There are two issues here: the first is that sometime between Marcus C. Wright’s death and Bill Barnes’ acquisition, the castle was at one time a brothel and gambling casino.  The second issue is more serious.  The plane crash that killed three of the Barnes family has never been properly explained, and the investigation of the crash is still open.

With its history, it would be surprising if the castle did not have spirits.  Lisa Barnes, who lived there as a child, believes the castle is truly an entity, with its energy deriving from the structure being made of solid rock, with materials all from the surrounding area.  Wright, the man who actually created the castle, was building his own dream.  And the rock is granite, Lisa adds, which vibrates at a very low frequency and has accumulated its history over time, both positive and negative.

Lisa is a Sensitive, or Medium, and has been aware of a multitude of spirits around the castle.  As a child, she often heard footsteps along the long hallway from the garage into the house, though no one visible was there.  In fact, guests staying in the lower bedrooms adjacent to the hall, complained to her parents about the noise that disturbed their sleeping.  Another annoyance was a spirit dog whose nails clicked on the terrazzo floor and whose panting would awaken Lisa.

Following the airplane crash, the castle was on the market for four years, with several interested buyers.  But Lisa found it disturbing that these potential owners were interested in the land only, and planned to scrap the castle and rebuild.  Then Mike Dunafon and Debbie Matthews found the estate, and it was the castle that they wanted, and wished to restore.  Soon after, Lisa encountered the spirit of her mother who assured her that they were the right people to own it.  With its many unsolved mysteries, the Dunafon Castle is among the greatest Denver haunted houses.

Come Halloween time in Colorado, we are really lucky to have so many great attractions to visit.  With there being so many haunted houses to choose from we have decided to give some direction on the top ones to visit.  There isn’t anything fun about waiting in line and being disappointed once you finally make it through the house.  If you can’t tell we’ve done it more times than we’d have liked to so we’ve rated Denver’s top 3 haunted houses.

1.) The Asylum (303-355-3327)

Located at 120th & I-25, the Asylum offers a  Before entering the haunt, everyone waiting in line gets to stare down the creepy facade of a creepy busted down old Asylum. Once inside, this place seriously looks like you might imagine a real Asylum might look if it were taken over by some evil inmates. The use of lighting was great to add to the suspense.  It’s scare factor is intense and is quite lengthy which makes the Asylum one of our top Denver haunted houses.

2.) 13th Floor (303-355-FEAR)

Located at 6100 E. 39th Ave in Denver, the 13th Floor is one of the most affordable haunted houses for its length.  We were extremely excited with the news of adding more space to the haunted house even though it was already one of the largest in the area.  The 13th Floor is a must see in Colorado, especially with the planned 2009 additions!  I don’t think there are better actors in the Denver area and the attention to detail in the house makes the 13th Floor in the top 3 Denver haunted houses.

3.) Frightmare (303-439-7391)

Located at 108th and Old Wadsworth, Frightmare is one of the best outdoor haunted attractions in Denver.  Although the price is lower than the average haunted houses in Denver, it’s not limited on scares!  After you leave this place you won’t want to walk alone outside again.  The actors are pretty good and the setting is even better! This haunted house brings 25 years of experience and was named 2008 Best outdoor Haunt.  Your Halloween won’t be complete without visiting Frightmare.

Make sure you check out all of these haunted houses so you don’t miss out of Denver’s scariest attractions.  If you can’t make all 3 this fall, I wouldn’t want to be the one who has to choose which of these 3 you miss!