We love sharing the mystery of Fort Delaware with our community, so this year we brought back our ticket giveaway. It was our second time running it, and the response was incredible. Entries surged by 455% compared to last year, even after we removed duplicates. Thank you for showing up with such enthusiasm.
How we picked the winner
To keep things fair, we used NamePicker.net. We pasted in the verified entries, spun the virtual hat, and it selected one lucky winner.
Congratulations to Jayne from Frankford, Delaware
Please join us in congratulating Jayne, who won four tickets to the Paranormal Adventure Tour at Fort Delaware State Park on Friday, October 3, 2025. Jayne is excited to explore the Fort after dark, listen for whispers in the casemates, and experience the history that lingers in the brick and shadow.
Thank you to everyone who entered
Your interest and engagement mean the world to our team. If your name was not drawn, we still encourage you to grab tickets for the tours. This annual event raises funds for maintenance and restoration at historic Fort Delaware State Park, which means every ticket you purchase supports the Fort’s preservation.
Get your tickets
Tickets tend to go quickly, so make your plans now. Bring your curiosity, a good flashlight, comfortable shoes and someone who does not spook easily.
Entry window Opened Monday, September 14 at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) Closed Saturday, September 20 at 11:59 p.m. EST
Prize Four tickets to the Paranormal Adventure Tour at Fort Delaware State Park on Friday, October 3, 2025 at 9:30 p.m.
Eligibility
You must be 18 years or older to enter.
If you cannot attend the Friday, October 3 tour at 9:30 p.m., please do not enter.
One entry per person. Duplicate entries were removed before selection.
Selection process A single winner was chosen using a random name generator that processed all valid entries. The odds of winning depended on the total number of entries received.
Winner notification The winner is notified by email on Sunday, September 21, 2025.
Important tour information
The tour is recommended for ages 13 and up.
Fort Delaware is dark at night, bring a flashlight.
Wear comfortable, sturdy shoes, there is a lot of walking and the ground is uneven.
Fort Delaware sits on Pea Patch Island. You will travel on the Delafort Ferry with other guests.
Ferry cost is included with the tour tickets.
Tickets are non transferable and cannot be exchanged for another date or for cash value.
Thank you again to Jayne and to everyone who entered. We cannot wait to see you at Fort Delaware, where history keeps close company with the unknown.
Yesterday we met up as a team at the fabulous General Store in Rockwood. Coffee, laughter, and maps everywhere. It felt like the official turning of the key on spooky season. The air had that quiet September charge, the kind that makes an old floorboard think about speaking. Perfect.
Fort Delaware Is Calling
Fort Delaware Paranormal Adventure Tours are returning in less than a month. My boots are ready for Pea Patch Island, and so is my voice for telling you where not to step and to turn on your flashlight. Bring your curiosity, your courage, and your best listening ears. Do not wear stilettos, yes, that’s happened before. The Fort and its lingering inhabitants have many stories. We just help them talk.
A Secret Brewing
We are sitting on a special opportunity for our spooky-loving friends. We will announce it on social media next Sunday, September 14. Keep your eyes open. If your phone glitches right before the post, consider it a friendly nudge from the other side.
Helping a Local Family
A couple of our teammates discussed a recent walk-through with a family who reached out for help with unexplained experiences in their home. We focused on next steps, calm documentation, and keeping the household grounded. Compassion first, evidence second, fear as low as we can get it. That is how we have been trained to work: slow and steady, with the acknowledgement that nothing might happen when the family leaves the house and we go to investigate. That just means a repeat visit may be in order.
Adventures Beyond Delaware
We also kicked around ideas for investigations outside Delaware. History does not respect borders, and neither do hauntings. Members of our team are always scouting places with strong reports, good records, and night logistics that will not require a pact with a cranky vending machine. If you know a spot where the past still knocks after midnight, we are all ears.
New Faces, Same Heart
It was so good to see everyone. This meeting felt extra special because our five new teammates were with us. One joined by phone from overseas, which made me grin at the thought of DSGI becoming an international success. I kid. Kind of. What truly matters is the shared purpose. Curious minds, steady hands, and a healthy respect for the unknown.
The Sky Has Opinions
As I type, the sky is gloomy and the back deck is slick from a September rain. The looming blood moon lunar eclipse seems to be tugging at the edges of even our family pets. Something wicked this way comes. Luckily, our team has the chops to handle it. I believe we can do anything when we stick together.
See You on the Island
We investigate all year round, but there is something special about this season. The nights lean in. The stories feel closer. I hope to see you next month on Pea Patch Island for the Fort Delaware tours.
As I tiptoe into my house early Sunday morning, I wonder if my neighbors would consider this early Sunday morning entrance into my house, wearing the same clothes I had on since Saturday afternoon, as a “walk of shame.” Thankfully, most of my neighbors know who I am, and they appreciate my being quiet when I get home late.. er.. um early. See, when you are a paranormal investigator, there is no shame in coming home at the crack of dawn after a long night.
Pea Patch Island
This weekend I had the privilege of embarking on an adventure to a little place called Pea Patch Island on the Delaware River. Historians will know this location as the home to Fort Delaware, a concrete fortress constructed between 1848 and 1859 that once housed as many as 12,595 Confederate prisoners of war at one time. Although that’s not entirely accurate. The fort’s walls held only the “important” or high-ranking prisoners, while they confined the other prisoners to the barracks just outside the fort walls. Guests today see replicas of the barracks originally built in 1862. I’ve cleaned those barracks before. Dusted, windexed…burned some sage. No, they’d not let me back if I burned anything in that building.
So why did I head over to the island? For an overnight paranormal investigation, of course. This isn’t my first overnight; I participate yearly, which is amazing. I’m a member of the Diamond State Ghost Investigators (DSGI). Believer or not, there is a certain awesomeness to being part of a team looking to make sense of happenings that may seem unexplainable. When someone says their house or business is haunted, we are able to debunk nearly everything we encounter.
Fort Delaware, however, has had dozens of occurrences that we are unable to explain. Can I tell you with 100% certainty that it is haunted? No, because any proof I can provide would be circumstantial and subjective. Do I personally believe it is haunted? Hell yes! Let’s just say I believe there is a sort of “energy residue” left behind by thousands of people who spent time there during a traumatic part of US history, many.. of which did meet their demise on the island.
The investigation begins
We were ferried to Pea Patch Island a little after 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 8. The temperature on the island is significantly cooler than the mainland, but this turns out to be a good thing, as it keeps the mosquitoes and horse flies at bay. Nothing can be done about the creepy crawly centipedes and sprickets though. I call them sprickets; this is likely not the proper terminology, but they look like they are half spider and half cricket. They crawl, jump, climb walls, and are HUGE. They also really seem to like the dark. We are paranormal investigators, we spend a lot of time in the dark. We spend a lot of time with sprickets.
But we don’t head to the island to inspect the insects, we spend the night at the fort to capture paranormal evidence. While investigating the paranormal, our team sits in dark rooms and waits. And waits. And waits. We have dousing rods, K2 meters, Rem Pod, flashlights, laser grids, and thermal sensors. Some nights are slower than others. Last night, I felt we entertained the spirits more than they entertained us. We got into exhaustive discussions about Tiffany (the 80s artist “I Think We’re Alone Now”) which, believe it or not, did get a reaction from the spirits. The flashlights turned on and off on their own, and the K2 meters blipped.
A K2 meter measures electromagnetic fields typically from man-made things like electrical wiring. When we are at Fort Delaware, the only electricity we have is outside the fort walls. We ask that the park staff keeps the power on for the bathrooms. If the lights are out, it’s a very dark walk from the fort to the restrooms. This means that the K2 meters shouldn’t pick up on any activity. So when they do, we need to figure out why. Our cell phones, if on us, must be in airplane mode. We check all of these things before the investigation begins.
Nighttime paranormal activity
Last night, the island winds ranged between 12-15 mph. This means in some of the rooms, the windows really rattled. We took this into consideration throughout the night. Thankfully, there is a difference between a rattling window and someone dragging furniture across the floor, which we heard on the second floor above the kitchen after we threatened to play Tiffany. We heard the most activity while in the kitchen. This means our team did a lot of “Wait, did you hear that, is someone else out there!?” Or ” I saw something, right behind you, it moved in front of the flashlight for a second.” Basically, it’s an incredible experience with people who I adore.
There were footsteps outside the room and above us; there were also noises that sounded like something was being dragged across the floor. Throughout the night, each of us heard footsteps from our respective rooms. My friend Debbie and I were sleeping in the infirmary. I “slept” on a very hard, must-smelling cot covered with an itchy, red wool blanket. I was freezing cold but I managed to survive. Outside the infirmary is a metal staircase that can only be accessed by walking past the door where we were sleeping. By the time it was 2 a.m. and we heard footsteps on the stairs, it was very much a “Do you hear that?” and “Yup, but I’m tired.”
A couple of members from our group brought tents this year, but due to the wicked wind blowing last night, they told me that the nylon Hilton’s were not conducive to getting a peaceful night’s sleep either.
One adventure ends, but another always awaits
In the morning, when I simply could not lay on the cot (in the fetal position for warmth) any further more, I got up and attempted to thaw in the Visitor’s Center. When we were informed that a boat was coming for us, I had enough feeling in my toes to make the 150+ yard walk to the dock.
Fort Delaware is a place steeped in untold stories. Each time we visit, we know that we have merely scratched the surface, leaving behind the allure of another haunting adventure and the knowledge that another chapter awaits.
Get your tickets now
For those interested in participating in a paranormal investigation at Fort Delaware, we host them alongside Delaware State Park staff every Friday and Saturday in October.
The proceeds from these tours go towards maintaining the state park.
