5 things to do in and around Harrogate this weekend, May 1-4A spooky night of ghosthunting on offer at two Ripon venuesEditor’s Pick of the Week: Ghosts in Ripon and sprightly oldies in HarrogateParanormal income boosts Ripon attractionsGhost hunts to investigate Harrogate’s haunted sites

A freelance entertainer is hoping to explore some of Harrogate’s most haunted places when he launches a series of ghost hunts this month. 

Paul Forster is a mind-reader, magician and tour guide and has already led almost 2,000 paying visitors around Harrogate’s haunted hotspots – or rather, cold spots – over the past 18 months during his twice-monthly ghost walks. 

He is now offering tickets for a ghost hunt at the historic Crown Hotel, and has been given exclusive access to some of its darker recesses. 

He said: 

“People always want to know what’s waiting for them behind the doors they’re not allowed to open, and now we can take them there.

“The Crown Hotel has some really interesting hauntings. Second World War RAF airmen have been sighted there, disembodied voices have been heard, and there has even been poltergeist activity in the cellar.

“This will be the first time the hotel has been investigated, so it will be fascinating to see what we turn up.”

The ghost hunt will take place between 9pm and 1am, with 30 guests splitting into small groups in the hopes of capturing evidence of unusual activity.

Paul will be working in conjunction with paranormal investigation firm Angelic Forces, using techniques including table-tipping and glass divining, as well as specialist equipment such as digital thermometers and thermal imaging cameras to measure temperature, humidity, and electromagnetic fields. 

There are just six tickets left for the event on April 29, but Paul has already scheduled further events at the Crown Hotel on June 10 and at the Turkish Baths on June 16. 

He said:  

“I’d always sat on the fence when it came to paranormal activity, but then I went to the Turkish Baths to speak to members of staff who had seen some apparitions, and I saw my first ever ghost when I was there. I even heard her laugh. It changed my entire belief system.” 

Paul – whose book, Haunted Harrogate, was published last year – now believes some apparitions may simply be an imprint, or “recording”, of one moment in someone’s life, rendered visible because energy has been left behind in objects, such as stone – a phenomenon described by the “Stone Tape Theory”. 

He hopes the events will attract both die-hard ghost-hunters and curious sceptics, but says whatever happens, the events will be unlike anything else. He said: 

“It’ll be interesting, different and exciting, and that’s just what Harrogate is. There are a lot of ‘stone tape’ ghosts in Harrogate. Because it’s a spa town, I think it may be something to do with the water flowing beneath us – it acts like a plug socket, giving them energy.  

“We can’t guarantee we’ll see some ghosts on the night, but, having spent time in these places myself, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if we did.” 

Tickets for the Harrogate Ghost Hunt cost £49 and be booked online at www.harrogateghostwalk.com. 

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Half-term: Seven ideas in the Harrogate district to keep the kids entertained

February half-term is just around the corner, meaning many parents will be racking their brains for ideas to keep their children entertained for a week. Luckily, there are many options around the Harrogate district to help – keeping both your children and your bank balance happy.

Whether you fancy some fresh air, culture or just harmless fun, we’ve pulled together seven ideas for all the family.

Birchfield Farm: Spring on The Farm

A rural and inexpensive option, Birchfield Farm in Summerbridge will be open 7 days a week for the duration of the school holidays.

Spring on The Farm invites visitors to see pregnant sheep settling in the barns before birth. Some people may even be lucky enough to witness a baby lamb being born. Visitors are also able to bottle feed the lambs from 11am-2pm on a first come, first served basis.

Children can also enjoy seeing piglets, goats, ponies, donkeys and even pet the guinea pigs.

If that isn’t enough, children can also burn off steam on the bouncy castle, play in the mini construction play area and in the outdoor play area. Go-Karts, pedal tractors, swings and a giant outdoor sandpit can also be enjoyed.

The farm also has a café serving hot and cold food & drinks.

All activities are included in the entrance prices – with adults & children’s prices set at £5.95 and under 2s going free.

No booking is required. No dogs are permitted, except for guide dogs or service dogs.

For more information, click here.

Harrogate Indoor Funfair

If your child requires a little (or a lot) more tiring out over half-term, Harrogate Indoor Funfair could be a great option for you. The Funfair will run from 11-19 February, with a quieter session being held on 12 February from 10am-1pm.

With rides, traditional funfair snacks and inflatables, Harrogate Indoor Funfair offers all the joy of a regular funfair in an indoor, climate-controlled space. A nice way to shelter from the inevitable half-term rain.

Harrogate Indoor Funfair will take place at Yorkshire Event Centre, at the Yorkshire Showground. There is free parking at Yorkshire Events Centre and priority parking for Blue Badge holders.

The number 7 and X70 buses stop at Sainsbury’s on Wetherby Road, just one mile from the Funfair entrance.

Prices range from: £12.99 online and £14.99 on the door. Babies in arms go free.

Keep an eye on their website for the upcoming ride list.

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Half-Term Kids Yoga Workshop

If your child has ever asked what you get up to whilst they’re at school, this half-term activity may give them an idea.

Harrogate Yoga and Pilates studio, Ebru Evrim, is hosting a one and a half hour kids yoga workshop this half-term.

The workshop will be brought to life with specially designed music linked to the theme and stories behind the session and lead the children to ultimate relaxation.

The workshop is set to improve concentration and focus, as well as aiding the children to deal with their emotions and self-regulation of moods.

Who knows, your child may even go to bed without any protest that night.

The workshop host, Jenny White, holds a DBS, is fully insured and is also paediatric first aid trained.

Children can expect a day of yoga, arts, dance, mindfulness and, most importantly, lots of fun.

The session is suitable for ages 6-11 years and will cost £12.

Find more information here.

 Ebru Evrim is hosting a kids yoga session.

The Little Gym Holiday Camps: School’s Out, Fun’s In

For those children that may require a little more bounce in their half-term break, The Little Gym Holiday Camps may be a good solution.

Running from Monday 13-Sunday 19 February, The Little Gym in Harrogate is offering gymnastics camps that run from 8.30am-5pm – including a Breakfast Club to help those parents working over the holiday. The camps vary from as little as 3 hours to 7.5 hours a day and children will learn new skills that they can practise and perfect throughout the session.

The sessions vary each week to stimulate children both physically and mentally, all under the care of qualified and dedicated instructors.

The camps, classes and session suitability ranges from 3-8 & 5-12 years.

Half-day prices begin at £35.

Click here for more information.

Ripon Ghost Walk: Children’s Half-Term Special

The Ripon Ghost Walk half-term special is a spookily inexpensive option to feed your child’s fear-factor!

The half-term special Ghost Walk promises the discovery of ancient burial sites, bone finds and maybe even the presence of deceased Ripon residents.

The half-term Ghost Walk begins much earlier than usual at 16.15pm in the Market Square, meaning it will be dark enough for the ghosts to come out, but early enough to ensure your children are still in bed on time.

Prices start from £4 for under 16s and £6 for adults.

Find more information on their website.

Beyond Imagination Emporium Princess Academy: Valentine’s Special

Calling all Prince and Princesses! Beyond Imagination Emporium in Harrogate is re-opening their Princess Academy this February half-term with a Valentine’s special.

The one-hour Princess Academy sessions take place on select dates during school holidays.

There are two Princess Academy sessions taking place on Saturday 11 February. At 11am, children will be joined by Frozen’s Anna and Kristoff, while the 2pm session will be hosted by Beauty and The Beast’s Prince Adam & Belle.

Children spend time learning royal dances, princess etiquette, arts and crafts and fairy-tale play. The session includes sweet treats for the children, as well as refreshments for the parents.

Children can also make a Valentine’s Day card to give to someone special to them.

The sessions cost £13.95 and are ideal for ages 3 – 9 years.

Find more information here.

Children can meet their favourite Prince and Princesses.

Fountains Abbey: Mindful Family Crafts

If you’re looking to join your children in their half-term fun, Fountains Abbey in Ripon is hosting a Mindful Family Crafts event.

The crafting will take place in Swanley Grange, located in the grounds of the Abbey. The event will be running from 11 – 19 February (excluding 12 February), starting at 11am.

Children and parents can get their creative juices flowing using sustainable and natural materials.

The event is suitable for all ages and abilities. Those that may prefer to craft quietly can attend the “crafting quiet hour” from 2pm – 3pm.

The event itself is free, but regular admissions prices apply. Admission for one adult and three children starts from £27.

Click here for more information.

Ghost hunt to be held at Harrogate’s Odeon

Paranormal investigators are to visit Harrogate’s Odeon cinema next month to try to find out if the building is haunted.

There have been rumours of ghostly apparitions at the cavernous Grade II listed building, which dates back to 1936.

Now a company called Spiritus Paranormal has hired the venue on August 6. People who buy tickets costing £40 can go along and be part of the investigation.

Wayne Williams, who founded the company, said:

“We will try to find out if it is haunted. We have a lot of equipment that can help to identify paranormal activity.”

The company’s equipment includes items such as electromagnetic field detectors, infrared cameras and Ouija boards.

Participants will split into groups with investigators and carry out paranormal checks in different parts of the building.

Asked if he genuinely believed in paranormal activity, Mr Williams said:

“I’ve seen too much not to. But I also err on the side of caution. If nothing happens so be it. We will not make things happen just to put bums on seats.

The company’s website says of the Odeon:

“This place has never been investigated, staff have reported paranormal activity, this venue has so much history.”

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Author on the hunt for Harrogate ghost stories

The man behind Harrogate’s first ghost walk is writing a book about spooky tales in the town —  and he needs your help finding stories to include.

Paul Forster launched his ghost walk last year, offering an evening excursion around Harrogate’s most haunted locations.

The one-hour trail takes in The Alexandra pub, The Crown Hotel and Hales Bar, among other places.

One of his favourite stories is the time Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the author behind the Sherlock Holmes novels, held a seance at The Harrogate Club on Victoria Avenue.

Mr Forster has now found a publisher for a book of Harrogate ghost stories and he wants people to submit their tales from the other side.

Since starting his ghost walk, Mr Forster said he’s encountered several unexplained phenomena, including what he believes was an apparition taunting him at the Turkish Baths.

He said:

“I saw a woman’s body peeking out from a cubicle, I went to the cubicle, but nobody was there. The door shut on its own then I heard a woman’s voice that went ‘ha!’ really loud. It freaked me out.

“There was a young member of staff there who said she had heard the same ‘ha!'”

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Mr Forster is particularly interested in ghost stories about Windsor House, a large building that overlooks Valley Gardens. It used to be the Grand Hotel during Harrogate’s Victorian heyday.

He said:

“At Windsor House there was a woman who stepped into a lift but it wasn’t there, so she fell to her death in the lift shaft. She’s been seen lots of times. There is also ghost children running down the corridors there and unusual orbs of light. There must be more stories.”

Mr Forster said Harrogate is a hotbed of ghostly activity due to its Victorian past.

He added:

“People kept saying to me there are no ghosts in Harrogate, you need to go to York, but a lot of the ghosts came here from the Victorian era and World War One. Tourists from all over the world left an imprint behind with both fond or bad memories.

“There’s the ghost of a Victorian gent in the Pump Room museum. He’s dressed like a tourist in bowler hat and can be seen disappearing through the wall.”

Do you have any ghost stories? Email Paul Forster here or message him on Facebook.

Spooky Ripon venues sought for paranormal events

Do you own a haunted castle, hall, pub, manner house, or stately home in, or within easy reach of Ripon?

If you do, Dion Child would like to hear from you.

Recently arrived in the city Dion runs the growing ‘Write-on-Ripon’ group for creative writers. He also hopes to introduce people to his style of paranormal activity.

Dion formerly lived in Wales where he was involved in running Kington Ghostbusters. He told the Stray Ferret:

“I’ve come up with the name Ripon Spookers and am currently in contact with a range of likely locations, hoping the owners will let us spend a night trying to make contact with their resident spooks.”

He stressed:

“This has nothing to do with devil worship or anything dark and dangerous, but is intended to provide fascinating evenings, or perhaps weekends away, for like-minded people wanting to get in touch with the other side.

“Each will be a bespoke – or perhaps be-spooked event, focused on the ghostly inhabitants residing at each location.”

Like the Most Haunted TV series that ran for 18 seasons and proved a screaming success, the focus will be on finding the paranormal signs of spirit activity.

Dion said that he has never seen a ghost, but added:

“I have sensed a presence, heard footsteps when nobody was there, watched tables levitate and seen white globes floating in mid air.”

The Kington Ghostbusters group held its paranormal activities at reputedly haunted pubs, castles and stately homes and he is confident that similar places can be found in Ripon or surrounding area.

Dion pointed out:

“I’m relatively new to Ripon and have been hearing about places in the city and not far away, that have a haunting tale to tell, such as The Unicorn Inn with its ghosts and the Wakeman’s cafe, which was formerly home to Hugh Ripley, the first mayor of Ripon.

“I’ve heard legend has it that his ghostly figure will appear in a window looking onto the market square, if the hornblowers ever fail to set the nightly watch.

“I understand that this has never happened, including throughout the covid lockdown and it would be a blow to the city if it ever did.”

With up to 20 people anticipated to attend the events that Dion envisages putting on, the hunt is on for suitable medium to larger sized locations.

Anybody who has a property that fits the bill, can contact him via the Ripon Spookers facebook page

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Ripon’s s reputation as a city with many haunted places led to the creation of a popular ghost walk.

The weekly 90-minute walks, which started from Market Square, were interrupted by the covid lockdown, but they made a return when social-distancing restrictions were eased last summer.

Stray Views: Harrogate’s Otley Road cycle path benefits neither walkers nor cyclists

Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. Send your views to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Otley Road cycle path benefits nobody

There has been much debate concerning cycle paths in Harrogate with Otley Road being the prime example.

It has been known from the outset that this was not a segregated path like in European cities, rather mainly just shared pavement. However some people are only just realising this.

At side roads there is some segregated cycle path, with the cars set back, blocking the pedestrians who wish to cross. A bus shelter removed, grass removed, more tarmac with 36 new metal signs and 32 painted white cycles on the tarmac over 600m of highway. An attractive entrance into Harrogate now full of street furniture.

At Harlow Moor Road, the grass has gone, trees felled (mainly but not solely for the road users) and the pavement much narrowed, but no decrease in traffic. The junction is much worse for pedestrians, squeezed up next to the road, no grass verge between car and pedestrian.

Government guidelines for good cycle infrastructure design say:

“Cycles must be treated as vehicles and not as pedestrians. On urban streets, cyclists must be physically separated from pedestrians and should not share space with pedestrians”.

The Otley Road cycle path totally disregards this and other aspects of the guidelines. This cycle path is sub-standard; it benefits no-one, not cyclists, not pedestrians, not residents, anything but an example of good design.

I have been criticised by cycling lobbyists for advocating infrastructure that meets modern standards. Being an Otley Road resident, I observe at first hand, much more than the cycling groups or North Yorkshire County Council in Northallerton, what happens on this road. I have much more contact with local residents; the overwhelming opinion, regarding what has happened to our local environment is not favourable.

Everything done by NYCC penalises pedestrians. Pedestrians do not like sharing pavements with cycles passing close by, often unheard. Segregated cycle paths, benefit both the cyclist and the pedestrian. So for a better sustainable transport system, we need much more involvement of local people and wider engagement – why does NYCC exclude residents?

We need this involvement to be fair to all and to get some consensus into this subject. We need to involve other means of transport, e.g. improvements in bus services, park and ride, improvements for pedestrians.

The nature of the existing built environment and maintaining a green environment in a floral town needs to be taken into account too. I fear otherwise Harrogate will only be changed for the worse not the better.

Chris Dicken, Otley Road, Harrogate

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Many people in Knaresborough welcome the new pool

Can I just offer an opinion on the contribution entitled ‘Harrogate is riding roughshod over Knaresborough with this unwanted new pool’

As a resident of Knaresborough, can I just say this certainly doesn’t reflect my views so please don’t let this person suggest they speak on my behalf.

I think the new centre is a brilliant idea. We need to get provision into the 21st century. So if this person still wants to wallow in the past, great, but don’t drag the rest of us down with them !

Ian Brown, Knaresborough

Ghosts on the Stray

Me and my husband saw a cult like gathering on The Stray playing bongo drums in the corner where the stone shelter is. It was so creepy and now we have seen that someone else thinks that The Stray is haunted we have come forward.

Carol Moore, Harrogate