Review: Haunted Overload

Three words: atmosphere, atmosphere, atmosphere. Haunted Overload is drenched in it.

I'm going to keep the review somewhat brief for two reasons. First, it's a good way to keep the hyperbole down to a minimum. I loved this place so much I could go on for a good, long time about it. Second, I took a day off work to get ready for Halloween and I have a TON of stuff to do. So let me get right to it.

It began with the ride down the winding back roads of Lee, NH. Houses glowed in the blur of dark woods and stretching fields as we made our way. The only hint that we were on the right path: a lonely scarecrow standing in a front yard with a sign reading "Haunted Overload" and an arrow.

Shortly after, we arrived at the entrance Coppal House Farm. There's no fanfare here. Just another small sign and a dark, narrow, dirt road lined with towering oaks. In the distance the light of the attraction flickered above the treeline.

At this point my smile became permanent.

Haunted Overload does it right. The setting, the props, the actors, just the overall feel of the place is magnificent. They even do a great job of managing the crowd. Tickets are sold in advance and once they reach capacity for a show they pull it down. The result is that you are assured a parking spot and a short wait in the one (!) line leading to the actual park.

I could give you a blow-by-blow description at this point but you REALLY need to see it. I don't want to spoil it. Let me put it to you this way: if you have ever wanted to walk around inside of Tim Burton's head then this is the place you need to be. Fantastic from start to finish. I enjoyed every second of it.

Eric, if you're reading this, my hat is off to you. Absolutely stellar work. Some of the props were truly awe-inspiring. Not to mention bloody huge. I can't wait to go back next year.

If there are still tickets left you must see Haunted Overload. Do it. Do it now.

Haunted Overload is located at Coppal House Farm in Lee, NH.

Review: Nightmare New England

I'll have to resort to cliche for this one: it was okay for what it was.

The facility hosting this extravaganza is called Funway Park, which also happens to be a mini-golf course and go-kart track. I have to say that the fact that the go-karts were active was a bit of a mood killer from the start. The sound of revving lawnmower engines is not exactly my idea of scary. Once I got over the initial disappointment that this adventure was decidedly more carnival than creepshow I made my way to the gate.

After buying my ticket ($19.99 for general admission after a $5 coupon I received in the mail) I headed over to the "Monster Midway" which is a carnival-like row of games, concessions and gift vendors. They also had a few people in costumes walking around and a dunk-the-clown game (tempting!). Amusement park vibe. Okay if you're into that. I'm not, really.

At the end of all of that was the first of four long lines. General admission guests endured the cold while glancing enviously at the huge bonfire & lounge area reserved for the folks who were smart(?) enough to spring for VIP passes at $39.99 a pop. Folks chatted and griped about the wait. Punks cut in line. Cigarette and cigar smoke drifted. I amused myself by snapping pictures with my cell phone.

It was pretty much a lot of waiting to walk through nearly pitch-black scenes full of the usual funhouse gimmicks and requisite startle tactics (air guns, banging trap doors, etc.). Lines averaged 10-15 minutes each. Sometimes more. Costumed actors did their best to make the wait more interesting but more often than not succeeded only at being annoying, three of them going as far as to bum drags off of peoples' cigarettes.

High points included the inflatable rubber walls of the first house, the aptly named "Buried Alive". The second hallway literally squeezes up against your body. It felt a bit like being passed through someone's lower intestine but apart from that it was unexpected and pretty cool.

I also dug most of the last house, the demented hospital-themed "Sleep Stalkers". This one provided my one actual "scare" of the night when a door unexpectedly flung open to reveal a raving character inside. That was pretty neat.

The other two houses were just okay. "3-D Freakshow" was a killer clown dealie that was only made interesting by the 3-d glasses provided at the door. I spent more time staring at the fluorescent paint on the walls than paying attention to the scary stuff. Some of the more interesting characters were here (though one of them actually walked into me). The rotating tunnel at the end was surprisingly effective, too. I felt the walkway tilting but it actually turned out to be my helpless equilibrium.

All hail Herpes the Clown.

"Raven's Claw" was a pretty standard graveyard setup. Graves. Zombies. Corpses. Yay.

Overall, it was just okay for me. Honestly, I thought the best part of the night was passing between the houses (which often involved a good 50-yard or longer walk) and seeing the banks of bonfire smoke and manufactured fog rolling through the light of the park. I lingered there as much as possible. I probably would have hated this trip if the night hadn't been so perfect.

Nightmare New England is located at Funway Park in Litchfield, NH.

The First Weekend in October

I'm starting it off in grand fashion.

So far, I've spent the entire day in the garage putting a significant dent in the huge pile of work needed to complete my props for Halloween 2008. I'm writing this on a lunch break of sorts. After this gets posted the wife and I will be heading out to Gloria Jean's Coffees where I'll be purchasing a delicious Pumpkin Spice latte.

Then it's back to the garage for more monster-making until it's time to head out for the evening.

On the itinerary tonight is a trip to check out a new haunted attraction nearby called Nightmare New England:

A flier just arrived this morning and since then I've seen a television spot, as well. The website looks pretty cool so I'm going to make some time to see it.

This is a little embarrassing to admit but I've actually never been to a full-blown haunted attraction. A few haunted houses here and there and the occasional "spooky" amusement park ride are about the extent of my experience with this kind of thing. Not that there's any lack of them around here. I just always thought they looked a little silly. Couldn't tell you what's different this year but I've decided that I want to make it out to a few of them. I figure this is as good a place to start as any.

Another one that's high on the list this year is Haunted Overload, which I've heard nothing but good things about through folks like Pumpkinrot and the online haunt community. Can't wait to see that one. Doesn't hurt that Haunted Overload (like Nightmare New England) is about 15 minutes from my house.

The air is cool, the wind is blowing, the leaves are flying and we're off to a very, very good start.

I'll be sure to report back on the evening's entertainment. Cheers.

Those Empty Eyes