The Ghosts of Panorama at the Peak

Source: Whiskey Fire, 2012

Although currently closed, the Panorama at the Peak Restaurant for over a decade offered up farm to table favorite meals, awe-inspiring views, and a plethora of ghosts! The restaurant, located just outside of Berkeley Springs, WV, was built in 1929 and over the years garnered quite the haunted reputation.

According to The Big Book of West Virginia Ghost Stories, by Rosemary Guiley, Panorama at the Peak began in 2004 when partners Leslie Hotaling and Patti Miller purchased the old Panorama Steakhouse. Already, the restaurant was known to be home to several ghosts, as the former owners had strategically set up protective crystals throughout the property to keep the spirits at bay.

Fortunately, however, all the ghosts at Panorama at the Peak seem rather benign and playful. The most-often encountered is the spirit known as Captain Grey. No one knows who the Captain was in real life, but believe he was the first white man to settle the area, and thus, guards the land. The captain gets his name for his outfit---he is seen wearing dark pants, a dark jacket, and a cap similar to what a sea captain would wear.  He appears as solid and full as a real person, beard and all, and is often mistaken for such. He has been seen in the upstairs in the former residential area, but prefers to frequent the pub section of the restaurant, located in the oldest part of the building. 

When seen in the pub, he always sits in the same booth. Occasionally, he is accompanied by the spirit of a young girl about 12 or 13 years old. This ghost also appears as a solid, living person, wearing a white dress, white bobby socks, and sporting long hair. 

For whatever reason, Captain Grey has never been spotted in the kitchen---but the kitchen does seem to be one of the more active areas of the restaurant. Scott Callanish, who was hired as an executive chef in 2007, has had multiple encounters with multiple entities, many of whom are very playful. An unseen presence likes to turn off one of the stove's burners and throw rice paper, sheet by sheet, around the kitchen. Scott simply has to tell the offending phantom to knock it off, and it usually does. In one incident, one of two turkeys that were put in the walk-in to thaw went missing.  After an extensive search, Scott told whatever ghost took it that they better put it back in the walk-in before it went bad.  Shortly thereafter, the turkey was returned to the walk-in.

Two other ghosts are seen near the kitchen--a woman in her 40's and a young girl around 12 years old. These two are seen running out of the pantry, and then running out the front door of the restaurant. Psychics who have visited the restaurant believe that this is a mother and her daughter. After the daughter died, the husband left the mother, and she became trapped between the worlds. In 2011, psychics helped the mother cross over, and she and her daughter have not been seen since.

Another ghost 'disappeared' or moved on after the 2011 intervention by psychics. A little boy around the age of 8 had been seen in the kitchen area. The boy, with brown hair, jeans and a t-shirt, began appearing to Scott two to three times a week, so Scott set out a ball and a truck for him to play with. Both items were moved from their original location overnight. Psychics visiting the restaurant believe that the boy was killed when his grandfather pushed him down the stairs, and although he wasn't specifically the target of the 2011 crossing over, he seemed to have moved along with the mother and daughter. 

Rosemary notes one more ghost in her book: Psychic Donna Wolfe Gatti, who often came to the restaurant, claimed that Patti's own grandmother was one of the ghosts who hung out in the kitchen, tossing flour around. Could she also be the one who liked to play with the stove top and the rice paper?