Irish Paranormal Haunts Volume 2 Trailer

Return to Ballinacarriga

This castle has always had a special place in my heart - it was the first place I went as a paranormal investigator. That night was full of excitement and for me, this beautiful castle has never lost its appeal.

A locked-off room where I thought I heard footsteps

I was the last to arrive and the team were already in place and about to begin. The rain was pouring down but it was a mild night and we decided to start the investigation at the top or chapel area.

In the past I have always picked up on a male figure on this floor but on this occasion I was disappointed. We did get some K11 hits but, unlike other times, only one K11 was affected.

I thought I heard shuffling footsteps behind me at one point but as nothing else happened to confirm this, I can not be sure that I actually heard them and so must put these down to a simple 'personal experience'.

We moved down to a lower floor and entered a room where I have sometimes felt a presence. I called out to Randal Og and sent him a personal message. One of the K11s immediately lit up. Again, only one K11 in the room was affected.

The top floor - in the rain

Barrie and I decided to stay in this room for a little while, leaving the other investigators to move down to the next floor. We didn't notice anything definite here but I was intrigued by a shadow by the door that appeared to move at times, getting a little bigger then shrinking back again. I wasn't able to document this or catch it on film so once again, I must put it down to a 'personal experience'.

We did get a full K11 hit here as we called out to Randal Og once more.

Barrie and I then moved to a narrow corridor. Barrie complained of pressure in his head and said that the place felt really heavy. I was talking away (as I usually do!) calling out and chatting with any spirits when I suddenly felt the need to be quiet. I felt that something wanted me to shut up! I also got a bad pain in my back but thought maybe this was because I had been standing for a while (it hasn't happened before though).

The ground floor

Barrie then discovered the 'pooka hole' at the end of the corridor. (The pooka is a celtic mythological creature that can change shape and can bring either good or evil, as it sees fit.) I knew that Barrie was feeling a bit  uncomfortable as his head was 'ready to burst' so I offered to change places with him and went to stand close to the pooka hole.

The Pooka Hole (Pic courtesy of Cork Supernatural Society)

Suddenly I found myself swaying and even as I was calling out, something seemed to want me to be quiet. I began to feel very sick. My head was aching, I got bad stomach cramps, I felt nauseated and the pain in my back was quickly becoming unbearable.

We moved to the corridor entrance, leaving the pooka hole behind, and I immediately began to feel better. We stayed at the entrance for a few more minutes and then decided to move to the ground floor for the last part of our investigation.

By the time we got down the stairs, I was feeling completely well although I did feel very tired and couldn't stop yawning even though it was only 10pm!

We didn't find anything else of note but the rest of the team were getting some good K11 hits and they seemed to get some intelligent responses.

On arrival home, I decided to listen to the audio. I was disappointed to find that I was missing at least twenty minutes from the middle of the night. Although my recorder clearly showed that it was recording all the time - I check it carefully as I set it down and again when I pick it up - for some unknown reason, it skipped the part where I called out to Randall Og and got the K11 hit.

Barrie reviewed his audio and found he has captured a woman's laughter while we were in the corridor near the pooka hole. Unfortunately, my audio was too near the entrance and picked up a lot of noise from the rest of the team, making it difficult to hear anything. I will, however, go over it carefully again to see if I have also captured the laughter.

All in all, it was a good night and I am sure that we will be returning here in the future.

Want to read more like this? Check out and follow these pages!

Stuff of Nightmares

Shadowhunters

Cork Supernatural Society

Diary of a West Cork Ghost Hunter

Forgotten Ireland

Don't forget I detail some of my most interesting investigations in my Irish Paranormal Haunts book series.

Abandoned Manor House

Four of the team recently investigated an abandoned manor house. The house is set on a hill and overlooks a nearby town. It has extensive grounds, although now, horses roam the once well-tended gardens and the house itself is in a sorry state with most of the roof missing and no doors or unbroken windows.

The downstairs rooms are full of rubble and debris. Here and there, hints of the once splendid house are still to be seen.

The staircase is rapidly becoming dangerous and the first floor is badly water-damaged from the elements. I did not venture further than the landing at the top of the stairs.

Paranormal Background

Paranormal investigations had been carried out here before this one. K11 hits and EVPs had already been noted here and some of the previous investigators felt that this was an active location.

We were all looking forward to this one.

On the night, things were very quiet. We did not get any K11 hits - although we do not rely on these to indicate the possibility of paranormal activity, we use the emf meters along with our other gear to guide us in the right direction.

We carried out a live EVP session and again, we did not get any sign of activity. We also used a spirit box but there were too many radio stations cutting in and this made it almost impossible to hear anything unusual.

Despite the lack of activity on the night, I am aware that sometimes places are simply 'quiet'. We all agreed that the location has potential and we will be carrying out more investigations here.

The house has a long history and as with all old buildings you never know who or what might be lurking in the shadows. Perhaps, on our next visit, we will have something to report!

I haven't yet gone through all the audio from the night but if I find anything of interest, I will publish the results.

Paranormal Musings

Orbs - Paranormal or Not?

Kilcrea Castle and Abbey

Let's Get Personal!

Many of you are interested in finding out more about the paranormal and in particular, about what I actually do and the team I am with.

I have put together a list of links where you can go to find out more about us. Please feel free to share these with your friends and spread the word!

My flickr photos More photos from my investigations

Stuff of Nightmares Facebook page All things Paranormal

Shadowhunters Facebook page My old team

Cork Supernatural Society Facebook page My current team

Diary of a West Cork Ghost Hunter One of the team members new page

Forgotten Ireland Our team leader's new page

Irish Paranormal Haunts Book Link Details of my investigations. Now available on Audible too.

Irish Paranormal Haunts Vol 2 Book Link More details of my investigations

My Twitter feed Follow me!

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If you have any questions or queries, don't hesitate! Get in touch! I'd love to hear from you!

Paranormal Musings

I have often wondered why people are so interested in the paranormal. Is it because we all love a good thrill? Or because so many of us think we have experienced a paranormal event? Or is it simply because it is a mystery and after all, who doesn't love a good mystery?

I think the mysterious aspect is what intrigues me the most. I hate not having answers to my questions so I continue to investigate, study, read, share, listen - you name it and I'll do it - in my bid to find the answers.

As well as searching for answers, I am also able to indulge my passion for visiting old castles and ruins. Some of these locations ooze history while others hold mysteries within their ruined walls.

We may know who built them and roughly when, but who were the everyday people who worked in these grandiose places? The lowly kitchen workers, the put-upon man servants, the guardsmen or the farm workers and hunters providing the food for all?

These are the people that I would love to communicate with. To hear their stories would be priceless and well worth braving the wind and rain that seems to accompany so many of our investigations.

The knowledge we could gain from these people would be wonderful. Imagine being able to get a real glimpse of days gone by, straight from the horse's mouth as it were.

We know so much about them already but there is so much more to learn. How did they feel about their work? Were they satisfied with it because they knew no better? Or did they secretly dream about another life?

Of course, there are a few other questions that I would love to have answered:

• Can they see us?
• Do they see their surroundings as they are now or as they were then?
• Can they understand us - do they speak Irish, English or another European language?
• Do they choose not to communicate with us or are there rules that prohibit them from revealing too much about themselves?
• Are they allowed to communicate within limits?
• Are they energy?
• Can they use our energy or the energy from our equipment?
• Why do they seem to be more active in some places rather than everywhere?

There are so many questions!

I know that I won't find the answers to all these questions (and the many others I have!) but this won't stop me. I will keep investigating and I hope you follow along with me!