Plagued by severe weather, dangerous outlaws, and treacherous terrain, the Wild West has long been the source of lore. The storied past of the Grand Canyon is no exception. From tragic tales of romance gone wrong, to spooky stories of eccentric early settlers, be sure to check out these famous ghost hunting locations on your next Grand Canyon tour.

Built in 1905, the El Tovar Hotel is the oldest remaining inn on the rim of the Grand Canyon. When the hotel opened, it was operated by proprietor Fred Harvey and his famous Harvey Girls. It’s said that Harvey roams the third floor to this day, especially during the holiday season. Many guests have told chilling tales of being invited to the hotel’s Christmas Party by a man who disappears into thin air.

Built only a few weeks before the El Tovar Hotel, Hopi House was designed as a living museum to pay tribute to local tribes. Today it’s a must-see gallery and gift shop for visitors to the canyon’s South Rim.

The construction of Hopi House was evidently a disruption to the locals’ way of life. Since it opened, there have been many reports of mischievous poltergeists causing a ruckus in the building. Employees have mentioned incidents of computers turning off randomly, plus displays being thrown onto the floor at will.

During the Great Depression, Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to make new jobs for unemployed Americans. The work program helped improve many of our National Parks, including the Grand Canyon.

One CCC worker fell to his death while installing railings at Maricopa Point along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. To this day, visitors have reported seeing a shadowy black figure at sunset, along with hearing mysterious sounds of a shovel scraping against the pavement.

Brothers Emery and Ellsworth Kolb built their home on the edge of the South Rim, offering a fantastic canyon backdrop for the early photographs and films they captured. They were known to be eccentric, especially Emery. Relatives claim that Emery loved to scare guests by arranging a real human skeleton on their dining room table.

Today Kolb Studio is a museum celebrating the brothers’ lives. While no ghosts have been reported there (yet!), the quirky relics on display may trigger an unnerving feeling in even the most skeptical visitors.

In 1956, two passenger airplanes collided in midair over the Grand Canyon, killing everyone on board. It is thought to be one of the worst air disasters of all time.

Hikers who camp in Crash Canyon have reported seeing ghosts on nearby trails, as well as hearing cries for help. Others have seen eerie lights floating along the rim of the canyon, where it’s too steep for mortal humans to venture.

A natural phenomenon sends air from the Grand Canyon more than sixty miles west into underground caves known as the namesake Grand Canyon Caverns. For centuries, the site was home to Native American burials, and visitors have reported hearing whispering sounds and tribal shadows dancing along the cavern walls. Others have seen the ghost of Walter Peck, the cowboy who gave the caverns their name in 1927.

The historic Grand Canyon Lodge is located along the North Rim. Legend states that a woman committed suicide here in the 1920s, after learning about the tragic hiking accident that resulted in the death of her husband and son. She’s often seen wandering the grounds in a ghostly white dress with blue flowers.

Scenic Airlines is the largest and most experienced aerial tour operator in the world. Founded in 1967, the company showcases the most impressive landscapes of America’s National Parks, specializing in Grand Canyon air tours. For more info, visit Scenic.com or call 800-634-6801.

Slide 3 [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons Slide 6 By Grand Canyon National Park [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons Slide 7 By National Park Service (National Park Service photo, as retrieved from [1]) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons Slide 8 By Solarapex [CC BY-SA 2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/)] , via Wikimedia Commons