Miners of Cerro Rico in Bolivia have worked for centuries on the threshold of sustainable life. The locals call it the Mountain that Eats Men due to its dangerous conditions. Still, they continue to dig for treasures. They pay their respects to El Tio, Lord of the Underworld, to help them survive. But there are other dark interests in Potosi. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook (@secret.passages.pod). Get in touch at https://www.secretpassagespodcast.com/. Researched, written, and produced by E.S. Rodenbiker. Cover art by @game.of.pricks.

Mikhailovsky Castle, in the middle of St Petersburg, is unlike anything else found in Russia. It is a fairy tale medieval castle complete with moats and drawbridges. It was designed by the paranoid Tsar Pavel I of the Romanov family dynasty and later housed a young Fyodor Dostoevsky. Inside there are walls of marble, wide gentle stairways, and dark corridors with hidden escape routes. It is a peculiar place, perfect for a palace coup. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook (@secret.passages.pod). Get in touch at https://www.secretpassagespodcast.com/. Researched, written, and produced by E.S. Rodenbiker. Cover art by @game.of.pricks.

'Twas the episode before Christmas... a time to look at the mysteries of Santa Claus and other gift-givers from Saint Nicholas to fairy stories of chimneys as doors to other worlds to Sinterklaas and to that jolly old man in the Coca Cola advertisements. Follow a reading of Twas' the Night Before Christmas to warm up through the cold, winter months. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook (@secret.passages.pod). Get in touch at https://www.secretpassagespodcast.com/. Researched, written, and produced by E.S. Rodenbiker. Cover art by @game.of.pricks.

It is hard to survive on the Greenland ice cap. Just ask the Thule people and their ancestors. They tell stories to fill the flat white void with spirits and creatures. Others have tried to make it on the ice but did not stick around. The Cold War U.S. Army base Camp Century built a 50s-style town under the ice, but it was all a show. The top-secret Project Iceworm only came to the surface recently when the snow started to melt. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook (@secret.passages.pod). Get in touch at https://www.secretpassagespodcast.com/. Researched, written, and produced by E.S. Rodenbiker. Cover art by @game.of.pricks.

There are some places that draw people near naturally. In the Mendip Hills of the West Country, a cave includes chambers called Hell’s Ladder, Hyena Den, and the Lake of Gloom. The name is not so foreboding. It's a little silly actually. For thousands of years, Wookey Hole and its famous witch have taken hold and not let go. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook (@secret.passages.pod). Get in touch at https://www.secretpassagespodcast.com/. Researched, written, and produced by E.S. Rodenbiker. Cover art by @game.of.pricks.

The conditions of the early 1900s - war, pandemic, greed - drove people to come together in a dark room to be guided by a medium in an otherworldly sitting. The Fox Sisters, Davenport Brothers, and Mina Crandon the Blonde Witch of Lime Street all rose in supernatural fame. The magician Harry Houdini investigated the practice as a hoax, altering his friendship with spiritualist adherent Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the process. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook (@secret.passages.pod). Get in touch at https://www.secretpassagespodcast.com/. Researched, written, and produced by E.S. Rodenbiker. Cover art by @game.of.pricks.

Down in the vaults off Edinburgh's Royal Mile there are numerous puzzle pieces of the past. Find the remains of craftspeople, displaced Highlanders, and the victims of the city's infamous serial killers: Burke and Hare. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook (@secret.passages.pod). Get in touch at https://www.secretpassagespodcast.com/. Researched, written, and produced by E.S. Rodenbiker. Cover art by @game.of.pricks.

Drugrunners can be like magicians whose dark tricks are hard to spot unless you know where to look. The best of these is the drug lord known as Shorty or El Chapo. His legend grew escaping capture by Mexican Marines and vanishing from maximum security prison, twice. He is the master of escape whose narcotunnels may go through your street or hide in your favorite chicken restaurant. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook (@secret.passages.pod). Get in touch at https://www.secretpassagespodcast.com/. Researched, written, and produced by E.S. Rodenbiker. Cover art by @game.of.pricks.

The northern castle called the Guardian of the Dales has its fair share of legends about battles, knights, kings and queens. Down below the cliffside castle walls where the river bends there is a submerged cavern large enough for York Minster. The once and future king awaits with his knights of the round table. Be warned, do not steal the sword. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook (@secret.passages.pod). Get in touch at https://www.secretpassagespodcast.com/. Researched, written, and produced by E.S. Rodenbiker. Cover art by @game.of.pricks.

Conspiracy theories abound in Washington D.C. about Illuminati influence, Freemason design, and Egyptian alien technology. The mysteries through a garbage tunnel under the Captiol Building are a little more grounded. A web of connecting buildings, hideaway rooms of countless scandals, bunkers, and an empty tomb still waiting to be filled. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook (@secret.passages.pod). Get in touch at https://www.secretpassagespodcast.com/. Researched, written, and produced by E.S. Rodenbiker. Cover art by @game.of.pricks.