Everybody knows that Halloween is, first and foremost, a holiday for the kiddies.
We all remember the anticipation of being a 9-year-old facing the prospect of filling a garbage bag full of candy. The feeling is irreplaceable, but the costume parties that take the place of trick-or-treating certainly help us forget the fun of childhood – sometimes literally. The only constant that remains is the morbid fun that comes from getting scared stupid by ravenous zombies and axe-wielding killers. And the scariest place in Eugene this Halloween is the blood-soaked haunted corn maze at Lone Pine Farms.
Directions to Lone Pine Farms (91909 River Rd.):From Downtown Eugene head north on Chambers St. It will then turn into River Rd. after crossing the overpass. Continue on this road for approximately eight miles and look for the farm on your right. Haunted maze hours and rates: Oct. 30-31, 7:30-10 p.m., $12 per person. Pumpkin Patch hours: Mon-Fri 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Go find your perfect pumpkin! |
“My arms hurt from my friends holding onto them so tightly,” University senior Rachel White said. “Guys with knives would pop out of nowhere and straight up chase you.”
Located off River Road just north of Eugene, Lone Pine Farms changes from an everyday crop and vegetable farm during the year to a bloody nightmare come to life in October.
The signs at the entrance of the haunted maze are ominous and foreboding: “No children under 18 permitted without legal guardian,” “Warning: frightening imagery,” “Not advised for pregnant women or the faint of heart.”
Despite those warnings, there was a magnitude of little kids present, many who probably slept with the lights on that night. The maze is pitch black and unsettlingly quiet – that is, until Mike Meyers puts a butcher knife in your face or Leatherface taps you on the shoulder and revs a chainsaw in your ear.
“I screamed when a guy in a hockey mask ran up to us and then started purring for some reason,” University senior Emily Erdman said.
There are no escape or alternate routes in the maze. It is a 45-minute marathon of trying your best not to shriek like an 8-year-old girl.
Even without the killer undead roaming around, the scariest costumes are the real ones at Lone Pine that read “Lane County Sheriff’s Department.” You’ll scream as you tremble at the terror of pat-downs, Breathalyzer tests and $250 misdemeanors. The haunted maze doesn’t cater to college kids, so it’s probably best to leave the college kid fun for later.
If a haunted maze doesn’t sound like your idea of fun, Lone Pine Farms also offers an expansive pumpkin patch, all types of foods including kettle corn, caramel apples, hot cider and hot chocolate. All things fall and Halloween are featured, and don’t forget to pick up a decorative squash or two.
[email protected]
