Surrounded by sweeping pastoral plains and boasting a rich mining history, the picturesque town of Kapunda holds the impressive title of Australia’s most haunted town and is home to The North Kapunda Hotel (Australia’s most haunted hotel).
The team from Ghost Crime Tours (GCT) took us on a journey into the fascinating history of this beautiful town.
Part historical tour, part ghost hunt, the Kapunda Ghost Crime Tour is a two-hour guided walking tour which takes participants to some of the town's most haunted locations, shining a light on the unlucky souls who perished there.
While some ghost tours rely on costumed characters to entertain, GCT uses something far more frightening – cold hard facts. Every event has been thoroughly researched and verified using a range of local and national sources and this adds a real sense of authenticity to the tour. It also increases the shock value of the few stories which seemed too ridiculous to be true and it is quite disconcerting to learn that you are standing in the very spot where someone once lost their life.
As tour guide Mish began the tour dusk fell on Kapunda, casting eerie shadows on our surroundings and creating the perfect spooky atmosphere for what was to come. Stepping into the heritage buildings was like stepping back in time, and you could feel the history pulsating from their walls. At each location we were encouraged to take photographs as well as video and voice recordings in effort to capture evidence of, or make contact with, one of the town's many ghostly inhabitants.
We were also given EMF readers (which can be used to detect the presence of a spirit) and when they showed signs of activity Mish encouraged us to make contact. She is obviously very comfortable with the idea of interacting with spirits and her calm demeanour and willingness to share her own experiences with the town’s resident ghosts made the idea of making contact with them less frightening.
On the night I attended (23 February) some known hotspots were disappointingly quiet; however I was able to achieve some impressive results elsewhere ranging from an unsettling feeling of being watched in an old church to a figure captured on camera. Being able to use actual ghost hunting equipment added a sense of fun and adventure to the tour and as a believer I was thrilled when I started getting responses from a spirit in the North Kapunda Hotel’s lower levels.
While the tour is open to anyone it is certainly more fun if you are a believer; however sceptics will be impressed by the tour's historical content while architectural enthusiasts will marvel at the town's many stunning heritage buildings. Comfortable shoes are a must, as there is plenty of walking and stair climbing to be done.
Make sure you take the time to stop into the North Kapunda Hotel and chat to the wonderful ladies behind the bar who are more than happy to share their own experiences as well as photos taken by previous tour participants.
