ESP Weekend 2015  REPORT

Every year we try a different formula with ESP and every year we get a few more elements right. The general consensus, from investigation leaders, participants and staff, is that 2015 was the best ESP weekend to date!

• We limited the number of participants in the guided investigations, to avoid contamination of active sites.

• We cut back on satellite events, to allow more time for investigations.

• However, we did extend the hours of our popular ESP testing, and the Psychomanteum – this year set up in the notorious “Dr” Norman Baker’s penthouse – was available until the sun rose. .

• Lead investigator Larry Flaxman, best-selling author and founder of ARPAST, shared his time and expertise with every ESP participant, and generously provided the investigation with thousands of dollars worth of highly sensitive equipment.

• We instituted a long-overdue policy of no alcohol or alcohol-affected individuals allowed on the investigations.

• We extended the investigation to include sister hotel the Basin Park, in downtown Eureka Springs. The Basin Park was closed and empty for the occasion.

And our new approach paid off !

We had an unprecedented amount of response in the 1886 Crescent hotel, from orbs to EVP to a mysterious dark blob that was captured on thermal-imaging camera and left marks on lead investigator Larry Flaxman’s back!

The Basin Park rewarded the first really organized investigation with abundant responses to the Ovilus, EMF and EVP meters. Especially in Room 519, long conversations were held, the instruments yielding yes or no answers to questions put by the investigators.

A young lady was talking to a friend in one of the rooms on the highly active 3^rd floor. Her friend noticed a red line slowly appearing around her neck. They both felt an oppressive sense of unease and left the room. The mark remained for hours after. We have no explanation for this – but it is interesting to note that in the early days of the hotel, when gambling was a common activity, one loser who was caught trying to slip through one of the famous bridges to the cliffside had his throat slit by the people he was trying to avoid…

Did we capture any hard evidence during ESP 15? As expected, our instruments registered some major anomalies. But, as with most supernatural phenomena, all we can say is: inexplicable, unrepeatable, inconclusive. However, as ghost-hunting equipment becomes more sophisticated, the percentage of irregularities that cannot be explained by rational means increases. We videotaped throughout the event. Look for an edited version – highlights of ESP15 – to appear on our Facebook and Website pages soon.

We continue to refine our ESP weekends to make the event ever more attractive to serious paranormal investigation groups. Every year we hear more positive feedback from participants, and 2015 received the most enthusiastic responses to date. Next year, we are planning to outdo ourselves!

ESP 2016 will take place over two weekends: Jan 8,9,10 and 15,16,17. 

The Basin Park will be investigated on the late evening of Sunday Jan 10^th. 

We invite you to join us for ESP 16. Bring your group, bring your equipment, bring yourself, and your curiosity. See you in the shadows!

Keith Scales

Tour Manager

1886 Crescent and Basin Park Hotels