My wife and I have moved into our large new house and everything is great. I have noticed on the stairs that there are some very strange drafts of air but no source of it. The other night after a long days work I came home and did the dishes. I shut off all the lights and started walking up the stairs. As I did i heard faint foot steps trailing me. I stopped and got the eerie feeling , the one that makes your hair stand on end. I felt like something was behind me. I stopped and looked around and the sounds stopped. I started walking again and heard the same thing. I quickly ran the rest of the way and got in bed and didnt mention it at all to my wife. Has anybody had this kind of experience?

Are they carpeted stairs? Houses hold sounds differently.

Have you had any other experiences yet? How long have you been there?

I think that you should set up an OP at the base of your stairs with the following. Cami netting, video camera, food, water, a port-a-potty, some type of gun maybe a flare gun, and a flash light. there are other things you may need to get to the bottom of this. I think you should also stop sleeping as that is the best time for a ghost to attack.

have only lived there for about a week. They are carpeted no wood flooring, The house was built in 2001 so I dont think it would still be settling.

Do you really think all of this would be necessary Stewy? maybe i should put my dog Mya in the house maybe she can detect something?

dose your dog Mya have ghost smelling abilities

THATS COMPLETELY UNNECESSARY STEWY

My basement stairs do the same thing - it's something like the wood is bending back a split-second after you lift your foot, so it sounds like you're being followed. It screwed with my head too, until I realized what it was.

The draft is probably nothing more than a lack of insulation inside the stairway construct, since it isn't built like a normal wall - I've seen it many times. You'd be surprised at how far a draft can travel inside a wall that isn't properly insulated.

Why are you being a Douche Bag to the OP? Those comments are hardly needed.

Agree totally! this actually happens a lot, its like a miniture see-saw as soon as your foot lifts, the back of the wooden stair sort of taps so it would appear to be a trailing footstep, no worries, dont stress yourself out too much, new house noises take a lot of getting used to!

See i thought the same thing, im a pretty skeptical person, but what I heard sounded like 3-4 steps behind, and they stopped when I stopped, thats what made the hair stand up, im not really worried but it was just one of those scary moments. As for the insolation i tapped the walls and they are very solid so good insulation was used. so for the origin of the drafts i dont know

You can't just "tap the walls" and know everything about what's behind it. If it's an inside wall, there's no reason for there to be insulation. Besides, the draft would likely be coming through the actual stair treads or where they meet the wall. The 3-4 steps behind thing is an echo/auditory illusion kinda thing.

It sounds like you WANT the stairway to be haunted.

Here's an experiment - try walking up the stairs as close to either side as you can, and see if it still "follows" you. Not walking up the center should cut out a lot of the bending and creaking of the steps.

Well it be haunted would be a great story for visiting friends but its not something i WANT though, but the auditory echo makes sense, i will try the walking on the side thing too thanks

What happened when you came back down the stairs ?

If, as some posters have suggested, it's an effect from the stairs snapping back wouldn't you notice the same coming down the stairs as well ?

I have never had footsteps and thats creepy I would have ran to bed to!!
keep us informed if this happens again or not ok...

I've never heard something myself but i got recordings of something going on like foot steps, i've always felt someone was near the steps and watching me or following me or going to grab my leg. I've had two friends telling me they've heard foot steps on my stairs and looked and saw nothing on the stairs, and the sound would just continue. You said it happened when you were walking? well underneath it could be the stairs are wooden and the carpet's attached to the wood it could be slight creaking from tension in the wood it'self as it flexs and contracts from people walking on it. I wouldnt worry bout it at all but unless someone else tells you they're hearing sounds of foot steps on the stairs then i'd test out the theory of the creaking from the wood or not, if you hear foot steps while no one is on the stairs i'm not sure but it could be something then, if it dosnt seem to be threating you or anyone else in your house then i wouldnt worry to much because it dosnt seem to be hostile.
Now the draft check around for areas where air could come through? a crack between wood? a window not fully sealed properly window slightly proped open? from underneath a door? check around, how often has the draft of wind come??

Maybe your wife could listen downstairs as you walk upstairs. See if she hears the same thing you do.

i have had my friends try to go up it but they dont hear anything i couldnt find anyplace that could explain the draft but havent felt it since the incident. Maybe it was my imagination or something, i hope it never happens again because it was a little scarry

I often get creeped out on stairs, it's happened in one more than one house I've lived in, and it happens daily. I don't hear anything, it just feels like i'm being chased. It's creepy.

I drew a comic about this last year, and it would seem a lot of people get creeped out on stairs and landings. I tend to start off fine, and get half way and feel like i'm being chased, and run the rest of the way into my room, when I get there, I usually check behind me, but nothing. Like I said it happens on stairs in new and old houses. Maybe it's something instinctual?

I haven't heard footsteps behind me, but I've heard footsteps on stairs where there was no one there, period. This I heard on several occasions in the same house that I've mentioned elsewhere previously:

http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/forum...27562&st=15

I'm sure this has probably occurred to you, but I'd try to repeat it during daylight hours. It may just be the stairs doing something funky, like some others have said.

I've had taht too....possible because most people are afraid of falling backwards down the stairs....which i sure am.....

If it is not paranormal and it is some sort of badly designed staircase then the fake footstep noise will happen everytime he walks up the stairs. Does it happen every time? If it doesn't happen every time then it can't be a design flaw.

Also, if your house is haunted you will probably have more things happen to you than just creepy staircase noises. Let us know if anything else fun happens.

Yeah true, like me i never thought anything was here untill i had more than just one thing happening...>.>

What about recording audio while going upstairs?

Of course, after tinkering with all the ghost busting, you might find, that there is indeed a presence in your home. Have you ever just sat in the dark and watched the staircase intently. The strangest things happen when we look long and hard at things we take for granted everyday. "Look between the spaces, that you know". Maybe, just maybe, there is something following you up those steps. Maybe it isn't your imagination...or a consrtuction flaw. Maybe it is on those stairs waiting for you. And it derives pleasure from watching you bolt the rest of the way up and run to your bed, cowering. It is toying with you. And it knows your bed is not a sanctuary. It knows you aren't safe there. And some night, when you are alone...it will follow you there.

Then again, it's probably just a draft and a creak. Yeah...that's it. ~Jackal

Perhaps there are large amounts of EMF beneath the stairs and you are EMHS (Electromagnetic Hypersensitive) which can all cause your claims of having the creepy feeling, "hearing" footsteps, the feeling of you being watched. Please note that an EMF meter is not a ghost detector like some shows will lead you to believe, but I think you should look for rational explanations before claiming it paranormal. Even though the house was built in 2001 have you done any history on the house? Has anything happened there? Are you the only one experiencing these occurrences?

sir , i am a 14 year old girl. my parents recently got a divorce and my mother and i had to move. our house isnt very large. we just moved into it probably about 3 or so months ago now. my mothers room is haunted. there is a spirit in there by the name of gloria , one of my friends can see the spirits and such , she is intuitive [ i think i misspelled that ] but she is somewhat psychic and she told me about the spirit. i also know a woman who is an actual psychic and told my mother about this and she has never been in my house or know where i live. gloria [ the spirit \ ghost ] does not like when we stand on our steps. my mother was standing on the steps painting the railing and she had a plastic bag 2 steps down from her and no one else was home and while she was painting she heard the bag moving as if someone was looking through the bag , she thought it was my dog , but as she looked into the living room she found my dog sleeping on the floor. it was plain as day that there was something going through the bag. also while we were redoing the steps , we were taking the tack strip off them from the carpet , i heard someone walking around right at the stop of the steps , i looked up and the sound stopped. i asked my mother if she heard it and i think she didnt want to scare me so she said no. and then i turned around and continued to work on the steps. then again i heard the footsteps , this time they were closer to me , it sounded like a women walking down the steps in high heels. i turned to my mom and said " you cant tell me you didnt hear it that time. because is was much louder. and she looked somewhat scared and said yes i heard it that time. within the past week my dog was sitting on the steps and i was coming into the living room which is by the steps and my dog came down two steps , he didnt walk down them. it was as if he was pushed by something , it really scared him. and he turned around and looked up the steps and started barking , as if he could see the spirit, i dont know what to do about this spirit we have tried multiple ways to get rid of it, nothing seems to work. i was wondering if you could somehow help me find more information about the history of my house and maybe about this spirit named gloria. sorry this is so long i just wanted to get everything in. please e-mail me and blairenicholexx@comcast.net if you have any idea of what i should do , or how you could help me. thank you , and good luck with your steps situation. please write me back.

DCAT, obviously I was offering my own brand of levity. I like to scare people. But don't think I consider your case with any less significance. Most of the suggestions you have received in here are viable, and sensible. I would have to correct one poster that only inquired about the difference in walking up and walking down the steps. The "creak" or whatever it may be (if it is a loose board) would not react the same way descending and ascending, consistantly. There is a difference in foot placement on the step. Ascending, one uses the front ball of the foot, rising up from the arch. Descending, one steps down on the arch and heel of the foot. Descending, the foot is more centrally placed in the middle of the step, where ascending, the foot tends to be more towards the edge of the step, or visa versa (for a number of reasons that none of us have time for me to go into). I just wanted to re-respond and tell you there are some good suggestions in this thread. Mine, although leaning towards the paranormal, is to just kick back, IN THE DARK, and watch that area of your home for a bit. Late as possible is good. Why in the dark? In the dark, our anxiety level increases, as does our own awareness. In fact, we sometimes let it get away from us, and start sensing things that aren't there at all. But if you can sit there, with a peaked alertness, and observe without terrorizing yourself, you might be surprised at what you witness. Maintain control. Observe. Keep an open mind, but don't let it run away with you. Good luck, and please keep us apprised. ~Jackal

The draft is probably the cooler air flowing down from the upstairs. Hot air rises, cool air falls. I've been in several houses where the stairs always felt breezy because of this. Usually a draft is sneaking outside through a crack below the door or an open window.

The stairs in a newer house can be odd also. You have to keep in mind that it's still settling and the wood may still be semi-damp or the screws & fasteners may still have some bounce in them. Ive seen it a few times that newer wood installations, when pressured, will make a sound / creak a few seconds later when they are going back to their original shape.

That or your house was built on an old Indian burial site or mass murder grave.

AH...now this is fascinating. A delayed creak! Now that would absolutely convince me that someone was behind me. Very interesting.

Buahahahaha