Haunted Patterson Road in Houston, Texas, is next to Bear Creek Park between Highway 6 and Eldridge Road. [Google Maps: Patterson Road - Bear Creek Park]

It follows the route used by Civil War soldiers who fought in a battle that took place in the southeastern quadrant of Bear Creek Park. According to folklore, those soldiers’ ghosts still march along Patterson Road at night.  If you stop on the road, they’ll tap on your car.

This area was once a farming community of German immigrants and their descendants. Today, it is part of Addicks Reservoir and Bear Creek Pioneers Park, in Harris County, Houston.

There are two bridges on Patterson Road by Bear Creek Park. One is Langham Creek Bridge, near Eldridge Road. The other is Bear Creek Bridge, closer to Highway 6.

Bear Creek Bridge isn’t supposed to be haunted. I disagree. In daylight, it’s vastly more “eerie feeling” than the other bridge on Patterson Road.

In May 2005, using the “sparkles” camera, we saw visible anomalies at the Bear Creek bridge and none at Langham Creek.

(It can’t be a street light, but it could be a bug. We’ll take more photos in May 2006.)

We paused on that bridge as well, testing the “tapping Civil War soldiers” legend.

With my car windows open, I heard three rapid, distinct and clear taps on the car, immediately below my outside mirror. They sounded like metal on metal, similar to my car antenna tapping the vehicle roof when I’m driving on a very bumpy road.

If that was anything ghostly, it didn’t sound unearthly.

I have no explanation for the tapping, since the car window was fully open and I could see the side of the car easily.

In fact, I looked out to see what the noise was as soon as the first tap caught my attention. I saw nothing unusual at all: No insects, no animals, and nothing brushing against the car.

It was too loud to be the car or the bridge settling. I was in the driver’s seat, so my door was towards the center of the bridge, and there was no likelihood of shrubbery, vines, or branches hitting the car, either.

Generally, paranormal encounters are unlike anything ‘normal.’  In this case, it took me awhile to accept that something so loud (and apparently mundane) had been ghostly.

Keep in mind that I did exactly what I’m telling you not to do: I stopped on a road at night.  It was a delightfully spooky experience, but incredibly stupid as well.

Don’t stop on any road where there is traffic.  Especially don’t stop on any road after sunset.

Since writing this, we’ve learned that there are an unusual number of car accidents in that area, and not just among ghost enthusiasts. Some people speculate that there’s ‘bad energy’ around Bear Creek Park.

We’re not sure about that, but we can confirm that something taps on cars on Patterson Road.

Please just take our word for it.

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