Halloween 2012 at The Waldorf

Halloween night,  a Wednesday if I recal. Checked out the Waldorf for the first and possibly last time.  The only part I liked was the $14 drinks served in coconuts.  My costume for the evening was an escaped mental patient. Anyone who takes issue with a negative portrayal of mental health issues may pull the stick from their rectum: it's Halloween!  Anyway,  straight jacket with one arm free,  sweatpants and slippers. We had to leave the Waldorf though when they refused to play The Monster Mash,  believing incorrectly that the French version was way better.

Halloween 2012

This year I didn't have the time I had last year to work on a costume so I needed something quick.  I've had the idea for a smoldering fireman for a while (just never been sure if it's in bad taste or not). This year we were going to the party at SinCity so I figured the fireman costume would work within their loose fetish theme,  and be comfortable to wear.  My twist was that I was going to be smoking. With a rented $1600 battery powered fog machine strapped to my waist,  and another smaller one run up through my helmet,  I was good to go... Until they both stopped working before I even got into the club.  Alas.  Didn't get any good photos either.

Halloween Weekend Haunts

I've been so busy with getting my costume done, I'm only now getting to this. Apologies.


Here's what haunts are open this weekend:
 
Barclay Monor- Probably not the greatest haunted house, but it's in a creepy old house -Vancouver
Barnyard Phantoms-Almost didn't open this year, but you can't keep a good haunter down. -Surrey
Burbaby Huanted Village - I've never been to this, but it's a neat place. Certainly more kid oriented -Burnaby
Ghost Ridge -I've not heard much about this haunt, or been, please send me your reviews -Maple Ridge
Haunted Power House- A sweet venue, and I know they put a lot of effort into this -Mission
House of Fairy Bad Things - More of an walkthrough of art than a traditional haunted house
Jordan's Haunted House- I'm not sure why this is the first I'm hearing of this, looks like a great home haunt -Richmond
Terror on Tatlow- Cool looking facade and makeup, I'd love to hear more about this home haunt -North Vancouver

See my posting below for other Haunts that have been open for a while already.

Did I miss a haunt? Let me know!

2011 Haunts Open Now

Many Vancouver area haunts will be open the weekend of Halloween, but there are some open already for your screaming pleasure.

Potter's House of Horrors-A Great haunt with a new facade this year.  Plan your night right and hit the Bear Creek Scream Train too which is just a short drive away (Surrey)
Bear Creek Scream Train -We always get some great laughs and hear many screams from this train. Actors can and will touch you. (Surrey)
Fright Nights at Playland. -I've not been back since a bad experience. It might be worth it if you go on a rainy weekday, but I've found that they oversell the attraction and too many people in the haunts, and long lines wreck the fun. (Vancouver)
Dunbar Haunted House Always a wonderfully decorated haunt with some clever scares. Their first year at a new location which should open up some new possibilities. Proceeds to charity. (Vancouver)
Reapers - A great haunt that embraces darkness really well. Great scares. (Chilliwack)

Fright Fest 2010

2010 was the most successful year of the Fright Fest Haunted House at the Fort Langley Campsite. I was told that the guest parking lot was full, and that people were even parking on the road outside, meaning that not only were the campers enjoying our haunt, but the news has spread and people are making it a destination.

This year we all haunted based on a similar genre of a swampy forest inhabited by creeps and witches. Sean and I had very little time to prepare, so we used what we had from previous years and lots of branches scavenged from the site. I think we put together a pretty spooky display, and once again the infamous Pumpkinrot blog posted some of DeadSpiders wonderful photos (Shown here) Want to see more photos?

Halloween in August 2009 (FFBC)

Halloween in August is complete, and a complete success. Some pictures from our area even ended up on the infamaous Halloween blog, Pumpkinrot.

When guests knock on the door, it is answered by a meek young man who is not allowed to talk to strangers, so he calls for his mom, who opens the door. Like Norman Bates, they are the same person (me). The foyer is decorated with the repurposed set from last year's Breakfast Television show. From there they travel through hanging chains to meet the brother who is barely held back by the bars of his cage but still manages to share his bloody rodent meal with guests.

More photos are available at Dead Spider's Flickr page

2008 Costume: Steampunk Creature

After all, the heart is just a pump, the liver a filter, the veins just a series of pipes, how hard could it be to reanimate a corpse using modern (1800's) day science?
This costume included turning gears in both the front chest organ unit, and the steam-powered back pack. The smokestack could produce a stream of smoke, and blood actually circulated through the veins. This costume brought home another win at the Blarney Stone. Sean, pictured towering over me and everyone else, went as a period mad scientist, who was the creator of the magnificent mechanical monstrosity.

Haunt Reviews

We've not had the chance to check out all the haunts we wanted to this year, but we've made it to a few that were excellent.

Potters House of Horrors: This is the biggest and most elaborate haunted house in the lower mainland (Surrey). There are lots of neat sets, fancy animatronics, special effects, great actors and some really great scares. They've figured out the scaring perfectly, not always scaring the first person through, and providing distractions so they can get you when you don't expect it. The sets are often very detailed and professional, with lots of little subtle touches that took our second time through to notice. There are a few masks that seemed a bit goofy and out of place, and some areas that are little too brightly lit, but overall a great haunt for some great startles. The final room is a vortex tunnel. I've seen these on the Internet, but until you step inside it, you can't understand how disorienting the thing is. Defiantly go to Potters. It's well worth the wait in line and the $12 (I couldn't find them offering any coupons or discounts if you bring a food bank donation, which is unfortunate).

Bear Creek Ghost Train: This is just minutes away from Potters and worth going to if you're checking out potters. Most of the sets and scares are pretty ordinary, but they have a few things that really stand out. There's a super creepy set with many (bear?) skulls on stakes, it's lit well and elaborate. They also break some of the boundaries that haunted houses normally have (don't touch actors, they wont touch you). You will be grabbed! The train ride is well done, and for only $7.

Dunbar Haunted House
YES! YES! YES!!! This is the one haunt to visit in Vancouver. An amazing production that rivals professional haunted houses, and all done in someone's (large) yard. Lots of time, money, love and creativity have gone into this production. The sets are very elaborate and detailed (and expensive). There is also a theme to the haunt, which I enjoy, "Horror through the ages." You start out in ancient Egypt, and all the way through genetic modified pumpkins. With all the greatness, there were a few issues we had with some of the volunteer actors coming out of character; the giant tree that asks you, "Are you the last guys through, we were supposed to close at 10," takes you out of the mood. Admission is by donation (I'd suggest $8 or so) and proceeds go to a number of charities. Located in Southlands (6478 Dunbar) and open all day until 10pm, midnight on Friday and Saturday with actors coming out to haunt at 7.