In the first half, author and TV host Marty Raney discussed living off the grid and the history of homesteading. He traced the practice's origins to Abraham Lincoln, who signed the Homestead Act to give every person "a fair chance at owning his own piece of paradise." The legislation offered people 160 acres of land for a nominal fee, yet despite the program's noble intentions, Raney acknowledged it was eventually exploited by "railroad companies, land barons, and others in some very clever and clandestine and certainly covert illegal ways." The act ended in 1976, with the last official homestead granted in Alaska in the mid-1970s.
Raney stated that "about 93 million Americans had grandparents or great-grandparents that homesteaded," highlighting the deep generational ties many have to this pioneering legacy. He explained that the practice is still alive and well today, particularly in farming states like Iowa and Montana, where many properties have remained in families for generations.
Raney recounted his own move to Alaska, inspired by a lifelong fascination with the wilderness and tales from figures like Jack London. He described his rugged lifestyle on a 40-acre property off the grid, where he built a handcrafted log cabin from spruce trees on-site. His homestead is surrounded by millions of acres of wilderness, inhabited by wildlife including bears, moose, and even wolverines. He shared one chilling encounter in particular: a hair-raising roar from a mysterious creature. While he suspects it was a bear, he allowed for the possibility of something more mysterious, even a Bigfoot. "My jury is out," he admitted, "but I'm gonna probably have to stick with a surprised, angry, mad, disgruntled… Alaska Brown Bear."
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In the second half, travel organizer Maria Schmidt described her paranormal tours that blend history, culture, and supernatural intrigue. Dacre Stoker, the great-grandnephew of Dracula author Bram Stoker, also joined the conversation. Schmidt, a former registered nurse turned paranormal researcher, takes her clients to many different countries, including Ireland, Romania, Peru, Greece, Egypt, and soon Japan. She explained how her transition from nursing to paranormal tourism began with her own spooky experiences managing a historic Victorian Bed and Breakfast in Florida. "I realized then that... in order to sustain these historical properties, something bigger was needed," she said.
Schmidt defined haunted locations as repositories of history and energy, with each place offering a unique spiritual imprint. "A haunting is history wishing to be heard," she revealed, noting that many spirits in ancient sites died tragically amid bloodshed, battles, and heartbreak. She recounted an intense experience at a castle in Ireland where participants in a spiritual circle were temporarily "taken over by something... not normal."
Dacre Stoker expanded on this topic by delving into the historical and cultural roots of Dracula, referencing Vlad the Impaler and Bran Castle. As Bram Stoker's descendant, Dacre has researched his family's legacy extensively. He shared how Bram Stoker wrote Dracula during a time when belief in vampires was widespread across Europe and even parts of America. Dacre and Schmidt told listeners that they'll be offering an immersive experience at Bran Castle—a private Halloween party that Schmidt described as "an exceptional treat" featuring storytelling, games, and a "wicked vampire ball" inside the castle walls.
News segment guests: Lauren Weinstein, Mike Bara