WHAT’S UP WITH HALLOWEEN 2020?
The Advocate gives you details on where to go, and what's been cancelled, for your spooky fun!
It’s that spooky time of year, folks: Time to break out the pumpkin spice lattes and the jack-o’-lanterns, because Halloween is right around the corner. And if you love this holiday as much as I do (even if I am too old to trick or treat) you’re probably asking, “Hey, will there even be a Halloween this year?”
To be honest, I don’t have the exact answer, but from what it looks like now, while some people feel like it should be cancelled for safety reasons, there are others who feel some Halloween traditions could possibly be adjusted for a fun experience for the kids and a safe night for everyone involved.
According to the federal CDC, here are some things you can do that are considered lower-risk activities, and some that would be moderate- to higher-risk activities:
Lower-risk activities
● Virtual Halloween costume contest
● Decorating your home
● Halloween movie night with members of your household
● Carving pumpkins and decorating with members of your household
● Carving and decorating pumpkins outside with friends and neighbors (socially distanced)
Moderate risk activities
● Lining up individually wrapped candy bags at the end of your driveway for trick-or-treaters to grab
● Visiting a pumpkin patch or orchard with sanitizing or social distancing rules in place
● Outdoor costume parties where people wear protective masks and stay more than 6 feet apart (a costume mask is not a substitute for a protective cloth mask)
Higher risk activities
● Traditional trick or treating
● Indoor haunted house
● Hayrides or tractor rides with people who you don’t live with
● Crowded indoor costume parties
The CDC does say to check and follow local and state rules and regulations, and to not participate in any festivities if you have COVID-19 or have been exposed to someone who does.
Though this holiday does not feel the same – and I wholeheartedly agree, it does not – it can still be a ton of fun in a safe way that will leave everyone with a smile and no one sick.
Let’s look at it this way: While we may have the safety mask part covered by now, getting large groups of people together to celebrate might not be a good idea this year. But fear not, reader – I have produced a list of some of the things we all can still do this month that will be fun and bring a good scare.
It may not be everything, but I’ll try to cover the big stuff!
Haunted Attractions:
● The Cinema of Horrors Drive-In Experience – This new contactless, Halloween experience combines 12 scary blockbuster movies, including “Friday the 13th,” “Insidious,” and “Halloween 2007,” with live actors and special effects. Organizers promise the scares from the screen will come to life as monsters lurk outside car windows, ready to pop out at perfect moments. You’ll want to keep your doors locked. See the website for an FAQ for COVID-safe practices, a complete list of films, and details on concessions. Further details: Various times Friday-Sunday, Oct. 9-Nov. 1; Clark County Events Center, 17402 N.E. Delfel Road, Ridgefield, Washington; $49; CinemaOfHorrors.com
● The Fear PDX – One of Portland’s favorite haunted attractions has a new timed ticketing system, with a limited number of tickets available for each half-hour time slot. Expect a system similar to museums, but much scarier, organizers say. Guests walk the entire haunted attraction in a single file line so they won’t come within 6 feet of other groups. Further details: Evening ticket times vary Sept. 25-Nov. 1; 12301 N.E. Glisan St., Portland; $30-$58.; fearpdx.com
● Oaks Park Haunted Drive-Thru – Enjoy Halloween frights and thrills from the safety of your own vehicle. Become part of the show as characters are front and center leading cars through an unusual storytelling experience. The show promises spine-tingling audio, video and special effects. Choose from five haunted attractions, each with a distinctive theme or story that plays out over multiple scenes. Tickets must be purchased in advance. No oversized vehicles, convertibles, motorcycles, limos, scooters, bikes or pedestrians. Further details: Various dates and times Oct. 9-Nov. 1; Oaks Park, 7805 S.E. Oaks Park Way, Portland; $70-$80; scaregroundspdx.com
● Clackamas County Scare Fair – This drive-through experience offers the sights, sounds and chills of Halloween with help from the Nightmare Factory, Davis Graveyard folks, Fearlandia and Creatures of the Night. Tickets are required in advance via the website. Further details: 7 p.m.-midnight Fridays-Sundays, Oct. 9-Nov. 1; 694 N.E. Fourth Ave. Canby; $20 per car, $11 for single-occupant vehicles only; clackamas.us/fair/clackamas-county-scare-fair
Pumpkin Patches, Corn Mazes, Farm Stores. Zoo fun:
● Bella Organic Pumpkin Patch – Activities include corn and hay maze, haunted corn maze, hayride, cow train, and petting zoo. Masks are required prior to entering the farm store, and masks and gloves are required in the U-pick fields. Farm has gloves for U-pick. Masks will be required in mazes. Haunted maze open weekends only in October. Visit the website for a complete list of COVID rules and ticket prices. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesdays-Sundays through Oct. 31; 16205 N.W. Gillihan Road; 503-621-9545, bellaorganic.com
● Topaz Farm (formerly known as Kruger Farms) – Pumpkin patch and two corn mazes. One entrance is for a shorter maze, with parents of young children in mind. The other entrance brings visitors to a much longer and more challenging maze. Open 8 a.m.-6 p.m. daily through Oct. 31; 17100 N.W. Sauvie Island Road; maze admission $6-$8; topazfarm.com/home
● Bauman’s Farm & Garden Harvest Festival – The 2020 festival will offer U-pick pumpkin attractions and the corn maze. Visit the farm store for homemade doughnuts and apple cider. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily through Oct. 31; 12989 Howell Prairie Road N.E., Gervais, Oregon; 503-792-3524, baumanshf.com
● Lee Farms – Fall features include corn and hay mazes, wagon and pony rides, hayrides, farm animals, and a slide. Admission is limited during pre-booked time periods. The pumpkin patch field and corn maze will not have a time limit. The farm offers more than 15 varieties of pumpkins and gourds, along with cornstalks, hay bales and decorative corn. Tickets are sold in advance on the website. No gate admission sold for attractions. Farm store is open 9 a.m.-6 p.m. daily through Oct. 31; 21975 S.W. 65th Ave., Tualatin; $10-$22; 503-638-1869 or leefarmsoregon.com
● Oregon Zoo Howloween: Children learn about the habitats of zoo animals, while they look forward to a bag of treats as treasure for their scavenger hunt. Admission must be pre-booked online; registration opens 10 days before each event (shop.oregonzoo.org/#/Admission). 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Oct. 24, 25 and 31; Oregon Zoo, 4001 S.W. Canyon Road, Portland; treat bags $3 each. oregonzoo.org
Sadly these popular attractions below will be cancelled this year:
The annual Witches Standup Willamette Paddle is canceled this year due to maximum outdoor gathering capacity limits.
Tualatin has rescheduled the West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta for Oct. 16, 2021; tualatinoregon.gov
Davis Graveyard: Highlights from the famed Halloween haunt will be taken to Canby for the Scare Fair (see above).
Fear Asylum: From the website – “Fear Asylum has closed the coffin and will not be returning.” (Website has since been taken down)
Milburn’s Haunted Manor and Pumpkin Patch: Canceled; milburnmanor.com
The Beneath: The website says they will return “bigger and better” in 2021; thebeneath.com
Hood River Valley Harvest Fest: Canceled. 541-386-2000, hoodriver.org
Wenzel Farm Fantasy Trail: Halloween Fantasy Trail will not be open for the 2020 season. Fantasytrail.com
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