pics called news - lowther grounds. Please credit Yew Avenue to Val Corbett

pic called news - joe jackson in september 25

SPOOKY sightings in the gardens of Lowther Castle have led to the creation of a new ‘ghost walk’ in the grounds.

Local historian Joe Jackson and a team of paranormal groups spent a night investigating reports of ghostly activity at Lowther.

Following a night of mysterious noises and spine-tingling sights Mr Jackson and the team pronounced the castle and grounds ‘very haunted’.

For years visitors have reported hearing children’s voices and feeling ‘a horrible sensation’ at the Iris Garden and old garden shed in the woodland.

One even reported seeing the figure of a lady with a little girl, and was left ‘really shaken’ by the experience.

“People reported these experiences to us so often we decided to get Joe to investigate,” said castle supervisor Heather James.

“One of the reports is of repeated loud bangs – which I hear when I work late and it’s enough to make me stand up, thinking that someone is trying to get in.”

During the trial event the team reported hearing ‘mysterious loud bangs’ from the office and staircase.

Mr Jackson said the majority of the paranormal activity was centred in the grounds at Yew Avenue, Scented Gardens and Japanese Garden, where the group saw ‘lights flashing and floating through the trees’.

He added: “Myself and two others saw a misty figure shape in the yew windshield and at one point a couple of the men were witnessed to be followed a short distance by a floating light.

“During all the incidents all the team members were accounted for and after some reconstructive experiments we concluded that it could not have been a person with a torch as that looked completely different to what we had seen.”

Lowther Castle is now planning to start holding regular late night ghost walks, with the next one expected to be held in time for Halloween.