Frightmare Farms in June: The Darkside "Lights Out Tour"

6/5/16

Yesterday marked Frightmare Farms' first ever (to my knowledge) "off-season" haunted event... And it did NOT disappoint.

We here at Scarycuse usually don't publicly review attractions. We've gone into great detail in the past as to why, but in a nutshell- there's a ton of great attractions all fall-time long, and we just can't make it to them all... We do know from experience though, that they all are awesome labors of love, in their own different ways.

The reason we're making an exception to the usual rule, is the season- It's June!

Halloween is about 6 months away, so frankly, my expectations were fairly low.

Upon Arrival

We arrived at around 9pm, and were surprised to see a bustling parking lot, complete with staff, and an awesomely terrifying scarecrow lumbering about. When we exited our car, the crispy evening air hit us. Coupled with a sound-system emanating scary music and welcome announcements, we were totally getting chills! Yes, in June. As is the case in the fall-time, a crackling bonfire warmed guests as they watched a horror flick until their numbers were called with a new 'no-line' ticketing system. Awesomeness.

Entering

The wait wasn't long at all, before we were told to follow the scarecrow... Did I mention we had chills? We did! The brainiacs at Frightmare Farms are masters at tapping into that perfect combination of sight and sound that gives you goosebumps. We followed our "guide" through a weaving labyrinth (the same physical space where guests usually stand in line during the fall-season), until we were greeted by one of the better actresses we've encountered in any haunt. Holding a lantern, she introduced a brief but scary backstory, and led us in, before disappearing in the dark.

The "Tour"

Without dropping any 'spoilers'- the walkthrough haunt was darker, with only low lighting in awesomely detailed rooms, and the scares were unrelenting. We screamed and were caught off guard time after time after time. I like to slowly creep through, taking in the awesome spine-tingly experience, but my partner in crime on this adventure, my 14 year old son, pushed me forward, screaming the whole way!

The scares were GREAT, and the scare-actors were second to none at putting their heart into it.

Exiting

Upon exiting, it took my son a few minutes to get his bearings. He's been to every attraction in the area over the last few years, and is becoming a seasoned haunter... He's much like me though, in that he's not too cool for school, and loves to be scared! About 85% of the time though, he can walk out of a haunt and have a simple smirk and some good feedback on things that got him, and things that didn't... This was one of those few and far between occasions where he was caught off guard often, over and over, and totally shaken!

We went back to watching the movie for a few and went on our way- talking about the experience all the way home, and how amazed and somewhat saddened we were that it was still summer!

Frightmare Farms once again proves themselves to be true masters of fright, in any season.

-SC

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A few video clips of the 6/4 'Darkside' tour, courtesy of Frightmare Farms' FB Page:

"Some brave souls who survived Frightmare Farms: The Darkside last night... barely!"