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Friday, October 30, 2009

Want to go ghost hunting in Fresno this Halloween? Check these places out.

As Halloween approaches, people have been asking me if I could recomend them a good haunted place to see a ghost. So I've decided to list several haunts in the valley that are reported to be haunted for anyone out there who is interested in doing a bit of ghost hunting.

Channel Road, Sanger CA - The legend behind Channel Road, or Snake Road as it is nicknamed, is that of a woman and her two daughters were driving along the winding road and took a turn too fast and crashed into the Kings River. The woman couldn't get out of the car and died there, but her two daughters escaped but drowned downstream. At nights it is said she wanders up and down the road looking for her two daughters.

Del Rey Cemetery, Sanger CA Not to far from Channel Road, is the Del Rey Cemetery. Rumors of a strange glowing headstone, whispering voices, and shadowy figures have been reportedly seen at this small cemetery.

Bardsley Road, Exeter CA- The story of a decapitated biker riding up and down this country road has been told for decades. People have reported a single headlight moving along the road, but once it gets near them it disappears.

The Bastille, Hanford CA - The orginal prison for Kings County has had it's share or prisoners over the years and not all have left. People have been touched by an unseen presence and others have reported a feeling of being watched. The Bastille is now a restaurant/nightclub and are open with their haunted history.

New Hope Cemetery, Madera CA - The first haunted spot I ever investigated, this small cemetery in western Madera County has had a strange history. Rumors of the church being burned down by Satanist who then performed bizarre rituals in the cemetery were first told to me over a decade ago. From hearing little girls laughter to seeing strange lights in the orchards surrounding the cemetery, this place is definitely strange.

Kearney Park, Fresno CA - I had just reported on the strange going ons here, so it might be worth a look.

Springville Inn, Springville, CA -In the small town of Springville, east of Porterville, is the Springville Inn. Several ghosts haunt the place. I would imagine the hotel is doing something for Halloween given their openness to their haunted history.


So these are a few places one can go to look for ghosts. If you do though, make sure you do not go alone and let someone know where you are going. Make sure to take a flashlight with you and a camera or camcorder in case you see anything. And for the love of God, do not trespass. I mentioned a few cemeteries and a public park, these places do have hours of operations and you will be charged for trespassing if you go there afterward. Don't give actual paranormal investigators a bad name just because you are looking for a cheap thrill. Have fun this Halloween, but be smart about it at the same time.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Is Fresno's Kearney Park haunted?

Does the ghost of M. Theo Kearney haunt his former residence? - Photo courtesy of historicfresno.org


Several miles west of downtown Fresno, lies Kearney Park. The park was started in 1892 by M. Theo. Kearney and was to be part of a 225 acre agriculture complex. The current mansion was originally to be the caretakers quarters, unfortunately it and an adjacent servant's quarters were all that were built as Mr. Kearney died in 1906 and his dreams of an agricultural "Garden of Eden" were never completed.

Though Mr. Kearney died over one hundred years ago, there are rumors that he still walks his property at night, perhaps dismayed that his dream was never completed. There are also stories that a house maid, a Nora S., also wanders the darkened halls at night. Perhaps she feels she still needs to make sure the residence is kept in order for Mr. Kearney. Others have seen a man wandering around in the wooded area near the house. Others have felt as if someone from the house was watching them and once someone said they saw a female figure on the porch.

There is also an urban legend stating that a woman in white (some call her the White Witch) haunts the railroad tracks on the property and that anyone who is unfortunate enough to see her eyes, dies immediately. Personally, I find this highly unlikely as if she kills anyone who sees her, how can there be any witnesses to pass on this claim?

Still, Kearney Park is one of those Fresno treasures that most people know about, but may have never gone. The City of Fresno currently owns the Mansion and Park and you can tour the Mansion for a small fee. For further information on public tours of the Kearney Mansion, you can call 559-441-0862.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Strange craft caught on film flying over Kearney Boulevard

Over the weekend I received a voice mail from someone saying they were taking some pictures out by Kearney Boulevard a few months ago and they had forgotten about the film until last week. When they got the pictures developed, they noticed something strange in the last couple of shots. I then got an e-mail from them with some scans, one of the original photo with the object in it, the other an enlargement.

At first I was almost tempted to dismiss these as some sort of bug or other flying creature. The person had told me they had not seen anything at the time they were taking the photos, and in my opinion how could you not see this? Though they also told me they were taking these photos to finish off a roll of film, so there is the chance that they weren't really paying attention to what's in the sky but just hitting the shutter until the film had stopped advancing. But I was showing these to some friends on Sunday and one of them actually recognized the object.

They used to work out near Kearney and had seen the object in the air several times. They described it as large craft, longer than the length of a football field and made hardly any sound. The small orangish lights on the object appear to be engines, according to my friend. Though we were unable to determine what is causing the pinkish glare, though I imagine it's from the sun as it was near sunset when the picture was taken. The photographer thinks it was a glare from a porthole or something, though I'm not sure how that is possible. I've sent it to a few photograph experts I know in hopes of getting an opinion. I'm also sending these to the local MUFON investigator here in hopes that he can find out what this is. As always, anything I find out I will post here.





























Thursday, October 15, 2009

Storm Wrecks Popular Corn Maze Haunt


I had posted last week about several Halloween attractions in the Fresno area, including the haunted corn maze Raisin Hell.  Unfortunately due to a severe storm that hit the valley on Tuesday, the maze won't be open this year as most of if it was destroyed.  KMPH 26 reports on this.



MADERA - These are spine tingling scenes from last October at the "Raisin Hell Ranch" in Madera County.  But the attraction won't host any terrified guests.
In fact the only horror these cornstalks witnessed this year was the look on workers' faces when they arrived in the morning, to find their maze destroyed.

"This was just a devastating thing to have happen," Darren Schmall said.

Darren Schmall runs the "Raisin Hell Ranch" and he's been growing the corn since August.
It was all destroyed Tuesday in a day of very heavy rain.  In addition to a corn maze, the ranch was supposed to feature two separate haunts, the Chupacabra Haunt and the Demonic Scarecrows.

60 people were hired and ready to scare the bejeepers out of thrill seekers, but:
"Because we're not going to open, all those folks are out of a job," Schmall said.
The operators have 10 thousand free passes and 150 thousand coupons floating around to attract people; they're now worthless.

Darren Schmall says he considers 2009 a practice year for his team of ghouls.  "Next year we'll be back and be bigger and better than ever," he said.

The owners are also involved with Cobb ranch corn maze and pumpkin patch.
They're urging people to head out there this year for some Halloween fun.

Original story can be found here.

Friday, October 9, 2009

Win passes to the Fright Night Scream Park in Clovis

When I went to the Fright Night Scream Park last week, there were two things I was able to get come away from that place with. One was my life and the other were four pairs of passes to one of the attractions there. Since I'm such a giving person I thought I would give them away to people who post a comment on this blog post (or is it that I was able to escape by telling the zombies I would send eight people in my place? You'll never know...).

But there's a catch. You have to tell me what your favorite scary movie is and why.


Winners will be chosen randomly, but please make sure log in so I have a way to contact you that you have won. The tickets are good for any from Oct. 16- Oct 31, except Fridays and Saturdays. For days they are open and where they are located, you can click here.


Update. The contest is now over. Thank you to everyone who commentated and the winners will be recieving an e-mail from me.

Monday, October 5, 2009

Halloween attractions in the Fresno area


Someone had asked me the other night what Halloween activities were there to do in Fresno during October. Besides knowing of a few attractions, I didn't really know. I checked around but didn't find anything listed, so I decided to make one of my own. After spending some time on Google, this is what I found.




Hobbs Grove.
I'm sure everyone is familiar with Hobbs, since it's been around the longest. But for those who aren't, it's located outside of Sanger on 24 acres. There are a haunted house, haunted forest, and a haunted hayride attractions as well as a midway with live music, food and drinks, and several vendors. Hobbs is open from Oct. 9 - Oct. 31 (Closed Oct. 12, 13, 19, 20 & 26.) and the gates open at 5:30 pm. Tickets run from between $10 - $12.50 (depending on the attraction), but there is a discount if you buy combos. For more information on Hobb's and how to get there you can go here.


Fright Night Scream Park
I had recently mentioned this attraction last week. This one is located in Clovis at the Sierra Vista Mall behind Target. There are four attractions here, the Necropolis, the Psychosis 3d, the Desecration, and the Asylum. For more information and directions you can go here.


Raisin Hell Ranch
Raisin Hell Ranch is located north of Fresno in Madera County on Ave. 7, just as you pass the San Joaquin River on Highway 99. There are three attractions there, the Scarecrow's Revenge, the Fresno Monster's Blackout Maze, and the Chupacabra Feast. Raisin Hell Ranch is open from Oct. 17 to Oct. 31. Gates open at 7:00 pm and tickets are $15 for one attraction, $25 for two, and $30 for three. For more information and directions you can go here.


Haunted Fresno
Haunted Fresno is located in downtown Fresno on Fulton. It has five attractions, the Fortress of Fear, the House of Zombies, the Last Ride, the Museum of Oddities, and the Seance. It's open from Oct. 15 - Oct. 18 and Oct. 22 - Oct. 31. Hours are 7-11pm on weekdays and 7pm to 12:00 am on weekends. Museum of Oddities costs $5, the Seance costs $10, Fortress of Fear and House of Zombies is @20 and there is a combo ticket for the Fortress of Fear, House of Zombies, and the seance for $25. For more information and directions you can go here.


Corn Maze at Cobb's Ranch
The corn maze at Cobb's is open from October 10th thru Halloween and their hours are 6-9pm M-F and 11am-9pm Saturday and Sunday. Ticket prices are $10 for adults (12 and up) and $8 for kids (4-11, kids 3 and under are free). Directions and more information on the maze can be found here.


Update.  
I found out about another new Halloween haunt and wanted to pass it on.  Sierra FFA presents "The Farm".  The 320 acre working Ag Farm is the background for a night you will not forget.  You will start with a hayride through the Farms Haunted Forest, on thru the Implement shed, Barn and last but not least the Feed Mill.

They are open four nights only.  Oct. 28-30, dark until 9pm and Oct 31, dark until 11 pm.  Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for 17 and under.  All proceeds will go to the Sierra Future Farmers of America.  To get there, take Hwy. 168 from Fresno to the stop sign (at the bottom of the 4 lane), continue thru on Lodge Road about a mile.  It is located at the Bert Weldon Memorial Farm (across from Sierra High School).  The address is 33326 Lodge Road, Tollhouse, CA.


I was told by the proprietors that this is an extremely scary haunt and is not recommended for younger children, people with heart conditions, or pregnant women.  Parental discretion is strongly advised.




For those who aren't interested in things jumping out at you, but still may want to get scared there are those ghost walks in the Tower District and in Old Town Clovis. Both tours are historical in nature with a focus on the paranormal. Each stop on the tour is at a location that is reported to actually be haunted. The guide discusses the history of the place as well as the paranormal activity that has occurred there. Tours are from 7:30 – 9:30 PM and start the first weekend of October and run through the middle of November. Please note that the tours are for those 18 and over. For reservations you can e-mail them at nightfalltours@yahoo.com.




These are all that I could find that are happening in Fresno area. If anyone knows of anything else, please let me know and I'll add them to the list.












Friday, October 2, 2009

The dead, killer clowns, cannibals, and the insane take over abandoned building in Clovis for Halloween.

As I had mentioned last week, something weird (even more than usual) was going on in the Fresno area. We had zombie protesters at the Shaw and Blackstone intersection. While I was there I discovered where these undead ruffians were staying while they were in the area. It turns out that they had taken over an abandoned building behind the Target in Sierra Vista Mall. Apparently even the dead are attracted to Clovis way of life.

Armed with a night vision enabled camcorder and not nearly enough alcohol in my system, I ventured to the abandoned building, which turned out to be an old movie theater. Pulling up, I noticed there was a bit of a crowd here. Rather perplexed as to why so many people, I found out that many of them were looking for missing family members and had heard that they may be here. Outside the front entrance there was a woman named Mrs. Lovett selling meat pies. Since I just had dinner I politely declined her offer.

Walking up to the doors, I noticed a young woman. I asked her if she knew what was going on and she said she could show me everything and beckoned me to follow her inside. Figuring she had already been inside looking for a family member, I followed. As usual, I was wrong.

As we walked inside, I followed her to what she called the Necropolis. "But don't worry." she said "This isn't my home." Laughing I asked her "Where is your home?" "Oh I'll show you, don't worry." said my guide. And with a sinister smile she added "And soon it will be yours too." Confused I asked her what she meant. "Oh you won't be leaving this place" she smiled sweetly "You'll be dead soon. Just like me." At this point I wanted to get the hell out of there, but a rather large (and dead) looking man prevented me from doing this and we were ushered into the Necropolis.

I was able to get some video of the Necropolis as you will see below, though it isn't much. Apparently my guide was intent on killing me and took every chance she could to push me in front of anything that would do the job. Luckily I was faster than her (the dead aren't that quick) and was able to avoid certain doom.



Finally we left the Necropolis and I could tell she was frustrated that I was still alive. She then asked me if I liked clowns. Now I am not scared of clowns, they just make me feel uneasy. I blame Stephen King's IT for this. And as usual I didn't think before I spoke and said I didn't. "Good." she replied "The ones I'm going to introduce you to will definitely kill you then." As we walked up to another portion of the building, there was a clown that greeted us. My ever sweet and innocent guide informed said clown that I hate clowns (told you she wanted me dead). The clown then opened a door and yelled "Hey guys, this one hates us clowns!" and pushed us both in. I was able to get some video, but I really don't think it shows the horror that was Psychosis 3D.



Feeling emboldened now that I had thwarted her attempts to have me killed I teased her about that she wasn't doing a good job of killing me. "That's fine, we can go to Desecration." she said "I know they are hungry for meat there." You would think I would have learned to keep my mouth shut by now, but no. Desecration was even more horrifying than the previous two as it was filled with cannibals. And they were hungry as you can see from the video I was able to shoot.



Barely escaping that we then headed to the last part, the Asylum. Having given up on killing me by now, my guide abandoned me and figured that my own stupidity would get me killed. Honestly this part had to be the most terrifying. There were some bat shit insane people in here. I was able to shoot some videos of the residents, but the deeper I got the more scared I was. So finally I just gave up and got the hell out of there.



Luckily I was able to barely escape with my life. But as I was leaving, I noticed my guide was taking several people in. Apparently she had a quota to meet or something and figured she could fill it faster with a group. I'm going to have to go back in a week or two. This time I will bring backup as a few friends of mine are interested in seeing what is going on for themselves.

Now this place isn't for the faint of heart, but if you are interested in going I heard that they are selling tickets for the different attractions. You can go here for more info. They are open from October 2 - October 31, except closed on Mondays and Tuesdays Sunday the 4th and 11th, Wednesday the 7th and 14th, and Thursday the 8th. You can buy tickets either on the website or there and I noticed that if you do several attractions, the price for each one is less. Also, I was able to "procure" several tickets (I figured I was owed something since repeated attempts on my life were made. I will be giving these out sometime next week so make sure to check back then.