Free Chasing Spirits: The Building of the "Ghost Adventures" Crew by Nick Groff, Jeff Belanger Page B

most paranormally active location.
    The Washoe Club is said to be haunted by at least three ghosts: an attractive blond apparition known as the “Lady in Blue,” the ghost of a scared little girl, and an old-time prospector who was known to steal unattended drinks from the bar. The drink-stealing ghost is so active that even modern-day bartenders leave out a full shot of bourbon before closing for the night… by morning, it is often empty.
    The main bar still looks great after all these years, but when you walk up the old staircase to the upper floors, you really step back. There are no more gambling tables, furniture, bars, or even light fixtures to remind you of what used to happen here a century ago, but the rooms are still there—memories of times past still float in the air.
    QUESTIONS FANS ASK
    Any advice for a first-time ghost hunter?
    Be careful! It’s a good idea to go with someone more experienced, and be sure you’re prepared: emotionally and physically. Be clean and sober, and understand that you sometimes get more than you bargain for. If you’re spiritual like I am, say a prayer before you go in. And start small. A local haunted cemetery is a good place to start, or some building with a spirit that doesn’t have a dangerous reputation. Document everything you do, be skeptical, but open-minded too.
    The Washoe Club was the first place where I felt threatened by an unseen force. It was a skin-crawling feeling I just couldn’t shake off—like something bad was waiting around the next corner.
    There was a lot of area to cover in the upper floors of this building. I had set up a night vision camera in the former ballroom so it could record the entire room. I went out into the middle of the room to set up my audio recorder to try to capture some EVPs. I stepped out of the room, and something stepped in behind me soon after.
    This was one of those cases where I didn’t know what we had captured at the time. Back in Las Vegas I was going through tons of the footage. Trust me, it’s tough to watch hours of footage with nothing happening. I was leaning on my arm watching the ballroom of the Washoe go by when suddenly I blink. Something just walked through the middle of the room! I rewind and watch again—maybe I was dreaming this. Holy shit! It’s right there.I see this semitransparent apparition walk right through the middle of the room! My jaw hung open as I watched the raw footage a second and third time. I grabbed the phone and called Zak. He raced over to see it. Zak was also floored by what he was seeing on the monitor. “Dude,” he said. “Holy shit, dude!”
    I knew we had something big here. This piece of evidence was the most compelling I had seen up to that point. I knew others had to see it too.
    You never forget these locations, especially when you have such a personal experience or capture dramatic evidence. Such as my amazing first trip to the Washoe Club. Yet other trips there would prove more dangerous.
    Washoe wasn’t our last stop in Virginia City. We also paid a visit to the town cemetery. Coming from the East Coast, I just don’t expect cemeteries to look like this. I’m used to lush green grass, shady trees, and simple headstones. In Virginia City the dogwoods and other trees look more menacing, more gnarled. The sand, the rocks, the rusted wrought-iron fences around the graves all painted a sorrowful picture.
    Cemeteries often get a reputation for being haunted because they are places of the dead. When living people are there, we can’t help but think about our own mortality. All those bodies just under your feet call out to you.
    When we were walking through the cemetery, we saw strange balls of light floating around. The mood was tense. When little things start to happen as soon as you walk into a location, your senses are sharpened. Just when we’d sat down to take a breather and look around the cemetery, we heard the gravel move behind us and Zak felt something grab his