Basic Types of Hauntings

Have you ever seen a ghost? Have you ever heard someone call your name when you know no one is there? Ever seen the shadowy figure of someone out of the corner of your eye, then turn and see nothing? Or, have you ever seen someone that looks exactly like

Farm Shack out West

It’s 2012, here come the UFOs [NZ Herald]

The New Year has seen a spike in reported sightings of UFOs, with 2012 hysteria blamed for an increase in reports of flashing lights and floating orbs. WeatherWatch.co.nz – which receives a handful of eyewitness reports of meteors and other lights in the sky every day – said there had

Tell us what you really think – The Solway Firth Spaceman

Another Monday and another entry into “Tell us what you really think” So, this week…Tell us what you really think about… The Solway Firth Spaceman, real life inter-dimensional space visitor or simply a case of mistaken identity? On 23 May 1964, Jim Templeton, a firefighter from Carlisle, Cumberland (now part

School’s out (in the field)

A little cottage (or perhaps and old School House?) sitting in a horse paddock I passed by while heading out South one weekend.

Home on the range – Huntly

PUBLIC GHOST HUNT: Kingseat Maximum Security Buildings Feb 21st 2015

– Was such a great night. Can’t wait to do it again. – Definitely doing it again! – WOW, I’m still buzzing! – We had such a fun time, thank you so much. We learnt so much from you guys and cant wait to hang out with you again soon.

Abandoned farm house – North Shore, Auckland

Tucked away in Auckland’s North Shore, smothered in dense, overgrown bush native bush and weeds and almost invisible, is this old decaying farm house, sitting abandoned and derelict and typically trashed inside. Thanks to Daniel at Aotearoa Abandoned for the heads up on this fascinating location.

Possible EVP recorded at Kingseat, former Psychiatric Hospital

The Haunted Auckland team (Sam, Mark, Aimee & Natasha) are in an upstairs dayroom. Clicks are Mark’s torch.

There is also mild cooing from pigeons on the roof.

The only person who speaks is Sam.
Do you hear anything else?

The Ghosts of Meola Reef

Meola Reef, or Te Tokaroa in Māori, is a thin finger of lava flow forming a reef peninsula jutting out into the harbour between Western Springs and Point Chevalier, the larger part of which is a dog park and reserve. The reef extends for over 2 kilometres across the harbour,

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The ghost with no name07/01/2021Hauntings / Opinions and Theories / True Ghost StoriesWhen my daughter turned one, we moved into a deceased estate, complete with a wildly overgrown garden, multiple extensions and the smell of a year of emptiness. Despite that, the house felt warm and welcoming and we continued to smile and say that we couldn’t believe how lucky we were to have such an amazing home. We lived there for about a year, contentedly tidying the gardens, and watching our daughter grow. One morning, I woke at dawn, facing the bedroom door and noticed that it seemed to be slowly opening inwards. I watched for what felt like 30 seconds and confirmed that it did seem to be moving! I rubbed my eyes to check I wasn’t dreaming, then turned the light on my phone and continued to watch. The door opened completely, remained open for what felt like a few seconds then slowly closed completely, with the quiet click of the lock. Thinking it odd, I made a mental note to follow up later in the day, then rolled over and went back to sleep! That afternoon, I spoke to my friend in Australia who “just knows things”. She had visited a month prior. I asked her outright if she had sensed anything when visiting my home. Her response shocked me; “oh the ghost in the nighty? Yeah, she’s lovely”. She continued to tell me that the ghost lady would walk past my daughter’s room, look in and check she was sleeping, then move to our room, check on us, then walk up the hallway before disappearing up some stairs above the washing machine. She told me she was a kind woman who loved having a family round and that’s why the house felt so warm and welcoming to us. Keen to know more about the previous occupants, I went to the council, but like many cases, the older files had been lost in a fire and the records only went back to the 1950s. I posted on a local Facebook site, asking if anyone had any idea how to find out about the previous occupants of a house. That was where I met a lovely lady who offered to pop round to help me with my search. Upon arrival in my driveway, she cocked her head to the side, gazing at the paint chipped exterior of my bungalow with a puzzled look and told me “that’s weird… your house is showing me it has an upstairs?” The woman walked around my home saying nothing. There were no photos up on the wall, nothing to give many clues about us to help her with a possible cold reading. All she knew was that I wanted to know about the past occupants. She then suggested that I record what she said, “as the words often come out really fast!” and boy was she right! I sat trying to look a po-faced as possible as she told me about a young woman in a white lace nightgown, with a candle, who walked from the lounge, checking in on my daughter as she slept, then on us, before walking to near the washing machine. Back then, that area had stairs going upstairs to a second level where she slept. Her description was exactly the same as my friend. I asked if she had a name for the lady, I was told that the lady had a job for me to do and wanted me to work it out for myself! I decided that I would check out the local museum, to see if they may have some old photos or information and made an appointment to talk to the Curator. I explained my situation somewhat guardedly – after all, who wants to admit that a ghost has sent you on a mission to find out who they are! By sheer fluke, or ghostly knowledge perhaps, the Curator’s father built the house next door to mine in the early twentieth century and as a girl, she had played in the garden of my house! She confirmed, that yes, my house DID in fact have an upstairs! However, the family that lived there at the time were the same people I had found on the council records. So still a dead end on the ghost’s name. I started to talk out loud to the ghost lady, telling her about my day and asking for help when I needed to find items. Often, they would appear within the next few minutes in an obvious place that I had already looked several times. I would regularly see a shadow out of the corner of my eye, but never felt scared. I tried to focus on a possible name for the ghost, often settling on the name Clara. But something told me that wasn’t quite right. Determined to keep on with my search, I began volunteering at the museum, so I had time to lazily search through old photos and records. That was how I discovered images of Clarence, the owner at the time the curator lived there. Across the road from my house was a lovely cemetery which I liked to meander through on a warm evening stroll. One day, I sat down on a bench to tie my shoelace. Upon looking up, in front of me was a gravestone – it belonged to Clarence and his wife, Clara. Until then, I had not known her name. I was initially excited to realize where the name had come from in my mind. But then I realized, I was no closer to finding the ghost’s name! I returned to my home and as I stood looking out my bedroom window, talking to no one in particular, I realized that you could clearly see Clarence and Clara’s headstone from my home. Further record searching suggested that Clara lived in the house until she died. I asked my friend in Australia about Clarence and Clara and whether the ghost lady was his wife. Had I found out her name? No. I still had a job to do – but I was closer! I again looked through council records and historical documents and discovered that when the extension was placed on the back of our house, the roofline was lowered and widened – this was when the ghost’s bedroom was destroyed. After seeing one too many horror movies, I decided the sensible thing was to crawl under the house and into the attic to see if I could find anything. Underneath the house provided some ancient rubbish and several scraped knees, but nothing significant. The attic revealed a false ceiling above the bathroom and hallway, the walls still had very-old floral wallpaper on them. I sat up there, talking to the ghost lady and telling her about all I had found out about Clarence and Clara and the house. The original part of the house was part of a separate lodgings building at a local public house as part of a historical legal spat between landlords. Once the pub was closed, a portion the size of my bedroom, was transported to the site and extended in the 1890s with a second room. It was extended again by Clarence in the early 1900s to add another 2 rooms for his growing family, a modern out-house and a sunroom. Finally, the kitchen and a fully internal bathroom were added in the 1980s. I suspected the ghost lived there in the late 1800s, directly before Clarence. Despite finding out all about the house, I still didn’t have a name! A few years later, we moved out. I was sad to leave our resident spirit. I explained why we were moving and suggested that she might like to move towards the light, if that is what she wanted to do. I apologized that I still had not learned her name…but I would keep on searching. And I still do. And that job she wanted me to do? Well, I think I finally worked out what it was! Earlier this year, I was invited to join Haunted Auckland, after following in the side-lines for over 6 years. And the first location I was asked to investigate? The local museum I had volunteered at! I’d love to tell you that I have discovered her name, but I haven’t. But speaking to her and living alongside her, gave me a genuine innate understanding that all spirits were once people and should be spoken to as such. My job is to continue speaking to these spirits and finding out about their lives, their stories and messages, whilst appreciating, that we all live with the multiple pasts that surround us. And one day, maybe I will find out her name…but only when she wants me to! [...] Read more...

Video: Allegedly haunted WW2 underground generator room and tunnels. Auckland, New Zealand31/12/2021Haunted Locations / Historic Buildings / Investigations / Locations of Interest / Urban LegendsEvery year or two, Haunted Auckland’s Mark Wallbank has climbed the central Auckland cliff-face to further document an old decommissioned WW2 Generator Room which powered the sea-facing search light which would scan the coast looking for intruders. From 1885 until the end of WWII, Bastion Point was used on and off as a coastal defence post. Much of the original fort was used to build the Savage Memorial and little remains of the gun battery site. After WWII, Bastion Point was no longer needed for defence purposes. Much of the tunnel has since been filled in but the entrance tunnel, main Generator Room and a back area with a solid steel-doored room are still accessible. The structure is known by locals and is often used as a party hangout for youths seeking a ”different” kind of venue. There are stories of encounters with shadow figures, voices heard, footsteps, banging and knocking sounds as well as a ”feeling of unease’‘ or ”dizziness”, which was described in one account. In this visit to the Generator Room, Mark reports hearing what he thought was possibly a ”woman’s voice’‘, as well as ‘‘footsteps, as though someone was there with me”. [...] Read more...

The Castle, Mount Eden05/05/2012Private ResidencesEvery paranormal investigator dreams of searching for spirits in haunted castles! The Haunted Auckland team tracks down their very own local ‘castle’ in historic Mount Eden. Background We first read about this amazing home, when it was listed in real estate publications as being ‘up for sale’. Then we saw it had been purchased. Articles were written about the house and its new owner in the Sunday Herald and in online newsgroups. We tracked down the new owner who was nice enough to invite Haunted Auckland in to spend a night documenting the environment and soaking up the atmosphere of this unusual and unique character home in Auckland’s Mt Eden. Invesigation We began setting up our equipment in both top and bottom floors. Trigger items, static cameras and audio recorders are positioned on both levels. Nightshot digital video camera and I..R torches were also set up in the outside shed. We then did a full photographic and audio walk through the castle. Checking E.M.F readings as we went around. It was decided we would do an EVP session upstairs in the main room for a couple of hours, whilst recording the atmosphere downstairs with static cameras and audio recorders. Then alternate later on. Trigger tests were laid out downstairs also, in the hope of capturing movement sometime during the investigation. Standard, I.R and U.V torches, LED glow sticks, a toy ball, plastic bags, a candle, and LED motion detectors were used as trigger devices. Upstairs A few members claimed to have heard a rumbling, ‘trolley wheels’ type sound outside, which came and went throughout the night. It was an odd sound that didn’t seem to fit the area and the time of night it was happening. It sounded like it was right outside the house window, like “someone was rolling a trolley past the window”. Barbara, whilst filming during an E.V.P session in a space between the sunroom and dining room in the upstairs section of the house, noticed a brief fast-moving light in her viewfinder. During our E.V.P session upstairs, the motion detector light set off a couple of times without anyone moving and the swinging wooden doors leading from the kitchen to the main dining room opened. There was no outside draught strong enough to cause this. This same door was later found to be closed firmly shut when it was confirmed to have been left open a little, whilst we went downstairs to do another session of EVP recording. When the group were sitting upstairs in the lounge room, Kel felt a presence but as she tried to take photos, her camera did not work, it had flat batteries. Kel claims the batteries were brand new. Mark also reported a couple of incidents of battery drainage from a camera and digital video camera. Downstairs We held a second E.V.P session downstairs, monitoring all aspects of the environments as we went. Atmospheric, electro-magnetic, visual and audio data were all recorded during this session. Both Kris and Barbara wonder whether the building might have been a Veterinary clinic or similar at some time in its history. Barbara had a strong feeling of downstairs smelling of disinfectant and being quite sterile. Kris states; “I got a feeling that the place was used for convalescents. A Doctor or Vet maybe. The downstairs felt more like a nurses quarters, whilst upstairs like patients rooms.” One part of the house that points heavily to the group’s theory that the house was perhaps once used as some type of hospitalisation house or clinic, is the outside ramp that leads from the top-level down the side of the house to the bottom floor. There is also a solid pipe railing leading the way down. This could also put some explanation to the ‘trolley’ sounds that were being heard outside the house on the ramp area. The ramp would’ve been used to cart things up and down between floors, Food, medical equipment, as well as, perhaps used as a wheelchair ramp for the recovering patients. This of course is all conjecture without further evidence to support this hypothesis. Bathroom Downstairs Barbara, Kris and Kel held a short E.V.P and E.M.F monitoring session downstairs in the bathroom, as Kris had earlier had an uneasy feeling down there and felt it needed further research. Mark sat in solo vigil in the downstairs room continuing with the E.V.P recording. Kel had decided to sit in the bath tub; “I sat in the ‘in ground’ bathtub. I felt a presence, actually two presences. While sitting there I started to feel quite dizzy”. Kris monitored the bathrooms E.M.F levels, which he reports, “shooting up to 1900 (when there was normally an average of 350) was interesting. I tested the equipment many times to make sure it wasnt playing silly buggers. This may account for any ill feelings in that room.” We decided to end the investigation at 2.30 am. Second Investigation – 1st June 2012 Team members attending the second investigation were Mark, Barbara, Tanya, Kel and Jay. After the first investigation on May 5th, we felt we had experienced a handful of incidents, making the house worthy of a follow-up session. On this session the first incident happened within minutes of us arriving. Mark, Jay, Kel and Tanya were first to arrive. Mark opened the front door to start loading in the gear while we waited for Barbara to turn up. We were standing outside the front door looking into a storage shed/workshop. The open house front door was to our right. Kel wandered off to look around the side of the garage, to the left. Mark stepped back and turned away briefly to grab some gear and then turned back and went over to Tanya and Jay still standing at the shed door talking. Kel then came back from around the side of the garage – Left side again. As soon as she spoke, Jay and Tanya expressed shock and confusion. They had both seen a dark shadow figure that was behind them go through the front door, into the house, moments earlier. They, both at that moment, thought it was Kel, as she was also wearing all black clothing. Mark was standing right next to them and witnessed the synchronized shock and confusion this caused. They both thought they had seen Kel going into the house, but it wasn’t. They also commented at the time, that the shadow was taller than Kel, but without really thinking, just assumed it was her. The sheer look of total disbelief of both members showed that there must have been something there to cause this reaction. The only exterior light source was the outside entrance lamp, positioned directly above the front door. We tested this and could not recreate any similar shadowing effect which might have been the cause of what was seen. Jay’s statement on this incident; “I was in the room next to the open garage, took some pictures and turned around and walked out. Tanya was standing outside and as I approached her, I saw Kel walking into the house, there was no strange feelings or anything, just like you won’t feel anything if one of the members walked past you. There was no question about it, and to describe it as a shadow is an understatement as I can still visualize the thick black jacket and pants. I was constantly aware of everyone else there as I didn’t want to get startled by unsuspectingly come across another member and get a fright. So my mind was quite at ease knowing all three women were present with one walking into the house and if I remember correctly, Mark was at the ramp or somewhere outside. So the moment Kel came walking up from the driveway’s direction my mind suddenly became confused and the feeling that something doesn’t make sense. Before I could come to the conclusion that there was a person extra Tanya said it first (to my relief as I didn’t want to be the newbie who ‘saw someone walking’.) It was great, it was exactly like my first experience in South Africa, where I saw someone walk past and didn’t wonder if I saw something or not, rather I was wondering where that person was going. With Saturday’s experience it was the same, except I wasn’t wondering where Kel was going, I knew she was going into the house to look around further. The person walking into the house was literally about a meter away from me. I was completely convinced it was Kel and didn’t think much of it.” Another interesting moment that was encountered by the team a little later on – Tanya and Barbara were inside the house. Jay, Mark and Kel were outside. Jay says he was looking at photos taken previously on his phone, standing near the entrance, when Mark and Kel walked into the house. Jay states; “I turned and walked inside as well when I heard something very clearly inside the room next to the garage. When I realized that everyone is inside, I thought “this is it” so when I looked into the room next to the Garage Kel was standing there looking at me. She obviously saw the look on my face, because she laughed and asked me, “What’s wrong?” It’s then that I realized she never actually followed Mark into the house! This time I didn’t fully look at the person that followed Mark in, just saw in the corner of my eye, both he and she walking into the house.” The group all agreed that these incidents could have been those of a residual “playback” entity. We experienced other occurrences this night that would further confirm this theory. Mid session, Mark went outside with the Parabolic audio dish, connected to a digital recorder, to try to replicate or re-capture the rumbling ‘trolley’ noises heard outside the house during an EVP session last time, traveling down the ramp leading from the top-level down to the bottom floor. He sat at the bottom of the ramp and aimed the Parabolic dish up towards the top of the ramp. Mark reports the following; “After about 5 or so minutes I did start to hear a light rumbling sound that began to incorporate ‘clattering’ sounds. The sound, within a 2 minute period went from quiet to loud as it got increasingly closer to me. I could hear everything very clearly through the head phones at the time. When the noise was right up to me, it suddenly faded and disappeared. I waited a further 5 minutes more and the sound started again. Again I listened as it got increasingly louder as it seemed to travel down the ramp towards me. Again it stopped as it reached where I was sitting. While I managed to record these two moments of audio, the sound I captured was rather distorted on playback, as I had adjusted the sensitivity setting on the Parabolic too high, so it was feeding into the audio recorder at too high a level. This meant that the ‘clattering’ sound that I heard so clearly was now hidden back in the audio mix amongst the distortion of the overdriven sound. The increasing volume level of the approaching sound was captured however. It can be heard getting louder and louder as it gets nearer to me, then disappearing. This was captured twice. Again, I feel that this was a fragment of residual audio that can somehow replay itself in an ongoing loop. Very much like a recorded piece of music stuck on continual ‘repeat’ mode.” During a photographic sweep of the exterior, Jay captured a mysterious light anomaly that the group could not re-create. We noticed that the flash was reflected off the top beam, but there was nothing on the ground or anywhere near that area that could have made it reflect upwards. It was brightest at the bottom, along the floor, so it wasn’t a light bounce off the reflected beam above. Jay took many pics either side of this one and could not reproduce it. All the group took many photos to try to reproduce this effect without success. Jay, the more sceptical of the group that night, admitted he was stumped; “The light anomaly… well I can’t think of any explanation except a camera malfunction or some freak accidental light caught by someone’s torch or camera flash. Whether it is paranormal I don’t know (and I always have explanations for absolutely everything in life). So my conclusion of it… I don’t have one, I’m throwing my hands up and saying I really have NO idea what could have caused it. I’ve never seen anything like it.” The shadow entity, seen earlier by Jay and Tanya, again made its presence felt by appearing to both Barbara and Kel as they were standing talking outside the front door, right next to the shed doors, the very same spot as the last incident occurred. Mark was walking inside the house down the hallway towards the front door where they were standing and saw them both react at exactly the same time to seeing a tall dark shadow figure flash past them at a very fast speed. Kel saw it this time and Barbara felt it. They both responded in shock and disbelief at the same time. Kel comments on the incident; “Barbara was standing near me. I felt a presence come quite close to my face and then it rushed past me.” Barbara’s statement on the incident; “I jumped because I had the weird sensation that something went through me. I was standing sideways to the door and suddenly felt an energy move quickly out of the door and move through me! Not a pleasant sensation at all. It felt like it would if someone brushed along beside you, but this was through me (very hard to explain!). The main actual physical experience at the time was a definite (uncomfortable but not painful) pressure, firstly in the (inner) ear that was closest to the door and then (a split second later) also felt in the other ear (furthest from the door). This sensation was very quick but my ears did not return to normal for about two hours after this happened. I did think it was interesting that Kel was standing next to me (ie Hallway, Door, Me, then Kel – in a line) and she also felt the same thing at exactly the same time! We looked at each other knew we had both sensed the same thing.” Conclusion We asked each of the team to give their thoughts on the location: Mark: “I didn’t personally experience anything that would lead me to say it was haunted necessarily (although a few hours isn’t a long time to base that decision on to be fair). I do think there’s quite probably more to it than meets the eye though… and I’ve no doubt that it could well be the scene for unexpected occurrences for its residents.” Barbara: “I think it is haunted, but it is a residual haunting with maybe a ‘ghost’ there but who does not want to be known.” Kel: “In my opinion there is residual energy remaining in the house. I still feel that there was an entity there and his name is Edward.” Jay : “I do believe there was a residual occurrence there, though I doubt there was any intelligent spirit there as I never felt uncomfortable. I even closed the bathroom door and sat in the bathtub with the torch off and didn’t feel out-of-place” Kris personally didn’t feel the place is haunted. He felt the place had presence, but was not inhabited. However, he did get his strongest ‘haunted feelings’ in the shed out the back. In general we felt that we may have had better results had we left video cameras and audio recorders running overnight after we had gone. The team all agreed that while we didn’t capture anything obvious and exceptional on a Paranormal level, we did all feel and see things that, at the time we could not explain. It is possible the house contains some remaining residual energy left in the house. A presence of some sort was definitely felt within the house’s interior. Whether these feelings are caused by something structural, electrical or ‘down-to-earth’ in explanation, was undetermined with this session. We all agreed that the house was definitely worthy of further investigation because of these experiences, and while no real physical and conclusive evidence was captured in the 5 hour investigation, this does not mean the house is void of paranormal activity. It seems there is still a breath of life left in the old Mt Eden Castle. Our second session at the Mt Eden “Castle” has not changed our minds in any way with regards to whether or not there is a presence residing there. However, we feel it is of a residual nature. We also feel it is benevolent and not a negative or harmful energy. It was a very peaceful feeling house with a very relaxed and calming atmosphere. These incidents appeared to be re-occurring memories of the past that seem to replay themselves over and over. Why this happens, we don’t know. Haunted Auckland would like to extend a big thank the owners for allowing us into their home. [...] Read more...

Te Kowatu O Hatu Patu [The Rock of Refuge], Waikato27/09/2015Locations of InterestTe Kowatu O Hatu Patu also known as The Rock of Refuge. The rock stands at the roadside near Atiamuri, about 26km south of Tokoroa. The hollowed out rock was used by the legendary Hatupatu, a member of the Arawa tribe. When returning from exploring the forests he was being followed by a mysterious bird-woman. While trying to outrun her, he came upon a huge rock. Repeating a karakia he ordered it to open for him. “Te kohatu nei- e matiti matata”. Legend has it that the rock immediately split open and he hid inside until the bird-woman disappeared. [...] Read more...

Garth Homestead – Misery and Death10/01/2014Haunted LocationsGarth Homestead, in the Fingal Valley, Tasmania, is known not for the fear it puts into those who visit after dark, but rather the terror. It is a rare occasion indeed, for a paranormal investigator to last a full night. From a rejected mans suicide, to a drowned girl and her nanny, Garth has it all. It is unlived in, as those who have tried have never lasted long, always leaving due to the otherworldly inhabitants that do not like to be disturbed. Who could the spirits be that reside in the ruins? A Most Haunted Site Garth Homestead, now part of the Rostrevor Estate, is located along the Esk Highway, in the Fingal Valley just North East of the town of Avoca. What was once a solidly built two storey sandstone building, is now reduced to a set of crumbling ruins, located on a hill looking out over the South Esk River. During the day you may find historic groups looking amongst the ruins, trying to recapture some of the splendour of this very early part of Tasmanias history. By night, the ruins take on a completely different feel, for it is said that Garth is one of the most haunted sites in Tasmania. The ghosts of Garth come in the form of shrieks, moaning and howling of the sad and lost souls that still reside there. Many an investigator and thrill seeker has left the location, in more than a hurry, and it is not just humans that feel the presences. Horses are said to shy away from the location, refusing to take the rider closer than a few hundred meters from the buildings remains, and grazing livestock will not venture near the area. The First Tragedy The history of the location has been told through many newspapers, and more than a few books that detail haunted locations around the country. It seems that in the 1950’s, newspapers from around Australia took an interest in promoting the stories of tragedy that marred the otherwise scenic site. Many websites and online journals also detailed the location. The following, is a montage of different versions, from many sources. Most agree on certain aspects, and it is with these that I keep it together omitting one off pieces of information. The story of Garth begins in the early 1830’s when an Englishman (name unknown) travelled to Tasmania and was granted a plot of land. With convict labor, he soon set about building a grand two storey sandstone building, not just out of necessity, but also out of love. The Englishman had left behind the woman he loved, promising her he would be back to collect her once the new home was almost complete. When all but the ceilings and plaster work was complete, he travelled back to England to collect his bride to be. Upon arrival, he learnt that while he was away she had fallen and love and had married another man. Dejected, the Englishman returned to Tasmania and killed himself in the courtyard of his still not completed home. Further Tragedy Tragedy was about to strike again, as new owners moved into the home along with their young girl, and her convict ‘nanny’. The nanny was very strict and would threaten the child with being thrown down the well, if she did not behave. The little girl took this very seriously after the nanny had held her over the well by the ankle. One day the girl did cause some sort of trouble, and thinking she knew what was to come threw herself down the well. The nanny, guilt ridden tried to help her charge but also fell in, both dying in the freezing waters. Soon after, a Scotsman named Charles Peters, was granted some land nearby, and in the late 1830’s he also took over the lands containing the Garth house. The home was still very well, kept so Charles Peters moved into the house with his family. In September 1840, Charles Peters two year old daughter Ann ran into the parlour screaming, her hair and clothes were on fire. Ann had been watching the house staff making jams over the fire, when she got too close, and the flame caught her. Ann Peters did not recover from her burns, and her small grave can be seen a little way from the ruins. Charles Peters and his wife left Garth in 1845, after they built the now Historic Fingal Hotel. Garth went to his eldest son who leased it out. The house soon suffered badly during a fire, after which another of Charles Peters’ sons moved in. Thomas Peters restored the house, but near completion another devastating fire went through the building. The building stayed in the Peters family till 1922 though no one has lived in it since the start of the 19th century. Some people may say that the ruins of Garth Homestead are the most famously haunted ruins in Tasmania. Others say that the story and the history surrounding some key deaths is completely unfounded. Many say that either way it makes for a good ghost story. I will leave it up to you to decide. Ashley Hall [...] Read more...

Gibbons Homestead – Whatipu18/07/2020Haunted Locations / Historic Buildings / Investigations / Locations of InterestA few members of the team road-tripped out West to spend a fun night investigating the allegedly haunted Whatipu Lodge, where the ‘’Pink Lady’’, thought to be one Matilda Gibbons, is said to reside. We also spent a few hours heading around to and spending some more time in the large cave (one of many in that region) that used to hold secret dance parties for the young locals that has also had many claims of strange and ghostly occurrences through the years. In all it was a quiet but great fun night at the lodge, without anything we’d consider paranormal occurring. However, we did capture and experience a few things at the cave, that we worked through and debunked as being natural pareidolia and wildlife. Good to see such thought-out detective work unfold. We’ll be returning for a few more visits in the future to try our luck at contacting (or even better, documenting) any of the reported deceased residents. Either at the lodge, or along the coastline that has seen much tragedy and intriguing mystery in its time. It’s a beautiful and fascinating strip of coastline that we are keen to explore further. AWESOME WORK, TEAM! – Here’s a few pics taken by various team folk through the night. Enjoy! [...] Read more...

“Pioneers in the field…. Leading the way with Paranormal Research in New Zealand” – Connor Biddle, Paranormal Encounters.

“I have much respect for the level of study Mark and his team have put into the paranormal phenomenon through the years. His work is interesting and very well researched.” – Murray Bott, U.F.O Researcher & NZ’s MUFON representative.

”Refreshing to see solid and innovative investigation work, done with passion and honesty. Haunted Auckland stand out in the crowd and dont fit any typical mould. This is a very good thing”. – Paranormal Review newsletter

Paranormal New Zealand is the home of Haunted Auckland, a Paranormal Investigation and Research group.

Whether you’ve been aware of Mark Wallbank’s research work since the 1980s, attended his early 90s discussion events, received the quarterly newsletters, subscribed to his popular mid-2000s online blog BizarreNZ, followed the Haunted Auckland team since 2010, or just recently discovered us; WELCOME and thanks for joining in the fun, learning, and adventures.

We are a dedicated group of paranormal researchers, all having one thing in common – a passion and drive to find out as much as humanly possible about the mysterious and unknown field that is the Paranormal, as well as documenting New Zealand’s historical buildings and landmarks in their current state.

Paranormal (păr′ə-nôr′məl) adjective.
Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as beyond normal experience or scientific explanation. The term “paranormal” has existed in the English language since at least 1920. The word consists of two parts: “para” and “normal”. The definition implies that the scientific explanation of the world around us is “normal” and anything that is above, beyond, or contrary to that is “para”.

We’re always learning new things, so hope to pass that knowledge on to you all so that you might learn as we do, in this crazy but fascinating world of the paranormal.

Our primary reason for existing as a team is to experience first-hand and document any perceived paranormal activity so that we may learn to better understand the phenomena and the misconceptions surrounding it. Our aim as a research team is to study these phenomena as closely as possible to form more educated opinions via experimentation, documentation, and simply being present at the moment to record and respond accordingly to it and wherever it may lead us.

Firstly a few things you should know about Haunted Auckland. We’re a small Auckland based team of friendly, dedicated, well seasoned and enthusiastic researchers with differing levels of experience, knowledge, skills and expertise. Our investigators are intelligent, honest, compassionate and possess critically thinking (yet wide open) minds. We’re also very good listeners.

We work closely with Property Managers, local Councils and Historical organisations to help preserve local histories, bring further awareness and raise funds by running public events.

In our time, the team has successfully raised many (much needed) thousands of dollars, to assist with the upkeep and general running of these wonderful historic locations. Something we are very proud of.

We are also very proud to have worked alongside and assist both the NZ Police and NZ Fire Services with our work.

Haunted Auckland has it’s roots deep and strong. Going back to 1984, with a team (Auckland Ghost Hunting Group) formed by H.A founder, Mark Wallbank; making them NZ’s longest running Paranormal field-research entity.

What we aren’t:

We aren’t Ghost Busters, Ghost Hunters, Exorcists, Mediums, Clairvoyants or Psychics and we don’t do clearings, blessings or the ridding homes of alleged demons. We don’t do prayers, rituals, or bring in any religious elements to our work. We aren’t mental health experts or sleep disorder professionals, though we do work closely with mental health professionals.

We travel that spooky road, between sceptic and believer. We are happy to sit right in amongst it all and take the research wherever it may lead us.

While we are sceptical and doubtful of certain cases and ideas, we have seen and experienced enough in our time to realise that dedication to the research is definitely a worthwhile cause. Instead of blindly believing (or disbelieving), or just accepting what we are told is true and real, we prefer to seek out the answers ourselves through first-hand, “boots on the ground” investigation. Experimentation, observation and documentation. We don’t have all the answers and we don’t consider ourselves experts.

We don’t make bold claims we can’t back up with evidence or reliable data.

The team prides itself in being quite a bit different from other paranormal investigation teams out there. We tend to stay away from the mainstream gadget fads.

Research time in locations is valuable and a privilege, so wasting it on pointless flashy boxes that offer no accurate data in return or are vague and open to interpretation (as well as mis-interpretation) is counter-productive and a poorly used opportunity. Thinking outside of the ‘’box’’ confinements of the popular T.V and social media- lead mainstream is something, the team sees as important if the field is to move forward and gain any serious credibility or traction within scientific or academic circles.

The team utilises a combination of old-school thinking and techniques, coupled with a modern way of thinking. Simple and stripped back yet embracing current technology to work though theories and ideas that may find their way into our research. We don’t make claims we can’t back up with evidence or reliable data.

We pride ourselves in keeping it real. No faking evidence or embellishing of facts. If nothing happened, nothing happened.

Why we don’t offer Clearings and Banishings

We decided many years ago to stop offering clearings and cleansings, as the more we learned, the more unethical (even damaging) we could see it was on a few levels.
We wanted to experience and observe these ”beings” and learn about them. Learn from them directly, if such a thing is possible.
To hopefully interact and document as much as we could of it to advance the study of the paranormal.

If the theories on spirits are correct, then clearing, or ”banishing” becomes nothing more than a punishment, torture, an eviction from a home, or even a death. Death to a person (possibly living in an alternative dimension we are yet to even understand or comprehend), that has as much right to exist as ourselves.
Until ghosts, spirits, negative energies, and demons have been sufficiently verified to actually exist, (to which they as yet haven’t, outside of belief, possible misinterpretation, and superstition) it would be unethical to assume a position of knowledge and superiority enough to think we have rights that far outweigh theirs. That we may enter their home and try to evict or eradicate them as if they were cockroaches or some other household pest.

It’s about respect, understanding and compassion; on both sides.

What we are, is “real world” researchers. Learning by doing. If we don’t know something, we say so.

We don’t charge anything for what we do. The opportunity to investigate a location and hopefully further our research is its own great reward.

We follow the Scientific Method as closely as we are able to; though it’s not always easy to create a fully controlled environment and the fact that true paranormal activity is sporadic and very rare means we don’t always have a lot to go on. Still, we do our best with what we have to work with at the time and go wherever it takes us.

We go to where the stories come from in order to see for ourselves. We talk to the people involved to get their sides to the occurrences.

Our conclusions are never really final and we find multiple return visits yield the best results; so have built up trusting relationships with quite a few locations within the historical communities in this country.

Our clean and respected reputation within historical circles is something the team prides itself on, as it has grown over the last decade and is based on well over 200 investigation sessions within that time.

For a full listing of References & testimonials, please visit our TESTIMONIALS page on this website.

Exploration – Observation – Experimentation – Documentation … Ultimately leading to Interaction, Understanding and Conclusion.

KEEPING IT REAL

Please check out our website and don’t hesitate to make contact if you have any queries or would like to know more about what we do.

We’re always happy to talk about spooks!

Through the years the team have investigated:

Auckland

Auckland Civic Theatre
North Head
The Auckland Town Hall
St James theatre
Victoria Theatre
The Howick Historical Village
The Smith & Caugheys building
Kinder House
Lopdell House
The Pumphouse Theatre
The Bluestone Room
Fort Takapuna
Massey Homestead
The Hard To Find Bookshop
Hollywood Cinema
Avondale Town Hall
Spookers
Alberton House
Bell House
Theatreworks
Carrington (Unitec)
The Queens Ferry Tavern
Regent Theatre
Ewelme Cottage
Laishly House
Onehunga Blockhouse
Puhoi Centennial Hall
Kingseat Hospital
Puhinui Homestead
The Kentish Hotel
AUSA Building
Helensville Museum
Waiuku Museum
Lake House Art Centre
Molloy’s Antique Centre
Whatipu Caves
Capitol Theatre
Gibbons Homestead

Wellington

Dixon Street Basement
Private Residence
Inverlochy House

Northland

Dargaville Central Hotel

Coromandel

The Junction Hotel
Mount Moehau
Bella Street Pumphouse

Waikato

Hawkes Bay

Central North Island

Chateau Tongariro Hotel Jubilee Pavillion – Marton

Northern South Island

Trout Hotel

West Coast and Central South Island

Seaview Asylum
Otira Stagecoach Hotel

Canterbury

The Old Shipping Office (Akaroa)

Otago

Cardrona Hotel
Vulcan Hotel (St Bathans)

Dunedin

Seacliff Asylum
Chalet Backpackers
Globe Theatre
Leviathan Hotel
Larnach Castle

United Kingdom

The Drovers Inn – Scotland
Traquair House – Innerleithen
Ancient Ram Inn – Wooton-Under-Edge
30 East Drive – Pontefract
Boleskine House – Scotland
Ballachulish Hotel – Glencoe
Chillingham Castle
The Golden Fleece – York
Bunchrew House – Scotland
Oswald House – Kirkcaldy
The Skirrid Inn – Abergavenny
Halston Hall – Carlisle
Airth Castle
Dalhousie Castle
Barcaldine Castle – Oban
The Witchery – Edinburgh
Edinburgh Vaults – Scotland
Touchwood House – Scotland
Greyfriars Kirkyard – Scotland
The Hellfire Club – Ireland
Ostrich Inn – Slough
Caynton Caves – Shropshire
Four Crosses Inn – Staffordshire
Torwood House – Scotland
Dalhousie Castle – Scotland
Windhouse – Yell, Shetland
Swan Hotel – Wooton-on-Edge
Weston Hall – Staffordshire
Clava Cairns – Inverness, Scotland
The Queen’s Head Hotel – Troutbeck
Haunted Antiques Paranormal Research Centre – Hinkley

Australia

YHA [Katoomba]

Hartley Village [NSW]

Quarantine Station [Manly]

The Russell Hotel [Sydney]

Maitland Gaol [NSW]

Kilmore Gaol [Melbourne]

Aradale Lunatic Asylum [Melbourne]

Hawaii

Kaniakapupu Palace Ruins – Nuúanu Pali – Manoa – Oahu Cemetery [Oahu]

Norfolk Island

New Gaol – The Crank Mill – Bloody Bridge

Cryptozoological Field Research

YOWIE RESEARCH: Blue Mountains [ Australia] – Kanangra Ranges [Australia] – Blue Mountains Exploration: Research Area – Bullaburra [Australia]

MOEHAU RESEARCH: Coromandel Ranges [New Zealand] – Urerewa Ranges [New Zealand]

LAKE MONSTER RESEARCH: Loch Ness [Scotland]

… as well as many private home visits around Auckland and surrounding towns and extensive investigation and exploration internationally.

Some of the services and experience we have on offer:

Research and Investigation of buildings, historical locations and businesses

Photo & video analysis

Photographic enhancements

General paranormal consultation

Historical Research

Conferences / Public speaking

Educational talks & fundraising for historical locations

Media interviews