Saint John tales.

A14

David Goss

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In a one-hour tour, Jason Watson added five sites to the 14 ghost locations I knew of in Saint John West.

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And Jason says he isn't particularly sensitive to ghostly matters.

He didn't want all the stories shared in print, but agreed to three of them for now, and perhaps the rest later.

"One I can tell you is of the night I was part of a team assuring that a group of young girls holding a sleepover in Hillcrest Church would have a safe night. We came out the main gym door to do a sweep of the grounds, and noticed a man with a cloak over his shoulders at the edge of a fringe of woods that separated the church parking lot from Cedar Hill Cemetery. We told him he was on private property and had to move along. He didn't move. We told him we'd have to call the police. He still didn't move. So, we began to walk toward him. He moved then. And did he move. He quickly made his way between two houses and out to Buena Vista Avenue. We followed, but by the time we got to the road, he was way off, and we could just see him entering the back gate of the cemetery. No human could move that fast," Jason said of that cloaked wispy figure.

The ghost didn't return...or at least not that night, but Jason says a ghost was thought to visit Hillcrest Church regularly.

"We had a neighbour who was caretaker there, and members of the Hillcrest congregation would call him frequently saying lights had been left on in the building. He knew there were no lights on when he'd left, but sure enough, they'd be on when he'd go to check. This went on for some time," Jason said. "Then it stopped. It sure was a relief to our neighbour who was getting a bit spooked," he laughed.

Another strange encounter happened at McLarens Beach off Sand Cove Road. It's a popular place for walkers during the day, and for young folks to gather at night for a beer and a bonfire.

And that's exactly what Jason was doing there, with his girlfriend, and another couple. The boys got a fire going, and when it died down, they went across the beach for more wood. When they got to the breakwater, they sensed there was a man there, just wandering along the water's edge. But neither spoke to the other about it until they were almost back to the fire. They were surprised when the girls asked if they had noticed the man down by the water. None of them could explain how anyone could have walked past them and along the rattle rock beach with their having heard the rocks moving. Yet, there was someone, or something there with them on that beach. It stayed with them the whole hour they spent there, then quietly melded into the night.

Ghosts? What other explanation for Jason's experiences can there be?

If you have a ghost tale to share, contact Goss at 672-8601 or gosswalk@nbnet.nb.ca