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Standing stark against the moonlight sky, Brimms Castle is a spookey place and rightly so for it is here that the spectre of a Grey Lady can be seen in the gallery above the door to the Castle of the Brimms family. In October 2006 Cinema For Thurso Group visited the site to explore and seek out the ghost of Brimms- Result: nothing! But we got some creepy pictures from the location and we will be returning with the Caithness Ghost Hunters this coming winter.
The tower to the left is part of the original castle and contains a vaulted chamber, well, and spiral staircase (a key ingrediant for a haunted house). The dark area in the middle is the gallery and hallway.
The front of the house dates from the 1800s but the rest of the castle is around 400 years old. The wooden floors and most of the roof have failed but inside there are still plenty of interesting corners.
A team member waits for nothing to happen observing the gallery. The hallway also has a stair with a space underneath. The gallery is where the Grey Lady appears but is later in date so there must have been some other structure here before.
Holy Moly! Inside the castle up in the gallery. There were a number of attempts to get the presence to reveal itself but to no avail. It was clear however that we were not alone. Electro-static levels in the house were very high.
Two views of the gallery. The gallery and rooms to the left are 1800s build whilst the original castle structure is to the right but our survey of the site suggests there was something of the original to the left. The 1800s house may well have been built from the older building. There is evidence of more structures to the farm side of the building with a high wall and impressive arch doorway to the north side. The castle sits in a little bay with a natural harbour and an ancient chappel and cemetary a short distance away.
Whilst standing on the 1800s stair looking to the gallery, the hairs on the neck started to rise but still we saw nothing. That said we felt we were being observed! To the right is a door onto the old spiral stair case.
In the spiral stair which goes up to the open sky, here looking back into the gallery. A door to the left enters into the first floor of the original castle. The vault and well are on the ground floor.
Underneath the 1800s stair is this small opening. Whilst it doesn't lead anywhere, spaces like this in old houses and castles often hide little dark secrets. This space being right next to the original spiral stair is likely to have an untold story!
COMMON SENSE: Brimms Castle is a listed building at risk and a dangerous structure. It is situated next to a working farm and is privately owned. In Scotland you are free to explore places like this but must respect the property you are on. Don't cause disturbance to residents or livestock, Don't open ant gates, Don't take anything away with you, Don't damage any of the property, You are at all times subject to the laws of Scotland - and it's penalties! If you don't spoil it, it will be there for everyone to enjoy. Above all YOU ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK and we suggest that you LET THE OWNERS KNOW THAT YOU ARE THERE.
BONUS PICTURES!
The driveway of Castlehill House, home of the Traill family of Rattar. The house was built on the site of a castle in the 1700s but was burnt down in 1973. There is haunting activity in the vaults to the rear of where the house stood. A sinister presence exists there. In the grounds of the overgrown gardens are "people" possibly estate workers from the past but also likely to be military personal from World War II. Within the grounds either side of the drive can be seen the foundations of wartime buildings which were demolished in the 1970s. To the west of the house was the Square, a range of estate buildings and houses with it's own destict 'ambiance'.
It's amazing what turns up in a random image. Outside of shot a collegue has just exhailed cigarette smoke (SMOKING and SECONDARY SMOKING KILLS) just as this picture was taken. If you can't see it from where you sit, stand up and move back about 3 steps. This photo was taken in November 2006 at the Cemetary Bridge (whats left of it after the flood) on Thurso river.
(c) 2006 JS
