North Carolina has its share of haints, which is why it established the First in Fright Trail, a guide to all things paranormal from the mountains of western North Carolina to the Atlantic Ocean. The travel guide lists places to stay, dine and visit, plus manmade haunted houses if you just need a scare. We selected a few to give you a taste of the supernatural, all worth a visit this time of year when the veil between living and dead grows thin. View the full list at visitnc.com/first-in-fright.
Stay
It was with great fanfare that the Omni Grove Park Inn reopened in Asheville after the devastation of Hurricane Helene last year. And I’m sure the ghosts who reside there, especially the “Pink Lady” who apparently fell from a balcony in the 1920s, were glad the guests have returned. Owners claim the Pink Lady’s particularly active around Room 545, and you know she loves the kids. But nothing scary here, just flickering lights and a few harmless pranks.
Another guest who fell to his death refuses to check out of the Dunhill Hotel in Charlotte. Cold spots, lights coming on and off and other unexplained activity has been reported, especially in Room 906.
Dine
Why do apparitions love restaurants? So many stories recount tales of items being flung from tables or cold spots in shady places. Take the Country Squire Restaurant, Inn & Winery in Warsaw where guests have reported creepy noises, footsteps without humans attached and doorknobs turning on their own. Read the inn’s guestbook. It’s filled with accounts from former visitors who swear they were not alone.
The Wright Brothers don’t haunt the Black Pelican Restaurant in Kitty Hawk, but a station keeper apparently does at this former lifesaving station. While on the coast, visit the state’s many lighthouses, several of which, such as the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, are haunted.
Be Entertained
Theaters serve as another hotspot for ghostly activity. A young boy named Christopher haunts The Caroline Theatre in Greensboro, moving things around, messing with the lights and making unwelcomed sounds. Over in Manteo by the coast a former projectionist likes to play pranks at the Pioneer Theatre, one of the oldest family-owned movie theaters in the country.
Loup Garou?
There are ghosts and then there are demon dogs, strange black canines sporting glowing eyes and yellow teeth. These demon dogs love to haunt the historic St. John’s Church in Valle Crucis (Latin for “Valley of the Cross”), and some believe they are the harbingers of doom. Stories of their appearance and attacks have been around since the 1800s. The lovely country church was built in 1862 to serve the mountain residents and today hosts a summer concert series, no dogs allowed.
Get Outside
The name alone will send chills up your spine. The Great Dismal Swamp in the state’s northeast border with Virginia doesn’t need ghost tales to sound scary but apparitions apparently frequent the wetlands of South Mills. According to local stories, “The Lady of the Lake” appears to visitors of the Great Dismal Swamp, hovering over the waters as she searches for her lost lover who died in the treacherous bogs. Some have heard her moans, others witnessed her ghostly image. But don’t let that scare you away from this picturesque park with hiking trails, wildlife and the 22-mile Dismal Swamp Canal that’s popular with paddlers
