Haunts of Richmond

By: Alix Hines
     
      Ghosts in bathrooms, vampires in a local cemetery, and people trapped in a tunnel - sounds like a horror movie, right?

      Haunts of Richmond is a local group founded by Sandi and Scott Bergman that leads ghost tours around Richmond. If you're into paranormal activity or just need something to do on the weekend, these ghost tours are sure to entertain you. Haunts of Richmond consists of four tours that explore the spooks in Richmond. There is a Pub Crawl for those twenty one and older, but for everyone else there is the Shadows of Shockhoe Tour, the Capitol Hill Tour, and the Church Hill Chillers tour. All four of these tours put a supernatural spin on Richmond history by engaging the tourists in eerie stories. The ghostly tales leave tourists wondering what's lurking around the next corner.

      French teacher and ghost tour guide, Marcia Skiffington explains, "If I have somebody on my tour that's never been to Richmond before, I want them to, at the end of the night, to go, 'this is a really cool town,' and I've won. If I can scare (the tourists) in the process, that is just a bonus!"

     The ghost stories originate from all parts of Richmond. Skiffington adds, "Every personal experience that someone has had is an addition to the tour."

      Skiffington explains that all the hype over shows like Ghost Hunters encourage people to believe in ghosts, or try to prove the stories wrong.  By beginning each of the tours at the Edgar Allen Poe Museum, she is able to capitalize on the tourists' fears by letting them wander around the haunted garden before telling them about its unearthly inhabitants.

      As Halloween approaches, Haunts of Richmond increases its tours to two tours per night on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. If the ghost tours capture your interest, Sandi Bergman also hosts the "Blood Lake Tour" through a haunted house during the Halloween season.

For more information regarding Haunts of Richmond tours go to www.hauntsofrichmond.com .

Skiffington also reminds us, "It's cooler in the Shadows."