The Haunted Orchard Review (2017)

The cast here is INTENSE and they hit you from EVERYWHERE. They can be a bit sparse between the various trailers, but the trailers are definitely loaded and ready to scare. The only time we caught any of them dropping out of character was when he terrified our youngest and she ran. He stopped and dropped character in an effort to help her calm down. We aren’t taking any points away from that because, as haunters we love a great scare’ but we have no interest in traumatizing little kids and scaring them away from haunted houses in the future. We actually commend actors for knowing when to cool off of kids. They are also very interactive, both verbally and physically. Don’t be surprised if you get a chainsaw bar run up your leg.

They have a sign out front near the road, but we still managed to drive past them the first time because they are shortly after a curve and we didn’t see the sign until it was too late. But, after turning around, we arrived and were directed where to park and where to get tickets. They have port-o-potties in two places and a nice little camp fire was burning in a barrel in front of the ticket office surrounded by a bunch of overturned apple crates for seating. All of the staff there was FANTASTIC. Amy helped get us set up to play Shootout and, when our two youngest kids were deciding whether it was time to tap out or not, a security guard by the name of Abe came by to try and help them get through it. When that didn’t work, he gave them a ride down the hill in his truck and had them waiting for us at the bottom.

There are a few safety concerns that we discovered. Some of the trailer doors are propped open with metal rods (which got Katie once) and the steps can be a little tricky to navigate in the dark. Since this is all outside, they are subject to weather conditions and the last section of the trail gets pretty slick when it gets wet, especially when combined with fallen leaves. But, this IS outside and you should prepare yourself for that.

Before you take the hay wagon (or ambulance, for speed pass holders) ride to the top of the hill, you are just in a quaint little bonfire-esque gathering place. People standing around chatting to each other as they prepare for their trip down the trail, or sitting around the campfire to keep warm. There is no music and the costumed individuals were directing traffic. It is all very quiet and laid back. The signage and decorations let you know that you were about to enter a haunted house, but the atmosphere while waiting was the complete opposite of what it was once your hike begins. This is probably by design, because it was actually pretty nice to sit by the fire and relax after the haunt was over.

The trail runs through an apple orchard and several trailers, so there isn’t really a lot of room for major special effects, but the rooms that had them used them well. A couple of the trailers had a soundtrack playing to help increase the ambiance. The scenes had a fair amount of detail to them, but could have used a bit more. They could have also used a little more lighting, primarily near the entrance/exits of trailers and to highlight some scene elements. Of course, they may be a little limited based on the nature of the trail. However, they did do exceptionally well with what they had, though.