The Night Of:

Another Hallowe'en has come and gone... and yes, the spook crew was out in force once again. This year was by far the most ambitious project to date, with hard walls, a pivoting door, and an 8x8x8 extension to the garage!

Construction started in early September with constructing happening at least one day on most weekends and often one or two nights during the week. Andrew had bought 10 sheets of 8x4 plywood for a construction project he's working on but lent them to "the cause" until November. All of the walls were solid for at least 4' off the ground. This meant that scared little kiddies could bump into them without worry of falling through some plastic sheets. Considering the number of "bumps" done by kids and adults alike, this was a very good thing.

The pivoting door was the idea about which the rest of the design was based. The general concept was to change the maze on our victims to throw them off balance. The first part of their journey was to be friendly and innocent. The second part would not be. Since the candy was given out inside, it meant everybody had to brave some of the maze, though if the kids didn't feel up to it, they could leave the "safe" way they had come. Adults generally weren't give the choice.

The following walk-through is keyed of the number on the image:

1 - Outside the Garage:

For any kind of amusement, it's important to set the mood. The coffin from last year was present but this time had just an (inanimate) skeleton in it. Several of us spooks were out there in costume, including Jenn dressed as an old witch. With patchy, peeling skin, tangled greying hear, and 2-inch black fingernails, her gravelly, grating, "we don't like peekers" (with a fingernail pointed in their face) kept kids from looking in too much.

We also had a nice visit from Death. With a long black hooded robe, skeletal face and hands, and 12-inch stilts, Andrew made an imposing figure over 7' tall. His favorite tactic was to fixate on a kid in line and just stare at him/her. Comments like, "He's creeping me out! (another kid) It's not real. I don't care -- he's staring at me!" were not uncommon. Apparently, even after moving and talking (which wasn't very often), some kids refused to believe it was a real person.

2 - Pleasant Valley Hallway:

It's absolutely amazing how an entire hallway of nothing can set people on edge; they're so sure that "something" is waiting. Friendly wall decorations and cute little Hallowe'en lights made things easier for the little kids, but just made the older ones more worried. Of course, being led down the hallway by Dracula (Cheryl) with comments about how plump and tasty the little kids looked might had altered the effect just a touch.

3 - Witches Room:

With the door (#4) in the "open" position, it really didn't seem like the other half of the garage was even accessible. Visitors were herded into the witch's (Gina) domain where a huge (3' diameter) black cauldron bubbled with mist that cascaded over the rim. The witch would reach into the cauldron to get candy for the kids and ask them if they wanted to go through the haunted house. If they did, she'd send a signal and the door would close with a loud slam. Some of the kids jumped just at that sound.

4 - Entry way:

Once the door had been closed (Brian), fog drifted out and filled the hallway. Visitors had to walk over a foam covered short ramp and through a black curtain, all designed just to throw them further off balance. One rather startling observation we made was that knowledge of the door being there didn't generally affect the reaction of people. Sometimes a new group of kids came down the first hallway while the door was still open and had to wait. However, after it opened right in front of them, they would still be surprised when they came out of the witch's den to find the hallway changed.

5 - The Cage:

Just on the other side of the curtain was a cage that appeared set into the wall. The monster inside (Jonathan/Kevin) would suddenly be lit up and growl at the people passing by.

6 - Buffet Table:

This was goriest display of all for those that stayed long enough to get a good look at it. Real lady-fingers laid out to eat, multi-colored (pumpkin) guts, an open skull with its brain showing, and a severed head were just a few of the delicacies to be seen. The severed head was actually real (Julie) and would open it's eyes to stare at the kids coming by. The glutton (Scot) kept picking at the brains and offering them to any who came near. The spectacle definitely caught the attention of any passing by.

7 - The Ghoul Behind:

With their attention focused on the buffet table, visitors did not notice the Ghoul (Brian) stick his face and hands out of the wall behind them. Grotesque, deformed hands resting on a shoulder and a growl when they turned sent most people scurrying down the hallway.

8 - Mummy Doors:

As they moved down the hallway, a set of doors in the top half of the wall would suddenly spring open revealing a tall mummy (Kevin) who would moan and reach for the kids. The scurrying would then continue...

9 - Ankle Biter:

This part of the hallway was also covered with foam. The different texture under foot would give pause to those walking along and usually make them move more slowly. As they would pass, a skeleton hand (Snoopy) would reach out from under the center wall and grab at their ankles. More screams and more scurrying...

10 - Cobweb Central:

This entire passageway was lined with glow-in-the-dark masks, fake spiders, and cobwebs. All the scurrying had to come to an end while they picked their way past the mess.

11 - Ghost Scare:

After turning the corner and seeing the exit, many kids let out a sigh of relief and whispered with their friends, "It's over." At this point, the ghost (Tracy) dressed all in white (glowing in the black light) and with a big bloody knife would throw back the curtain, scream, and lunge at them. After having just let their guard down because they were at the exit, more kids screamed at this than probably any other station. It was amazing that the exit curtain was still attached by the end of the night. And of course, the sight of kids bursting from the exit wide-eyed and screaming just did more to increase the apprehension of those waiting to enter.

NOTE: Remove "NOSPAM" from the email address above to make it work.