Metro Parent / October 2011 / Southeast Michigan Hayrides & Haunted Houses 2011

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Southeast Michigan Hayrides & Haunted Houses 2011

From the kid friendly to the bloodcurdling, here are some of the standout ongoing haunted barns, castles, mazes and more in southeast Michigan

Halloween season means cider, doughnuts, corn mazes and pumpkins – or terrifying monsters, corn "stalkers," freaky fun houses and thrills and chills. Take your pick! With the official 2011 Metro Parent roundup of hayrides and haunted houses, you're sure to find something to delight – or scare the daylights out of – every "kid" in the family, from tykes to teens to parents.

Barn of Blood and Witch Hayride

• Address: 38035 S. Huron Road, New Boston
• Phone: 734-753-9380
• Schedule 2011: 5-10 p.m. Friday, 2-10 p.m. Saturday, 2-8 p.m. Sunday. Hayrides start at 4:30 p.m.; barn opens at 5 p.m. All October long.
• Cost: $5

Little kids (2 and older) can hop on the hay wagon and enjoy the ride out to see a witch by a bonfire, where they can munch a doughnut and sip cider. Teens who dare can enter the classic Barn of Blood where ghouls and monsters are waiting in the dark and around every corner to terrify their victims.

Barn of Horrors and Spooky Fun Barn

• Address: 61475 Silver Lake Road, South Lyon
• Phone: 248-437-0150
• Schedule 2011: Corn Maze 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. weekdays; Children's Spooky Barn 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. weekends; Corn Stalkers Maze & Barn of Horrors 7:30-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday through October.
• Costs: $5/person daytime maze, $8/person nighttime maze, $2/Children's Spooky Barn, $12/Barn of Horrors, $17/combo Barn of Horrors and Corn Maze

Little ones can wander through a corn maze and get rewarded with a glass of cider and a doughnut or meander through a spooky (not scary!) barn. Older kids who want more scares and thrills can wait until nighttime, when they are "stalked" as they maneuver through the corn maze. There's also a Barn or Horrors with terrifying creatures to make you scream – and state-of-the-art robotics, special effects and illusions.

Corn Fun Corn Maze and Haunted Fear Farm Barn

• Address: 9391 Lindsey Lane (29 Mile Road), Casco Township
• Phone: 586-365-9401
• Schedule 2011: Mazes: 2-10 p.m. Thursdays (October only), 2-11 p.m. Fridays, noon-11 p.m. Saturdays, noon-8 p.m. Sundays. Fear Farm: dusk-midnight Fridays, dusk-midnight Saturdays, Sept. 30-Oct. 30. Daytime hayrides: noon-5 p.m. Saturdays-Sundays.
• Cost: Scary attractions: $17/adults, $15/ages 5-11. Family Fun: $10/adults, $6/ages 5-11, free/under 5 (add-ons: $7/haunted attractions, $2/daytime hayrides)

The family fun includes the corn maze, petting zoo, mini hay bale maze for kids, hay bale pyramid and bounce hour for kids under 11. For teens and adults, there's the haunted cornfield and forest, 3-D haunted horror house and black hole. Two mazes take about two hours to navigate with flashlights allowed in the main maze – but not in the haunted maze. Bring your own flashlight, or rent one for $3 and a $5 deposit.

Deadland Haunted House

• Address: County Line Antique Flea Market, 20900 Dequindre Road, Warren
• Phone: 248-376-3459
• Schedule 2011: 7 p.m.-1 a.m. Friday-Saturday, 7-11 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, Sept. 23-25, Sept. 30-Oct.-2, Oct. 7-9, 13-16, 20-22 and 27-31
• Cost: $15/adults, $10/kids 48 inches or under

This haunt's definitely not intended for young kids. But for anyone who meets the basic requirements – yet doesn't feel they can go it alone – there's the Rent-a-Monster who, for an extra $10 fee, will guide you through the haunted house.

Erebus Haunted Attraction

• Address: 18 S. Perry St., Pontiac
• Phone: 248-332-7884
• Schedule 2011: 7-11 p.m. Wednesdays-Thursdays and Oct. 24, 25, 31, 6 p.m. -1 a.m. Fridays-Saturdays, 6-11 p.m. Sundays, Oct. 1-3, 6-10, 13-17 and 20-31
• Cost: $25/person

This Guinness World Records holder of largest walk-through haunted house has four stories of fear, starting with an alien invasion. This one is for teens-plus – and most certainly for those who enjoy being scared witless. The challenge here is to just make it through the house!

Haunted Blake's

• Address: Blake's Big Apple, 71485 North Ave., Armada
• Phone: 586-784-9710
• Schedule 2011: nights, Fridays-Sundays, Sept. 23-Oct. 30
• Cost: $19.95-$34.95/adults, $15.95-$30.95/kids

On Friday and Saturday nights in October, the barnyard mutates into a spooky land at night with fortunetellers, a dark cornfield maze and fun house terror tunnel. The hayride includes acres of fiendish ghouls, special effects, laser beams and strobe lights – or try to find your way through the three-level haunted barn and black hole. Not for young kids!

The Haunted Castle

• Address: Our Lady Queen of Martyrs School, 32460 Pierce St., Beverly Hills
• Phone: 586-413-8658
• Schedule 2011: 1-6 p.m. Saturdays-Sundays, 6-9 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, Oct. 14-16 and 21-23, 28-30
• Cost: Haunted House: $11/person, $36/family of four or more. Hayride, $4/person, $12/family of four or more

Beverly Hills' gore-free, family-friendly fright place also has a hayride and bonfire and features "hardly haunted" hours 1-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday geared for kids 9 and under. No actors and no big scares: Just walk through and enjoy the sounds and scenes.

Haunted Farm of Terror

• Address: 28405 26 Mile Road, New Haven
• Phone: 586-203-7222
• Friday-Saturday, 7 p.m.-1 a.m.,
• Family nights Oct. 3, 10, 17, 21, 24, 28
• Sunday 7-11 p.m.
• Cost: $20/adults, $15/kids, $50/family night requires a coupon (from their website) for admission for 2 adults, 2 children, 4 hot dogs and 4 drinks. Additional kids are $12.50

There are 20 acres of haunted hayride along with a haunted house, spine tingling scares and scary movies. Take a shot at one of the captured zombies at the paint ball shoot and win prizes.

Miller's Big Red Haunted Hayrides

• Address: 4900 32 Mile Road, Washington Township
• Phone: 586-752-7888
• Schedule 2011: 8-11 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, 8-10 p.m. Sundays, Oct. 1-30
• Cost: $14/adults, $10/ages 10 and under

For a 21st year, the orchard turns into a fog-filled playground of nine-foot monsters, the Demon of Doom and creatures of the night. For movie buffs there's a haunted gallery of vintage move posters from around the world.

Night Terrors

• Address: 5565 Merritt Road, Ypsilanti
• Phone: 734-390-9211
• Schedule 2011: 7:15-11:30 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, 7:15-10:30 p.m. Sundays, Sept. 24-Oct. 31 (not open Sunday, Oct. 2)
• Cost: $16/single event, $32/all six

Wiard's Orchards offers six haunted attractions in one location at its "Haunted Thrill Park." Kids should be at least 10; use discretion. For younger kids, the Mined Shaft and Labyrinth are monster-free 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesdays-Sundays.

Scarefest Scream Park

• Address: 61288 Gratiot Ave. at 28 Mile Road, Lenox Township
• Phone: 586-749-6666
• Schedule 2011: Tickets go on sale at 6 p.m., doors open at dusk, Sept. 30-Oct. 1, Oct 7-8, 14-16, 20-23 and 27-31
• Cost: $15 each/Hayride of Doom, Castle of the Dead, Forest of Darkness and 3D Haunted House, The Terror Zone Maze and Yappo's Fun House. $45/all four.

Clearly not a drop-off for kids, the park says children under 12 will be sold off as slaves unless accompanied by an adult. Along with the haunts, there are monster truck rides from 4 p.m. until closing. This year, find live on-stage entertainment, bonfires, three huge movie screens showing scary PG-13 movies before 10 p.m. (and R-rated movies after 10 p.m.).

Skullman's Haunted Annex at Newburg United Methodist

• Address: 36500 Ann Arbor Trail, Livonia
• Phone: 734-788-4580
• Schedule 2011: 7-11 p.m. Oct. 14-16, 21, 23, 28-30; may be open Oct. 31 (call ahead to find out)
• Cost: $6/person

There's nothing like a spooky story to set things up for a good haunt. You'll learn the horrifying story of the mechanic, the bride and the evil doctor who were killed on the very spot the annex is on. The thrills continue outside under a series of tents with more shocks. For little kids, there's the friendly group, who will take them through the exhibit with flashlights and lights on. All proceeds benefit local community charity and mission projects at Newburg United Methodist Church.

Terrorfied Forest

• Address: 7365 Pinckney Road, Pinckney
• Phone: 734-878-0018
• Schedule 2011: 8 p.m.-midnight Sept. 23-24, 30, Oct. 1, 7-8, 14-15, 21-22, 28, 29; plus 8-11 p.m. Oct. 16, 23, 27, 30, 31
• Cost: $9/manor, $18/forest, $25/combo

Not recommended for kids under 12 and strictly teen and adult entertainment, the Terrorfied Forest is a 30-acre attraction that takes you deep into darkness and invites visitors to navigate through the night as creatures come out to play. The 40-minute walk is almost a mile. Determined to take on the Terrorfied Manor? Strange noises and flickering lights will greet you as you investigate the final resting grounds of Hillcrest sanitarium. The sanitarium may be gone, but the olds spirits refuse to rest.

Wagon Rides at Wolcott Mill Metropark Farm Center, (Also on Oct. 23 and Oct. 29.)

• Address: 65775 Wolcott Road, Ray Township
• Phone: 586-752-5932
• Schedule 2011: 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Oct. 1-2, 8-9, 15-16, 23 and 29
• Cost: $6/adults, $4/kids and seniors; pumpkins priced according to size

This Macomb County Huron-Clinton Metropark offers its "Pumpkin, Cider & Donut Wagon Rides" on select weekend dates. Take a wagon ride down the farm lane to the pumpkin patch to pick your own pumpkin, and then stop for a cup of cider and a doughnut. Primo fun for little ones.

Wilson Barn Haunted Barn

• Address: 29350 W. Chicago St., Livonia
• Phone: 734-466-2410
• Schedule 2011: 5:30-8 p.m. Oct. 14-16, 21-23, 28-30
• Cost: $1/person

This Livonia spot offers an attraction for ages 12 and under (scariness tailored based on age). Kids under 12 who like being scared can maneuver the barn in the dark, while little kids get to stroll through with the lights on.