The West Wycombe Caves were excavated between 1740 and 1750 by Sir Francis Dashwood to provide farm workers with jobs, and chalk to build a main road between Wycombe and High Wycombe. It is said that Sir Francis held meetings of the notorious "Hellfire Club" in the caves made up of prominent members of society with an infamous reputation for orgies, debauchery and devil worship. Legend has it that a chamber maid named Sukie had gone to meet her lover in the caves, dressed in a white wedding dress, but in a cruel practical joke found a group of local lads there instead, and was stoned to death. Her ghost is said to haunt the caves. It is also said that the caves are haunted by Sir Paul Whitehead, Steward of the Hellfire Club. As a devoted member his last will and testament was that his heart be placed in an urn at the Dashwood Mausoleum. However in 1829 it was apparently stolen by an Australian soldier, and Whitehead is said to haunt the caves waiting for it to be returned.

This investigation heralded my 2nd visit to the infamous folly of Sir Francis Dashwood and his Hellfire Club. Joined by medium Rudi Unt we embarked upon the initial walk around of the caves, which on this occasion were less welcoming, not for any paranormal reason, but it had played host to a party the night before and remnants of a 'smoke machine' had created an eerie yet suffocating atmosphere. Entering the Banqueting Hall Rudi picked up on the legend of a girl falsely beckoned to the caves and losing her life with a blow to the head. When I pushed Rudi for a name he linked in with Sue or Suzie, but eventually settled on what he thought was a Japanese name...Sukie. Moving downward through the labyrinth he connected with ritualistic events that would take place in the caves, suggesting initiates were taken from the Hall along the left hand path to the Miners Caves which would have stood as a waiting area. From here they were taken across the symbolic river of the dead into the sanctuary of the inner temple to be re-born. He also correctly connected with a church directly above, as well as linking with the names John (Wilkes) and Paul Whitehead, together with the legend of the stolen heart, although he suggested an Australian Sailor. The first of the 3 vigils began in the upper Franklin's Cave and Children's Cave as I distributed the group individually throughout the upper network. During the vigil all remained quiet except for a group located above the Banqueting Hall. They described hearing a groan or sigh when asking out, as well as seeing flickering lights. The 2nd vigil took my team to the Inner Temple, where we conducted a short séance. With each team member asking out for a sign we waited with eager anticipation, however to our frustration all remained still. I then split the group into smaller teams to investigate the lower passages, however again little activity was recorded. While stood in the miner's cave Kelly did experience the batteries on the Sapphire EMF running out, throwing the area into darkness. When I arrived to investigate I took the EMF meter into the temple where it strangely came to life, and remained in perfect working order for the remainder of the night. Our final vigil took us to the Banqueting Hall, where we conducted a linked circular séance, again with each team member asking out for some sign of activity. Some experienced bouts of icy coldness on one side of the body, while another complained of a burning sensation down the left-hand side. One other incident of note was a wailing or whining sound echoing up from the caves when we asked for Sukie to make her presence known, although this may be attributed to the team in the lower caves. All in all it was another relatively quiet, yet intriguing nights work.