Examining folkloric, paranormal & cryptozoological locations in the UK and beyond
Old woodcut of a wizard riding an oversized cat.
Location: Loch of Skene (Aberdeenshire) - Waters of the loch
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A local wizard, Alexander Skene, once froze the waters of the loch so he could take a short cut home.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2004-09-22
Last updated: 2004-09-22
ID: #5484
Location: Loch Skene (Aberdeenshire) - General area
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A local villain, Alex was drowned by Old Nick as he tried to cross the waters of the loch in his horse-drawn carriage. The same coach still travels the surrounding countryside, driven by its dead master. The same area is also 'haunted' by a large hairy monster, apparently once photographed from a distance.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2003-03-15
Last updated: 2003-03-15
ID: #4004
Location: Lower Deeside (Aberdeenshire) - Baldarroch Farm
Type: Legend - Old Nick
Date / Time: Circa mid-eighteenth century
Further Comments: Local cunning man Adam Donald visited this farm after the devil moved in, throwing divots at the family and causing kitchen utensils to dance (what would now be seen as poltergeist activity). Donald's use of the arcane arts ensured peace returned to the household.
Source:
Historical Record
First added: 2023-11-19
Last updated: 2023-11-19
ID: #15179
Location: Lumphanan (Aberdeenshire) - Craigievar Castle, Blue Room
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1980s
Further Comments: This unnamed member of the Gordon family is believed to have fallen to his death from a bedroom window, and now haunts that room. A much more selective shade is a fiddler who drowned on the site - he only appears to people named Forbes.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2002-09-09
Last updated: 2002-09-09
ID: #2403
Location: Mintlaw (Aberdeenshire) - Woods near The Beaches
Type: ABC
Date / Time: Late 2006
Further Comments: Local man James Maskame watched a large black cat-like creature leave the woods before running across nearby farmland. This is just one of several in the area, where local media have dubbed the cat 'The Beast of Buchan'.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2006-12-12
Last updated: 2006-12-12
ID: #7068
Location: Muchalls (Aberdeenshire) - Road between Muchalls and Stonehaven
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1968
Further Comments: While sitting in their car one morning, a couple watched a glowing figure floating around one metre off the ground. The entity suddenly vanished.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2021-01-12
Last updated: 2021-01-12
ID: #14047
Location: Muir Of Fowlis (Aberdeenshire) - Old Manse, Lynturk
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Pre 1988
Further Comments: Described as non-sinister by three witnesses in the local press, this house was reported to be haunted by a naked figure seen moving from the bathroom to a bedroom.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2025-09-09
Last updated: 2025-09-09
ID: #16071
Location: Muiryfold (Aberdeenshire) - Delgatie Castle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Twentieth century
Further Comments: This woman, possessing vivid red hair, takes delight in making people jump.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2003-02-18
Last updated: 2003-02-18
ID: #3883
Location: Oldmeldrum (Aberdeenshire) - Meldrum House Hotel
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Only appearing in front of children, this pale shade walks the hotel.
Source:
User Submission
First added: 2005-02-20
Last updated: 2005-02-20
ID: #5864
Location: Peterhead (Aberdeenshire) - River Ugie by Inverugie Castle
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Having seen a big black horse grazing on the banks of the Ugie, a local man was warned that it was a kelpie. He found a 'waith-horse' bridle and managed to control the creature, setting it free once it had carried enough stones to make a bridge over the river.
Source:
Historical Record
First added: 2013-01-05
Last updated: 2013-01-05
ID: #11247
Robin. copyright Phil Willis.
Location: Pitcaple (Aberdeenshire) - Pitcaple Castle
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Prior to death in the owner's family
Further Comments: To find a robin perched within the castle walls is considered the ultimate in misfortune, as it denotes a family death.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2003-05-31
Last updated: 2003-05-31
ID: #4297
Location: Portsoy (Aberdeenshire) - Private residence near the town
Type: Post-Mortem Manifestation
Date / Time: 21 November 1995, between 19:00h-20:00h
Further Comments: While in their room, this witness could detect the smell of a weapon being fired. The hairs on the back of their neck suddenly sprung up and they had the overwhelming urge to leave the room. The following day the witness discovered a close friend had died the previous night in a shooting accident.
Source:
User Submission
First added: 2010-12-31
Last updated: 2010-12-31
ID: #10092
Location: River Don (Aberdeenshire) - Waters of the river
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Once a year
Further Comments: Once a year, the water monster lurking beneath the river demanded two human sacrifices to prevent it from attacking the local neighbourhood.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2004-09-14
Last updated: 2004-09-14
ID: #5416
Location: Stonehaven (Aberdeenshire) - Muchalls Castle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This woman fell into the sea while helping her smuggler boyfriend, dying as her body was tossed around by high waves on the rocks. Her ghost is found in the nearby castle which is connected to the water by a secret passage.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2003-02-18
Last updated: 2003-02-18
ID: #3886
An old postcard of Stonehaven.
Location: Stonehaven (Aberdeenshire) - Sea
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: October 1898
Further Comments: A skipper of a fishing boat reported seeing a creature which resembled an upturned boat with fins and a small hump. The visible part of the body was some 68 feet (21 metres) long, although the tail was not visible, and while resembling a whale, the skipper said the head was much flatter than a whale.
Source:
Historical Record
First added: 2016-11-18
Last updated: 2016-11-18
ID: #12307
Location: Stonehaven (Aberdeenshire) - Sea near Dunnottar Castle
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Late September or early October 1906
Further Comments: A large crowd witnessed a huge, brown creature in the sea. Short fins could be seen emerging from the water and the creature, some 46 metres long, moved at around six miles per hour.
Source:
Historical Record
First added: 2022-02-16
Last updated: 2022-02-16
ID: #14405
Location: Strathdon (Aberdeenshire) - Luib Bridge, Corgaff (prior to bridge being rebuilt)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Prior to 1830
Further Comments: A man riding home to his sick wife was stopped when he reached a collapsed bridge. A tall figure appeared and offered to carry the man across the river. Desperate to reach home, the man agreed, although halfway across the river the tall figure transformed into a kelpie and tried to drown his passenger. The man managed to fight the kelpie off and made it to the opposite bank, narrowly avoiding a boulder thrown by the angered kelpie.
Source:
Historical Record
First added: 2016-04-23
Last updated: 2016-04-23
ID: #12148
Location: Strichen (Aberdeenshire) - Deep pool near Braco Farm (likely to no longer exist)
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Faced with crossing a flooded stream by foot, one man spotted a black horse nearby and mounted it. Unfortunately, the horse was a kelpie, and dived into the deepest part of the stream, drowning the man. On another occasion, the kelpie took the form of an old man, only revealing its true form when bashed on the head (not a recommended procedure to determine whether someone is really a kelpie).
Source:
Historical Record
First added: 2013-01-05
Last updated: 2013-01-05
ID: #11248
Location: Tariff (Aberdeenshire) - Private flat in Carpenters Croft
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1984
Further Comments: The owner and three friends who were staying overnight heard footsteps walking along the landing followed by hammering in the spare room - nothing was found upon investigation. A short time later, one of the guests reported feeling someone sit at the base of her bed, though when she looked nothing could be seen.
Source:
User Submission
First added: 2006-09-03
Last updated: 2006-09-03
ID: #6956
Location: Tarland (Aberdeenshire) - Tomnaverie stone circle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: July 1992
Further Comments: Two people sleeping in a car at a field adjacent to the circle both woke suddenly as a cloaked and hooded figure passed by their window. The dark entity quickly vanished, and although the witnesses looked around, nothing more could be found.
Source:
User Submission
First added: 2006-08-27
Last updated: 2006-08-27
ID: #6946
Location: Towie, Alford (Aberdeenshire) - Dabrossach - road in the area
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown, but pre twentieth century
Further Comments: A farmer returning home watched a small child cross the road ahead of him. As he spoke the words 'poor thing', the child vanished. The farmer was convinced that someone (or something) had tried to cause him harm.
Source:
Historical Record
First added: 2019-05-01
Last updated: 2019-05-01
ID: #13187
Location: Westhill (Aberdeenshire) - Brimmond Hill
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 12 February 1643
Further Comments: A great army appeared here in the morning mist, one witness watching it until both mist and men vanished in the sunlight.
Source:
Historical Record
First added: 2013-01-06
Last updated: 2013-01-06
ID: #11261
Location: Whitehills (Aberdeenshire) - Red Well Road
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: 1 January 1990
Further Comments: A sixteen year old boy was terrified by the ghost of an old woman who walked straight through him. As he ran back home, the spirit kept pace with him, and passed through him a second time. Soon after reaching home and going to bed, the teenager woke up choking, only to see a black cloud drift out of his bedroom window.
Source:
Published Media
First added: 2004-08-13
Last updated: 2004-08-13
ID: #5305