By Abigail Hyslop
It has long been known by many in the paranormal and the UFO communities as a legendary place, with sightings of black eyed children, thought to be first sighted in the 1980’s, to werewolves, UFO’s, multiple ghost sightings and a multitude of cryptids including bigfoot, dogman, big cats and even a pigman! Many articles and books have been written over the years and the 80km² forest has made it to the top 10 locations for many investigators, our team included.
We were excited to tick it off our list of places we must investigate.
The team for this expedition consisted of Ash Ellis (founder of ufoidentified.co.uk, and co-host of Pursuit of the Paranormal) assisted by group member Jamie, as well as Greg Thomlinson (long time paranormal investigator and co-host of Pursuit of the Paranormal) and me, Abigail Hyslop (long time paranormal investigator and UFO investigator with ufoidentified.co.uk).
After meeting at Whites Coffee Bar and making a plan we drove to the parking area close by and after loading our gear into several backpacks we set off into the forest picking our way through until we came to a clearing where we set up the first area of investigation. Cameras both still and video were set up observing different areas of our surroundings. The next step was taking our voice recorders and placing them around the location, placing one next to the spirit box to record any responses to questions we asked.
The area we had set up proved to be quite flat and without much in the way of atmosphere. We also tried dowsing rods while walking around the clearing. This did however show some results as they crossed while passing certain areas on the paths surrounding us. This could have been caused by under ground water or ley lines. The experiment was repeated successfully. All of us felt drawn to another area of the forest. Ash reported glimpsing movement in the trees when viewing the area through his video camera screen and Greg began to walk a path into the forest. Without knowing where Ash had glimpsed movement Greg stopped and stood still at the very spot some 100ft away. He reported that the area had a different atmospheric feel to it than where we were currently set up, and it was decided we should move and set up again in the new location.
Having moved deeper into the forest we again set up the equipment. There was however more activity we have difficulty explaining. While nothing coherent was gained from the spirit box experiment one of the dowsing rods repeatedly turned 360 degrees without the holder moving, quite aggressively in fact, to the point that I asked whoever it was to stop, which it did. The still camera set up by Greg made the noise of a photograph being taken with nobody close to it, and no photo had been taken. A rem pod bear was deployed in both areas however neither location yielded any results. It was however observed by the team that there appeared to be no noise normally associated with dense woodland. There was no rustling, twigs breaking, no bird noise or signs of animal life at all, which in itself is rather strange.
It then began to rain. Unfortunately, the ponchos had been left in respective cars and with concerns over the equipment in heavy rain it was decided we should return to the cars and regroup. With google maps and a compass we still managed to miss the pathway and ended up trudging through shoulder high brambles and hip high ferns which resulting in the whole team getting thoroughly soaked. Still in good spirits we did eventually find the carpark. The rain proceeded to get heavier and further investigation of the area was halted much to our disappointment.
We drove to the nearest pub to review the video, audio and still images recorded while attempting to dry off. There was nothing of note captured in any recording. It was then decided that we should continue to the next location for the remainder of the investigation.
Castle Ring, Rugeley.
The team hiked round the ring path until we found a clearing into the more central area of the circle. Cameras were set up and the rem pod bear deployed yet again without success, and other equipment showed no signs of electromagnetic interference. The next phase was using the spirit box employing the Estes method. Ash was blindfolded and after plugging noise cancelling headphones into the spirit box, he was unable to hear our questions or see when we were speaking, allowing him to concentrate fully on the words coming through on the spirit box.
This provided some interesting results. We asked who was here, the instant answer came “Nathaniel.” Ash later said he thought of a Nathaniel that had recently been a guest on the Pursuit of the Paranormal podcast however he felt like his thought had been registered as the spirit box then said, “that’s not me, I’m not him”.
We then asked, “can you name anyone present?” the instant reply was “Abi.” There were other questions posed and answers forthcoming as can be seen/heard in the video. Ash reported laughter, and a deep male voice that kept reappearing. After becoming very cold just in the area behind his back, Ash felt he could not carry on and we stopped the session. This is where things get even stranger. We began the sky watch part of the investigation however the clouds were low and there was a lot of mist so visibility was poor. It was at this point the mist rolling in around us seemed to change the atmosphere of the Castle Ring.
It has been said by paranormal investigators all over the world that one of the most important tools is your own body and how it reacts to surroundings. As we began to scan the sky both Greg and I began to feel uneasy, Ash was still uneasy from the previous spirit box experiment. Goosebumps and a heightened sense of alarm growing it was time to, as they say, “get the hell out of dodge”. Our equipment was packed up swiftly (ensuring nothing was left behind and no trace left) and we made our way back to where we had abandoned our vehicles with Greg taking the lead. As we reached the safety of street lit pavement and in sight of the cars Greg informed us he was waiting for the thunder of footsteps as we hurtled past him! I have to admit, I was fighting the urge to break into a run that would have been impressive on an Olympic track. All three of us admitted to not wanting to look behind us or in fact anywhere other than where our feet were landing next. As seasoned paranormal investigators we are used to dark, eerie places with history and legends attached and usually the first instinct is to run toward the noise, light or unexplained movement camera in hand and voice recorder running, however this was not the case in Castle Ring. The heavy atmosphere and strange experience with the spirit box and legends combined with a low rolling mist makes this location one of the most interesting places and one the team would much like to visit again.
While we only managed two locations in the vastness of Cannock Chase with many more locations in the area still to be visited and investigated, it is most definitely a place where there is something for everyone whether its UFO’s, ghosts, cryptids or just a healthy walk along the many paths, most of which we missed, it is well worth the visit. If you dear reader ever do decide to visit I hope you have the courage to look behind you…..we didn’t.
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