Is the Haunted Walk Of Ottawa actually scary?
The number of bodies buried beneath Ottawa's downtown core may surprise you.
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It definitely surprised me when I signed up for a Haunted Walk of Ottawa tour on a recent evening. It was one of those perfect early-summer evenings when our city is at its best, with the setting sun casting a golden glow on the historic limestone buildings surrounding the National War Memorial.
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Our group of seven on this particular walk consisted of a young couple from Ukraine and a family of three from South Africa, the dad being in town on business, plus me and an adventurous friend. Our guide was Caroline, a storyteller with a flair for the dramatic who wore the Haunted Walk's trademark long, black cloak and carried a battery-powered lantern.
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The tours take place almost every evening. Because this one was an early-week booking, between Monday and Wednesday, each of us saved $5 on the usual cost of $29.99 per person. Even if you don't have a ghost-busting bone in your body, it's well worth it, not only for the historical content, but also for a fresh perspective on a part of the city we residents often take for granted.
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We started at the old Central Post Office at the east end of Sparks Street and learned that the ground underneath the street was once a cemetery. Most of the remains were relocated when the area was redeveloped, but it's almost certain that some of the bodies are still there, all but forgotten except, perhaps, on dark and stormy full-moon nights.
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Leaving the restless souls of Sparks Street behind, the tour continued across the street. Our next stop was the grand memorial to Canada's war efforts and another gravesite, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. We paused for a moment to pay our respects to the thousands of Canadians killed during wartime.
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As we strolled between sites, several other groups of Haunted Walkers filed back to the starting point, most of them students on school trips trailing behind their own black-cloaked tour guide.
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Glen Shackleton, founder and CEO of the Ottawa-based business, said the school trips were helping to fill the calendar until the summer tourists started to make plans. Tourism in Ottawa has been on a comeback since the COVID-19 shutdown five years ago.
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'It's been a slow start for tourism in general in Ottawa this year,' Shackleton said, 'but, honestly, I think that has more to do with the weather than anything. It's been pretty unusual, the inhospitable weather, but we're optimistic for a very good summer and fall.'
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