Scary ghost tour of haunted Q Station site where hundreds died leaves journalist spooked
MANLY Daily journalist Bryn Kay goes on the hunt for ghosts in some of the haunted buildings at Sydney’s Q Station. One room, in particular, left him with the chills.
With a loud thud, the door slams shut behind me.
Darkness and silence immediately fill the room, offset only by the faint sound of rain pattering on the roof above.
Aided by a limited amount of natural light coming through the ceiling windows, my eyes take a few seconds to adjust to the surroundings.
I canvass the room, looking for signs of life aside from the small specks of dust floating through the air in front of me.
Otherwise, there’s nothing.
Nothing but a dark corridor, made up of long-since used shower cubicles, that leads to the opposite end of the room.
I DON’T EVER WANT TO GO BACK: HARROWING GHOST HUNT
Contemplating my next move, I suddenly feel a sense of solitude I have never felt before.
But in this room, of all rooms, there’s a good reason why I may well be anything but alone.
That’s because this building, known as the shower block, is believed to be haunted.
It’s one of several spooky historical sites at North Head’s Quarantine Station which can be explored by booking through organised ghost tours.
For those who have never been to Q Station, or are unfamiliar with its background, this is a site that has a dark, depressing and also sad past.
As the name suggests, Q Station was used to quarantine people between 1833 and 1984.
The site was used to isolate new arrivals to Sydney who had, or were suspected of having, diseases carried over by boat from other countries.
Spanish influenza, smallpox and bubonic plague were among the deadly contagious diseases new arrivals potentially carried.
“This place was not just about coughs and colds,” my guide, Debra, says.
“It was about the hardcore, heavy-duty, highly infectious nasty diseases that could take you out in a couple of days.
“You could just imagine some of the sights ... if (only) these walls could talk.
“Many people died here in agony.”
In total, more than 13,000 people were quarantined at the site over the period it was used.
More than 500 are known to have died from disease.
Debra explains to me that the final, miserable days and hours for disease victims contributed to the negative energy that still haunts the site today. “There’s so many souls trapped here,” Debra says.
“You’ll find anywhere around the world where you get a location where there has been a great deal of suffering on a large scale ... they usually are haunted.
“And this place — I can tell you from my own experiences, as well as those of other people who worked here and things that have happened on tours, there is definitely something going on.”
Prior to visiting Q Station, I was slightly sceptical.
On a scale of one to 10, my belief in ghosts was about a four.
I was not quite as unconvinced as I was when I watched a giant marshmallow man strolling through New York City in Ghostbusters.
However, at the other end of the scale, it was not like watching The Blair Witch Project for the first time as a 14-year-old either.
As I slowly begin to walk through the lonely corridor of the shower block, I consider, with an open mind, the many stories and history that Debra has relayed to me.
Slowly edging towards the other side of the room, I begin to feel noticeably colder the further I go.
Then, the creaking starts — just as I’ve made it to the other end of the room.
While subtle, the noises are undeniable.
As I turn around, I swiftly pick up the pace, return to where I started, and burst out of the door to what feels like a heatwave outside in contrast to how my body felt inside.
While walking through the second half of the room, in particular, I can honestly say I felt as if I was being watched, almost stalked.
Debra offers up an explanation as to why I may have felt so uncomfortable in that back part of the room.
“There is ... a very dark entity,” she says.
“We don’t really have a name for him, but he’s a tall thin man. He wears a long black coat and wide-brimmed hat.
“He has been seen in the back corner and he’s quite intimidating.
“This guy loves to feel people’s fear. People have had many strange experiences in here.”
Sure, I may not have seen this ghost that apparently feeds off people’s fear — but I’m also not willing to rule out the ghost’s existence after that chilling, strange experience.
A morgue and hospital were among the other four buildings on the site that we visited, all of which sent a few tingles up and down the spine.
None, however, were as eerie as the shower block.
Q Station is known to have many ghosts lurking about, some more welcoming than others.
If, and how, they react to your presence is entirely up to them.
■ For details on the ghost tours go to qstation.com.au.
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