Springvilla Specters
Opelika, Alabama
September 22, 2012 was supposed to be a typical camping
event put together by the Alabama Paranormal Research Team and Creepy Mountain
Research. Team director, Faith Serafin of the Alabama Paranormal Research Team
and Creepy Mountain Research, discussed the many unusual
aspects and history of a location in Opelika, Alabama called Springvilla. Most
of the paranormal research done here by the Alabama Paranormal Research Team
has been ghostly in nature. But, recently some unusual sightings and happenings
led our team to seek out other paranormal researchers, specializing in crypto-zoology after two separate incidences prompted the ghost hunters to seek out
other explanations for the phenomenon.
The first experience came in the early winter of 2011, when
the Alabama Paranormal Research Team was working on a training exercise at the
historic plantation. The spirits inside the 18th century mansion
where buzzing with activity. K2 meters lit up on high electrical frequencies
and the MEL meters picked up endless amounts of energy as we conducted
numerous EVP sessions and recordings in real time. We picked up several voices
that were responding to our questions. Shadows moved from room to room and the
footsteps of an unseen entity traveled up and down the spiral staircase. After several
hours of investigating the team stepped outside for some fresh air. We gathered
around the front lawn, talking excitedly about the night’s events.
To our backs, the dark and foreboding night cloaked the
surrounding forest in pitch blackness and a heavy, lingering fog began to roll
in quickly. We watched over our shoulders as a mist appeared
and took the shape of an oddly shaped carriage being pulled by ghostly horses. The
team watched in amazement as it slowly disappeared into a vaporous cloud. This
was a typical paranormal investigation at Springvilla, but, a very untypical
event was about to happen that would add to the numerous paranormal experiences
we've witnessed here over the years.
As the night’s conversation progressed on, we must have
stood on the lawn for about forty five minutes or so. We were in a deep conversation about the
odd mist and the EVP’s inside the house. Suddenly an enormous crash bellowed
from inside the forest, just fifty yards behind us. The sound was
extremely loud and several thumping sounds occurred simultaneously. It was as
if someone had pushed over a massive tree and was then running through the
forest. Whatever it was, it was large and solid. All the team members present
that night jumped at the sound and a few even ran from it. We all
agreed that most likely this was nothing more than a fallen tree and went on
with our investigation leaving the location in the early morning hours with no
further experiences from the forest.
Some months later, another exercise was being conducted at
the location. Again, the house seemed to be turning up great evidence in the
form of EVP’s and a few unusual photos. But like before, the activity outside of the mansion
would prove, once and for all, that either someone or something was indeed on
the property. Team members sat inside the breezeway connecting the two
sections of the house, as we watched for nocturnal animals (which are common
here) we turned our attention toward the front of the park, where the main
entrance is located. As we started toward the front part of the property
something, of an enormous size, fell from a large Oak in the front. It sounded
like a limb was falling, hitting other limbs on the way down, and shaking the
tree entirely. We stood looking at the tree, waiting a few seconds and
expecting a limb to come crashing down. But there was nothing there. We could
see the tree rattling from something moving in it, and we could hear the
enormous sounds of cracking and falling but saw nothing. As we approached the
tree there was no indication of a fallen limb - whatsoever. No limbs sizable enough were on the ground that would cause the crashing or shaking. The dirt was
scattered beneath the tree as if something had landed on the ground but we
could not identify anything that had done so. Either a large and stealthy
animal had jumped from the tree and disappeared, or some strange paranormal phenomenon
was happening that we were not prepared for.
This final experience prompted the Alabama Paranormal
Research Team’s director to contact friends at Creepy Mountain Research. Creepy Mountain Research (CMR) is an organization that studies cryptid phenomenon and sighting. Though no official sightings have
ever been recorded in Opelika to our knowledge, we did learn from locals that this type of
phenomenon is common in the Springvilla area. Determined to find out what kind
of potential paranormal aspects pertained to these events, the Alabama
Paranormal Research Team and Creepy Mountain Research set up a camping
excursion and teamed up for a night of investigating the area for possible
answers.
At 3:30 pm CST, I met with CMR members and discussed the experiences my team and I had witnessed. We showed them the two locations where they occurred. They discussed the situation regarding the details but both agreed that in no way were we trying to imply or give some suggestion that would portray that a actual Sasquatch was in the area. However, we both had an understanding that the potential for one to be there was high, given the terrain, remoteness, and environmental contributions that could indeed sustain a small family of Sasquatch. We decided to set up camp in a hollow, just on the tree line, where the first experience happened in the winter of 2011. A few team members were apprehensive about staying in the location, but according to our Bigfoot researchers, this was a good place to set up. CMR took several photos inside the forest off a remote trail and found some possible signs that are common among areas inhabited by Sasquatch. Some sapling trees were bent over that allegedly mark boundaries by Sasquatch. Still, this wasn't enough to prove any existence of a cryptid creature in the area. We settled in around the camp fire and were encouraged by the researchers to carry on with chatting and cooking, since this kind of activity apparently attracts Sasquatch.
At 3:30 pm CST, I met with CMR members and discussed the experiences my team and I had witnessed. We showed them the two locations where they occurred. They discussed the situation regarding the details but both agreed that in no way were we trying to imply or give some suggestion that would portray that a actual Sasquatch was in the area. However, we both had an understanding that the potential for one to be there was high, given the terrain, remoteness, and environmental contributions that could indeed sustain a small family of Sasquatch. We decided to set up camp in a hollow, just on the tree line, where the first experience happened in the winter of 2011. A few team members were apprehensive about staying in the location, but according to our Bigfoot researchers, this was a good place to set up. CMR took several photos inside the forest off a remote trail and found some possible signs that are common among areas inhabited by Sasquatch. Some sapling trees were bent over that allegedly mark boundaries by Sasquatch. Still, this wasn't enough to prove any existence of a cryptid creature in the area. We settled in around the camp fire and were encouraged by the researchers to carry on with chatting and cooking, since this kind of activity apparently attracts Sasquatch.
As the night grew later we broke up into groups and set for
the heavily wooded trails. CMR brought in gear commonly used by Bigfoot
hunters such as a parabolic ear and recorder mounted on a tri-pod, a digital
camera, headphones for high frequency listening, and a FLIR imaging camera
designed to detect hot and cold temperatures. Armed with these devices, the
first group traveled deep into the murky wilderness. They stayed gone for
nearly an hour and when they returned, they discussed with the others that they
had experienced a few very unusual things in the woods.
First they made a few calls to attract any potential
Sasquatch in the area and found that something answered them back, still not
convinced, they also tried “wood-knocking”, which is a form of
communication between the creatures. Several sounds were reported to have been
heard but no definitive proof was collaborated by the CMR team. However, an
image was captured on the thermal camera that was promising and a sense of higher anticipation
that some thing, characteristic of
Sasquatch, was in the area, seemed to drive the CMR team to investigate further. An illuminated eye appeared near a tree on the camera. “Eye shine”, in Bigfoot hunting terms, is simply reflection of a
creatures eyes that typically appear at night. Mark of Creepy Mountain informed
us that these creatures have different colored eyes, much like humans do, and
therefore eye shine can come in different colors as well. Green, blue, yellow
and red are most common.
We were also informed at this time that the creatures have evolved into different species of Sasquatch. Whether by environment or
genetics is only speculation but the common species found in the South and
South-East parts of Alabama are known as the “long snout” or “long nosed" Bigfoot. Frequently, reports state that these creatures have “werewolf” like
characteristics regarding appearance. I asked if the creatures could possibly
be aggressive like the stereotypical werewolf. Mark told me that some species
have been reported to be aggressive but they had never encountered any that were.
This lingered with my team and an uneasy feeling seemed to
take over the entire camp since recently a story and a personal experiences from Talbotton County,
Georgia, just a few hours from Opelika, Alabama, turned up a hundred year old
werewolf legend. The team pressed on and set for the neighboring property
across the road from the plantation. An open parking lot filled with small pea
size gravel gave a good view under the quarter moon and open clear night sky. It
was getting late, close to 3 AM, and at this point a few of the team stayed
behind at the camp. We walked toward the wood line in the hopes of capturing
more thermal evidence with the FLIR. CMR members noted more eye shine on the thermal
viewer and made several calls and whistles, hoping to get a response. Only a few audible sounds came back as substantial. We noticed that an open
trail was clear enough to walk down and so CMR and three members of the APRT walked down the trail while the rest of us
stayed behind and scouted the field in case anything ventured through while
they were on the trail.
We could plainly see where they were located on the trail by
the flashing of the flashlights, some ninety yards in front of us. The mouth of
the trail was open and the street light from the lodge illuminated the outline
of the tree line while the denser part indicated the opening to the trail.
Feeling confident that no living being could come into the location without us
seeing it, we watched as the five of them set out down the dark trail. Several
minutes went by and some movement and possible ghostly phenomenon seem to be happening
inside the woods closest to those of us still in the open field. We sat quietly
and listened and noted we could no longer hear our teammates on the trail. A
shadowy figure began walking up the trail back to the opening and we agreed that the figure was most likely one of the team members since he appeared to be
wearing the same grey shirt as one of them on the trail.
His behavior was odd in the sense that he walked up the
trail and appeared to squat down in a crouched position, then stood back up
and walked back down the trail. We could clearly make out his legs against the
dark silhouetted opening of the trail and whoever it was didn't seem to mind
when we flashed our flashlight on him. Clearly we could see that this was a man
of some sort, a human being from what we all could gather. Everyone in the field agreed that it was a
team member. A few more minutes went by and we approached the trail when we saw
the flashlights reemerge from the darkness. We met them on the trail and asked
who had walked up earlier?
No one answered directly and so I asked them all
individually. One by one they all denied being at the opening of the trail.
CMR had been the furthest down the road, and APRT members, Tony and Shane were with
them, another team member stood the closest to the opening but never came off the road and
saw no one pass him either.
Perplexed and shocked we all stood, pondering and
questioning the situation, trying to make sense of it all. We also noted at
that time the five of them entered the trail, something appeared to be on all fours entering the trail with
them but thought it was a large dog of some kind. Since they did not react to
the animal we didn't see that any of them were in danger. We also noted there was no sound that we could hear when the four legged creature appeared or when the
human figure appeared afterward. The group in the wooded area on the trail also
reported seeing several sightings of red glowing eyes and the sound of a little
girl talking. Strange indeed since neither of the circumstances seemed to fit a
particular criteria and neither the Alabama Paranormal Research Team or Creepy
Mountain could determine exactly what was going on.
Later we regrouped at the camp site and discussed the
possibilities of the things we had witnessed. Everything from Skin Walkers to
Sasquatch and ghostly theories were tossed around between all of us regarding
the sighting. The unusual aspects of this experience seem to come with the fact
that all of us in the field had seen this “being”. We did note that none of us
could see facial features and it did appear to be the same size as the average
man. We could not see any hair, suggesting a possible Bigfoot sighting,
the figure was grey in color and extremely quiet. If this being was an apparition of some sort, it was
truly the most elaborate and solid form of one anyone of us have ever seen.
Second to that, with some potential evidence of a possible Sasquatch in the
area, we could not rule that out either. The one thing we did agree on was that
this being was so real and so obvious, that four of us would not go to sleep in the camp. If “someone” was there and they were
stealthy enough to walk past five of our teammates in such close quarters, it
might try to sneak up on us while we all slept. So, staying up and watching over the camp became
the idol task of Faith Serafin, Robin “Bones” Rodriguez, and the CMR team.
As day broke I sat wondering what the possibilities were
regarding what I had seen the night before, it was enough to perk my curiosity
and also enough to rattle my fears that something other than spirits inhabit Springvilla.
The Native Americans that lived at the location prior to Penn Yonge had a spiritual
connection to the land. Its high quartz and limestone content made it a religious
gathering spot and they buried their dead just a few hundred yards from where the plantation was built. Sasquatch is a spiritual being in
Native American folklore and this lends some credibility to the sighting but it also is
far from the typical sighting of Bigfoot. Since nothing like what we experienced has ever been reported in
the area, if some cryptid creature does exist on the property, they are indeed masters of
camouflage and hiding.
Speculation is the common awkwardness of whom or what this
was.The experiences was an emotional one.
Neither Creepy Mountain Research nor my team expected to witness what we did that night. We did not capture video or photo evidence of the being that night. Until we
asked, we assumed it was a team mate. A lesson learned in these types of
circumstances is that you can never rule out anything involving the paranormal; ghosts and spirits, cryptids, UFO’s and alien beings. And never - ever, be
without a camera or other device capable of capturing potential evidence. We were
not prepared for what we saw that night and, more than likely, we will never
witness it again. I feel lucky to have seen it myself and shared it with many
of my team mates. I can only share the experience with you through story. I
understand the paranormal to a great degree but the experiences we have keep us
understanding that we are forever in a learning circle of educating ourselves
about what else exist in the world and what we consider to be “our” world as humans. We're supposed to be the supreme beings of the universe, at the
top of the food chain, but I’m just not so sure that is the case anymore.