A few photos from the preview party.
A host of neighborhood kids descended on the house, carved up some pumpkins and went out putting them where they wanted. Then, they were lit with random colors…
A few problems with my camera herein, most notably a couple autofocus errors, and an apparent dislike of the color red on my camera’s part, and I didn’t preview to know to compensate manually. We’ll get better ones later.
Frightmares at Lagoon is always a fun time.
We made it out opening night and bring you our reviews of the new attractions for the 2010 season.
New in 2010 is the “Scary and Crow’s maze”. This is for wee ones, not scary, there’s a height limit (over some height can’t enter), and is a companion piece to the Trick or Treat Trail, meant to split traffic between the two. Set up also as a trick or treat.
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| From 2010 Fun |
Talia enters….and first up is the Witch who is “Aaaa scary”…
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| From 2010 Fun |
Talia understands Halloween so well already she is faking scared…it’s rather funny.
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| From 2010 Fun |
Coloring at the scarecrow…
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| From 2010 Fun |
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| From 2010 Fun |
The fairy was easily Talia’s favorite part. Thrilled when she was sprinkled with pixie dust…
Overall Scarey and Crow’s is a very fun Trick or Treat time. However, it ultimately fails miserably in it’s ability to divert traffic from the Trick or Treat lane, and that disparity is in the difference in treats handed out. The likes of spider rings and pictures to color here just can’t compete with cold hard candy.
We were unable to get into the Trick or Treat lane as a result, as traffic was simply insane there.
Also new in 2010 is LOCKDOWN.
This is a “4 spider” rated haunted house ‘too scary for kids’. Themed in a Prison with some demented guards and worse inmates.
This is actually one of the more enjoyable haunts at Lagoon, in my opinion. It actually takes the theme and runs with it in a logical progression from the kitchen, cells, laundry, and on through death row. A few recycled things from Deception last year get tossed in here and there, and don’t fit quite as well as I would like, but it’s always nice to see the top end props as the finale brings.
Alec found this one to be the most disturbing of the night.
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| From 2010 Fun |
Talia actually rather enjoyed it, giving inmates high fives as they screamed and reached from their cells. Too scary….pah….
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| From 2010 Fun |
Returning from last year are 3 haunts.
First is Psycho Dave’s junkyard…however, new this year is a one time through limit. Sure, it got some additions from the now defunct highschool, but I was a little disappointed to see the change. It’s still fun to see all the leftover crap, especially for those of us who remember where they came from.
Next up is Deception. This thing really lacks any kind of theme, and is a jumble of assorted rooms, highlighted by a wax museum of theatrical villains. Kyle found this one to be the most disturbing…which is strange as Talia walked through it on her own fine, not reaching to be held and only occasionally grabbing my leg. “Look daddy, they got BLOOD!” Her seeing my excessive makeup for the lab prior to it melting off seems to have rendered her more immune to the stuff on others.
I was rather disappointed with this one myself, but I’m not a fan of the random crap thrown into a house kind of haunt to begin with, so I’m a bit biased. And, they DID get Kyle jumpy.
Finally comes the long standing Funhouse. Talia’s LEAST favorite among them. She has most definitely developed a fear of clowns.
Mostly showing off effects with the 3d glasses, this is more fun than it really is scary. (unless you hate clowns) The inclusion of a chainsaw is a little odd choice. It also racked up the longest line by a long shot early into the hours of darkness.
All in all, I still say Lagoon is the best bang for your buck for Halloween fun in the local area.
Atmosphere just simply can’t be overstated.
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| From 2010 Fun |
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| From 2010 Fun |
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| From 2010 Fun |
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| From 2010 Fun |
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| From 2010 Fun |
It’s been a day.
A very rough day.
From no one coming to assist in the morning duties to people who showed up for other reasons being down right rude. On through saying good bye to the old stand-bye that was destroyed with the recent winds, to finding the kids have broken the basement shower. Well…it would have helped if whoever installed it did it correctly to begin with.
Long…bad…day.
However, I was baffled by a side trip to the grocer for dinner.
There was Santa.
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| From 2010 Buildup |
Never heard of such a thing.
“This variety is similar to the canary melon except the rind of the Santa Claus variety is a mottled green and yellow.
The attractive green and gold-to-bright yellow striped Santa Claus melon somewhat resembles a small watermelon. Inside is a mellow and mildly flavored pale greenish flesh very similar to that of a honeydew but much sweeter. The color of the characteristic stripes on its hard shell is a sign of this melon’s ripeness. The brighter the yellow, the riper and sweeter it is. The ripest Santa Claus melon will have soft blossom ends that yield to gentle pressure and a vibrant yellow hue. Because of its thick skin, this melon doesn’t release a telltale aroma when ripe.
This melon was named in recognition of its long keeping qualities…until Christmas.”
According to Wikipedia anyway.
Well, Santa….This is for all that Christmas in July crap….
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| From 2010 Buildup |
(yes, I’m easily amused)
Getting a quick test video of the remaining lab equipment, and Alec decided he wanted to come help.
Donning the lab coat, he gave his best evil laugh…
Don’t know where he get’s it from…
He’s back to wanting to be a mad scientist today. It’ll change again tomorrow…
Sorting through some photos, some inspiration for you all.
I never really was one to fully understand the whole idea of clowns being scary.
Talia insists this clown is scary, however.
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| From 2010 Buildup |
Browsing the other posters, however. I find myself at a loss. There is little I can find to interpret this particular poster as anything BUT scary. That middle clown is coming for YOU.
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| From 2010 Buildup |
In fact, I think I saw him over here.
A whole carnival setup would be awful fun to do one of these years. And, as we went to the Zoo last weekend, this little plaza gave me a great idea if we ever go that route.
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| From 2010 Buildup |
I wonder 1: what kind of cloth those flags are made of and 2: how long it took them to fade….
Of course, they were featuring some of ‘natures nightmares’.
Not that I claim to fear spiders in the least. My brother had one of these for a pet.
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| From 2010 Buildup |
Still, spiders are a ‘thing’ for so many out there. And, there’s even Spiderfest going on at the Davis Graveyard in honor of that. Who knows…I might just get around to making a spider for that. Have a week business trip coming up, nothing to do for 4 nights, and the wife wouldn’t let me build a spider HERE. If I can’t find a suitable activity around town for early October, I’m sure housekeeping would LOVE having someone making spiders…
And, of course, the bats.
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| From 2010 Buildup |
Such sweet little things…what’s there to be afraid of?
Of course, I WANTED to tap that particular fear before, but my wife has stated that it’s grounds for divorce if I ever make some of the bat people.
And, of course the vulture.
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| From 2010 Buildup |
We LOVE our little vulture buddy. “The mean bird” as Talia says.
The kids got one last chance to have a little fun before heading back to school…So, we hit Lagoon, and I got to play with the point and shoot camera…
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| From 2010 Buildup |
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| From 2010 Buildup |
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| From 2010 Buildup |
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| From 2010 Buildup |
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| From 2010 Buildup |
As dusk set in, it reinforced my feelings that Lagoon REALLY only comes to it’s full potential for Frightmares.
These spokes are all supposed to have lights in them….
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| From 2010 Buildup |
More missing lights….
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| From 2010 Buildup |
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| From 2010 Buildup |
Everywhere you looked lights were missing/out. This seems rather sad in summer, yet only adds to the creepy atmosphere in October.
Back to the homefront, it’s time to prepare for the Hungry Ghost festival.
While not traditional by any stretch, I put my own spin on the festivities…
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| From 2010 Buildup |
