Posted in abandoned, abandoned mines, abandoned mines in Ontario, accident, Admin, adventure in Ontario, Adventures, adventures in Europe, animals, ANSI, art, articles, Asia, backpacking, Bancroft, Bancroft gemboree, bats, beading, beads, bigfoot, bizzare, books, british army, btk, bull fighter, bull fighting, Buy The Book, Canada, Canadian Army, cave conservation, cave digging, cave diving in ontario, cave formation, Caves, caves in Ontario, caving, Caving in Cuba, Caving in Hamilton, Caving in Ontario, central America, cities, climbing, Cobalt, collecting rocks near Bancroft, commerce, conspiracy, corundum, Costa Rica, Costa Rican bull fight, crazy things, creepy places, crime, crime in Costa Rica, crocodile, cryptozoology, cryptozooology, crystal ball, crystals, Cuba, Cuban life, Cuban people, cubans, culture, cultures, cute, diving, diving in ontario, Dodge, dogs, eco tourism in Costa Rica, economics, Education, electronica, England, entertainment, environment, Eramosa Karst, exploration, extreme sports, Family Stuff, fashion, feldspar, fluor-richterite, fossils, gemology, gems, gemstones, geography, geology, Germany, ghost, Gibraltar, gold, gold mining, golden retrievers, Guanacaste, guelph, Hamilton, haunted, haunted places, Havana, health, health and safety, hiking, history, holiday in Costa Rica, holiday in Cuba, howler monkeys, humor, India, industrial archeology, Interesting, Internet Stuff, Kansas, lapidary, Las Vegas, lay lines, Life, London, looking for gems, magical, malagan, Matanzas, media, military, mine, mines in northern Ontario, morality, Moroccans, Morocco, motocross, music, musicals, My Book, my life, mystery, nature, Nature/Outdoors, New Guniea, News, niagara escarpment, occult, Old Havana, ontario, ontario caves, Ontario geography, Ontario Underground, Ontario's geography, Ontario's geology, panning for gold, paranormal, pegmatite, people, people in Costa Rica, people in Cuba, Personal, pets, philosophy, Photography, photos, pickpockets, picture of, planes, PNG, Portugal, religion, rock collecting, rockhounding, rockhounding in Ontario, Rocks & Gems, rocks and minerals, rocks in Ontario, rockwatching, Roman, sandstone, sapphires, sasquatch, science, scotch, Scuba Diving, sculpture, searching for caves, serial killer, shopping, silver, silver mines, sports, strange places, surfing, Tamarindo, theater, Toronto Cave Group, tours in Costa Rica, trade, Travel, travel writing, tree planting, treeplanting, tunnels, Uncategorized, underground, underground Ontario, urban exploration, vacation, varadero, vicious bulls, visiting Costa Rica, volcanoes, war, waterfalls, waterfalls of Ontario, West Virginia, wierd, wildlife in Costa Rica, world cup, tagged Blogging Protocal, blogging standards, caving, Caving in Ontario, polite blogging on December 27, 2010|
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Well, Rockwatching has been up and running for a number of years now (5 to be exact) and I believe it has contributed significantly to the interest of people like myself who like caving, rocks, the outdoors, gems and minerals in Ontario.
We are just a few short days from 2011 and I believe it’s high time we made some resolutions -all of usĀ (you my loyal fellow bloggers as well).
So in the interests of all involved a few ground rules to follow on Rockwatching from now on
1) Lets not carry a personal vendetta onto this site which is meant to be a forum where like minded enthusiasts can interact in a positive way.
2) Lets respect each other and try not to get personal when we are frustrated.
3) Lets respect the basics of conservation and eco-minded thought.
4) Lets not assume stuff we don’t know for sure (hence the survey at the bottom of the post).
5) Lets keep in mind that this is all about enjoyment.
6) Lets keep in mind that just because the topic is on the table, every single aspect that pertains to it is not an open book.
7) Lets respect people who are not on the site, private property, reputations etc. Just because there is discussion of a site or feature does not mean permission has been granted to go there.
8) Lets not get petty, self righteous or important. Stop correcting my grammar, spelling or use of terms. I am a writer at heart and so I believe I can use the language as I please (providing it’s in good taste, or if I choose, not in good taste).
9) Lets not waste my time by having to re-direct you to one of the above rules.
Happy and prosperous 2011 – Mick
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Posted in Adventures, bizzare, creepy places, geography, ghost, haunted, haunted places, Interesting, Kansas, Life, My Book, my life, mystery, paranormal, Photography, photos, picture of, strange places, Travel, travel writing, urban exploration, wierd, tagged broadview hotel, ghost, haunted elevator, haunted hotel, Kansas, Old town, paranormal, wichita on January 18, 2009|
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Cant imagine where some of those reflections were coming from

As mentioned in previous posts, the Hotel is supposedly haunted. Though the topic of hauntings intests me, I am by no means a believer. I would like to find evidence of paranormal activity, but aside from the “haunted tree” in Burlington, there has been nothing that I have come across that leaves me convinced – and even the haunted tree was not really a conclusive experience – but it was certainly wierd.
Anyway, I had been returning to my room after a few drinks down in the bar and in riding one of the old brass and mirror elevators up to the third floor, I was plagued by a jerky ride and flickering light – that left me wondering whether I was about to become stuck. Looking into the mirrors all round was quite dis-orientating and for a brief second, I was left with the impression that there may have been some kind of filmy human form that appeared down one of the endless panels of reflected glass. It wasn’t really spooky, just a little unusual and as I said – I was coming back from the bar downstairs and had already beeen primed by stories of the supernatural. Anyway, I looked around to see what might be standing next to me, thinking that the reflected image was someone else in the elevator, but there was nothing there.
The power of suggestion can do some strange things to the mind. as I said, I am not a believer, by the haunted tree in Burlington really had me wondering. (Thats another story)
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Posted in Adventures, articles, bizzare, books, btk, Buy The Book, crazy things, creepy places, cryptozoology, cryptozooology, culture, Dodge, Education, exploration, geography, ghost, haunted, haunted places, history, Interesting, Kansas, lay lines, my life, mystery, paranormal, people, Personal, Photography, photos, picture of, serial killer, strange places, Travel, travel writing, underground, urban exploration, vacation, tagged broadview hotel, btk, clarence, ghost, ghosts, Kansas, paranormal, serial killer, wichita on January 17, 2009|
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BTK spent some time here – Broadview Hotel
By all descriptions Clarence seems harmless enough, but as with any place thats haunted, it seems that a one-off paranormal situation is the exception not the norm. Some have felt cold patches in their rooms, others shaking at the doors. A disembodied voice – a small child, is sometimes heard in the halls at night. Apparently Clarence likes messing with the phone – endless dialing down to the front desk from such and such a room, but when the staff go up to investigate, there is nobody there. The lady who ran the tour told us that sometimes orbs appear on people’s pictures.
I wonder if some places are more conducive to paranormal activity than others? I have long been interested in the lay-line theory. I know from a few examinations in Ontario where I have accompanied the highly acclaimed paranormal investigator – Patrick Cross that paranormal entities seldom occur in ones. In Burlington – Patrick’s place of residence, the very streets are oozing spirits – here a poltergeist, there a moving statue and of course the infamous tree – posessed of an evil energy – I myself almost came “acropper” at that dismal spot, but thats another story.
Lay lines, you have to wonder, they supposedly stretch between places of cultural and religious significance – threads quite plainly seen by some, only felt by others. Witchita is dead-smack center of the continent, a veritable power house of culture and religious worship. Odd though it might seem, BTK was some kind of church elder at Wichita’s Christ Luthern Church and he is known to have spent time in the Broadview Hotel. Not being an expert in lay line divination, I wonder what a dowser would find in the plains around the city.
This picture above is the bar in the Broadview Hotel – a beautiful tin ceiling’d space with stained glass and plenty of pints of my new favorite beer – “Amber Bok”. The Flapper tour that takes residents down to the basement starts in the bar – led by the lady on the left in the red dress.
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Posted in abandoned, Adventures, bizzare, books, Buy The Book, cryptozooology, culture, Education, exploration, geography, ghost, haunted, haunted places, history, Interesting, Kansas, Life, My Book, my life, mystery, occult, paranormal, Personal, Photography, photos, picture of, strange places, Travel, travel writing, underground, urban exploration, wierd, tagged cryptozoology, ghost, ghosts, Kansas, paranormal, supernatural, tunnels, urban exploration, witchita on January 17, 2009|
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“Oh Good Lord”
I just got back from a Conference at the Broadview Hotel in Wichita. It was nice to get down to a place that was relatively warm, or so I believed – the Texans thought quite different. I suppose the sky had something to do with the intense cold front that was moving in, the wind was just howling and it got to the point that my eyes were watering so bad, I just had to hope the auto focus on the camera was doing all the work.
This picture was taken from the corners of Douglas and Waco streets. And to the right – “The Broadview” a haunted place – literally put chills up my spine.
It certainly was atmospheric – a beautiful Victorian interior, walked by both the living guests and also those who had lived there – the dead, though it is said that some dont know it yet.
Is it better the ghost you know than the ghost you dont?
I took what they call the flapper tour and was aquainted with the hotel’s rather sinister basement…… And Clarence, “their ghost in residence”. “He generally lives in one specific room – a room with a balcony, but we dont tell guests exactly which room, but as we are starting renovation soon he has started moving around”. “Oh good Lord”, the lady from Georgia muttered, “I’m sleeping with my light on”.
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