For two B.C. sisters, the journey of ghost hunting is about much more than documenting supernatural phenomena.
Victoria Vancek and Gina Armstrong also pride themselves on shining a light on the often little-known history behind many small B.C. communities.
And with their work getting more attention than ever before, the sisters now have a chance to share this heritage with national and even international readers.
“The integration of history with the haunted aspects of our exploration is a significant part of our work because it continues to engage people,” said Armstrong. “From the beginning, our goal with this venture was to highlight B.C. history and we feel we are accomplishing this goal.”
One of their more recent adventures had the local sisters heading up to the village of Likely, which is nestled in the Cariboo region of the province, and is the farthest they have travelled for a case in the history of their company, Haunted History BC.
Vancek explained that they were invited up there by the owners of Likely Lodge, who discovered Haunted History BC during an online search for someone who could come out and investigate the strange paranormal happenings at the property.
“We discovered that Likely is a hidden gem with breathtaking views of Quesnel Lake and a perfect spooky atmosphere due to its remoteness,” said Vancek.
She also mentioned that Likely contains many surprises for a small community of only 350 people.
“We went to visit the town’s pioneer cemetery which is about a 40-minute drive from the lodge. We followed a rugged logging road to get there. To our surprise, next to the cemetery is a free public library.”
But it was the lodge itself that provided some of the most memorable moments of the trip.
According to Vancek, the owners of Likely Lodge had reported many instances of CCTV cameras capturing movement throughout the pub during the middle of the night when no one was inside.
Spooky happenings also occurred for the sisters when they were given the chance to investigate the pub after hours.
“Some of our equipment was triggered during a Q&A session with a possible ghostly patron in the pub,” said Vancek.
In addition to this potentially supernatural encounter, Vancek said that another major highlight of the trip was just how much they were able to learn about the history surrounding the Gold Rush Trail.
“We visited some interesting places like Hope, Lytton, Ashcroft, Cache Creek, Clinton, and 100 Mile House. We even met the infamous haunted doll, Mandy, at the Quesnel Museum.”
With the added attention their company is getting, Armstrong is excited about having more opportunities to share local stories and promote the historical significance behind some of the province’s best hidden gems.
“One of the reasons our venture has gained attention is that people want to share their stories,” said Armstrong. “We want to document these stories to ensure they are not lost.”
“We can feel the pride people have in their communities when we sit down to listen to them. Often when we leave a place it’s like we’ve made new friends or added to our spooky family.”
But just because they’re getting bigger, doesn’t mean the sisters have forgotten about their hometowns.
They’re still busy doing various things around Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows, including a new set of haunted walking tours in June.
The first of these tours is on Sunday, June 9, at the Maple Ridge Cemetery.
From 1:30 to 3 p.m., the sister duo will take people through the cemetery and share the history of the place as well as some information about why certain shrubs exist in the cemetery, the importance of various headstone symbols, common cemetery superstitions, and much more.
The second walking tour will be in Kanaka Creek Regional Park on Sunday, June 23, from 1 to 2:30 p.m.
This one-time event will give participants a chance to learn about local park history as well as the supernatural phenomena found throughout other Canadian parks and wildlife areas.
Interested individuals can register for either of the walking tours by visiting www.pittfitandfun.ca.
The sisters have also released a brand-new book that includes some of their latest ghost-hunting adventures and the history behind many spooky B.C. buildings and objects.
The book is their third and can be found at www.hauntedhistorybc.com.