Those who travel along Ginninderra Drive, Charnwood, ACT, in the early hours of the morning may come across the local ghost.
Many have seen a man or woman, walking along the road, only to have the person stumble and disappear in front of their car or vanish in the rear vision mirror.
Many have seen a man or woman, walking along the road, only to have the person stumble and disappear in front of their car or vanish in the rear vision mirror.
A Roadside Ghost
Ginninderra Drive. Grinninderra Creek is a waterway that lazily winds it's way across the Grindinerra Plain and through the northern ACT and NSW border. Back in the 1800's the creek ran through a sheep station known as Grinninderra which is how the creek came by its name.
Reports of seeing a ghost along the stretch Grinninderra Drive that travels alongside the creek are quite easy to find. Generally a person will be travelling alone in the early hours of the morning when they will notice a person walking on the roadside. Usually the first thought is that it is someone walking home drunk from the pub but that is soon dismissed. One of two things quickly happen; either the figure will veer onto the road and dissappear infront of the car or once the car has passed the driver will look in the rear view mirror to find the figure is gone without a trace.
Also the sex of this spectre seems to change. At times it is described as a woman who looks to be dressed neck to toe in a white dress. At others a gentleman whose details are blurred as to make it hard to give an accurate description. Occasionally the figures upper half is not visible making for a very interesting scene indeed; a pair of legs casually strolling on the roadside!
The figure of a person has also been seen in the creek or standiung along side it. This apparition has been seen by people who use the walking track that follows the creek. On these occasions the figure is seen early in the morning after sunrise.
Reports of seeing a ghost along the stretch Grinninderra Drive that travels alongside the creek are quite easy to find. Generally a person will be travelling alone in the early hours of the morning when they will notice a person walking on the roadside. Usually the first thought is that it is someone walking home drunk from the pub but that is soon dismissed. One of two things quickly happen; either the figure will veer onto the road and dissappear infront of the car or once the car has passed the driver will look in the rear view mirror to find the figure is gone without a trace.
Also the sex of this spectre seems to change. At times it is described as a woman who looks to be dressed neck to toe in a white dress. At others a gentleman whose details are blurred as to make it hard to give an accurate description. Occasionally the figures upper half is not visible making for a very interesting scene indeed; a pair of legs casually strolling on the roadside!
The figure of a person has also been seen in the creek or standiung along side it. This apparition has been seen by people who use the walking track that follows the creek. On these occasions the figure is seen early in the morning after sunrise.
A Treacherous Crossing
Ginninderra Creek. Regardless of when or how it is viewed the spirit seems to be mainly seen along one stretch of the creek: between the footbridge just south of the Companion Cresent turnoff, through to Kingsford Smith Drive. It is here that back in the 1800's it is believed that a crossing over the creek was established. The crossing itself would have likely been a ford, a shallow part of the creek where horse, carts and even the more adventurous foot traffic may have crossed. For the most part the crossing would have been safe for that is the reason the location will have been chosen. However at other times when the creek was in flood the crossing was treacherous.
Some resources state that in the 1870's a young drover lost his footing in the creek and the flooded waters carried him near half a mile downstream where he was later found dead among some debris piled up in the waters.
Some resources state that in the 1870's a young drover lost his footing in the creek and the flooded waters carried him near half a mile downstream where he was later found dead among some debris piled up in the waters.
Footbridge while the creeks in flood. In the Bathurst Free Press and Mining Journal 21 Sep 1892 edition you can find four lines of print concerning the death of a Mr E.K. Crace, a squatter, and his coachman whom both drowned in the creek while making the crossing. A country journal printed three days later states that Mr Crace's body was recovered but makes no mention of the body of the coachman, perhaps it was never found?
There are some who believe the ghost is of one of the people drowned in the creek, others that it is maybe the spirit of a young man shot and killed by a constable after being mistakenly identified as the murderer of another police officer in 1903.
There are some who believe the ghost is of one of the people drowned in the creek, others that it is maybe the spirit of a young man shot and killed by a constable after being mistakenly identified as the murderer of another police officer in 1903.
Ashley Hall 2013
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