence to back them up. Thank you for giving this area much needed recognition!

    Reply

    1. Thanks Katie! I’m very interested in any stories you might have from Coombs. I love the old house on the highway with the wooden fence. It looks like someone put newer windows on it recently, but it always looked abandoned to me and has a vibe. The Cukoo restaurant’s a very cool building that I’ve wondered about as well. I’d be interested in hearing more about your group too. If you’re interested in letting the world know who you guys are and what you’ve experienced I’d be happy to do a post on your group. If you’re looking for local areas that might be haunted I actually have leads on a couple in your area that I’ve kept off the list.

      Reply

      1. Thanks for the reply! That would be wonderful! I do know a few things on the old “Ford” house (the one with the wooden fence) and Cukoo’s. The Ford house is known to be haunted by Mr. Ford and Cukoo’s has had some activity over the years during renos (all owners both new and old are family friends). My family is from Coombs and have been established there since the settlement in 1900. I can garentee you a good 90% of the buildings are haunted in the area including residential. The building we got the most and undoubtibley amazing evidence from is the old French Creek School where we have many clear audio tapes and you can hear the bands in the gym from the 1920’s (giving me goosebumps just thinking of it!). If you would like to hear me, feel free to shoot me an email!

        Reply

        1. Awesome Katie! I’m most interested in hearing what you’ve captured, and learning more about you and your team. Stoked to hear more about these places. Cuckoo’s patio on a warm summer evening is probably one of my favourite places to eat on the island. I like it even more now knowing that it has activity. Lol. I’ll send you an email over the next couple of weeks. Thanks again.

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    2. I also live in Coombs area. My youngest went to french creek elementary school, but sad to say they closed it down this year due to cut back. Would love to live in Mr Fords old house. Always drawn to that location. Just something about it. Never been in Cukoo’s thou (since it became a restaurant) went in when it was a shop. Loved it in there great vibes. I worked in the main market. Always kinda creepy going in early in the morning. Could hear sounds but never paid much attention to them.

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      1. Thanks for sharing Trina! I imagine it’d also be pretty peaceful in the mornings though? …anything specific about the sounds? footsteps? crashing? screaming babies? 🙂

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      2. the old bathrooms down below the coombs market restaurant are haunted…before the market was around ,the land was owned by a family with two sons that were gun happy…not to much info on that ,but rumor has it ,that they buried guns all over coombs…..the old bar is haunted too….

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    1. The list is source-based. I haven’t come across anything from Cumberland, yet. Nothing online or in print that I’m aware of anyways. If you know of any Cumberland stories I’d love it if you shared!
      The only tip I’ve ever had from Cumberland – per se – is from the site where Henry Wagner killed Constable Ross at the old Fraser and Bishop store. That still isn’t technically Cumberland, though, more Union. An old army guy I know told me there was a lot of activity there when he was younger and insinuated that he had a personal experience. He wouldn’t say what exactly. It’s not there anymore unfortunately.

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  75. I heard stories about the paper mill dam in Port Alberni from many people, since I was a little girl, the first person I knew that saw the ghost of the lady who walks on the water was my late sister, she was a teenager at the time that she told me about it, she was with a couple of my cousins at the dam in the early morning hours(3am) one summer and they were enjoying the warm evening air with a little dip in the river, my cousins had decided 2go 2the shore, they were done swimming but my sister wanted 2stay in the water a little bit longer(she was enjoying herself) so they waited on the shore 4her. She waded around the water chest high 4awhile, she had her face in the cool water when she noticed a bright glow on the waters surface(she assumed it was the glow from the moon) then she looked up and standing right in front of her(on top of the water) was the lady on the lake, and as soon as my sister looked at her the lady said 2my sister “Have you seen my baby?” scared out of her wits my sister took off running as fast as she could towards the shore, my cousins told her that as she ran through the water the lady glided along the lake, following her (looking really angry) until she reached the shore, then the lady disappeared. Another story I heard about the lady on the lake was from my ex boyfriend, he told me that he was down at the dam having a few drinks with some friends n their discussion started 2get heated so he left the dam n was headed up a trail in the woods(just across the road from the dam) he was about 1/2 way up the trail when he looked up n the lady(who is usually spotted walking on the water) was in the middle of the trail n when he looked at her she said 2him “Have u seen my baby?” he said he dropped his case of bottled beers n ran back 2the dam, the people there said he was white as a ghost when he returned and he explained to them what happened. both these stories happened in the last 10 & 15years.

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    1. Thank you Nelda! These are both awesome stories. I would love to know more about her. Do you know if there are any theories as to who she is or what the story regarding her baby might be about? or even what era of clothing she might be wearing? This is one of the locations I’ve had a harder time finding details about, as far as the hauntings go. Other than what appears above. Great share!

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      1. I don’t know what era it’s from, unfortunately I didn’t ask 4details, my Gramma said she has heard about the lady that walks on the water since she was a little girl n many people have seen her, she said she heard that the lady’s baby fell over board n drown in the river n within a month the lady disappeared never 2b seen alive again, n 2this day she is still searching 4her baby

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        1. That’s great thank you! Would it defy any sort of internet etiquette if I asked you how old your grandmother is? I’d be able to date when people claimed to have seen her from (even though it’s likely before that).

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          3. U said u wanted details I 4got just one, after the ladies baby drown n she disappeared her body was found floating in the river about a month after her baby died, they didn’t know if it was an accident r suicide or foul play, there was no evidence 2show how she ended up there my Gramma said

          4. Thanks Nelda! I really appreciate the information. This is one of those sites I’ve been really drawn to, but I hadn’t been able to find out much more. Have a couple of Army buddies in Port Alberni – but you think anyone would humour me and give me the lowdown on the haunted sites? Ha! Thanks for sharing your gramma’s story! I hope to track down an old newspaper story or something, but it might have to wait until I have a little more time.

          5. Hi Nelda, I sent you an email but not sure if you got it. I wanted to let you know that I plan on using your comments in my book The Haunting of Vancouver Island out this fall. I would like to send you a copy as a thank you 🙂

  76. I grew up in Port Alberni and lived in Ucluelet after I got married and travelled the road in between almost every weekend. Twice I have experienced unusual sightings. The first was a sighting of what I am sure was bigfoot. He came around a corner that I was heading toward. I was quite a ways back and not sure if what I was seeing was accurate but I know there was something there for sure because another car was going really slow, looking in the same spot I was. I just got the impression of something really big and broad. When I got to the spot where it ran off the road it was a straight up cliff of rock that even a large animal would not have been able to get up easily. Then another time I was heading back to Ucluelet after dark and came around a corner onto a straight stretch and there was the biggest, brightest (and I mean bright like blinding, hypnotic, bright) light I’ve ever seen, over top of me. It travelled with me, down the straight stretch for what seemed like forever. It was like it happened in slow motion. When I finally got to the next corner it quickly rose up and behind me then disappeared. It freaked me out like nothing ever had before. I have never told a whole lot of people because it feels like escaped untouched why test fate. To this day many years later when I occasionally travel the road now, I still get goose bumps and chills when I travel that straight stretch.

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    1. Wow. You must have hated driving after that? I’m sure you already know that this stretch of road between Port Alberni and the junction has had numerous reports similar to yours of a bigfoot-like creature. The Nuhchahnulth legends from the area collected by Boas and Alexander etc, also have stories of a large hairy “witch-woman” sometimes referred to as a cannibal. These stories go back generations, and occur in other First Nation groups on the Island and mainland coast as well.
      At the bottom of this post I share my experiences with lights near Bamfield. I have seen these same lights in captured video in the UFO links above as well. I’m undecided what these are, exactly, but I know these lights are real and are still being seen all over the island as well. I can only imagine how intimidating it must’ve been to see one up close. Very intense to say the least.
      Thanks for sharing.

      Reply

        1. Thank you for your comment Georgette. I was wondering where back east you might be referring to? The wendigo term is usually used to describe other creatures, sometimes to explain actual cannibalism as a sort of mental disorder, and cryptozoologists using it as they’re trying to compare it to Sasquatch. I grew up in northern Saskatchewan and have had the opportunity to look at the wendigo story a few times as a researcher and in university. I’ve never heard wendigo described as a female giantess with a basket. I’d be curious to learn what you know in more detail because it would be interesting to find out the story is more widespread than I thought.

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    2. one time coming back from port alberni we got out at the top of hydro hill to let the dog out as soon as we opened the door we herd a blood curdling howl . also does any one know anything about the black cougar or big black cats on the island my grandpa was a logger and said hes seen them on the loggin roads and inbetween port alberni and ucluelet , my uncle has said to see it a few times and my dad seen it when he was mushroom picking

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      1. Hi Luke, there have been a number of reports of black cougars across North America but this is the first I’ve heard from Vancouver Island. The sites I’ve visited say that there’s never been a confirmed case of a black cougar even with all of the sightings. I’d love to hear more about this, any details that come to mind.

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  77. The Quamichan Inn in Duncan is haunted. Many, many people have seen all three of the ghosts reported to haunt the Inn.

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  78. After moving to Qualicum Beach in 2003, I worked at the Qualicum Heritage Inn. The day I was let go, I experienced two unexplained incidents at the Inn. I was cleaning on the third floor, the original part of the Boy’s College it had once been. The old wooden door to the suite was propped open by my large bin of cleaning supplies. While in the room, the door slammed shut, nobody else was on that floor with me, no other patrons, just me. I continued on and was on my hands and knees washing the bathroom floor when the toilet flushed without a thing touching it. It was a memorable day indeed, I didn’t feel as if it were hostile, but I wasn’t too upset to find out later that day that I wasn’t needed there anymore.

    When living on Gabriola Island, my friend and I rented a house from a couple whose family have been sheep farming on Gabriola from the same property for more than 100 years, there’s even a sign out front of their driveway letting you know it’s a Century Farm. They own three houses on the property. The one we rented was the original house. Old, built by the same family many, many years before, beautiful, blue, and overlooking a bay where sea lions would occasionally come in to play. There were several different experiences that my friend and I had individually and jointly experienced. The basement door, for whatever reason, would always be found open, even if you expressly would close it. Everything in the house was quite old, and you knew when the door latched shut, you could hear it from anywhere in the house. We always noticed that door because we never wanted the cat to get down there. We also had an injured hen that we kept in a kennel beside the woodstove inside the house. The latch on her cage would often be found open and she would be standing on one leg (the other was rendered usless by an attack from a rooster) in the middle of the kitchen, or just looking out from the cage. We never could figure if she was able to do it herself, it didn’t seem likely that she would have been able to stick her head out the bars, twist around, lift the latch and slide out the pin to open the door. My friend had also heard footsteps on the upper floor of the house where my bedroom was located. There were two bedrooms on the upper floor and a sitting type area on the landing at the top of the stairs. I was outside tending to our chickens and turkeys we had been raising and my friend inside the house. She heard quite loud footsteps coming from upstairs and had naturally assumed it was me, when she realized that I was, in fact, outside while she was hearing this.

    And just for one more, not on Vancouver Island, but in the BC Interior, I’m from Williams Lake, my first job was at the Overlander Hotel, now a Ramada. My mother also worked there for years, mostly as a housekeeper, and has reported many times of the ghost or spirit that roamed through the hotel. The would find the TV turning on/off by itself. They would go to get something for the room, only to find that what they had gone to get had already been replaced when the got back. And kitchen staff, including myself, would hear loud thumping from above them later at night. The story is that a man killed himself/died in one of the hotel rooms years ago and his spirit is still there.

    Living in Nanaimo now, and am very intrigued by checking out some of these other places that I haven’t heard of yet. Thanks for the great read!

    Reply

    1. Thank you for sharing Clarissa! Not sure if you’d noticed, but I do have a blog post on the Qualicum Heritage Inn here if you’re interested. If you’re living in Nanaimo, the museum has a tour during the Halloween season which includes a few of these sites. If you’d like to go, you should get on the museum’s email list. You might have to become a member, not sure. Either that or check their site regularly. Last year was the first year they offered a historical based tour which included some downtown locations reported to be haunted. The tickets sold out quickly! I was fortunate enough to help the museum with some of their research. The tour is from a historic perspective.

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  79. I had a terrifying experience at Fairburn Farmstay.. Was about to fall asleep in a room shared with my brother in the bed next to me… He startled me when he was fumbling the light switch which wasn’t turning on, said there was someone in our room in front of my bed and bolted out the door. He was super pale and terrified and wouldn’t talk about it till the next day. Said he saw what was either a very elderly lady or little girl in a nightgown, standing at the foot of my bed looking at me. He then saw my blankets and I float up from the bed and the blankets were moving in a wave like manner. Scary much?!? He was about 9 and me 12. My parents forced me to sleep alone in the room that night. Safe to say I didn’t sleep 😐

    Reply

    1. Damn. That does sound scary. Especially being that young! Did you see or experience anything or were you more asleep at the time?
      I did a search and couldn’t find any other claims from Fairburn Farmstay but that doesn’t mean anything other than it might not be on the internet. Looks like a beautiful heritage site.

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  80. I can help clear up a couple of stories… Mount Sicker, Chemainus, is indeed the sight of the ghostly woman… I’ve never heard of her being headless, but even more freaky is her sudden appearance in front of vehicles on the dark mountain road. My ex girlfriend’s father had a major car accident when it appeared directly in front of him and he veered off the road to avoid hitting the apparition. Wrecked all his teeth, and climbed out of the wrecked truck to see if he ran the woman over, but he was all alone in the dark of Mount Sicker.

    The UFO guy disappeared from Mount Provost in Duncan, not Mount Sicker. I can even get the guy’s name for you if you like.

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    1. Thanks Sam that’s awesome! Great to hear a first-hand account of the apparition. I was hoping someone would share eventually. Do you know if there’s a story attached to who she’s supposed to be? or is it the same legend of a woman being murdered in the town?

      UFO guy’s name is Granger Taylor. The source for Mt. Sicker is Wikipedia, but even there it says “source needed.” Thanks for clearing that up I will have to look a little deeper.

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  81. The apparitions were seen by one or two adults and a bunch of kids, as the weather was to bad so they let them camp in the pavillion. Have no dates sorry. Regarding the sasquatch sitting on protection island he was told of it by someone else. At this point it is word of mouth; but, I’ve seen one. It is possible there may also be sasquatch ghost too. As I have said before the saga continues and seeing is believing on both fronts. You have a great day.

    Reply

    1. I’ve heard the Sasquatch-ghost theory before as it’s something a few people believe in strongly, as well as an inter-dimensional being or a forest spirit. Sasquatch sightings are a mystery that’s always seemed just out of grasp. Thanks Dave!

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  82. Hi Shannon hope you are doing well. Had a chat with one of the Newdastle island ferry drivers. He mentioned people seeing apperitions appearing in the pavillion. Heard of bigfoot sittings on protection island; but, not on Newcastle campers have heard tree knocking and branch breaking. THe fella heard and seen one on the back side of Mt.Benson.

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    1. Thanks Dave! Do you know if the ferry driver gave a description of the apparition or say anything about who had seen it? A lot of history on Newcastle before it became a park… Protection Island had a BF sighting? It would have to be from Newcastle – I would think – as the island is just a bunch of houses w. no real forest. Unless the phenomena of the BF has nothing to do with a real creature?

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    1. Hi Sandy, Thank you for your comment! I did a search, but I couldn’t find anything online on the Somass Hotel being haunted. Would love to hear what you know about the haunting, and if you’ve had a personal experience there as well? I’ve heard from a number of people that there’s a haunted hotel in Port Alberni, but I never knew which one!

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      1. Sorry, I only know people who have experienced things there…I believe there was activity in a couple of rooms upstairs and some down near the kitchen as well.

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  84. Pingback: Pictures of Ghosts? Ross Bay Cemetery and Hatley Cemetery | Living LibraryLiving Library

  85. Thanks for the reply; The one on Newcastle was within the last month or so, the woman that sited it was actual a sceptic and only told me about it. It was while her and her boyfriend were boating behind the island. It surprised me too. The one on gabriola island happen sometime ago, the fella that seen this one had stayed over night at a friends of his and he seen it early in the morning when he was about to use the outhouse. On his way out he seen the shoulder of something walking behind the outhouse, the top of the door jam from inside the house prevented him from seeing the head. I’m guessing it was at least 10′ or taller. Don’t think either of these witnesses have talked to any one else regarding their experiance. The one I seen in campbell river took 3 steps to cross a 32′ roadway. I almost think now that the hauntings on Newcastle may not even be ghost; eventhough, I have had ghostly phenomina happen to me. These are just a few in this area. Hope you are doing well, take care.

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    1. Thank you for sharing! I’d never heard of sightings on either of these islands. I guess if a wolf can appear on Discovery Island by Victoria then anything’s possible!

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  86. Hello Shannon, Quite the overall strange. but, true island mysterys. I have witnessed the “ground burrower”(sasquatch) in treeline of campbell river and likewise a ufo. In nanaimo also ufos and have heard of many sasquatch sitings near treeline areas of nanaimo. One of the most recent sasquatch sitings was on newcastle island, have heard of a number on gabriola island also. No need to even mention ghost type phenomina. With a collection of years of studying these experiances and hearing many others, one has to; either, except or denie my reply or happenings of the above. All I can say to the above is I have been exposed enough to the above so I have the right to be a true believer. I still have many questions, just not as many as the unevolved sceptic human kind. Myths are of the past.

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    1. Thanks for sharing Dave! I was surprised to hear that there are Sasquatch sightings on Newcastle and Gabriola Islands. Did these ever get reported online or in print or did you hear about them? Really makes a person scratch their head.

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      1. This is not really surprising at all, as there are reports and sightings of Sasquatch swimming between islands and between islands and the mainland. The BFRO has many such sighting reports.

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  87. Thanks for the great information. We live in Ontario and I was not aware of a lot of this info. I run a pet store here and obviously need to brush up on my history.

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  88. Thank you Catherine for the information! Very interested in hearing if activity resumes at the Post & Beam. The Cedars Hotel is interesting too. Couldn’t find any other info on it except from an account of the same room which author says is fictional. ‘Kundalini Awakens Zeballos’ by Mallory Wilkins. Author seems to be taking from actual sites and folklore though. Not sure.

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  89. I had many a lunch at The Zeballos Hotel cafe,I was there just after the place burnt down .Such a shame. There is a new hotel on the site, ” The Post and Beam”. I have not heard any tales of Ms Suzie moving on up. I do know the Cedars Hotel, up the road fron the old Zeballos Hotel, has stories enough to curl your hair. The High School student had a very strange occurance. They tried to de-bunk the claims of paranormal activity in Room 14. Apparently men could not sleep in room 14, or couples. They would be hurled out of bed, to the floor, the mattress on top of them. A few years ago, a coworker of mine decided to put these stories to rest, and had the High School students video the room while calling the spirit out. A shadowy figure appeared sitting in the easy chair and the whole class hastily left the room.Rumour is that Room 14 was the morgue for when the Cedars was the Zeballos Hospital.I have checked the ghostly provenance with former owners of the building, but they did not seem to have had any problems of a spiritual nature.I have sensed a presence of a nurse upstairs but have not gone onto checking it out more throughly.

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      1. Downstairs, second or third room on the left looking out at the wood carved bear? Room number 4? I heard the story (when I was checked into the room), crummy sleep because I kept one eye open. Lots of people speak to this room.

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    2. Have you ever heard of anything in Port Alice Catherine? Another commenter asked about the old mill. I know you’re a ways from there, but you’re still closer than me, so I thought I’d ask.

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  90. Updates on June 12, 2012 thanks to Sean Enns from Nanaimo/Chemainus for Tofino Book, Mount Sicker leads (including UFO) & Thetis Lake Monster (Believed to be a hoax & will be part of the Victoria list).

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    1. Old House Ghost .Her name is Lena ,She is my aunt I have never met her she died before I was born ..We really do not know the truth.
      L

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      1. Damn. You’re right! I watched the video again. Don’t know how I had Nina instead of Lena, but it’s changed now. Do you know when she passed away, and if the story of the drowning is true? Thanks for the comment Elaine!

        Reply

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