[attachmentid=516]
As my brother's favorite time of the year, he is always looking for new places to check out during the month of October for his holiday fun. And it is never to early to start planning for it! So we are going to try and start listing them for you. And we will need your help too for those locations outside of Wisconsin. Let us know if you enjoyed them, the best part, the target age group, and anything else that might be special about it.
Updated 10/2/2011
x 1. The Retzlaff's pumpkin farm is no longer open.
x 2. www.hartfordjcs.com, if you dare a . . . come in for a scare at this haunted house ($12 tickets) Fridays 7 pm to 11 pm, Saturdays 6:30 to 11 pm, Thursday the 27th 7 pm to 10 pm. The price includes f FREE haunted trail (weather permitting). On October 22nd a Children's Matinee for $5 a person from 1 pm to 4 pm.
x 3. www.terroronruralstreet.com, A HCSI haunted house, open Fridays and Saturdays ($12 tickets) sold from 6:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. or until the house reaches capacity.
4. www.hauntedattraction.com, places available in different states
5. www.hauntedwisconsin.com, a list of places in Wisconsin to check out
6. www.hauntedhousechicago.com
x 7. www.bassesfarms.com (a family event for all ages) 10 Acre CANDY LAND corn maze, train rides, pony rides, kids activities and play area, and take a hayride and pick a pumpkin, Straw Jumping Pit, Corn Tepees. Inflatable: Halloween Jumping Castle, Pumpkin Bouncer and Halloween Obstacle Course Open Tuesday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday and Mondays 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Weather Permitting Colgate, WI
x 8. WITCH HAZEL'S pick, www.meadowbrookfun.com (a family event for all ages) Bondfire and a Creepy corn field with live actors on Friday and Saturday nights from dusk to 12:30 for the brave souls to try if you dare! It will take about 45 minutes to find your way out of this corn maze. Not for little children. But there is child friendly corn maze on Thursday and Sunday Nights (no live actors to scare them) from 6 pm to 10 pm. There is even a Daytime Creepy cornfield adventures on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm where you can take the spooky wagon ride to the pumpkin patch and pick pumpkins and more. Check out the Halloween Store, and 100 farm animals, and even Pony Rides on Saturday and Sundays from 10 am to 6 pm. There is even a picnic area, games, and refreshments for a family fun day or a group party. A fun freight of a place in West Bend, WI.
x 9. www.spiekerspumpkinfarm.com (a family event for all ages) Free Admission. Petting barn, straw maze, Free weekend wagon rides to pick your own pumpkin, a 5 Acre corn field maze and snack bar. (Weekends only) Random Lake, WI
x 10. www.waldvogelfarm.com (a family event for all ages) (open 7 days a week)
Haunted Granary, corn maze, mine shaft slide, hay barn and FREE weekend hayrides, even a Farm Train to ride with your paid admission, and over 15 attractions in the back 40! Homemade Caramel Apples and much more. Between Beaver Dam & Horicon, WI
11. www.hartfordjcs.com ($12 tickets)
12. www.the fidelerfarm.com (pick your own, family event for all ages) Haunted Shed, call before going 262-338-0494 Kewaskum, WI
x 13. www.nehmsflowers.com (family event for little kids, take their pictures in the cartoon cut outs) stock up on Fall Decorations, check out the Pumpkin Patch and Feed the Goats. Open daily. Slinger, WI
x 14. www.pvllamas.com (family fun for all ages, bring a camera) Open weekends, Saturday and Sunday 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. NEW - Haunted House! Llamas and more farm animals, train rides, hay rides, corn maze, moon walk, scavenger hunt, and pig races. Admission is $8.00 for these activities and a pumpkin under 20 Lbs. Sandwiches and Refreshments too. Adell, WI
x 15. www.familyfarm.net (family fun for all ages) Bed & Breakfast too, farm animal zoo, PYO Pumpkins, hay rides, harvest treats, hay romp, 6 historic buildings, antique displays, murals, gifts and decorations, and a cafe! Grafton, WI
x 16. www.jimspumpkinfarm.com (family fun for little kids) Make a scarecrow for $6, pick your own pumpkins and enjoy a hayride, kids can try the Corny Lane filled with Halloween and whimsical characters. Open 7 days a week. Germantown, WI
x 17. www.lammscape.com (family fun for little kids who love trains) Take a country hayride (Saturdays & Sundays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) pick a pumpkin, and check out the strawbale maze, Scarecrow Stuffing Station, Kids Craft Corner, the Giant sandbox & picnic areas, a garden railroad (weather permitting) & indoor railroad layouts. Jackson, WI
18. www.dungeonofdoom.com - is $18 or discounted or group rates available. Opened Oct. 1st. at 2701 Deborah Ave., Zion, IL
X 19. www.ozaukee4-hhaunt.com - Admission $10 Cash only! Haunted House Oct. 21st, 22nd, 27th, 28th, & 29th. 6 pm to 10 pm tickets sold. At the Ozaukee County Fairgrounds, Washington Ave., Cedarburg, WI
My brother is not alone, this is in our blood, I too enjoy the Halloween spirit with going all out to decorate and even dress up for those trick-or-treaters. My mom of age 60 enjoys a good scare at the haunted houses. And my daughter's wedding will be on this Halloween.
Full Version: Haunted Houses/cornfields/and Fun Places!
In this cauldron boil and bake
Eye of newt and toe of frog
In this pot I will put
Butterfly wings and spider webs too
Earth to wind, moon to fire
Show me what I desire
A little girl, a little boy
For our pot of stew tonight
Oh what pretty eyes you have
Stay for dinner won’t you
Beware – my pets will get you!
By-Witch Hazel [attachmentid=515]
This is what I said to those who dared to enter the Creepy Cornfield this season at Meadowbrook Pumpkin Farm and Market. You can even see me in their Can You Survive video at www.meadowbrookfun.com. Watch the counter and when it gets to 54, pause it, yes that is me Witch Hazel.
I have always loved Halloween, and always enjoyed going to haunted houses for years. But this year my daughter had found an ad that was looking for actors, and it turned out to be located only a few blocks away. The timing was great too because I could work my regular job and then go to the cornfield afterwards to work. So I went and to my surprise I was given the job, but I had no idea that I would be the one who would have to come up with the idea to scare the customers. Turns out the Witch lived within me, and I think I did a pretty good job at it. The owner Rick said there are different types of scares, and he was right about that, but a witch is not really scary when you think about it, just ugly. So during the training I learned to project loud enough to be heard in the cornfield.
Each night all the actors would get together under a tent area to get dressed into costumes and get into makeup. The guys in the makeup crew really knew what they were doing, and have been doing it for years and loved it. It is so amazing to see people transform into monsters like that and learn some of their tricks.
Then it would come time for us actors to go into the field and get into our spots. Soon the people would come through and it was your job to put on a show for them. It would take them an average of 45 minutes to walk through the cornfield maze in the dark. The idea is to take your time and check out the different displays (this does not mean you should be holding onto your boyfriend’s shirt and have your head buried in his back) instead of being dragged through it. Half of the fun of the maze is, not knowing what would be hiding around the next corner, in the hopes that something will scare you, right? There was nothing there that was going to hurt you! But for parents with little children, who need you to carry them thought the cornfield, leave them home. They are not going to enjoy it since they are so young and it will take away from your fun to enjoy the scare. Not to mention the actors are there to do a job to scare, not worry about a child coming in their area.
After a few weekends I wanted to try something different to scare people, so instead of saying my chant I would stand there very still, hold my breath, and not move at all. To my surprise this worked better, was I real or not? And as the last person of the group would go by I would turn to follow them and then try to scare then. This did work more often, and was fun. Some would even run to get away from the witch and fall into the corn, so I must have given them a pretty good scare.
Time and time again I would hear people say “do not touch that”. Before going into the field the sign said “Do Not Touch”. So what is it about some people who do not understand that you DO NOT TOUCH? As the witch I would find some who would try to touch me to see if I was real or not in a nice way, and then say they were sorry for touching me when I would turn to follow them, and that was ok. But then there were those people who thought they had the right to tear off my witch hat, or punch, or even try to kick me. And I was not the only actor who had been touched or verbally assaulted during this event. That is no way to treat the equipment or the actors, if you can not respect the farm or the employees trying to do their job, then you should just stay home!
I also heard some who said things like “this is so lame” or “I paid $19 for this” or “this is a waist of money”. Wow, what poor attitude, they had only been in the cornfield less then 10 minutes and not even to the first live actor and already complaining about the cost of a ticket. Those are the people who I would like to cast a spell on! Until you take the time and get involved in something like this – you really do not have a clue as to what it takes to run a haunted cornfield or for that matter any haunted house.
Here is just a small list of where that money might go:
The newspaper and other advertisements flyers
The road signs, website, and phone service for directions
The tickets, and employee’s to work the food and store
The corn, equipment, props and employee’s needed to grow and design the creepy maze
All those attractions, animals, pumpkins, games, cut-outs for pictures, bonfire, decorations, pony show, and magic show
Then there is the crew for parking, and security, flashlights and radios
The live actors, costumes, makeup crew, and makeup
There is also a crew that goes though the field the day after to make repairs to the maze, and equipment that get damaged by running scared customers
Due to rain (and there was a lot this year) all the straw needed to be laid each day in the maze and parking lot to keep the ground from being too muddy
And those port-a-potty
I am sure there are many other things where the money goes that I did not see, like the electric bill to run this one of a kind creepy cornfield.
[attachmentid=517]
Eye of newt and toe of frog
In this pot I will put
Butterfly wings and spider webs too
Earth to wind, moon to fire
Show me what I desire
A little girl, a little boy
For our pot of stew tonight
Oh what pretty eyes you have
Stay for dinner won’t you
Beware – my pets will get you!
By-Witch Hazel [attachmentid=515]
This is what I said to those who dared to enter the Creepy Cornfield this season at Meadowbrook Pumpkin Farm and Market. You can even see me in their Can You Survive video at www.meadowbrookfun.com. Watch the counter and when it gets to 54, pause it, yes that is me Witch Hazel.
I have always loved Halloween, and always enjoyed going to haunted houses for years. But this year my daughter had found an ad that was looking for actors, and it turned out to be located only a few blocks away. The timing was great too because I could work my regular job and then go to the cornfield afterwards to work. So I went and to my surprise I was given the job, but I had no idea that I would be the one who would have to come up with the idea to scare the customers. Turns out the Witch lived within me, and I think I did a pretty good job at it. The owner Rick said there are different types of scares, and he was right about that, but a witch is not really scary when you think about it, just ugly. So during the training I learned to project loud enough to be heard in the cornfield.
Each night all the actors would get together under a tent area to get dressed into costumes and get into makeup. The guys in the makeup crew really knew what they were doing, and have been doing it for years and loved it. It is so amazing to see people transform into monsters like that and learn some of their tricks.
Then it would come time for us actors to go into the field and get into our spots. Soon the people would come through and it was your job to put on a show for them. It would take them an average of 45 minutes to walk through the cornfield maze in the dark. The idea is to take your time and check out the different displays (this does not mean you should be holding onto your boyfriend’s shirt and have your head buried in his back) instead of being dragged through it. Half of the fun of the maze is, not knowing what would be hiding around the next corner, in the hopes that something will scare you, right? There was nothing there that was going to hurt you! But for parents with little children, who need you to carry them thought the cornfield, leave them home. They are not going to enjoy it since they are so young and it will take away from your fun to enjoy the scare. Not to mention the actors are there to do a job to scare, not worry about a child coming in their area.
After a few weekends I wanted to try something different to scare people, so instead of saying my chant I would stand there very still, hold my breath, and not move at all. To my surprise this worked better, was I real or not? And as the last person of the group would go by I would turn to follow them and then try to scare then. This did work more often, and was fun. Some would even run to get away from the witch and fall into the corn, so I must have given them a pretty good scare.
Time and time again I would hear people say “do not touch that”. Before going into the field the sign said “Do Not Touch”. So what is it about some people who do not understand that you DO NOT TOUCH? As the witch I would find some who would try to touch me to see if I was real or not in a nice way, and then say they were sorry for touching me when I would turn to follow them, and that was ok. But then there were those people who thought they had the right to tear off my witch hat, or punch, or even try to kick me. And I was not the only actor who had been touched or verbally assaulted during this event. That is no way to treat the equipment or the actors, if you can not respect the farm or the employees trying to do their job, then you should just stay home!
I also heard some who said things like “this is so lame” or “I paid $19 for this” or “this is a waist of money”. Wow, what poor attitude, they had only been in the cornfield less then 10 minutes and not even to the first live actor and already complaining about the cost of a ticket. Those are the people who I would like to cast a spell on! Until you take the time and get involved in something like this – you really do not have a clue as to what it takes to run a haunted cornfield or for that matter any haunted house.
Here is just a small list of where that money might go:
The newspaper and other advertisements flyers
The road signs, website, and phone service for directions
The tickets, and employee’s to work the food and store
The corn, equipment, props and employee’s needed to grow and design the creepy maze
All those attractions, animals, pumpkins, games, cut-outs for pictures, bonfire, decorations, pony show, and magic show
Then there is the crew for parking, and security, flashlights and radios
The live actors, costumes, makeup crew, and makeup
There is also a crew that goes though the field the day after to make repairs to the maze, and equipment that get damaged by running scared customers
Due to rain (and there was a lot this year) all the straw needed to be laid each day in the maze and parking lot to keep the ground from being too muddy
And those port-a-potty
I am sure there are many other things where the money goes that I did not see, like the electric bill to run this one of a kind creepy cornfield.
[attachmentid=517]
[attachmentid=663] It's Pirate Deb!
Kids have gone back to school, and summer is over, it's almost that time again!
Time for that cool night air, a full moon, and a walk in a haunted cornfield!
So start early this year, and don't let it pass you by. Get into the fun of the fall season, the colored trees, and great treats, and yes those great scary Halloween decorations. Don't let this year pass you by without having some fun putting up the decorations, get creative and get everyone into the spirit. Dust off those costumes, because we want to see them.
Kids have gone back to school, and summer is over, it's almost that time again!
Time for that cool night air, a full moon, and a walk in a haunted cornfield!
So start early this year, and don't let it pass you by. Get into the fun of the fall season, the colored trees, and great treats, and yes those great scary Halloween decorations. Don't let this year pass you by without having some fun putting up the decorations, get creative and get everyone into the spirit. Dust off those costumes, because we want to see them.
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