Sarah (majorXpsycho)

Shopping, apple picking and beautiful lake views draw thousands to Door County every fall. However, travel where no tourist dare to adventure and you will find the exciting horrors of The Haunted Mansion! Back for its 10th year of screams, the Haunted Mansion is the only haunted attraction that I made a point to attend again this year.

We arrived early and the lengthy lines of victims confirmed my theory that The Haunted Mansion has quickly become a favorite for all! Aside from the location, the Haunted Mansion has changed entirely from last year with a bigger, better and more frightening main haunted house. The Haunted Mansion is 4 separate haunted attractions for only $10, but do not let the cost fool you. I have been to haunted attractions that are more than double the cost and The Haunted Mansion is as great, if not better! After waiting 30 minutes to purchase our tickets, we decided to go RIP and skip to the front of the lines.

The Haunted Mansion begins with a dimly lit walk (or run if you can) through a corn maze filled with ghouls, traps and sinking sand. The dead really come alive in the corn maze and just when you think the end is in sight, you will find yourself trapped and grasping for your life. We managed to escape only to be loaded on to a haunted bus ride! At first we thought we were safe inside the bus, but it isn't until the door locks that we realized we were far from safe. In fact, we were trapped on a moving horror ride! There is no relaxing on the bus and I have never been more excited to be back on my feet, as I was leaving the haunted bus.

When you exit the bus, you are given a number and notified that you now may enjoy one of the many attractions while waiting for your number. We decided to take our turns at the Zombie paintball and I am quite confident that if the Zombie Apocalypse happens, I will be the first to go! There are also plenty of treats to enjoy while waiting. The Haunted Mansion itself is completely different from last year and thrillingly more frightening. The ghouls are larger and the scenes are more gruesomely detailed. I love that they kept the unique aspects that make the haunt great and added more props and ghouls. I could hear the blood curdling screams of victims that had gone before us and this only added to the fear and excitement.

The spirits inside the haunt made certain no one was left alone, and if you are one of those individuals that likes to try to hide behind a friend, expect to be targeted! After 28 minutes of horror, we managed to squeeze our way out of the mansion. If you make it out, you can proudly add your name to the large "survivor" list. We made it out, but I am not certain if my trembling hands means I am allowed the honor of the title "survivor"! Overall, The Haunted Mansion feeds on what scares you most and has an excellent balance of disgusting, horrifying and thrilling.

Thousands of visitors travel to Northern Wisconsin every year for the breathtaking views of the trees changing colors. However, travel up a desolate road not far from Hwy 41 in Oconto, and you will find something else in the woods that will take your breath away!

Located only 20 minutes north of Green Bay, your fears of what lurks in the woods, becomes real at the Trail of Terror, known as the longest haunted woods in Wisconsin. It wasn't until we traveled 2 miles on a small rural road that we saw the sign for the Trail of Terror glowing in the distance. We had not even parked our car, and ghouls were already on us! We found our way to the ticket booth by following the large glowing light of the bonfire. There is one option for purchasing tickets and you are given a glowing necklace (so the ghouls can track you) and a keepsake wristband that states "your tears bring us joy". There is no standing in a long line at this haunt, you can purchase several goodies from hot cocoa to nacho's while you warm yourself by the bonfire. While waiting for your name to be called, ghouls will stalk you and blood curdling screams can be heard coming from deep within the woods. The fear builds while you listen to the victims who have gone before you. Our name was finally called and we were joined with two other small groups along with a few "tour guides".

The moment you walk into the woods, the ghouls are are grasping for you and they try to warn you not to continue. Suddenly, a loud "bang" makes everyone jump and seek escape. The lengthy trail is only lit by a few flaming torches along the path, so there is no way to predict where the ghouls are lurking. Around several bends your group is sent without a guide into a horror filled scene.

The "minds" behind the Trail of Terror want you to feel frighteningly uncomfortable and they make certain that if the woods alone do not "terrorize" you, one of the many scenes or ghouls will! All of the ghouls were full of blood curdling energy and they will touch you, and I don't just mean a small "tap" on the shoulder. If you think you can hide behind someone and remain safe, you are wrong! At 30 minutes long, you begin to wonder if the horror will ever end. Just when we thought we were safe inside our vehicle, the horror continued! Since there are not multiple attractions at the Trail of Terror, all of the creativity and energy is focused on making the Haunted Woods a true masterpiece.

The Morgue is a 1920's haunted abandoned school house located near the Austin Straubel Airport in Green Bay. This was my first visit to The Morgue which has been at this location for approximately 20 years! It is rare that I am caught "off guard" at any Haunted House, but The Morgue is nothing like any other haunted house I have attended.

Once you arrive you purchase a wristband and you are directed to a walk through the woods. The woods was very dark and it was difficult to navigate, but we managed to make our way through. There were no ghouls in the woods, but it helped build up the fear for the main attraction. Once you exit the woods, you first notice a HUGE bonfire with lots of couches and seating area's all around. There was already a sizable group waiting for their numbers to be called in order to enter The Morgue. Everyone that pays admissions receives a wristband with a group number on it, this allows you to relax, purchase food, beverages or just enjoy the bonfire. There are also several ghouls roaming the groups outside, waiting to catch you off guard. I witnessed a young man running for his life and he lost a shoe while trying to escape.

The school house was difficult to see, so it isn't until you are inside that you realize you are in a truly paranormal environment. When your number is called, the scares begin! You do not enter the house with other groups, so you do not have to worry about other annoying crowds ruining the fear. Everything inside the haunted house was completely unexpected, starting with the very first "room". I heard someone outside refer to the inside of the haunted house as a "large playground", but I feel that is a strong "understatement". I love haunted houses that rely on real "phobia's" instead of just using "scary animatronnics" and The Morgue has mastered this technique! A bloody moving corpse isn't as scary to me as walls caving in, floors dropping and abandoned school houses. Yes, there is a slide and it is the largest slide I have ever seen at a haunted attraction, but that doesn't even begin to describe the 45 minute long experience I had inside The Morgue. The ghouls did a phenomenal job and you could tell they truly were passionate about making you scream and squirm. There was very little "down time" aside from the 3 stories that you climb on several occasions throughout the haunt. The engineering and innovation that has gone into this lengthy haunt is clearly the result of a team that understands what really makes people scream.

Your worst nightmares will become real in Green Bay! No, I am not referring to the Green Bay Packers losing, but rather the terror that awaits you only 5 minutes from Lambeau Field at Terror on the Fox. For 19 years, Terror on the Fox has grown exponentially, adding length, more attractions, increased props and a large collection of souls left behind. Terror on the Fox is located at the National Railroad Museum and during the fall, the real double decker passenger train is transformed into a fog ridden ghost ride that leaves you screaming for escape. When you arrive at Terror on the Fox, the true nature of what is hidden deep in the woods is not apparent and you can only see the glowing red lights of the moving train.

We arrived shortly after the sunset in order to avoid any lengthy lines, but due to the popularity of this Haunt, the lines had already begun to grow. Prior to purchasing your tickets, there is plenty of gifts and food for purchase. There are 4 different ticket purchase options ranging from $15 - $35. Every ticket includes the haunted train ride, walk through the woods and The Omnious Sanctum (or the main haunted house). Since the lines were not too long when we arrived, we skipped the Fast Pass and chose the combo admission in order to gain access to The Pandemonium and The Omnious Sanctum. The Pandemonium and The Omnious Sanctum are two separate haunted attractions at Terror on the Fox, so I will keep the experience for both separate.

It all starts with a wait outside, while large screens play artistic scenes from inside the haunts. You can hear the blow of the train and see its magnificence pulling to a screeching halt in front of you. Ghouls roam the lines and everyone boards the haunted train for a 15 minute ride around the river. While on the train, it is lights out and fog fills the cabins. This is no relaxing train ride, ghouls are after you from above and behind. If you survive the train ride, you are escorted to a brief walk through a dark woods. If you purchased both haunted attractions, you will be directed to start at The Pandemonium.

The Pandemonium creates a very real panic throughout as control is not an option in this haunted attraction. A flashlight dimly provides you with security as you try to find the right way. Imagine being alone at night in a darkened hospital or penitentiary, you hear something coming from the right and with trembling hands, you shine your tiny flashlight only to discover horror is all around you! The ghouls can see you and by the time you see them, it is already too late. The attention to detail in every corner of this haunt was outstanding. We struggled to find our way out and the ghouls had us clinging to the floor in order to avoid their grasp. The Pandemonium took us on a 24 minute panic ridden attempt to escape.

Another brief walk through the darkened woods took us to The Ominous Sanctum. The grandeur of the exterior of this haunt builds excitement and fear at the same time. This is truly the type of artistic construction that only true haunted experts could create. Once inside, the grandeur continues with little to no "down" time. Old favorites still remain, but pale in comparison to the additions that have been made. I consider myself a pretty "seasoned" haunt attendee, but even I struggled to grasp that some of the props were not "real". We faced a lot of hesitation and uncertainty as we slowly moved forward and either something "supernatural" happened to my clock or it literally took us almost 40 minutes to escape! The presentation of the entire haunt would have been frightening even without ghouls, but the spot on performance made for a very thrilling experience.