The Headless Horseman in Bergen

Read this in — Svenska

You have made two new acquaintances in an online ghost hunter forum. They have found an old journal and are trying to solve the mysterious disappearance of its owner. Teacher Ichabod Crane’s two-hundred-year-old notes contain descriptions of a headless horseman and what seems to be a curse plaguing Bergen. Maybe the journal offers the clues needed to find out what happened to Ichabod?

You are invited to join an investigation, which starts at Fisketorget in Bergen. Your new friends have mapped out the locations of relevance in Ichabod’s life, and you plan to follow all the leads the journal provides. But, one of the people you were supposed to meet never shows up at the agreed location…

Go on a ghost tour and solve a mystery

Walk in Ichabod Crane’s footsteps through central Bergen. Participate in the story in each location through gamification. Control conversations between characters, examine mysterious items and crack secret codes while you explore the city’s historical surroundings. Your companion will tell you everything he knows about the journal and the Headless Horseman as you walk.

Will you be able to reveal why Ichabod disappeared, and find your friend?

The StoryTourist app will show you the way

To walk this tour, you’ll download the user-friendly StoryTourist app. The app is equipped with a map, GPS, a narrator and digital guide which makes sure you walk in the right direction. Once you have purchased the tour it is yours to keep. You can use it at any time and as many times as you wish.

Through the StoryTourist-app, you’ll hear the story of how the Headless Horseman haunted Bergen. The only thing you need to be able to explore the city in a brand-new way is a smartphone with headphones.

This self-guided city exploration game is an adaptation of Washington Irving’s short story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. You will find practical information about the tour under the “instructions” tab.

Read this in — Svenska

How this tour works:

Your smartphone is your guide on this tour! Once you have purchased a tour, this is what you do:

Download the StoryTourist app from Apple App Store or Google Play, while connected to Wi-Fi.
Log into the app using the same email address you filled in when purchasing the tour. You will create your password the first time you log into the app. The tour you have purchased will be ready to download in the tour library once you have logged in. Make sure you are still connected to Wi-Fi while downloading the tour.
Go to the starting point of the tour, open the app, put your headphones on and head out on your StoryTour adventure!

Important information:

This is a location based experience. You have to be at the tour starting point at Fisketorget square in Bergen, Norway, to start this walking tour.
Once the tour is downloaded to your phone, you can use it offline.
There is a map, GPS and a digital guide in the app, making sure that you’ll walk the right way.
This tour is available in English and Swedish.
Once you have purchased the tour, it is your to keep. You can use it whenever you want and as many times as you would like. You can start, pause and end the tour whenever you would like.
This tour is pet friendly – feel free to bring your dog on this walk!
Public transport is available close to both the tour start point and end point.
This tour is not accessible with a wheelchair, due to stairs.
We recommend for participants to be 15 years old or over, due to the dark theme of the tour.

What to bring:

Your smartphone, with the StoryTourist app and the tour you purchased already downloaded.
Headphones, for the best possible listening experience
Make sure that your smartphone battery is fully charged. If you know that your phone has poor battery capacity, it can be a good idea to bring a powerbank as well.

Fisketorget square

There has been a fishmarket square by the waterfront in Bergen since the 1200’s, but it’s only been in this exact location since the 1920’s.

Ichabod's home

Do you see the golden lion on the red plinth by the stairs? It is the marker for where Bergen’s centre point once was. King Christian II’s mistress lived at this address in the 1500’s.

Ichabod's school

The Christi Krybber schools consists of two yellow stone and mortar buildings. The one to the right was built in 1740, and is the oldest school building still in use in Bergen.

Bugården

Can you spot the farmer holding the axe on the red facade? It is a marker for Bugården, a farm built here in the 1300’s. Most of it burned down in the disastrous 1955 harbour fire.

Behind Bryggestredet

Below you is Bryggestredet and restaurant Tracteursted. It is said that a local apprentice, who died there from a cruel punishment in the 1700’s, still haunts the restaurant.

Vetrlidsallmenningen

Vetrlidsallmenningen is a part of Bergen’s historical centre from mediaeval times. Archeologists have also found remnants of viking age settlements here.

Bergen cathedral

Across the road from here is the Bergen Cathedral. The original church was built in the 1100’s, but the church you see today was mainly constructed in the late 1600’s to early 1700’s.

Molløsmauet

Molløesmauet was named after Andreas Molløe, who donated his house here to the church in 1764. The word “smauet” means “alleyway” in local Bergen dialect.

St. Jørgen's church

The St. Jørgen church is connected to the St. Jørgen hospital museum to the right. The hospital treated leprosy patients, and a local doctor discovered the cause of leprosy here in 1873.

Marken

This area is called Marken. It was farmland for the Nonneseter convent in the 1200’s, but was redeveloped into an urban area and a part of Bergen in the 1500’s.

Festplassen square

Lille Lungegårdsvannet was named after an estate owned by councilman Vincens Lunge in 1528. Independence day on 17:th of May is celebrated in this square every year.

Locations you'll visit on this tour:

The Fishmarket square
The Bryggen harbour area - which is on the UNESCO World Heritage List
The Former center point of Bergen
A lookout point at Vetrlidsallmenningen
Bergen Cathedral
The St. Jørgen church and Leprosy Hospital Museum
Festplassen square - in close proximity to several museums and the Grieg concert hall.