The Haunting Hour

             I’ve always been baffled by the idea of a specific time of the night when ghosts emerge. It has been widely believed that in order to garner the most evidence, you must conduct your investigation in the dead of night. Why is this? Do hauntings only occur from midnight to 3am? Certainly not. I’ve witnessed paranormal activity in broad daylight or in the early hours of the morning. So why do investigators choose night to wander around abandoned hospitals in search of a ghost willing to play the game? I have a theory.

                For starters, most ghost hunters (whether they want to admit it or not) are in it for the adrenaline rush. And what scenario elicits more fear than a reported haunted location at midnight? I can’t think of many other places to get that surge of excitement mixed with absolute fear. Add in the fact that you can’t see the room around you and you’ve got enough adrenaline to restart a heart. Sounds fun, right? It is. However, it doesn’t actually do anything for your research. Unless, of course, you’re researching the effects of fear on the body.

                Some ghost hunters believe that in order to get that million-dollar evidence, the sky (and the room, for some reason) must be inky black. Do ghosts hide from the light? No. Why would they? Take a moment to really think about it. For what reason would a ghost need to hide in the daytime? Aren’t they equally as active during the day as during the night? Yes. So why do we wait until the haunting hour to investigate? Simple. It’s for the investigative team. It has nothing to do with the ghosts themselves. The team chooses to hunt at night because that’s what they’ve been taught. They’ll say their tools work better at night…and that can be true. It’s true, though, because they’re made to work in the dark. They were manufactured that way to pander to people who believe they need expensive equipment to conduct legitimate investigations. Pro-tip: you don’t need any of that.

                So when, you ask, is the best time to ghost hunt? There’s no blanket answer. It depends entirely on when a particular location is the most active. Some locations only experience mid-afternoon activity. So, why then would a team hunt in the middle of the night? Doesn’t make much sense, does it? If you want the best chance of getting crystal clear evidence, you need to do your research. Don’t just ask the owner of the building about the paranormal activity and then come back from midnight to 3am. Ask about the time it occurs. More often than not, you’ll find a pattern. Patterns are key. Once you’ve established the active time for that location, you can begin to plan your investigation. Don’t forget- keep your crew small, no whispering, and conduct your EVP sessions while everyone is sitting.

                Remember- ghost hunting is about debunking whatever evidence you can. You’ll find you can debunk 95-99% of suspected paranormal activity. Whatever you have left- that small percentage of the unexplained- that’s what it’s all about. That’s what you’ve been working toward. That’s what’s real.

Evidence Contamination

 

          Evidence contamination is one of the most frustrating things you can discover post-investigation. It renders any evidence you may have gotten completely useless. Once you realize that some of your findings are contaminated, you have to question all of it. The only course of action is to throw it all out (as painful as that is) and start anew. Depending on how difficult it was for you to obtain that evidence, it might be a while before you can replace it. I know how hard that is, but you have to do the right thing. Paranormal sciences are some of the most looked down upon sciences that exist and you have to keep everything as clean as possible. If there's even a small possibility that your evidence could be contaminated, it has to go.
          I know just how frustrating that can be as I drove more than 10 hours to conduct an investigation only to have noise interference completely destroy every second of audio. It almost creates physical pain to scrap something that you may never be able to replace. Learn from my mistake and I'll take you through the best ways to avoid contaminating your hard-earned evidence.

          Tip #1: Limit your group size. I know it's tempting to bring a large crew to a location but avoid, avoid, avoid. Everyone wants to tag along on a hunt but you can't sacrifice your investigation for their adrenaline rush. The more people you have in attendance, the less control you have over the noise. One of the most problematic issues investigators have is the tendency for crew members to whisper. Whispering by the crew can sometimes be mistaken for E.V.P. Once you realize that the voices you heard are human, you've wasted precious time chasing a dead end. Any talking must be done loudly and clearly to avoid confusing it with possible paranormal evidence. Remember: keep your group as small as possible- no more than 3-4 is preferable.

        Tip #2: Keep still when conducting an E.V.P. session. Modern recording devices are extremely sensitive. They will pick up your every footstep or movement- which is not the audio evidence you want to bring home. I've had several E.V.P. sessions ruined by the constant movement of someone nearby or simply by walking and talking. Find the place where you want to conduct your E.V.P. and make yourself comfortable. Ensure everyone is sitting and relaxed to ensure that you are able to clearly hear any paranormal activity during playback. When beginning your session, state where you are, the date/time, and who is present. That will ensure that any voices can be traced back to specific people.

          Tip #3: Make note of any outside noises. Are you near a highway? Are you in a neighborhood? Near an airport? These are details that you may overlook when reviewing evidence at a later time. Knowing your surroundings, even the most mundane details, can and will save you from making a false claim that you've found evidence of a haunting. The most important quality an investigator can have is a healthy dose of skepticism. While it's thrilling to find potential evidence of a haunting, it's even more exciting to know that you've tried to debunk it in every way possible. That there is no other explanation for what you've seen or heard. When there are no lingering questions, that's when you've made a real discovery.

          Tip #4: NEVER use any type of filter or editing software on your photographs. If the location is overly dark, use your flash. Don't edit your photos until you find what you're looking for. If the photo has evidence of the paranormal, you won't need to go through all of that trouble. Even if you do filter it until you *think* you see a face in the window, it has lost all credibility. Skeptics will tear your photo apart for being edited and claim that you are a fraud. It's just not worth it. Avoid this serious type of evidence contamination by saying no to filters and editing programs.

          Tip #5. Be skeptical of your location. You've been hyping yourself up for this investigation all week. It's one of the most haunted locations in the state and you've finally been given the chance to see for yourself. You walk into your location feeling shaky, excited, and on edge. You're ready to find evidence. This type of excitement is fun, but it's not going to help you make the most of your investigation. If you're jumping at every door squeak or knock, you're going to contaminate your evidence and influence your ability to use your body as an investigative tool. When encountering the paranormal, your body gives you slight signals that there is something off. Your hair may stand on end, your heart may beat a bit faster, you may feel a chill run up your body. If you go into a location already feeling this way, you're clouding your own ability to find the very thing you're looking to find. Go into your location ready to debunk the rumors. Find the natural within the reputation. Once you've peeled away at the normal, then you can find the paranormal.


          I'm not here to discourage you or to put endless rules on paranormal investigation. My hope is that more investigators will put aside their need for excitement and put real effort into proving that there is life beyond our own. Once we block out all of the noise created by ghost hunting shows, we can finally prove that paranormal investigation is real science worthy of serious study.