Stop 4: The Goofy Staircase

The Goofy Staircase, a name that seems weirdly dated to me, is the first example of the switchback staircases that you’ll encounter on the tour. The steps on these staircases rise only a couple of inches. According to the tour, these stairs are actually called Easy Risers (or E-Z risers on some pages), a name which I can’t find any other references to. The tour guide will explain their use in the next room, but I’ll spill the beans now. Sarah Winchester suffered from crippling arthritis, and would not have been able to climb ordinary stairs.

Not that climbing Easy Risers is at all easy, at least not at a normal pace. Tour guides develop the habit of taking two or three steps at a time in order to keep a normal pace, but I’d recommend walking slowly if you don’t want to fall down. They’re even more challenging when heading downstairs, but with a couple of exceptions, the tour route only uses these short steps when traveling up.

The Goofies, as they’re called by guides, lead up one floor to…. THE HAYLOFT! What untold mysteries await you in THE HAYLOFT?

Stop 5: The Hayloft

The Hayloft isn’t a very compelling name, and that’s okay because it isn’t a very compelling room. There would be very little reason to stop here except that it takes a long time for thirty people to climb the Goofy Staircase, and if the group didn’t wait in the room at the top of the stairs, people would get lost.

Of course, this means the most eager guests, the ones that rushed up the Goofies with the guide, are left waiting. This is a good point to ask a question, though most of the obvious ones are answered during the course of the tour. This is also the time that any psychics on the tour will make themselves known. Keep an eye out for anyone walking around the room sensing cold spots, channeling the deceased, etc.

An attraction like the Mystery House brings in a certain number of out-of-the-ordinaries, and that’s a good thing, but the psychics I encountered in the Hayloft seemed much more impressed with themselves than their revelations would warrant. Although one psychic did tell a friend of mine that the Hayloft was the site of a particularly brutal fight between two Winchester farmhands, and that one of the men died there. I don’t think there are any records of this event, but if you’d like to simulate a psychic experience, you might mention the murder to your guide.

Since The Hayloft is more of a gathering place than an essential stop on the tour, the tour script takes the opportunity to provide some details on how the house and property were distributed after Mrs. Winchester’s death. Specifically, the script explains that the mansion itself was not mentioned in the will, and that the furniture was left to her niece, who took what she wanted and sold the rest.

For some reason, many people on tour become outraged that her niece would do such a thing, and that no attempt was made by the family to keep the house. I’ve never understood this outrage. I’m sure the furniture was quite nice, but unless you live in a 160-room mansion, what are you going to do with it? Likewise, unless you have Mrs. Winchester’s wealth, which the niece did not, you won’t be able to manage a 24,000 square foot home. Trust me, it takes a lot of staff.

As you leave the Hayloft, you’ll go down a couple of long hallways (which actually double back on themselves), then head down a set of Easy Risers to the The 13th Bathroom, where you’ll have a chance to see where Mrs. Winchester showered. Please refrain from picturing Mrs. Winchester in the shower as you go…