Hvítárnes Hut in Iceland (Investigation)

In August 2019, we were given access to visit and record inside the Hvítárnes hut.

About

Hvítárnes is the oldest mountain hut in Iceland. It was built in 1930 and is still operated by the Icelandic touring association. In terms of its interior, it is very basic. There is a downstairs room that sleeps 4 in bunk beds, and a kitchen space with a gas stove and running water from a water tank. Upstairs there are sleeping mats for up to 25 people. There is no electricity in this lonely hut, no WiFi, no telephones, and you certainly can't get a mobile phone signal out here. This is the most remote you will ever be. It is located very close to the Hvítárvatn lake, which serves the River Hvítá (translates as White River) which flows into the famous Gullfoss waterfalls, which all tourists will see if they ever do a Golden Circle trip in Iceland.

The views are stunning - to the north, you can see the spectacular Langjökull glacier. If you're lucky, you will see icebergs floating in the lake. About 20 miles to the west is Hofsjökull, another Glacier which is very much visible from the hut. Its hard to put into perspective just how remote this place is. Its possible that you can sleep here and be 15km from the next nearest hut. This hut is really for hikers, climbers and local shepherds...and that's how the legends started.

The ghost stories of this hut are terrifying, especially for men. The stories go back pretty much to the opening of the hut when Englishman staying here claims to have seen a woman walking out of the hut, and vanish into thin air in its first season of operation.

A lawyer from the small town of Keflavík was so afraid, he slept outside in a tent. When he woke, he saw a woman in the tent with him, and claims to be able to see the fabric of the tent through her body. Until then, he knew nothing of the legend.

The hut has several guest books going back over 70 years. It is full of accounts of bizarre goings on. A regular occurrence is for men to be awoken in their sleep to that of a woman trying to physically pull them from their bunk bed. This occurs mainly in the bunk downstairs by the door. One man claims he was dragged out while his son watched him...3 times in one night.

In the 70's, a group from Austria and Switzerland were on a hiking trip, and slept in the hut for the night. It is claimed that a woman was seen in the middle of the night talking in a strange language, and even went as far as pushing one of the guests out of the upstairs window and onto the roof.

Stories of the haunting also very common within large groups of people staying in the hut at the same time. In the early 2000s there is a report of a group of visitors that were woken during the night to the sounds of metal scraping on metal as if someone was trying to climb up to the top floor.

There have also been sightings of the face of a woman seen inside of the hut while people are standing outside. When people go inside to investigate, the hut is empty.

Another common phenomenon are people having strange dreams while staying in the hut. There are several cases in guest books where people have described the exact same dream. It starts inside the hut, and the person realises that they can see a woman standing out of the back of the hut. Every time she beckons them to follow her. When the person who is dreaming does follow her outside, she leads them past a fence surrounding the hut. This seems bizarre because there is no fence around the hut, but back in the early days, there was one. Once you get next to the woman she points back towards the hut and you can see the face of a man staring from the window. The woman seems distressed to see him and at this point to dream always ends. Since the first guest book in the 1930s there have been over 25 cases of people reporting to have had this exact dream. Descriptions of the woman are almost identical, and also match those who have seen her at the hut in a ghostly form.

So who could be haunting this hut? Many people theorise that it may have something to do with the ruins visible outside of the hut. It is believed that they are part of an old settlement that once existed on this site. According to legend and there was a murder here, although there have been several different variations in the story. One Legend claims that's when this place used to be a village, a man murdered his wife for reasons unknown. It is claimed that he cut her body up into several pieces and either buried her in a shallow grave or dumped her body in the lake. Many people believe that it is her restless spirit that haunts the site. Could this ghost be trying to tell people where her body is hidden?

The settlement on this site was abandoned after the Hekla volcanic eruption some 70km away. Many other small settlements in Iceland were also abandoned because of the ash that travelled such a great distance in the year 1104. The Hekla volcano last erupted in 2000.

Another legend tells of a woman who got stranded during one of Iceland's bad winters in the 1930s. It is said that she became lost and disoriented, and froze to death outside. This version of the story is least likely as there have been no records of a woman dying in these circumstances.

During my research, I spoke to Halldór Óli Gunnarsson who wrote his entire university thesis on this hut. During a stay, he captured this photograph.It clearly shows a strange mist n shot over the spot of the old ruins.He claims he took several other photos, and this is the only one with anything like this on. This is also the exact spot that people have claimed to see the woman in their dreams.

It was taken facing the hut from beyond the ruins of the old settlement. In the photo you can clearly see a strange mist over the old ruins. He claims that he took several photos, and this was the only one with this phenomenon in the photo. I can't thank Halldór enough for giving me access to the research, interview transcripts and photos he has taken of this place and it's guests.

Visit Hvítárnes

The first thing I must stress is how difficult it is to reach this location. The only way that you can reach it it is with a 4x4. It is around a 3 hour drive from Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland. The main route actually takes you past the Gullfoss waterfall, and then a mile or 2 later, the tarmac road ends and you drive on a single gravel road. It really does feel like you are on the surface of Mars, ad the orange dust, and large boulders on either side are similar to that of The Martian. Over 20 miles of the journey is on terrain that only a 4x4 vehicle can handle. If using a rental car, using a non-4x4 vehicle could void your agreement.

It is also worth noting that all hire car companies in Iceland have 4x4s, as the terrain can be unpredictable. Most rental companies require bookings made with a credit card, and do not accept debit cards. There is one company that will accept debit cards, but they do require you to buy the premium insurance package. Lotus car rentals do this, and they are based at the main Keflavik Airport.

Finding the hut can be tricky, but keep an eye open for sign posts. In fact, the drive from Reykjavik was very enjoyable. I chose to take the southern route, which takes you past the Blue Lagoon and over the former sea bed where today you can still see the old cliffs inland where the waves would crash against, up until the last ice age. The other route takes you through a lava field and through the town of Selfoss. This town was where the epicenter of a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck in 2008, injuring 30 people. If you stop at the supermarket, you will see an earthquake simulator, which is terrifying.

Below shows where the Hvítárnes Hut is located. You will also appreciate from this just how remote this part of Iceland is, as there are no villages or towns nearby.

To book a stay in the haunted hut, visit The Icelandic Touring Association's Ferðafélag Íslands.The cost of staying for the night is 6000KR (£37.50 as of 2019, or €43) per person, and it can accommodate up to 30. It Is essential that you bring your own food, as there are no shops for miles. There is an outdoor toilet located about a 30 second walk from the hut.

There is no postcode or address for the hut, but it's GPS coordinates are 64°37.007 – W 19°45.394.

Summer if the best time to visit, as the roads are clear, and also there is no heating in the hut. Don't forget your camera...the views are out of this world.

Top Tip: When leaving, leave early in the morning and stop at Gullfoss waterfalls. The coachloads of crowds won't arrive until late in the morning, so get there early and appreciate the stunning photo ops.

Contact Icelandic Touring Association:
Telephone: +354 655 0173
Email: fi@fi.is

Meanwhile, while visiting Iceland, visit Reykjavik, its a cool town, and I have also compiled some of the city's best ghost stories in another video.

Greyfriar's Kirkyard (Investigation)

About

Greyfriar's Kirkyard is a must for all paranormal fans - it is said by many to be the most haunted Graveyard not only in the UK, but possibly the world. An entity is said to attack visitors to this graveyard after a disturbance in 1998, and as of recording, the poltergeist has been blamed for 2 deaths, and over 700 injuries.

There have been burials in this Kirkyard since 1561. It was originally a ravine that dipped below ground level, but as more and more people were buried here, the ground is now a bulging hill. Official records estimate that there are more than 750,000 bodies here, but given that many more people were buried here under the cover of darkness to avoid costs, and the fact that there are also plague pits with an unknown number of bodies inside, that number could stretch to well over a million.

It is said that after bad weather (and in Scotland, that often is the case), the ground can become soft, and it is not uncommon to find human bones sticking up. Most of the bodies were not buried at 6 feet, and many are literally just below the surface.

The darkest part of this graveyard lies behind a set of locked gates at the far side of Greyfriars, known as The Covenanter's Prison. The national Covenant was signed in this very graveyard in 1638, opposing the monarchy- but after the coventanters were defeated at The Battle of of Bothwell Bridge in 1679, captured rebels were locked in a walled section of land to the south of Greyfriars. Many of these rebels would die in captivity, under the commands of a man called George Mackenzie. His ruthlessness gave him the nickname "bluddy Mackenzie." The irony of this is that after George's death many years later, he was buried just a few feet from the site of The Covenanter's Prison. Many strange goings on are said to occur around the black mausoleum where his body is buried.

Today, The Covenanter's Prison is now part of the Kirkyard. After a need for an overflow due to a need for more land to bury the dead, the Kirkyard was extended into the piece of land where thousands of poor prisoners were held for many months. A lot of the land was built on, but a thin strip of land containing tombs still exists.

And it is here where the hauntings are said to occur. In 1998, a homeless man broke into the black mausoleum while looking for a place to sleep during a storm. However, when inside, the man is said to have fallen through the floor and damaged the coffins of the bodies inside...including that of George Mackenzie. Just days later, all kinds of strange things started happening. People were reporting injuries inside the prison section. It became so severe that Edinburgh Council were forced to keep the gates to this section locked from the public. Only official tour guides have access.

In 2000, a priest named Colin Grant spent the night in the Kirkyard with a local reporter to perform an exorcism and to bring peace to Greyfriars. He would claim that he was tormented by the number of troubled souls in the Kirkyard. A photograph from the night even shows what appears to be a black figure behind him, watching. Colin was badly affected by his night in Greyfriars, and he would die just weeks later during a seance, after repeatedly telling people that something from Greyfriars was following him. The reporter from the local paper was also attacked while in the Kirkyard, and the next morning, she woke up covered in bruises.

In 2011, Dead Air Radio's Chris Felton also has a strange encounter alongside Steve Taylor and the team when they had stones thrown at them, and all witnessed a white mist floating towards them, all while live on the radio.

I was kindly given access to spend the night in The Covenanter's Prison section of the Kirkyard.

Visit Greyfriar's Kirkyard

Address

26A Candlemaker Row

Edinburgh

EH1 2QE

Greyfriar's is located in the old town area of Edinburgh. There are a couple of entrances to the Kirkyard which are open 24 hours. The most common way is behind the pub, Greyfriar's Bobby, which is named after a small Skye-Terrier dog who is said to have visited and sat beside his owner's grave everyday until his own death in 1872. Bobby is one of the biggest tourist attractions to Greyfriar's, and there is a gravestone dedicated to him in the entrance. However, not many people know that the story is actually a load of fiction. While there really was a dog called Bobby, there is no evidence to prove the existence of his owner, 'John Gray'. There is a gravestone for John along the East side of the Kirkyard, but nobody is buried beneath it. 

We know that Bobby was a real dog. The most logical explanation is that he was a stray dog visiting a local butcher shop, who would often throw scraps out of the back window...and into the Kirkyard. Animals weren't buried in Greyfriar's, so we know his 'grave site' is not genuine. In fact, if you really want to know the exact location, some BT engineers found it in the early 2000s just outside these gates while installing fiber broadband. They were digging in the road and found a shoebox size wooden box containing Bobby's bones. It was buried back in the same spot. That exact spot is where there is a grey rectangular patch of tarmac about 10 meters from the gates. 

A lot of Harry Potter fans also visit Greyfriar's, as it is believed that J.K. Rowling took inspiration for the character Voldermort from the grave of a man called Thomas Riddell. She was known to spend time in the Kirkyard, and would often write her novels in Elephant House Cafe nearby. 

Another entrance at the bottom of the Kirkyard is opposite The Budget Backpackers hostel, which is one of the cheapest places in Edinburgh to stay.

When going in via the main entrance by Greyfriar's Bobby, turn to the left, and walk along the tombs at the south side of the Kirkyard. When you see the black one, that is George Mackenzie's. Carry on walking and you'll see the locked gates of The Covenanter's Prison. If you really want to go inside and brave the Mackenzie Poltergeist, you'll need to book onto an official tour, with City of The Dead Tours. They are the only group who can take you in. Their office is just on the right hand side of the main gates, and tickets can be bought online or from here. The tour starts outside St Giles Cathedral on the Royal Mile. It takes in some stories from around the ancient streets of Edinburgh, before taking the group into the Kirkyard, and then into the prison. The tour starts at 21:00 between Easter and Halloween, and 20:30 over winter, and costs £13pp. The tour lasts around 1 hour 20 mins. 

People on this tour have genuinely been hurt by something while in the Covenanter's Prison. There are photos on their Facebook page. People with pacemakers are advised not to attend - not because of the scares, but because electrical appliances have been affected in here, and a man in the past was taken ill with a pacemaker. 

Contact City of the Dead:

Telephone: 0131 225 9044

Email: info@cityofthedeadtours.com

Note: City of The Dead also do tours into the Edinburgh vaults. That is also very much worth visiting!

There are many places to stay in Edinburgh. If on a budget, stay in The Budget Backpackers Hostel for £11 per night, and walk 10 seconds to get to Greyfriar's. For hotels...take your pick!

Food and drinks is also a huge option. There's everything from ubs that serve food and host live music, to Nandos and Pizza Express all within 5 minutes walk.

Finally...this is Scotland, so bring an umbrella and a coat! 

The Victoria Tunnel (Investigation)

About

The Tunnel is a sub terrain former wagon way, built in 1839 and opened in 1842 to transport coal from Leazers Main Colliery in Spital Tongues 2.4 miles to the River Tyne in Newcastle, where waiting boats could transport it out to sea.

After the colliery ran into financial difficulties, it was forced to close in 1860 ending the tunnel’s main purpose of transporting coal, having only been in use for 18 years. The pit was closed down and the tunnel was sealed up and forgotten about. The entrance was built over by housing, and the exit made way for The Glass House Bridge foundations.

Following the outbreak of war on 1939, underground public air raid shelters were needed. The tunnel has to be rediscovered, modernised and new entrances constructed along its 2.4 mile route. At its peak, it could hold up to 10,000 people below ground

Following the war, most of the entrances were sealed up and forgotten about. Years later, it was voted #1 as Britain’s Worst Air Rade Shelter due to its dark and damp conditions. Legend has it that one man who suffered shell shock during WW1, refused to leave the Victoria Tunnel, and spent 6 years underground without ever leaving. The tunnel was the safest place to be.

The main ghost said to haunt the tunnel is that of William Coulson, who was killed in 1852 when he was struck by an out of control wagon. He had been showing 2 businessmen the Tunnel with the intention of selling it. A note asking for no wagons to be sent down failed to reach the pit head in time and a wagon was sent into the tunnel. A dark figure is the most common sighting in the tunnel, most recently made by a tour guide in April 2018 while on a tour with a group of 12 other people. Many people believe this to be William’s ghost.

There were also deaths at the entrance of the tunnel by the pit head. 2 accidents involving a stationary steam engine exploding claimed 3 lives. 

During the war, a young boy was killed while standing at the air raid entrance in Shieldfield. It was the night of September 1st 1941, and German bombers flew low enough to be undetected by radar. That night, most people heard the bombs before the they heard the sirens, many dying in their homes. Over a thousand people became homeless that night, and the loss of life was horrific.

Some young children used to try to avoid going into the Victoria Tunnel, and preferred to watch the planes, and collecting shrapnel to take to school the next day. A boy known as Ben was struck by a piece of shrapnel and lay dying in the street outside of the tunnel. This story is not available online, but only by the accounts of living witnesses. One medium picked up on Ben’s presence in the tunnel, and claimed Ben was carried to safety inside the tunnel but sadly died of his injuries. This cannot be verified by myself at the time.

In 1941, a 7 year old girl called Irene Page fell into a bomb hole on Tarset Street. When she did not climb out, another local boy called Ernie Smith went looking for her using a rope, but he also failed to surface. 2 off duty firemen climbed down, and again, neither came back up. That day, 4 dead bodies lay at the bottom of the hole, killed by a pocket of poisonous gas. The Victoria Tunnel runs under this spot. The presence of Irene in particular is commonly mentioned by mediums. Strange activity is also reported at this spot - torches being turned off, and a child’s voice has regularly been heard.

In 2014, a ghost hunting group posted a video on YouTube that shows strange EMF activity responding to questions, and footsteps audibly coming towards them and then stopping right beside them. They soon left the tunnel!

Other strange activity includes flashing lights, growls, sudden cases of extreme emotion and the constant sensation of being followed. Many of the tour guides at the Victoria Tunnel will refuse to go down by themselves.

Visit The Victoria Tunnel

Address

Victoria Tunnel Tours (Meeting point)

55 Lime Street

Ouseburn Valley

Newcastle Upon Tyne

NE1 2PQ

(The Tunnel entrance is on Ouse Street, a couple of minutes walk away)

Telephone: 0191 230 4210

A 700 meter section of tunnel is open to the public today thanks to lottery funding, and this is the same section we were given access to in our show. This is run by The Ouseburn Trust. An entrance close to the Great North Museum (formerly the Hancock Museum) is still visible but not accessible to the public. 

The closest Metro station is Manor’s. Exit the station and walk away from the city towards Byker. Turn right at The Tanner’s Arms onto Crawhall Road and walk down Stepney Bank. This was the location of a WWII entrance. Also, note St Dominic’s Church - the tunnel runs directly below it, and is marked by a cross on the wall of the tunnel where people would often go to pray during an air rade.

From Gateshead, walk over the Millenium Bridge and walk east until you reach the point where the River Ouse merges with the Tyne. Head along there and it’s a 5 minute walk, and very pretty. 

Tours are just £7 per person and will last around 2 hours. This includes a tour of the Ouseburn Valley and use of the Tunnel’s own torches and hard hats. Due to high demand, tours need to be pre-booked. Note - food and drinks are not allowed inside the tunnel, and there is nothing living in the tunnel, so no rats or spiders!

Word of advice - keep your tour tickets, as it gets you discount off food at The Cluny nearby, which is also one of the city’s best live music venue. There is also discount available at The Ship Inn pub, which specialises in Vegan food.

Paranormal events are also heavily in demand and do sell out. 

Every Halloween, the tunnel runs a scare night called Terror In The Tunnel in which actors and actresses dress up and scare people in the dark. I have been on one of these, and at £6.66, it is cheaper and scarier than other events of its kind!

Edit: Every few months, tunnel tour guides are given a chance to access the 'north' end of the tunnel, and I was allowed to record with them on a one of these visits in July 2019. This section of the tunnel is not open to the public. To see what this area looks like, see the video below! Sadly as you can see!