Final Scores – By Category:

Cast (20% of Final Score): 9.33

Costuming (10% of Final Score): 8.45

Customer Service (10% of Final Score): 9.64

Immersion (10% of Final Score): 9.18

Special Effects (15% of Final Score): 9.12

Scare Factor (20% of Final Score): 7.29

Entertainment & Value (15% of Final Score): 9.67

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Final Scores – By Attraction:

Terror on the Trail: 8.87

Terror on the Trail is what we have always pictured and hoped for out of a haunted trail. They are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that donates their proceeds to help local families with severely ill or disabled children. They started their mission 15 years ago and went out with a bang (pun intended) for their 15th anniversary!

Traveling 20 minutes off the nearest highway, down twisty and curvy roads, our team experienced thrills before we pulled into the grass parking lot. Stepping out of our car, we looked at the sky in wonderment. Being from town living, we don’t typically see constellations as clear as these were. One cluster of stars beaming down at us is known as Cetus. Cetus, a whale-like monster in Greek mythology, was sent down to wreak havoc. From that moment, havoc ensued until we were well outside the country limits of this haunted tale.

Vindictive clowns. Baleful mechanics. Unholy nuns. Wicked witches. Mischievous little red-riding hoods. Murderous hunters. Pestilential factory workers. Desperate victims. More malignant and foul characters.

Those clowns. Our throats are raw from the laughter and screams these clowns forced upon us. As soon as we were launched into the scene, we were faced with different types of clowns. Some were rascally and uncomfortably playful, causing our stomachs to tie in knots and our throats to close; some were sinister and watched us from afar. There were quite a few that fed off of terrorizing us. All of them were foul. We now understand why so many people are afraid of clowns.

We were astounded to learn that several volunteers were not part of the show during our visit, because we weren’t left for more than 30 seconds without encountering a different personality. Some of which screamed or jumped out at us. We did get quite a few of your typical haunted house phrases, such as “walk faster,” “get out,” “fresh meat,” and “help,” and quite a few scares that were simple jump scares.

In the insane asylum, it was a lot of the same screams and sayings. Overall, the banter was remarkable. We were chased, hounded, teased, tossed around, stalked, tricked, and left discombobulated by this cast.

Props to who was in charge of makeup and costumes. Setting up that many characters seems like a near-impossible task, but it was done with finite detail, and the vision was executed very well. Many characters had some sort of costume or makeup application. The natural environment and lowly lit trail played a part in this trail’s advantage, in the sense that we honestly couldn’t see all the personas enveloped. The cast that chose to get close to us had individualistic and unique looks, but we noticed a few with no makeup at all, or just in your typical jeans and torn-up shirts.

Both the witches and nuns encapsulated their roles in the costumes and makeup that they fared. The witches, all in their capes and grunged-up hair and makeup, intensified our moments with them. One witch, in particular, exhibited a memorable moment with piercing green eyes that read our inner souls. There were a number of nuns, all in costumes matching their roles, with faces painted white, simple black circles around their eyes, and each a carbon copy of the next.

We walked, sometimes very quickly, through many different scenes. We didn’t notice characters who seemed out of place or didn’t fit in, except the vampire in the church scene. She was a little off-putting, but she did have the same demeanor in her costume and makeup as the nuns. The character itself left us wondering more about how she got there.

Hard to find? No. Easy to navigate? Depends on who you ask. If you are a typical country bumpkin, this drive will be nothing for you, but if you are like us, and not too familiar with country roads, it can be kind of intense. Some of the roads on our journey were narrow and very hilly. Deer were out and active. Apart from the actual drive there, the GPS took us straight to signs showing us where to enter. The grass lot to park in is a little lumpy, but the parking staff directed us and immediately started in with fun banter.

The entire experience was outdoors. We were met with all dimly lit areas, and no actual flat surfaces. All to be expected with an outdoor haunted trail. There were some unmarked stairs, going in or coming out of some scenes, that could easily be hazardous. Our tall teammate did have to duck quite a bit in some of the areas, which took him away from enjoying the experience had he not had that concern.

Their Facebook has all of the information needed. It also has a section that names the recipients of the proceeds and their stories. The owners and other volunteers working at the ticket booth are great to talk to. If you are a talker, and you find Matt not busy, prepare add at least 30 minutes to your night for good conversation. For us, it was more than worth the time! The vendors, volunteers, family, owners, and security are all warm and amicable. This is a tight-knit crew, and they welcomed us with open arms.

After collecting our tickets, we walked through a graveyard and then along some of the best-carved pumpkins we have seen. No queue actors were roaming, which we do recommend, given that some people had to wait 20-30 minutes for their group to be called.

A few bonfires are set up for guests to enjoy as they wait for their name to be called. We were told, several times, that we might not make our way out of the haunt alive!

Several groups are called at once to preview a short film about Terror on the Trail, and their mission. We walk down to another gate, where we are instructed on what to do, what not to do, and what could happen. Again, it was known that there was potential that we wouldn’t make it out…ever. After giving the instructions, we were again met with one more storyteller. He hyped us up on what to expect. Although there is no advertised storyline, many scenes were involved in our experience.

Initially, we were worried that the experience wouldn’t be individually immersive, given that we were sent back with so many other victims. We were led up a hill with about 25-30 other people, and we were glad when we were split into smaller groups. There was a slight wait after the last storyteller that we were grateful for. It gave us time to process, and our anticipation ran rapid. We could already hear various bangs and screams in front of us. We were not prepared for the havoc awaiting us.

Each respective theme enveloped us. There was dead space between each scene, varying from 10 to 30 seconds, giving us enough time to reset. Our hearts raced through each scene; the dead space never lasted long enough for our heart rates to return to normal.

There weren’t any scenes that were expected to be after one another. They weren’t very cohesive, but since there was a little dead space, and all of the scenes didn’t match one another, it created more anticipation and excitement for what would be next. A few times, we did catch up to a group, or a group caught up to us, but for us, it always happened in the dead space, where we kindly let people in front of us so we could experience a more individualistic experience.

About midway through the haunt, there was a stopping point, with staff, not in costumes, making sure groups were not clustered. We did appreciate that. It gave us a chance to relax, even though creatures stalked us from behind. At that point, we were so amazed that it was impossible to envision what was next.

Throughout the rest of the trail, we encountered groups catching up to us a few more times. It is important to note that we were strolling and taking in the scenery, and some of the groups behind us were literally running away at times.

Upon exiting, we escaped to a gravel lot, where we had to wait for a trailer or bus to come and take us back to where we parked. The wait was a little long. We recommend a porta-potty there, since we were taken to the parking lot, where there weren’t any that we could see. If there were vendors, merch, or even a few more actors, it might improve the after-hunt flow. Our ride was the bus, and once we climbed aboard, the banter ended and experience wrapped the night up in a magical way.

We wouldn’t have thought that a haunted trail could use so many special effects. Some effects we were exposed to were those that we expected: bones lying around, leaves rustling, some fog and strobe lights, sounds of chainsaws, banging, and some silence. They did have a few soundtracks at points, and they intensified the chaos with the actors’ voices, pleas, taunts, and screams. Although sometimes overwhelming, the sounds mostly strengthened the show.

The designs were killer, seriously, some of the best we have experienced this year! Walking up to a toxic waste facility, there was a large wooden structure painted from top to bottom, fog coming from the top, and from all of the toxic-filled containers surrounding the way in. We had no other way but in, as the space was filled with more barrels of waste, stacked higher in some areas than others.

Clown Town wasn’t at all a typical circus, although we could see the top of the tent coming up, and in several other parts on the trail. The inside was filled with slides and pipes; clowns came from the ground and fell from the sky.

The witches’ cabin was a small, enclosed structure with a rustic exterior, and well-designed interior. Books filled with runes, figurines, candles, and raven figurines all occupied this intimate space. The church was set up with ripped-off walls, a casket, and an eerie piano sitting up front, with rugged, dusty, bloodied-up pews. A church bell rang from above as we walked away from the scene.

The automotive area was full of terrifying workers. They were sawing metal cars and equipment, forcing sparks to fly everywhere, though we felt there was more potential for additional special effects in that area.

In other scenes, the floor moved or its texture became soft and squishy. There was also a fog and light room, where many of the actors hid beneath, and popped up in unexpected places.

We were indeed affected.

Whether you’re scared or excited, you will experience a feeling directly between thrill and fear: Frisson! We felt frisson from the moment we pulled in, to the moment we exited out.

Those clowns. Creating an intimate moment where, all of a sudden, we were met by a clown who knew one of our names. Picking and taunting in demonic voices, yet they somehow sounded like a typical clown. Walking in, clowns were twisting on poles, popping out of everywhere. We were so overwhelmed with clowns. We walked out, and a few clowns stalked and followed us. One came up and had a conversation with us:

Clown- “Do you like legs?”
Us- “Leeggs…?”
Clown- (Deep Sigh) “Yes” (spells aggressively) “L. E. G. S. Like tall legs with a chainsaw!”
Us- (screaming)

Next thing we knew, a VERY tall clown was chasing us with a chainsaw. And for whatever reason, we felt crouching would stop the terror. Again…Those clowns!

As we walked up to the witches’ cabin, witches danced around a tree, singing a deadly nursing rhyme. They tested and taunted us all the way up to the cabin, where, when we walked in, we were met with a witch who said she wanted to use us as her next meal. When we walked out, they began chanting in harmony as if they were casting a spell during our departure.

Entering the deadly church, we didn’t realize just how badly we would be condemned. The entire congregation was made up of nuns, who, as we walked in, stood up in sync with each other like we were brides walking down the aisle. We were accused and crowded. They put the fear of God into us! Walking under the bell, we thought that our next destination could very well be Hell.

Someone used a shotgun to shoot blanks in the air right above us. Welcome to Kentucky!

Several red-riding hoods ran from the woods to the other side. An unknown creature stalked us, leaves rustling under their feet, and followed us as we walked down the trail.

We were shook. For real. We were directed into a trailer where we met two characters who were waiting in excitement to torture us. They told us to put our backs against the wall. It didn’t look like there was a way out. The door shut, one of the actors slammed his hand on the wall beside our heads, and got right up in our faces. The next thing we know, we tip one way and then another. Then, the entire trailer started shaking back and forth, and up and down. The actors began forcing us to walk around to the other door, while we were being thrown from wall to wall. There were bar grips, but that did not help!

We walked into a padded insane asylum where our doctor warned us about the orderlies. Patients were caged up, some in straight jackets, some were roaming, and popping out from doors unseen. They yelled to say they “didn’t do it,” trying to convince us that they were innocent. We didn’t believe them.

Although the scene of the finale was a fantastic concept, we thought the actors had the most growth potential, as many of them were saying the same things. That took away from the scare factor that the rest of the trail gave us.

Other than the trail, there were lots of places for selfies and pictures. They even had a random selfie station in the middle of the trail for a chance to win $100. There were two large bonfires with hay bales to sit on, which allowed us to enjoy the warmth and created a comfy, at-home atmosphere. They had two vendors who sold horror merch (shirts, keychains, pens, and other knickknacks), a food truck, and porta-potties. Although it was a pleasant environment, seeing all activities or actors wreaking havoc would be welcomed.

Our throats are sore, and our abs are worked from the screaming and laughing we experienced. Terror on the Trail not only paralyzed us in fear but also caused us to try to run away and scream frequently.

This trail took us 42 minutes and 12 seconds to get through. The price of $20 at the gate brings the MPD (minutes-per-dollar) to 2.11, which is DOUBLE the average of 1. If we had to guess, we burned a lot of calories.

Terror on the Trail is Henderson, Kentucky’s best-kept secret. We recommend checking them out!