Lake House Art Centre – Halloween live interactive Zoom event

A big thank you to all those who joined us online with the Lake House interactive Zoom investigation for Halloween on Saturday night. It was quite the setup; with cameras live streaming in all areas and the audience jumping in on the feed via Zoom. Then there were all those

Carnegie Cres – Development, Hobsonville

During the massive development projects of the Hobsonville Point region of West Auckland, many full street and sub division blocks were bought up by developers and demolished to make way for more construction in the name of progress. Many 100s of houses went under the bulldozers; many low income renters

TheatreWorks – Birkenhead, Auckland

The team was called in to investigate ongoing reports of unusual activity and experiences by both staff and patrons within this deceptively sized North Shore community theatre. Team in attendance: Mark, Barbara, Ian and Sam Weather: Overcast / light rain Initial temperature taken: Exterior: 11.6°C Interior: 14.5°C Theatreworks, The home

Jubilee Pavilion Shadow Person, Marton

This one I heard about on a trip down to Marton, near Whanganui on the west coast of the North Island. The Jubilee Pavilion is situated in the historically recognised community sporting arena of Marton Park. A historical trust registration marked the park as a place with aesthetic, architectural, historical,

The Man With No Eyes

A True New Zealand Ghost Story by Erica – Together with my partner and son the 3 of us moved to an old villa in Devonport about 12 years ago…

The Mason Road Tree

This urban legend has been circling for a few years now, but isn’t widely known. The location is Mason Road, in a small subdivision off Oteha Valley Rd. It’s in a newly developed section of Albany on Auckland’s north shore and the rumours are kept at a low whisper for fears the

The Pink Lady of Greencastle

Guy Winters is a man who had had few paranormal experiences in his life. That is until one fateful evening when a few of his friends rocked up at his house and convinced him to go ‘spooking’…. His friends had just been to the ruin of the O’Hare Mansion in

Kingseat re-visit. Random photo 2018 gallery

New chatty haunted family member arrived!

A new addition to the ”haunted” family arrived today; this one travelling up by courier from Christchurch. Not too much of a back story on this one, really. Apparently the now deceased Mother used to talk to this little girl often when no one was around. During visits the family

Massey Homestead, Mangere. Auckland

The Massey Homestead is an imposing historic building set in extensive gardens on Massey Road, Mangere East. It was for some years the home of William Ferguson Massey, who was Prime Minister of New Zealand from 1912 to 1925. This is a brief history of the homestead, its ownership by

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Haunted Auckland investigation: Rangiriri Hotel – Waikato [Overnight session REPORT]26/06/2022Haunted Locations / Hotels and Businesses / Investigations / Paranormal New ZealandLocation: Rangiriri Hotel, 8 Rangiriri Road. Date: Sunday 26 th June 2022 History of the Location: Research indicates that there were two Hotels in Rangariri that were established around 1866. The ‘Travellers Rest Hotel’ was built by August 1866 but burned down in January 1877 after being unoccupied for some years. The ‘Royal Mail Hotel’ (also known as ‘Sherley’s hotel after its proprietor and later the Rangiriri Hotel) also experienced a similar fate, burning down in 1883. It was rebuilt in 1884. An 1883 town survey plan at the time of the Rangiriri fire, reveals that the area consisted of only seven houses, a store, the hotel and the cemetery. Of those planned streets, only 4 remain today. It is rumoured to have again partially burned down in 1905 and was rebuilt, in its current layout. It also suffered flooding from the Waikato river in 1907 and 1926. It is now a category two Historic Places Trust building. The location is very close to the site of some of the fiercest fighting during the Waikato Land wars in 1863. Rangiriri was hard won by the British, with the action costing the lives of more government forces than any other during the New Zealand wars (130). Maaori were similarly impacted by the death of 41 Maaori including 6 chiefs. Across the road lies the Maaori war and Early Settler’s cemetery. Further up the road is the Te Wheoro’s redoubt, the location of the British military stores and garrison from 1863. The hotel’s location between Auckland and Hamilton meant it was a stopping point for travellers, where coach horses would be fed/watered and stabled at the rear of the property (now a neighbouring paddock). The two bars were required because in the early 1900s, the ‘house bar’ catered to women who were not allowed in the male-only ‘main bar’ area. Previously reported activity: A staff member reported to Aimee and Natasha that she had seen a full bodied apparition of a woman. Another reported that she saw a shadow pass behind her when she was completing admin, during a period of covid lockdown – no one else was in the building. A chef (not Chris) who lived on site for many years would not share his experiences with us directly but admits that the location is definitely haunted. He was overheard telling another staff member that he saw a dark mist on the stairs one day. Female staff member experienced several items falling off shelf near front door…whilst others remained on the shelf in their normal positions. Female staff member reported glasses falling from the bar Kelvin Cruickshank (celebrity psychic) reported seeing the spirit of the original proprietor’s wife during his visit. One truck driver refused to stay in one of the rooms because his lights and alarm kept going on/off. Several reported stories from unnamed sources about a tall woman in a white dress in their rooms at night who is known to lock doors, move furniture and play with the lights. Team members for this investigation: Mark Wallbank Barbara Armstrong Natasha Kristofferson-Tuck Aimee Peterken First impressions from the team when entering the building: The building is your typical old kiwi tavern, with dark wood panelling, cosy wallpaper and booths in the restaurant area. You get a real sense that this is a very special and meaningful place for locals, with lots of motorbikes parked outside for a casual drink in the beer garden and families eating the large portions in the restaurant. The staff were welcoming and most seemed interested in our visit. They were happy to share stories they had heard. The food was excellent! Note: Mark rates the banoffee pie as the best he has ever had, and Aimee continues to return for the seafood chowder! Description of the building: The two storey hotel has 10 bedrooms (5 doubles), a restaurant, a commercial grade ‘open to customers view’ style kitchen, a rear split, levelled ‘beer garden’ type area and 2 traditional bar areas. The bathrooms upstairs have been modernised to a very high level. The building has been restored over the years, modernising the interior whilst maximising original features such as the wooden flooring and high ceilings. The upstairs area was in the midst of renovation at the time of our visit. Points of note in relation to possible contributors to activity reported by the Haunted Auckland team: Carpets were pulled up in the hallways which caused significant creaking and noise when moving around the upstairs area. Floors were very uneven in many bedrooms and the hallway. Possible infrasound impacts due to proximity to motorway – rumble of trucks and cars could be heard on recordings and by our own ears. Rooms which stood out: Mark felt that the one room which stood out to him was the small lounge/breakfast room off the kitchen. He reports “Not sure why, it just felt odd. Like I wasn’t alone, or there was someone watching…to the point I looked around the room in a somewhat semi-paranoid manner looking for a possible hidden spy camera in the ceiling fire alarm!”. He also said that he didn’t feel anything in the other rooms during the visit, but the hallway felt “interesting” to him – stating that “perhaps it was just the titled angle of the flooring which had something to do with it”. What we did: We set up night-vision cameras at either end of the hallway which ran the whole time we were actively investigating. We had stationary camera in room 4 during the sensory experiment. We had a hand held camera in room 6 and one on a tripod in the breakfast lounge during an ”Estes” method communication session. We left trigger objects in the hallway (Mr Smilie ball, marbles and a teddy bear with proximity sensor) and in room 10m (marbles). We set up a voice recorder in the hallway We placed EDI Plus Meters in the hallway and moved them around rooms as the communication sessions progressed. These measure temperature change, EMF levels, barometric pressure and vibration. We had several other proximity sensors and Rempods spread across the hallway Natasha tried a sensory deprivation session in Room 4 using the Mindplace – Limina set-up, which allows us to experiment with forms of sensory enhancement via various levels of gamma frequencies and light filters What we experienced: Unknown door creak: A door was heard creaking open around 10.30pm by Mark. At the time Aimee and Barbara were in the 2 bathrooms at the opposite end of the hallway and Natasha was stood behind Mark in the kitchen. The noise was caught on the camera – all doors except the washing room door were on camera at the time and did not open. Wall switch turned off: Room 4 – Natasha plugged an extension cord into a socket in her room. This powered her camera in the hallway. It was working well at 9pm when Aimee checked it. At 10.30pm, after the door creak incident, the camera was checked for footage – only to discover that it was turned off and the battery was flat. Upon further investigation, the socket had been turned off at the wall switch. Natasha had been in the room for the past 90 minutes undertaking a sensory deprivation experience (on camera) and no one entered the room to touch the switch. The camera was in Aimee’s camera shot the entire time and was not touched by any of the team. Shadow movement: Mark and Barbara were toying with a phone application called ‘The Portal’ during a communication session. They used the ”Estes” method, whereby they were in different rooms and could not hear each other. Aimee stood in the doorway of the kitchen, listening to both of them. She noted a shadow move from the hallway into Room 7. His curtains were open at the time so she watched traffic pass by again to try to recreate the movement but was unsuccessful. The shadow was not caught on camera as Aimee’s camera pointed up the hallway (the opposite way) and Natasha’s camera was off at the switch by this point. Moving key: Aimee removed from her pocket upon sitting on the floor of the hallway during a communication session. Aimee moved away from the pile for a few minutes and when she returned the key for room 6 was at the bottom of the pile. We are unsure how it got there. Barbara remembers it being in her room whilst undertaking the Estes communication session. So… do we think it’s haunted? The story of a lady in a white dress, often linked to an early proprietor is quite common. The story of the lady at ‘The Rango’ is very reminiscent of the lady ‘Kate’ who reportedly haunts The Kentish Pub in Waiuku which we visited a few months previously. She too checks in on the staff to make sure they are doing things properly and makes herself known if she feels things are sub-par. In this instance, the lady at the Rango appears to be very friendly and keen to help in all her interactions with patrons. To make a stronger determination about its haunted status, we would need to return to explore a few further areas including: The potential socket being turned off at the wall – we would need to video this socket and repeat the task. Trying to recreate any door creaks which were heard (possibly from the laundry). Measurement of low vibration (infrasound) at various locations across the hotel Trying to capture any shadows moving into Room 7 using more cameras stationed closer and on correct angles It’s a big call to make without having something substantial to back up such a statement. We all slept extremely well in our rooms that evening with nothing of note caught on our cameras as we slept (yes, we do record our own snoring!). The team feel that there is definitely something to the repeated stories. It is unclear at this point whether this would be an intelligent or residual haunting. There have been quite a few stories of apparitions and repeated actions (such as the lights and doors being messed with) over the years which shouldn’t be dismissed; and could possibly suggest an ”intelligent haunting”) We are keen to return for a follow-up session or two to further look into the intriguing reports surrounding this wonderful location. [...] Read more...

Lake Alice Hospital – Manawatu01/05/2017Abandoned Buildings / Haunted LocationsLake Alice Hospital was once a rural psychiatric facility situated in the Manawatu region, catering to the full mental health spectrum, from troubled youth and the criminally insane to the elderly with dementia. The sprawling complex, opened in August 1950, spread out across 56 hectares of land consisting of ten two-level villas, each with eleven beds for patients, four two-level villas housing 50 beds, a maximum security wing, morgue, chapel, library, staff quarters, administration building, landscaped grounds complete with vegetable gardens, sporting areas and two swimming pools. The hospital even had its own fire station. The facility slowly shut down during the mid 1990s, with plans to assimilate patients back into the community. It was an idea that divided many in the community, as public safety concerns came into question. Full closure of the hospital was implemented in October 1999. Former patients of the hospital’s child and adolescent unit have made allegations of abuse that happened at the hospital during the 1970s, including the use of electroconvulsive therapy and paraldehyde injections as punishment. The New Zealand government issued an apology in 2001, and has so far paid out a total of $10.7 million in compensation to 183 former patients. Auckland accountant and property developer’s group Lake Hicks Ltd purchased the buildings and grounds in July 2006, though redevelopment plans came to a halt after the new owners fell into financial difficulties and could go no further with it. Lake Alice was sold on once more in December 2008 with plans to demolish most of the buildings to make way for farmland after plans for a subdivision failed. At this time, only a handful of buildings remain, abandoned and derelict, having been vandalised by trespassing urban explorers and thrill seeking teens looking for a spooky place to party. Much of the complex has gone and the remaining villas, which had asbestos roofing, are being carefully demolished one by one. There are many stories that have circulated through the generations of the Lake Alice Hospital being actively haunted by spirits. Staff working their shifts have told of mysterious apparitions, voices, being touched by invisible hands, surgical equipment moving without human interaction and figures seen wandering the halls. [...] Read more...

Elusive ‘panther’ may be on the move22/10/2013Cryptozoology News / Kiwi CryptidsAs reported in: NZHerald – 22 October 2013. Mid-Canterbury’s elusive black panther may have moved south. Last week a delivery driver spotted what he described as a large cat-like animal feeding on road kill just outside the Fairlie township in the early hours of the morning. The description was remarkably similar to reports in a number of sightings of the panther-like animal in Mid Canterbury roughly the size of a Labrador dog, with round head and a distinctive long tail. Such sightings began trickling in 1992 when the animal was spotted at the Ashburton River mouth. But the legend really took flight this century when Marcus Ewart and David Tutton reported seeing a large, black panther-like cat near Alford Forest; two years later the cat appeared again, this time witnessed by Peter and Toni May in the Ashburton Gorge. A month later, in October 2003, truck driver Chad Stewart was startled by a huge black cat in the Mayfield foothills. The same month the cat appeared again, this time near the Fairton meat works. Several sightings were reported in the Seafield and Pendarves areas in January 2004. In May 2005 Mark Brosnahan met the beast in the foothills area, and Nic Newman came face-to-face with the legendary black cat on the Mt Somers Walkway in June 2005. Brent Thomas happened across the cat at the Ashburton River Mouth in August 2006. More sightings in the Pendarves district followed The last reported sighting came in August last year. Professional photographer Michael O’Neill captured an image of a large black animal slinking across the frozen surface of Lake Clearwater, providing the clearest photo yet. Further afield the cat was seen near Twizel in 1996, two years later a tawny coloured Labrador-sized cat appeared near Cromwell, and Southland residents reported seeing bobcat-like animal in the Mataura area. Department of Conservation officials have consistently stated the animals are large feral cats; however those who have seen them firsthand have down rejected that explanation. By Michelle Nelson of the Ashburton Guardian [...] Read more...

Project Puhinui: Session Four – Puhinui House, Howick Historical Village30/04/2016Historic Buildings / Investigations / Project PuhinuiSession Four: 30th April 2016 – Solo Overnight vigil by Lisa Ward. I thought it was a nice old house, very representative of the 1800s. I loved the Veranda. I went in treating it as an ordinary ‘un-haunted’ house and thought that I would just see if anything happened to convince me otherwise. The house was fairly big. Downstairs consisted of a large living area, a dinning room with small office in an alcove. At the back of the house were modern toilets, the kitchen and parlour and a small porch area leading to the back door. If you continued to walk down the corridor this narrowed and ended in the small maid’s bed room. A big staircase led to the upstairs hall way. Off the hallway were the main bedroom, a child’s bedroom, a more modern looking sewing room, a room full of pictured and other junk, a small room with mannequins and a room full of filing cabinets. The house didn’t feel uncomfortable in anyway when I first arrived. The only room that I thought seemed a bit creepy was the maid’s room. I think this may just have been related to the fact that the room was at the end of a dark narrow corridor. The bed was arranged as if someone had been sleeping in it. The master bed room also made me feel a little bit uncomfortable, but again I think this may have been related to hearing reports that the mirror had swung on its own accord. I arrived for my solo vigil at Puhinui house at around 7 pm. It was still night, calm and cloudy with a temperature of around 16ºC. Mark met me by the house. I was impressed with the beautiful façade of the 19th century house. I’ve always loved verandas and this house had a large veranda at the front. The inside of the house was no less impressive. A beautiful staircase and stained glass window confronted you as you walked through the door. Mark took the time show me around the rooms explaining some of the history of the place and some of the stories from previous investigations. The house was sizeable and I imagined back in the day (mid 1800s) it must have been a beautiful house to live in and not so large that it wasn’t homely. The house felt fairly normal on arrival. I didn’t feel any change of emotion as I walked around. We spent some time setting up the DVR cameras. These were placed at the bottom of the staircase, looking up the stairwell, in the hallway at the top of the stairs, in the room containing filing cabinets and a metal bin and in the main living room. At the top of the stairs I also placed a toy stuffed dog on a chair as a trigger object but this hadn’t moved by the morning. Mark left me around 8.30 pm and I was alone to soak up the atmosphere. I wandered around the house again getting a feel for the place. I’d planned first to go around taking photographs to document the house. After this, I planned to set up the voice recorders. Footsteps Around 9 pm, I started taking photos around the living room, trying to capture some of the memorabilia. I was busy taking photographs of a badly taxidermied tiger when I suddenly heard loud footsteps walking down the corridor outside of the living room. I would describe them as low heels on a hard or wooden floor, someone walking quite quickly or with a purpose. There were around 6 to 8 footsteps. The footsteps sounded like they were going down the corridor past the toilets and away from the living room. As I was stood by the door by this corridor I moved quickly to see if I could see someone, but there was no-one there. I took a photo to see if I could capture anything, but nothing was captured. The incident freaked me out a bit, I think I was even shaking a bit and couldn’t believe what I’d just heard. At the same time it was exciting as this is what investigation is about, having these experiences. I knew no-one was in the house; I’d previously walked right through the house with Mark and we’d even checked the back door was locked. Mark had long gone about 15 to 20 minutes before. As I moved around the house, I felt a little nervous. The areas where I felt most uneasy were upstairs, particularly the master bedroom. I found I didn’t want to really go into the room. Downstairs, walking through the kitchen made me really shudder and I didn’t want to be in there. I felt an overwhelming feeling of being watched and intruding. I even felt this in the kitchen in the morning when it was lighter, so it wasn’t just the darkness that was making me feel uncomfortable. I didn’t really like the maid’s room, but this was at the end of a creepy looking corridor, so I don’t think that helped. At around 4.30 am I woke up and felt like someone was pressing a single finger hard on the top of my head, it was quite painful. I also suddenly felt like someone had lifted and pulled my duvet back, and I knew I hadn’t moved! I sat up quickly but didn’t see anything. I felt like I just wanted to get out of the house at that point. DVR cameras were placed at the bottom of the staircase, looking up the stairwell, in the hallway at the top of the stairs, in the room containing filing cabinets and a metal bin and in the main living room. At the top of the stairs I also placed a toy stuffed dog on a chair as a trigger object but this hadn’t moved by the morning. The living room the video did capture me reacting to the footstep noise, although I’m only just in the shot. Voice recorders were placed on first step of the staircase and on the table in the upstairs hallway. Following the footstep event, I set up voice recorders, one on the bottom of the stairs and the other on a table in the hallway upstairs. I then took some pictures around the house. At 9.30, still feeling a little nervous, I decided to have some quiet time in the living room. I sat on my make shift bed and did a bit of meditation to calm my nerves, but as the evening progressed on, I couldn’t easily shake the feeling of unease. As I moved around the house, I felt a little nervous. The areas where I felt most uneasy were upstairs, particularly the master bedroom. I found I didn’t want to really go into the room. Downstairs, walking through the kitchen made me really shudder and I didn’t want to be in there. I felt an overwhelming feeling of being watched and intruding. I even felt this in the kitchen in the morning when it was lighter, so it wasn’t just the darkness that was making me feel uncomfortable. I didn’t really like the maid’s room, but this was at the end of a creepy looking corridor, so I don’t think that helped. At 9.45 pm I decided to do a communication session. I sat on the lower stairs. I asked if Serita was there. I asked lots of questions about the house and who was there, whether they owned the house or had worked there. I asked for names. I asked whether they minded all the people who had stayed overnight recently. I picked up what sounded like male and female voices. I hear what I think sounds like the following: Male voice saying “yes” Male voice saying something like “Bullshit” A female voice shouting “Aunt” (however this was picked up while I was still in the living room before I even started the EVP session) Female voice saying ‘tomorrow’ A female voice that replies “yes” when I ask “perhaps you like the company” referring to people staying overnight in the house. Two loud bangs which don’t sound like normal house noises, these are very distinct and clear, but I couldn’t work out the direction they were coming from as I had my headphones on. At around 10.00 pm I moved upstairs and sat in the hallway and did a second EVP session. I’ve still to go through this file in more detail. At around 10.15 pm I decided to turn off all the upstairs and then downstairs lights so that I didn’t draw the attention of anyone outside that there was someone in the house. Loud bang around 3 am. Male voice (English accent) at 6 am (ish0) saying what sounds like “in front” I then went back to the living area and tried a ghost box session. I asked some more questions and during the session I said my name and asked whoever was there to repeat it. I thought I heard my name. I also asked whoever was there to tell me what colour jumper I was wearing. I thought I heard a clear ‘pink’ and this was repeated a second time (as I was wearing a pinkish jumper), but I accept it was probably voice pareidolia and my mind wanting to hear those responses. It would be interesting to ask someone else in the team who didn’t know what I was wearing as to whether they hear a colour after I ask the question. Other than that, the ghost box didn’t yield anything exciting. From 10.30 pm onwards I decided to have more quiet time and leave the voice recorders to do their work. I sat reading, looking at Facebook, sending a few messages and trying to read a scientific paper I’d been asked to review. I did find the silence a little oppressive. I couldn’t shake the sense of unease and just felt like I wasn’t alone or I was being watched. I put the feeling down to my own imagination and kept telling myself to keep a calm mind and that fear is all in the mind. At 11.45 I decided to check that the voice recorders were still running. I changed the batteries on the voice recorder on the stairs. Around midnight I decided to pack in and get some sleep. I woke several times during the night and lay there listening for any sounds. It was quiet each time. At around 4.30 am I woke up and felt like someone was pressing a single finger hard on the top of my head, it was quite painful. I also suddenly felt like someone had lifted and pulled my duvet back, and I knew I hadn’t moved! I sat up quickly but didn’t see anything. I felt like I just wanted to get out of the house at that point. I managed to eventually get back to sleep and my alarm went off at 6.00 am. It was still dark outside, but I decided to get up and start packing up so I could leave by 7.00 am. I started to take my stuff out to the car and it was nice to be outside of the house. I spent a few minutes looking at the house and found that I just really didn’t want to go back in. I braced myself and went back. I worked my way around disconnecting the DVR cameras and switching off voice recorders and packing away all the equipment. Once, I’d got everything back in the car I decided to take more pictures inside as the light was coming in. I also walked around the back of the house and took more pictures. At around 7.00 am, I was out of there! I’ve listened to the voice recordings left running over night. There are a couple of loud bangs around 3 am, other than that it was quiet until around 6 am. I can hear myself downstairs starting to pack up, but I hear what sounds like a male voice close to the upstairs voice recorder saying what sounds like “In front” It sounds like an English accent to me. Although I found it hard at times to be in the house, I’m pleased I had the experience to do the solo vigil. It does make it a lot easier to interpret sounds on the voice recorder and during the EVPs. You can be more certain it’s not noise contamination from someone else. Is the house haunted? I think there is something there but as to what it is I’m not sure. With the footsteps and voices picked up on EVP, some of it could be put down to residual energy, if there even is such a thing. Mark had also heard similar footsteps to me and comparing notes in the same area of the house. I seemed to get a clear “yes” in answer to a question during an EVP session, so perhaps there is intelligent energy there. This could also be concluded from the torch throwing event during Mark’s vigil. The EVP words captured are generally quite random rather than responses to questions, making it seem like there are energies still living in the house carrying out their lives; with male and female voices captured, it seems as if there is more than one energy there. I’ve wondered if it’s some kind of time loop replaying over. I never felt like I was in any danger in the house, but as mentioned I often felt uneasy and nervous at times. It was unbelievably quiet at times and the darkness of the house seemed quite brooding particularly in the wee small hours. As described above, there were some areas of the house which made me feel more uncomfortable than others. It’s certainly and interesting house from a paranormal perspective. I think we could do a lot more research there and I don’t think it will disappoint. Audio Anomalies These are two loud bangs heard during an EVP session around 10 pm. They came from within the house, but I wasn’t sure of the direction as I had headphones on. I caught what sounds like a male voice saying ‘in front’ or ‘it’s Francis’ early in the morning around 6 am. You can also hear me downstairs moving around as I was starting to pack away my gear This is a voice caught while the voice recorder was on the steps just prior to me starting an EVP session around 10 pm. I was in the living room at the time. It sounds like a ladies voice shouting “aunt” This was a ladies voice captured during my EVP session around 10 pm. I asked perhaps you like the company referring to the recent HA people staying overnight… I can hear a faint but clear “yes” to my question [...] Read more...

Lake House Art Centre – Solo overnighter session – Jan 19th 202419/01/2024Haunted Locations / Historic Buildings / Investigations / Lake House Arts Centre / Paranormal New ZealandLast night I did a solo overnighter session at the Lake House Art Centre, one of our ongoing research locations. This wasn’t the first overnight stay. The team has spent many nights experimenting and recording here thanks to the generous unlimited access that has been given by management. We’ve been doing solo stays for many years in numerous locations, here and overseas. It can be quite beneficial. Not only does it give you a different perspective to work with, but it’s also quite character-building. Facing a few fears head-on and coming out of your comfort zone. I’m always proud of team members who’ll put their hand up to do a solo session with our investigation work. It’s not always easy and at times can really test you. I enjoy doing solo sessions. I find them rewarding. Though sometimes you just need to keep them simple. No other team members, minimal equipment, and no one knowing I’m there. I want to avoid any possible contamination or distractions. No random whispering, coughing, farts, footsteps, sound, or movement from anyone but myself. Just me, and the house. (and any mystery residents, of course) Hey, if a spook arrives and wants to chat, I’m all ears! (and recording equipment!) It was an unbelievably humid night and I was sweat-soaked from just setting things up. A simple setup for this one. Just me, a few cameras and gadgets, and the building. Brought along a couple of new gadgets that arrived this week too. As I normally do in solo sessions, I journaled. 8.00 pm – I’m here and the gear is unpacked. Base camp is our usual ”Hayes” room. I’ll sleep down here tonight. Close to power sources, toilets, and the kitchen. It’s lightly raining, but other than that it’s dead quiet out there. I’ve had a feed of Burger King, the sleeping area is made and I’m settled in. Bring it on! 8.30 pm – I’m downstairs chilling on Facebook and avoiding moving. Too hot! A few random taps and bangs out in the downstairs hallway, but nothing following any sort of pattern. Possibly just building movement. 8.45 pm – Loud bang upstairs. Not sure if it was on the roof or upstairs. Sounded muffled. 9.15 pm – Hearing motorbikes and voices out on the main road. 9.45 pm – A series of about 3 wooden creaks. Couldn’t tell if on the main stairwell of the floor below / the entrance. Did a little calling out just in case it was our little ”friend” who plays on the stairs. 10.25 pm – Heard a ”thud thud thud” upstairs. 3 or 4 in a row. Muffled, but a definite pattern of thuds. Went up to look. Again tried calling out. No response. 10.35 pm – Upstairs sitting in ”Patty’s” corner. Talking out loud and just chilling. Hearing creaks to my right on the stairwell. No one to be seen, of course. But it’s like someone is either walking up or down for a few steps. Possibly it’s the banister creaking and not the stairs. Not sure. Stops when I get up to look. Sat at the top of the stairs looking down for a bit. About 10 mins. No creaking. 11 pm – Another 2 thuds are heard. This time from downstairs. Again muffled and dull. Hoping the camera mic pics these up. Windows rattled as the wind picked up for a moment. Doesn’t seem to be raining. A flash of white light is seen in the upstairs toilet. Corner of my eye stuff as I’m heading back downstairs. We’ve noted light flashes here before. Guest investigators have too. I think the team agreed that no car headlights can reach this area. Maybe someone’s torch outside shining in, but I heard nothing and no one was there when I checked. 11.30 pm – I’m downstairs in ”Hayes” Room. Loud bang upstairs. Like something dropping or falling over. Go check. Can’t see anything. Maybe in one of the locked offices up there? 12 pm Midnight – Getting really tired. It’s been a really hard day at work. Too humid to stay enthused. Will do a final walk-around to check on windows and doors and take a few more photos. Went outside on the verandah to enjoy the slightly cooler air for a few minutes. 12.30 pm – Signing off. Here are a few random pics. [...] Read more...

Undisclosed Location, Airport Oaks15/02/2013Hotels and BusinessesThe team was called in to check out this warehouse building in Mangere, that has staff constantly on edge with eerie feelings, a mysterious entity seen on security cameras, lights turning on and other sensations of general spookiness. History Haunted Auckland were called to look into this Mangere based business due to incidents of odd activity, sightings, feelings of unease and an overall sensation from staff members, that something wasn’t right. The building was built about 20 years ago by and was first used by a Freight Service. This was used by them until about 2007. Before this, it was farmland, previous to that, it was Maori land. Since the original freight company moved out, it has had various tenants. Staff told us a story about how a security camera had shown that one night the lights in the office had been turned on and a figure was seen moving around inside the lit building. The strange thing was that the alarms were not set off and no-one ever admitted to going into the office that night. Investigation Investigators on the night – Mark, Barbara and Heather. Weather Conditions on the night – Warm and windy. Luna Cycle – Half moon. The area was a large second floor office space. Once on the second floor there was a short hallway with a small Staff Room / Kitchen to the right with toilets situated on the left and opposite the staff room. There was a small group of offices beside the toilets which were locked most of the time. The hallway then turned right and opened out into a large office space which was lined with windows. To one side these windows overlooked the car park and road whilst the other side looked over a huge warehouse which was full to the ceiling with pallets of toilet paper. At the far end of the large office space were three offices. One was situated on the left of the room and the others were side-by-side at the end of the room. An exit door separated the two offices from the single one. There were large holes in the ceiling where tiles had been moved or were missing completely. Some of these holes exposed air conditioning hoses and electrical wiring. We entered the office and set up equipment including audio recorders, EMF meters, Thermometer, static infrared and standard video cameras, hand-held cameras, laser grid and various other data gathering gadgets. Throughout the session the team noticed odd temperature fluctuations. We noted there were a large number glass panelled windows down one side of the office block we were in. This would’ve explained a constant temperature reading, but the levels rose and fell in short seemingly random moments. Short icy ‘blasts’ of wind were felt in parts of the building at times. Two of Heather’s work colleagues came in while we were there and gave us access another main office. Here you could feel the difference in atmosphere of the offices. We were told that on the security cameras last year the lights had been switched on and off but there was no one in the office. Also there was a shadow that walked past the windows of the warehouse on the security camera. As for the exact day and time it happened they are not sure and it’s possible that the recording has now been taped over. Heather – “Having worked in the building before in what is now the empty part of the office, I had always felt uncomfortable working in the area closest to the small offices at the end of the large office. The company is now in the smaller offices on the left as you come up the stairs. The place was stuffy and musky from not being used. The offices at the back of the larger office were cooler than the rest of the place. The left office at one time housed communications. This had a weird atmosphere to it. The weirdest room was where the computers and servers use to be, in the left hand room. I use to sit by the window overlooking the warehouse and always felt uneasy sitting there. One of the ladies I work with mentioned that she had felt something in the communications office, and was relieved when they moved to the other end of the office.” Mark – “A few times during the night I felt a sharp, whip-like icy breeze swipe the back of my neck. There was no air conditioning, Heat pumps, open windows or open doors in the area that would have explained that one away.” Barbara – “The temperature in the investigation area did seem to fluctuate quite a lot. I noticed that in the main big office area it seemed to be much warmer at one stage and when I went to the top of the stairwell (just after Mark had seen the shadow) I felt that my back and the backs of my legs were much hotter than the rest of me. I was feeling hotspots. The temperature seemed to be fluctuating between normal (most of the time) and hot (a few times). I probably would have to say the large office area was of the most interest to me. That was where I had a sense on something being and that was where we had some of our equipment indicate possible activity. Also the little hallway which ran off it was where a small shadow was seen. I did see a sparkly light towards the far end of the large room and Mark saw a shadow in the hallway leading into it. I had a sense of something being in the large room at times but I don’t think it was ever human, like it was on a different level. I had a sense of something being in the whole area we were in (including Heather’s office, hallway, kitchen and stairwell) I don’t think it was with us the whole time and that it came and went. I don’t have a name as I suspect that this energy was not human.” As a trigger test Barbara set up a torch on the table in the kitchen and asked if it could be rolled over the table. Barbara – “I stayed and conducted an EVP session for a short time then left a recorder and the torch on the table. A plastic bag was also on the table and it was suggested that if anything was there it could move the torch or crinkle the bag.” The team conducted numerous EVP attempts during the night. On reviewing the audio, nothing stood out as being strange. Hundreds of photos were taken, hours of audio and video evidence. We had some promising responses at times with our meters and sensors indicating a change in environment, though, unfortunately the moments were random, short and far between. Barbara reported seeing a “twinkle” in one area in the middle of the room later in the evening but was unable to capture this on camera. Mark reported seeing a black shadow in the hallway so I set up my infra-red camera to watch the area. Mark – “As I was walking across the room, from left to right, I looked over to the short hallway leading into the room. I fleetingly saw a very short shadow peek out from the wall. It was only about 2 feet tall. I responded to this by rushing to the area, initially assuming that I had seen something like a black cat sticking its head out of a door in the hallway. It was when I got to the place it had happened, I noticed there was no door at all. It was a flat straight and plain wall with no doors. Usually if I see a shadow, its at the corner of my eye, so can possibly be put down to a visual reflection distortion caused by a cornea. This time was different, as I had looked up with head turned, looking straight at the hall with both eyes focussed. I was unable to find a suitable explanation at the time.” It was around that time that Barbara also reported a shadow following her in that area. The group was unsuccessful at coming up with an explanation for that either. Conclusions Barbara – “I didn’t have a sense of anything being there initially. However I do think that there was something that visited us at times during the investigation. It was a bit of a strange one. It was quite difficult as it was basically one large room. However we did seem to get some activity although it did seem to come and go. Whatever was there seemed intelligent enough to follow instructions after it set my stud finder off. I think we did pretty well actually. Probably would have been a good place to have the DV-R system set up as we literally could have had all areas covered. I thought the area had a very neutral feeling to it most of the time. Occasionally I had a sense of something being there but I don’t know if it was a human spirit. It felt more like an energy or charge in the air. During our investigation we had possible indicators that there may be been some form of spirit or energy present. My Stud finder (which I was trialling) seemed to pick up energy which was strong enough to, at times, make the machine flash and beep. (This would normally indicate a strong source of electrical energy nearby.) Whatever was causing this to happen did seem to sometimes be doing this in response to our questions. I sensed that there may be some sort of spirit or energy there and that it moves around (the whole building possibly). I think it may be intelligent mainly due to the possible responses to our requests and questions.” Heather – “There was a feeling of someone being there, but not sure why or from which era. Still hope to find out more info about the history of the area, but there’s not much has been recorded. The place was creepy and still is. Since discovering the “shadow” from the lunch room, I have since seen it during the day (afternoon) when I was leaving to go home. A work colleague who sits at the back of our office and can see directly out the door is keeping a look out for it. And even walking around it during the day makes me feel uncomfortable. The staff there are very interested in what we do and what we have discovered. The boss has felt things herself and has mentioned that it might be good if we were to arrange a cleansing for the whole top floor.” Mark – “Whilst I did see a short shadow briefly, had a few interesting meter responses to our EVP questioning, felt numerous icy air movements and our meters detected fluctuations in atmospheric conditions in the building, I personally don’t find this conclusive evidence enough to label the building ‘haunted’. I noticed EMF readings would rise in areas where the roofing tiles had been removed and wiring was dangling down. Perhaps this would explain some of the uneasy feelings from those working an 8 hour day there? More time spent in the building could shed more light into what the staff are seeing and feeling.” [...] 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 rid 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
Dunback Inn
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