So You Want to Be a Ghost Hunter?

Ghost hunting on television is so exciting! But you need to realize that they are cramming more than 72 hours into one short hour (less if you consider commercial time). What they cut out are all the hours researching a site, the sitting and waiting, the hours and hours of evidence review, and the disappointment of putting all that time in, only to find nothing!

Ghost Hunting is kind of like fishing, it is mostly sitting quietly and waiting.. and waiting and waiting. The only difference is that when you fish, at least you get to drink a beer and soak up some sun.

A typical investigation is cold (or hot) dirty, and very boring. You will work your butt off rushing around to haul gear, set up cameras and run cables. Finally it is lights out. And now all you have to do is be quiet and wait... and wait... and wait... Even the most disciplined investigator starts to feel a little ADD after several hours. The majority of the time, the bumps in the night are easily explained, and you start hoping for something-- even if it isn't paranormal-- to happen to break up the monotony. By the time we call it a night, you are exhausted and usually irritated that you were up all night for nothing. But there is still hours of work to be done. All the gear must be packed up and loaded. When you finally get to drag your butt to bed, you will be haunted by the fact that your next few days will be filled with listening to white noise or watching dull video. And if you do happen to find something interesting, chances are someone will come up with a rational explanation and it will be thrown out.

Investigations are feast or famine, you may be hit with 3 in a row and you barely have time to review to what you got on the first one and it is on to the next. Or there may be times when you are ready to give up hope of ever getting another one. When those times come, everyone on the team is expected to pitch in, do some research and try to find new sites.

So why do we do it? The first time you hear something that can't be explained, or feel a touch on your shoulder, or find that great piece of footage that no one can explain away... you will know it was all worth it. Those times are few and far in between, but they do happen and they keep you going.

If you think you have what it takes and can work long hours with little reward.. then please by all means... find a group and join up. But if you are looking for an adrenaline rush and constant excitement, paranormal investigating will leave you very disappointed.