It’s Halloween, time for a scary story. .And do I have one for you..You may or may not believe in ghosts, that’s fine. Personally, I’m not sure what to believe but a part of me thinks that these things do happen..And when they do it can be a terrifying experience..This one came from a buddy of mine, who is/was a professional photojournalist..One of the best, in fact. A guy you could depend on, when you needed good art from the Flames game, on the sports front on a Saturday night..He saved me more than once..But for the purposes of this column, let’s call him Scott. It’s best not to reveal any real names here..This was a few years back and happened just north of Calgary, before there was even a CrossIron Mills mall. It was still empty prairie..Scott and a bunch of his buddies had just picked up a case of beer and were looking for an isolated, out-of-the-way place to have a few brewskies on a hot August night..They drove around just west of Balzac, found a gate and an empty field and pulled off, under a beautiful starry night. They didn’t mean to cause any trouble — it was just Scott and two buddies..They got out and sat in the back of the pickup truck, having a nice cold one, shooting the breeze on a gorgeous warm night, the smell of the field permeating the night..In other words, Alberta at its best..But what would happen next would last a lifetime..Scott suddenly noticed something odd — an uninvited guest was sitting next to him in the pickup bed!.It was the visage — let’s call it that for now — of a young, sad-looking girl, dressed in a period dress out of the 1800s..Instinctively, Scott and his buddies jumped out of the truck like scared rabbits, everybody scattered..Suddenly, this visage of a young prairie girl disappeared, only to reappear in the field standing next to Scott..What the hell, he thought, I’ll try to communicate..Scott, being ever the brave one, walked up to the visage..“Who are you? What do you want?”.The visage would only look on, sadly, her long hair floating in the wind, which may have been real or imagined..Scott was reaching out his hand to her when he heard the engine on his pickup revving loudly..The buddies were terrified, wanting to leave now!.They were screaming at him: “Get in or we’re leaving you!”.Scott had no choice — he jumped into the pickup bed, as they roared off, the wheels spitting dirt into the air..Scott remembers seeing her sad face as they drove away..As strange as this story sounds, it didn’t end there..One year later, Scott was on a hiking trail in K-Country..By chance, he met another group of hikers, a nice young couple. They sat and chatted about nothing in particular until, for some reason, the subject came to ghosts..The couple said they had the most amazing ghost story to tell..They were driving near Balzac, in a thunderstorm, when … to their shock, they thought they saw a young girl with long hair and an old-fashioned dress, walking through a field..Scott froze in fear, at those words — it brought everything back..They searched for her, they said, fearing she needed help, but never found her..Scott swore, the whole thing is true. The beer, the Balzac field, the girl, the hikers. All of it..And not for a minute would I doubt him..I’ll be honest. I’ve experienced some fairly odd things in my life but I have never actually seen a ghost..And in some ways, I envy Scott. This kind of stuff fascinates me..Who was this girl? Was she part of a ranching family? Why was her spirit so unsettled, that she had to wander. And why Balzac?.We will never know..I actually know the exact spot where this happened and visited it on a warm summer night with my daughter Rica and her friend Stephanie, but all we saw were some curious cattle, no ghosts..Sounds crazy, but I hope her spirit is now at rest. Or is it?.Dave Makichuk is a Western Standard contributor. .,He has worked in the media for decades, including as an editor for the Calgary Herald. He is also the military editor for the Asia Times.,.makichukd@gmail.com
It’s Halloween, time for a scary story. .And do I have one for you..You may or may not believe in ghosts, that’s fine. Personally, I’m not sure what to believe but a part of me thinks that these things do happen..And when they do it can be a terrifying experience..This one came from a buddy of mine, who is/was a professional photojournalist..One of the best, in fact. A guy you could depend on, when you needed good art from the Flames game, on the sports front on a Saturday night..He saved me more than once..But for the purposes of this column, let’s call him Scott. It’s best not to reveal any real names here..This was a few years back and happened just north of Calgary, before there was even a CrossIron Mills mall. It was still empty prairie..Scott and a bunch of his buddies had just picked up a case of beer and were looking for an isolated, out-of-the-way place to have a few brewskies on a hot August night..They drove around just west of Balzac, found a gate and an empty field and pulled off, under a beautiful starry night. They didn’t mean to cause any trouble — it was just Scott and two buddies..They got out and sat in the back of the pickup truck, having a nice cold one, shooting the breeze on a gorgeous warm night, the smell of the field permeating the night..In other words, Alberta at its best..But what would happen next would last a lifetime..Scott suddenly noticed something odd — an uninvited guest was sitting next to him in the pickup bed!.It was the visage — let’s call it that for now — of a young, sad-looking girl, dressed in a period dress out of the 1800s..Instinctively, Scott and his buddies jumped out of the truck like scared rabbits, everybody scattered..Suddenly, this visage of a young prairie girl disappeared, only to reappear in the field standing next to Scott..What the hell, he thought, I’ll try to communicate..Scott, being ever the brave one, walked up to the visage..“Who are you? What do you want?”.The visage would only look on, sadly, her long hair floating in the wind, which may have been real or imagined..Scott was reaching out his hand to her when he heard the engine on his pickup revving loudly..The buddies were terrified, wanting to leave now!.They were screaming at him: “Get in or we’re leaving you!”.Scott had no choice — he jumped into the pickup bed, as they roared off, the wheels spitting dirt into the air..Scott remembers seeing her sad face as they drove away..As strange as this story sounds, it didn’t end there..One year later, Scott was on a hiking trail in K-Country..By chance, he met another group of hikers, a nice young couple. They sat and chatted about nothing in particular until, for some reason, the subject came to ghosts..The couple said they had the most amazing ghost story to tell..They were driving near Balzac, in a thunderstorm, when … to their shock, they thought they saw a young girl with long hair and an old-fashioned dress, walking through a field..Scott froze in fear, at those words — it brought everything back..They searched for her, they said, fearing she needed help, but never found her..Scott swore, the whole thing is true. The beer, the Balzac field, the girl, the hikers. All of it..And not for a minute would I doubt him..I’ll be honest. I’ve experienced some fairly odd things in my life but I have never actually seen a ghost..And in some ways, I envy Scott. This kind of stuff fascinates me..Who was this girl? Was she part of a ranching family? Why was her spirit so unsettled, that she had to wander. And why Balzac?.We will never know..I actually know the exact spot where this happened and visited it on a warm summer night with my daughter Rica and her friend Stephanie, but all we saw were some curious cattle, no ghosts..Sounds crazy, but I hope her spirit is now at rest. Or is it?.Dave Makichuk is a Western Standard contributor. .,He has worked in the media for decades, including as an editor for the Calgary Herald. He is also the military editor for the Asia Times.,.makichukd@gmail.com