Haunted Travels

  • Cell block at Alcatraz. Shows two levels and the lights in the ceiling.

    Is Alcatraz Really the Most Haunted Place in America?

    San Francisco Bay is BEAUTIFUL. There is just something special about the blue of the bay and the deep orange of the bridge. This leads to an important question. Why build a prison here? Was it just for the extra cruelty of making the inmates look at it and know they could never cross it? What does it do to a person – being locked up on a cold rock in the middle of paradise? Join us as we unpack our bags in San Francisco and attempt find out the answer to this question: is Alcatraz REALLY the most haunted place in America? The History Originally created as a fort,…

  • Stone tomb of the Couch family in Lincoln Park, Chicago

    Some Dark History Built Over an Old Cemetery

    You know the trope. Weird things happen. People behave in ways they NEVER would ordinarily. And then it’s discovered. The house was built over an old cemetery!! ~Bum, bum, bummmmmm.~ (That’s the scary reveal music, FYI.) This week I got visit the Chicago History Museum. If you’re into some dark history, built over an old cemetery, this one’s for you! (However if this isn’t your jam, check out our Ferris Bueller-like tour of the Chicago Art Museum instead.) About The Museum The museum began back in 1856, just 19 years after Chicago became a city. It was relocated to this spot after the Great Fire of 1871. (You can read…

  • Exterior of a Victorian Style building that is the abandoned William Hamilton Funeral Home in Detroit

    Get Your Ghost On

    While at the airport lounge in Detroit, or “my favorite haunt”, I got an unexpected email. Seems someone came across our “How to Spend the Perfect Day in Boston” article. And they wondered if we’d like to take a tour to write about our experience. I KNOW! I told everyone in the bar area all about it and they were SO excited too! (Looking back, it may have been more “AMUSEMENT” then excitement. Sort of like when you’re at a 4 year old’s birthday party and they open THE toy they’ve been wanting ALL THEIR LIFE.) But never the less, I responded immediately and checked my email ALL weekend for…

  • A white hotel with a red roof, surrounded by trees with the Rocky Mountains in the back ground. It’s the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado.

    Come Play with Us, Danny

    Happy October, everyone! I am SOOOO excited to share with you some new spooky adventures for the BEST season of the year. This week, let’s go all the way to Estes Park, Colorado for a look at the Overlook – I mean, the Stanley Hotel. Come play with us, Danny. This one’s going to be a hoot! On the Road to the Overlook Leaving Boulder for Estes Park, I expected to have that “impending feeling of dread” that Stanley Kubrick’s film portrayed. You know, driving in the middle of nowhere – sort of feeling like you were on your way to a dinner party with the Donners. However, the road…

  • Cellblock in the Ohio State Reformatory

    What’s Left of the Ohio State Reformatory

    If you’re anything like me, as the weather cools and the nights get longer, your mind turns to things on the spookier side of the spectrum. If you’re not anything like me, I get it. Let me suggest you check out our most awesome collection of Running Stories for inspiration. But for those of you who are still here, why don’t you grab a cup of something warm and spicy and join me. This week we’ll find out what’s left of the Ohio State Reformatory. But remember, you’ll need to leave your ghost hunting equipment behind! Hustlin’ to Shawshank You may wonder how we decided to visit this location. It…

  • Woman standing in front of a statue of a witch. Behind her is a sign that reads “Salem Witch Village”

    Witch Way to the Brewery?

    I love the brightly painted wooden homes and bays filled with sailboats in New England. And if you know me, you know I ADORE October – with the leaves changing colors and the fresh cool air in the mornings. I must say, there is nothing like Salem in October – and it may not be for the reasons you think! While my friends and I were determined to find our way to the museums, Stephen asked an even more important question…”Witch Way to the Brewery?” Join us this week for a spooky tour of Salem, Massachusetts. So What’s to See in Salem? Most people only know Salem for it’s ties…

  • Woman in a dress, touching the image of Edgar Allan Poe on his tombstone in the Westminster Burial Ground

    In the Footsteps of E. A. Poe

    Since I was young, there was just something about the stories of Edgar Allan Poe that compelled me. I don’t know if it was the way he could foist a surprise on the reader. Or the way he portrayed loss with such touching tenderness. More recently I discovered the details of his life and his bizarre and unexplained death. It was this as much as his writing that compelled me to follow in the footsteps of E. A. Poe. For many years, E. A. Poe shared this little home with his grandmother, Elizabeth Cairns, his first cousins, Virginia and Henry Clemm, and his aunt, Maria Clemm. For perspective, the main…

  • Black and white image of the Victorian era gate at Cave Hill Cemetery

    The Colonel and The Greatest

    Before heading to Louisville to help some friends with house and pet sitting, we had some important research to do. Imminently practical, Stephen spent his time looking into restaurant and brewery recommendations. I, being more whimsical, needed to know what is weird and what is haunted around town. Though we haven’t made it to all the places on this haunted road trip, you can join us for a walk through Cave Hill Cemetery to visit the Colonel and The Greatest. About Cave Hill Cemetery The vision for Cave Hill began almost 200 years ago, during the “Parks Movement“. The idea behind this movement was to two-fold: Back in the early…

  • White cottage with three rear facing windows and a small slanted shingled roof

    Who Was on the Stairway Each Night?

    I come by my love of spooky things quite naturally. You see, my momma is also a lover of spine tingling ghost stories and she passed this magic down to me. Our shared desire to see an actually haunted place has taken me to some pretty interesting places – like a darkened corridor in an old jail, the derelict property of an abandoned asylum, and the very edge of England. If you’re anything like us, you’re going to like this look at haunted Cornwall and the time we asked, “Who was on the stairway each night?” The Adventure Begins We drove down to Cornwall from a town near Windsor. Being…

  • Statue of the headless horseman chasing Ichabod Crane

    It’s October, Try Not to Lose Your Head

    I don’t know about you but October is my FAAAAVORITE time of year. The air cools. The leaves fall. And the night time extends itself. For some, this is a sad time indicating the end of summer but for me…I get more excited with every pumpkin I see on my neighbors’ porches. Since I often have to remind myself “Look, it’s October, try NOT to lose your head.” I thought it would be fun to share with you the time we visited the Old Dutch Church graveyard…the stomping grounds of the Headless Horseman. So grab a pumpkin latte and let’s get spooky! It all Happened in Tarry Town, NY From…