Unveiling Eerie True Tales With The Haunted Bay in SF
Ying Liu, owner of The Haunted Bay – photo by Vita Hewitt
We’ve discussed this… I’m a scaredy cat and I even get pretty jumpy inside not-so-scary haunted houses. However, I love a great ghost story and The Haunted Bay knows of most all of the ghosts hidden in the dark corners here. Haunted Bay is the brainchild of Ying Liu who has made it their mission to uncover the hidden phantoms that lurk in the shadows of the Bay Area. Currently Haunted Bay hosts two tours. One tour is at Cal Berkeley and another is in SF’s Chinatown. This past week, my friend and I went on a tour with Ying to learn about her and more about The Haunted Bay.
Inside The Great Star Theater – photo by Vita Hewitt
What can you expect from a Haunted Bay Tour?
For our eerie adventure with Ying and The Haunted Bay, we headed over to Chinatown to see if we could spot any ghosts and learn all of the twisted tales of the area. We gathered at The Great Star Theater, which holds a multitude of ghostly tales. These stories range from a woman in white lurking in the downstairs bathroom (who may watch you while you pee), to a shadowy mobster who peers down from the balcony. Each story provides a chilling glimpse into the theater’s ominous history.
During my Haunted Bay tour I learned that The Condor is another ghostly spot – photo by Vita Hewitt
“The Haunted Bay offers the Berkeley Haunted Hike and the San Francisco Ghost Tour. On the Berkeley Haunted Hike, we first walk across campus and then we go into the grounds where I take people into some very creepy dark areas such as scary decrepit buildings with ghost stories. Some people have found this too creepy! The Haunted Bay San Francisco Ghost Tour takes place in North Beach and Chinatown and we will take people to places where we actually filmed paranormal investigations. We will tell them what happened to us and show them some of our findings. We are hoping to also get guests inside a very haunted location,” explains Ying.
The Bathroom in The Great Star Theater is just ONE of the haunted spots inside – photo by Vita Hewitt
After the theater, we ventured into other parts of Chinatown and North Beach where Ying would outline other places nearby that had legendarily eerie stories in their history. Ying’s love for ghost stories is evident in the way she talks about the history of the spaces we visited. There are a ton of spooky stories here to tell over a summery campfire for sure but the stories that Ying tells are her own. This makes her tours much more eerie and interesting. She actually conducted several paranormal investigations with The Alameda Paranormal Researchers and on her tour she outlines exactly what happened during her investigations.
Who is Ying Liu of Haunted Bay?
In short, Ying Liu is a paranormal legend. During our walk, we stumbled upon another random ghost tour. The guide gasped with excitement when they saw Ying. “I forgot what I was saying because I’m so starstruck,” they said to their group. Ying’s tales have become legendary in The Bay, where enthusiasts of the supernatural frequently turn to Ying’s discoveries. In particular, they draw inspiration from the content available on Ying’s YouTube channel for Haunted Bay Area.
Ying, owner of The Haunted Bay & local legend – photo by Vita Hewitt
Ying’s always been interested in the paranormal. Truly ever since her Mom would tell her ghost stories as a kiddo. “I grew up with ghost stories. My mother always told me ghost stories and we watched scary movies together. Then when she passed away unexpectedly, I really got into the paranormal because I wanted to know if she was still around somewhere. I found a psychic medium, June Ahern, who was able to tell me things about my mother and I that no one could know. She also told me things about my family that I didn’t even know. I had to confirm what she said by asking relatives in Asia,” Ying told me.
Her Youtube series gives you a taste of what you can expect from her tours:
Our journey through the eerie corners of The Bay was an unforgettable adventure. I have a ton of new ghost stories to tell my friends thanks to Ying’s tour. My favorite may have been the story of the man who died in The Condor in the most mysterious and bizarre way – by being smashed upwards by a piano?! Prepare for a hauntingly good time with Ying and her team at Haunted Bay Area – uncovering the chilling mysteries lurking within the heart of The Bay.
Where can folks find you online?
Facebook: @thehauntedbay
IG: @thehauntedbay
TikTok: @thehauntedbay
Website: www.thehauntedbay.com
From The Haunted Bay Berkeley tour – photo from Haunted Bay
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