Be Very Afraid and do not, in this lifetime, go alone!

Ghost Hunting N.Y. Dundas Castle

Do you feel the icy grip of fear creeping up your spine? This cursed place will drive you to madness if you dare to venture alone. Please heed this warning and do NOT enter its walls without a companion! This haunted castle in New York is infested with malevolent spirits lurking around every corner. Are you certain you want to set foot in this accursed place? Even the police avoid it, afraid to confront the supernatural entities within. Bring extra flashlights, for the darkness here is all-consuming. Those who enter alone are said to meet a gruesome fate, their screams echoing through the halls as they succumb to pure terror. If you weren’t scared before, wait until you arrive here…

THE STORY OF DUNDAS CASTLE

Perched on a desolate hill just outside of Roscoe, Dundas Castle looks like something out of a twisted fairytale. Its Gothic windows leer menacingly, turrets reach the dark sky, and crumbling walls hold secrets no one dares uncover. The overgrown courtyard is a thicket of twisted shrubs and gnarled trees, adding to the eerie atmosphere. This castle has stood for nearly a century, serving as a landmark and a source of chilling tales.

Once the grand estate of Ralph Wurts-Dundas, a wealthy scion of the New York elite, this castle holds a dark past. The Wurts-Dundas family, known for their fortune in coal mining and shipping, had deep ties to Scotland and brought their wealth and power to America through strategic marriages. But behind the opulence and grandeur lies a history of unspeakable deeds and sinister secrets that have been whispered about for generations. Dundas Castle may seem like a picturesque dream, but those who know its true history dare not set foot within its walls after nightfall.

Its thousand acres of land were once home to an estate called “Beaverkill Lodge,” owned by an enigmatic architect from New York City. But after the property was sold in 1903, it fell into the hands of Morris Sternbach, rumored to have connections to dark and sinister organizations. Desiring a secret mountain hideaway. Ralph Wurts-Dundas purchased it from Sternbach in 1907.

The castle stood tall, a symbol of forgotten wealth and indulgence. Construction had started during the First World War but stopped abruptly after its owner, Wurts-Dundas, died in 1921. Left abandoned, the unfinished building became a haunting reminder of a bygone era.

JOSEPHINE WURTS-DUDAS DIED IN A SANITARIUM

Rumors swirled about the mysterious deaths of Wurts-Dundas’s wife. Some say she died in a sanitarium, and we believe that is her standing in the window of the picture we supply. But despite these dark tales, Muriel, the daughter, inherited her parents’ fortune and property, including the eerie castle.

It is said that not only did his wife become institutionalized, but so did his daughter, both due to mental instability.

Years later, the Masonic Order purchased the property and planned to use it as a home for the aged and needy. But their plans never came to fruition, and the castle remained a vacant hideaway for decades. Even now, visitors claim to see ghostly figures roaming its halls at night.

We saw a tall, dark man and a woman standing in the window of the upstairs central courtyard. We believe it is the couple.

CARETAKER OF THE LAND

On our last visit, we met an amazing man who takes care of the property. He has a captivating soul and kindly invited us inside to chat when we were introduced. We have a print for him and wanted to deliver it to him in person. We are making it a limited edition so it grows quickly in value as a collector’s fine art piece by Pamela Goodyer. It has been years since we last contacted him, but we will reach out to him so we can ship it to him. We haven’t returned to the castle yet due to the security cameras and the blockage of the pathway on the extremely steep hill leading up to the castle.

Pamela Goodyear with her ghost hunting meter in front of Dundas Castle while ghost hunting in upstate New York.

EMF meter says warning.

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Tip: Be careful who you Ghost Hunt with. Set your rules before you go. The Ghosts DO NOT like texting! -The Drama Writers.

GHOSTS OF THE DUNDAS CASTLE

WARNING:

There are cameras on the castle now and a police presence, off duty.

The image looks so lovely during the daylight hours. Don’t let it fool you. When the bewitching hour sets in, things get very scary deep in the wilderness at one of the darkest locations on the East Coast. Do not, I repeat, do not go here alone! You will be scared out of your mind if you do! Demons lurk at every corner, waiting to send you disastrous, volatile energy to blast you into the depths of hell! OK, ready to go now?

Ghost hunting can be fun and exciting, no matter where you go. We highly recommend that your first step be to get permission to ghost hunt on the property you choose before you plan anything. Ghost hunting ending in a free ride in a police car can be exciting, but you may not like the court process that will follow. We are all about excitement and adrenaline, but not that kind. Permission should be a priority when you pick an interior vs. exterior, such as a graveyard. OK, enough lecture now for the fun stuff.

HISTORY OF THE DUNDAS CASTLE

Old buildings with a unique history are always a fun place to start. This particular castle had a woman who owned it and spent her final years institutionalized. She was probably driven to insanity because this place is so scary it will make your mind wander to unearthly places. Even if you don’t see or sense her while you are here, letting your imagination run away while trying to document your orbs, vortexes, and ghosts can be fun. We not only felt her, but we recorded her. It is the woman mentioned in the history above.

GHOST HUNTING COMMUNICATIONS

Our magazine owner has been sensitive and psychic for as long as she can remember. Although her most definite unique sense is having premonitions sent in the form of dreams, sensing entities and energies is also second nature to her. While standing in the castle’s courtyard doing still photography, one of our fellow ghost hunters got slightly spooked for a minute. Our magazine owner felt a presence directly next to them for several minutes before this happened. We had been here one other time doing still photography, and another assistant started to scream that something was behind her. It was a terrifying moment that we had to get a grip on quickly. If we let it get out of control, we would have left our camera gear behind as we would be running for our lives.

SCARY STUFF AT DUNDAS CASTLE

The two big scares happened with two people in the exact location the first and second time, with the exact details. Eerily, they both seemed to get scared in the same way suddenly. Our magazine owner, Paranormal Pam, knew an entity was standing there both times before the others noticed. She described him as 6’2″tall, thin, and wearing a long black robe. He was intrigued and looked at the back of the camera at the LCD screen on her tripod. We think this was the former owner of the castle.

SIDE BY SIDE IMAGES TAKEN SECONDS APART – HINT: WINDOW

PARANORMAL IMAGES AT DUNDAS CASTLE

Check out these two images taken seconds apart while Ghost Hunting in New York at the castle. Do you see anything eerily strange going on here? We did not notice this until we got home and edited our still images. This shot is a 20-second exposure and was lit up with a flashlight. We felt many presences all around us that night, but we did not specifically feel this one in the window; we felt her in other places. Hint: Be sure to check out the windows.

Ghost hunting is an art. If you want to learn more, you can come on one of our ghost hunting weekends or even take a ghost hunting class by Extra Eyes Photo Tours.

GHOST HUNTING PHOTOGRAPHY BASICS

WHEN TO GO – NY CASTLE:

Any time is sufficient, but traditionally, the best results have been documented after 9 p.m.

CAMERAS:

A basic DSLR Can be used for night photography but cannot see in absolute darkness. You must bring a light source of some kind for focusing and lighting.

FULL SPECTRUM DIGITAL CAMERA:

This camera takes quality Full-Spectrum photos and video. It has been professionally modified to accept deeper Ultraviolet (UV) and Infrared (IR) light, allowing pictures to penetrate the usually unseen light spectrum. It features an easy-to-use interface with plenty of features to make your job easier and capture evidence more effectively.

As with all cameras, this is best used with an external light source such as UV, IR, or Full-Spectrum (white) light.

INFRA RED (IR) DIGITAL CAMERA:

Takes quality IR photos and video with the convenience and ease of a compact digital camera

CAMERA SETTINGS:

For basic DSLR photography, our goal is to capture activity, not high-quality images, so we will do a few things a little out of the ordinary. Set your ISO as high as you can for very dark locations. You cannot shoot a DSLR in total darkness. See below for complete details on how to set your camera and how to shoot in the dark.

EMF METERS:

Measure fluctuations in electromagnet fields (or EM fields). These fields are a direct result of electrical appliances in a home, cell phones, power lines outside, and even solar activity and weather fluctuations. Beyond that, a primary theory in the paranormal world is that entities can manipulate these fields to manifest themselves or interact with our world. When your meter goes off, do a long exposure on your tripod.

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CAMERAS FOR GHOST HUNTING

A DSLR CAMERA:

It can be used for Ghost Hunting Photography but cannot see completely in the dark. You can use a red light to illuminate the area or bring a flashlight for focusing, and if you can stand the insidious invasion of the paranormal, you can quickly obtain apparitions in your photos.

DSLR CAMERA LENS:

This is a wide-angle lens event, but you ideally need a lens with an open aperture, such as 2.8 or below. The higher-end cameras will allow you to go to a very high ISO with less noise, so they are ideal. If you don’t have a high-quality camera, any camera will do. After all, we are not going for super high-quality images here. We are going for a lot of paranormal activity that we can document. As long as we get evidence, it doesn’t always have to look pretty. Some of our lower-end camera images above are grain-filled, but we got what we were after.

GHOST HUNTING CAMERA SETTINGS

For basic DSLR Photography, our goal is to capture activity, not necessarily consistently super high quality so that we will do a few things a little out of the ordinary.

You must use a tripod when shooting in a dark area.
Set your camera to manual mode.
Put your camera on the 2-second timer or use a cable release.
Set your ISO very high for very dark locations (example: 6400). The higher the number, the more light goes into the camera. You cannot shoot a DSLR in total darkness without some light source, such as a church light, a full moon, or a red light in the back of a room. Again, it’s not always about avoiding grain or digital noise here. ISO 100 is for outdoors in graveyards with decent lighting.
Set your aperture to the lowest it will go. (ex. 2.8) to let more light in. If you need some depth of field, set the gap a little higher. You cannot go much higher in the darkness since the higher the number, the less light will come into the camera. Scroll your shutter speed until the meter reads center zero. You can take some test shots and adjust from there.
To start, set your shutter speed to about 5 seconds. Then, again, adjust according to the light you have available.

FOCUSING IN THE DARK:

Now you are set. If you do not have enough light or your camera will not focus, take a flashlight and light up a single subject in the picture. (Don’t blast light all over; you will disturb who you are there to find.) Put the focus point where the camera will focus on the area you have lit up. When you see the camera has obtained focus and the two-second timer starts, turn your flashlight off quickly before the exposure begins. The camera will now take the shot. Set your camera to manual focus without touching the focus ring. Take several pictures without moving your camera. You must refocus the same way every time you do different shots.

Another way to focus on darker areas is to turn on the live view. Hit your zoom button and zoom in on something lit. Expose your image. When you zoom in, the camera can see it better to grab focus. This only works if you have enough light.

GHOST HUNTING TERMS:

Apparition: A ghost or ghostlike image of a person.
Automatism: An action performed unconsciously or involuntarily caused by spirits.
Banshee: A female spirit whose wailing warns of impending death in a house.
Collective Apparition: This is a rare type of sighting in which more than one person sees the same apparition or phenomenon.
Digital and analog audio recording: Capturing unexplained noises and electronic voice phenomena (EVPs).
Direct Voice Phenomenon (DVP): Voices spoken to the Medium at a séance.
Earthbound: This refers to a ghost or spirit attached to the earth that cannot leave this dimension.
Ectoplasm: A supernatural viscous substance. It is supposed to exude from the body of a medium during a trance.
EMF Meters: Measure the fluctuations in electromagnetic fields (or EM fields). These fields directly result from electrical appliances, cell phones, power lines outside, and possible changes in solar activity and weather. Most noteworthy, a theory in the paranormal world is that entities can transform these fields to manifest themselves and events to contact this world.
Electronic Voice Phenomenon (EVP): Voices and sounds from beyond are recorded.
Ghost: A generic term referring to a form of apparition, typically the visual appearance of a deceased human’s soul.
Ghost Hunting: A research project using various methods and equipment to investigate ghost reports.
Ghoul: A Demonic or parasitic entity that eats human remains.
Orb: The term orb describes unexpected, typically circular artifacts in photography—sometimes with trails indicating motion.
Paranormal: Refers to something beyond the range of everyday human experience or scientific explanation.
Phantom: It is seen, heard, or sensed but has no physical reality (See Ghost).
Paranormal Vortex: A vortex in everyday life is a whirling mass of either air or water. Some believe a paranormal vortex is a space where apparitions can travel between our world and theirs on the other side.
Radio Voice Phenomenon (RVP): Receiving the voice of a spirit through a regular radio.
Reciprocal Apparition: A scarce phenomenon where humans communicate directly with spirits back and forth.
Retrocognition: It is an experience in which a person finds themselves in the past and can see events they knew nothing about.
Shaman: A person who acts as a medium between the visible and spirit worlds. They practice healing and divination and are believed to have control over natural events.
Spiritual Vortex: These metaphysical dimensions are said to be areas of energy that enhance psychic abilities and can heal the spirit.
Spiritualism: The belief system is that the dead can communicate with the living through a medium.
Vortex: An anomaly that appears in photographs. These images are sometimes thought to represent ghosts, collections of orbs, or gateways that travel to a wormhole in time-space.