Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files Episode 2.22 Into The Vortex/tavern Shapeshifter

Deep in the hills of Oregon sits a plot of land that has been a mystery since before Europeans settled there. Ben, Jael, and Austin investigate several videos showing what could be dimensional shifts, or could simply be optical illusions.

HORSEBACK TEST

The story goes that the native people first noticed the powers of the Oregon Vortex when they noticed that animals wouldn't go there, so Austin and Jael saddle up a couple of mares and gallop them towards the center of the vortex. As soon as they reach the border of the mystery zone, the horses slow, stop, and turn around. Something is definitely up.

PONZO THEORY TEST

A video shows two people standing side by side, one to the north, one to the south, on a piece of flat land. When they switch positions, it looks as though one of them gets significantly taller. This could be an optical illusion caused by uneven parallel lines in the background, so they drop down a black cloth as Austin and Jael replicate the original video. It still looks like Austin grows a paranormal amount, so Ben measures the ground. Although he discovers a 2% grade, it doesn't seem like this slant is enough to account for the strange appearance.

MYSTERY HOUSE SURVEY

Ben's survey of the house at the center of the vortex reveals that it's on a 30° slant, which explains both the reason that brooms can balance on what looks to be a slanted floor. A ball that seems to be defying gravity by rolling uphill is simply the subject of an optical illusion.

PENDULUM TEST

To find out if there are any magnetic anomalies in the area, the team builds a huge pendulum with a powerful magnet. Although it should simply swing in an elliptical pattern, the pendulum's path actually moves counter clockwise before stopping.

METAL SWEEP

The team sweeps for metallic objects in the ground and their sensors go crazy, but since they're not allowed to excavate any part of the site, they'll never know what's below.

RESULT

They were able to find answers to so many of their questions that they draw natural conclusions for the phenomena here. Cased: closed.

Bill, Lanisha, and Devin are intrigued by a video of a shape-shifting apparition in a pub in a small town in England. Since the room in question used to be a funeral parlor, the intrigue deepens.

BUG ON A LENS TEST

Many skeptics believe the shape in the video is merely a bug, but since it appears to fly out of the window in a haze, the team will have to contain the bug in a Petri dish in order to control the movement. Doing so, they yield a similar shape, but the exit just isn't convincing.

HOAX TEST

The original shape looks a bit like diaphanous fabric, so using a sheer, white cloth, Devin plays puppet master while Bill and Lanisha film. Although it looks eerie, it's clearly a piece of cloth.

FOG TEST

The town was unusually warm on the night in question, so the team replicates the meteorological conditions to see if condensation may have been the culprit. Although they get state-of-the-art equipment, the result still doesn't look right.

NIGHTTIME INVESTIGATION

None of their tests were home runs. It's time to contact the other side. The team records temperature drops and ion fluctuations, and when Bill conducts an EVP, the motion sensor detects something moving directly above his head.

RESULT

Although they believe the original video to be a bug, the pub is quite likely haunted. Case: closed.