Ghost hunters probe shuttered Vallejo shipyard for spirits

VALLEJO -- Mare Island, home to the ruins of a naval shipyard, is so full of history that it sometimes seems like the broken buildings are whispering stories.
But perhaps the disembodied voices come from another source.
"Today, I want to make sure we make some historical progress -- that we find an apparition or something," said Paul Dale Roberts, general manager of Haunted & Paranormal Investigations International.
Roberts was among the 50 or so investigators from across the area who came Saturday to try and unravel the mysteries of the island.
The gather was hosted by the local Soulseekers Paranormal Research Group, headed by Carolann Castro. Wearing various shirts that reflected their organization -- from the Central Valley Paranormal crew to the East Bay Paranormal Society -- the paranormal investigators met at the Mare Island Shoreline Heritage Preserve on the south end of the island.
The group explored various parts of the island, from the venerable Mare Island Cemetery to empty ammunitions bunkers and magazines scattered on the hillsides.
"If you're quiet and watch, you'll see a lot," Castro said.
Before the larger group broke off to explore the hidden nooks and crannies of Mare Island, Castro gave a quick example of what she believed was an intelligent spirit.
Castro and two other members of Soulseekers were exploring one of the many bunkers on the south shore of Mare Island when, inexplicably,

they felt a need to leave.
Castro wondered aloud why they had to leave and, after reviewing an audio recording they were making, realized they received an answer.
"Because I'm scared," said the voice on Castro's recorder, which she played for the group as an example of EVP, or electronic voice phenomenon.
Roberts also played an EVP recorded from a trip to Costa Rica, when a supposed spirit told him -- in Spanish -- to get off the grass.
As of press time Saturday, various investigators were still on the island.
Castro said she hadn't discovered any hard evidence -- yet. But something strange did happen.
"All my equipment shut down at the cemetery, and I couldn't turn on the camera. ... I walked down (away from the cemetery), and my camera was working," Castro said.