I read an article in the Washington Park Profile, the community newspaper for the neighborhood where I live here in Denver, that claims there is a ghost that haunts Monkey Island, which is located in Grasmere Lake in nearby Washington Park. Evidently the south end of this park was a notorious hippie hangout back in the 1960s, which I was very surprised to learn. I was also surprised to learn that there was even an island in this lake, and went to look for it after I read the article.
Sure enough, there indeed is an island in Grasmere Lake, which can be seen in the background, behind the jogger, in the photograph on the right. The island comes pretty close to shore on the other side of the lake, and back in the 60s, there was a bridge that connected it to the rest of the park. Flower children, including a young woman named Beatrice Haven, would hang out there, smoke pot, practice "free love," as they used to say back then, and generally run wild. Haven disappeared under mysterious circumstances, and since that time people have reported seeing ghostly images on that island after dark. The park district removed the bridge years ago after neighbors complained about the activities going on there, and so if you want to spend the night on the island to see if Beatrice appears, better bring a boat. And no, monkeys do not run free around that island. I have no idea how it got that name, but perhaps the Denver Zoo might be willing to supply some monkeys during the summer months so that the place can live up to it's name. No harm asking.
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