2009 Event Reviews

A rather unpleasant, moody night set the the tone for this horrifying adventure through a Southeastern Wisconsin Farm. Glacier Rock Farms, normally a petting zoo, takes a sinister atmosphere after dark.

They first send you through a haunted mine. This is one of the neater haunted experiances this year. Seeming like a real mine, you are sent down a mine shaft and through a cave populated only by the spirits of departed. Things pop up and out all over sending you yet further on.

Your carriage awaits you after freeing yourself from the mine. You find yourself going through a forest populated with all sorts of fire-breathing ghouls and shadowy ghosts.

This section of our adventure provided me with the very real fear that we really were not going to make it back out. The mud on the paths was deep and my trust in the tractor taking us back into the woods was not terribly strong at times. We did make it through safely and without too much issue.

Then you are left out in the woods and must make your way back along a path in the woods. Many demons are encountered along the way. At the edge of the woods you find yourself making your way through the corn. The corn seems to move on it's own and it seems as though something is there in the fields with you...Or is it all your imagination?

I enjoyed my time at Glacier Rock Farm. The weather really was not ideal for this event, though the individuals whom run it put a lot of effort into still making it an experiance to remember for those whom attend.

Like I mentioned, I was worried that their tractor would not make it down the paths it was supposed to go on. I was also worried, due to the fact that the mud made the walking paths nearly impossible to go down without slipping. Having to be as worried as I was about my footing really took away a lot of enjoyment that I could have had going through it.

I am deeply appreciative to the staff and all that make this event possible even in harsh conditions.

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Monster Mayhem, an outbreak experience!  The night began with kind of a boring wait, you purchased our tickets and waited, no music, no monsters, but this is to be expected, you are waiting in a pizza parlor after all.  Once in, you are led to a dark staiway, where you wait in another line, for a gentleman to get you.  Monster Mayhem was very actor and prop heavy.  The central theme is an outbreak, and zombie takeover.  At times you are rushed by "guards" to get from area to area, this is a great effect, gets the heart pumping.  This haunt has two fake elevators that give the effect that you are going down deep into the ground.  There is a couple effects that involve getting sprayed with water, always nice when there are physical scares like this.  The best part of Mayhem was the giant alien at the end that appears to be an animitronic, you walk by, it follows you!  Mayhem was a short, but fun thrill ride!

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Gilly's the haunt I was least excited for, turned out to be the best so far!  The line was short and fast, there were no actors entertaining, but there were, "newspaper clippings" explaining the history of Gilly's.  I really liked the music that was being played as we waited, part circus, part halloween, part ska, it was fun to listen to.  After the line we were led down a path to a very smokie greenhouse-ish area where we boarded an animated boat!  It was great.  A ghoulish woman then boarded the boat and went over a few rules with you.  The smoke was so dense, you couldn't see a thing, it was very cool.  The theme was very circus heavy, which is alright with me, sideshows, clowns and freaks all in one place!  The highlights of the haunt were the spinning room, this left you feeling real disorientated.  There was a room with a swirl on the floor, a strobe light and what appeared to be a fake clown contorsionist on the wall, but he wasn't fake!  Creeped us out!  Another great part was the mirrored hallway, my girlfriend said the highlight of her season was me leading the way down this hallway, walking up to one turn, seeing my refection, and saying "oh wait, that's me"  Great effect!  In all, the effects were great, the actors were top notch, the staff was awesome, and Gilly's was the best haunt of the year!  

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Meadowbrook is always one of the highlights of the season for me.  This year was a bit different, but good none the less.  We arrived, the parking was ample.  Decorations on the outside were the same as years past, highlighted by the Killer Clowns From outerspace exhibit and the penned animals that at times can freak you out.  Nothing scarier than a goat making noises when you are not expecting it!  We got our wristbands and headed to the campfire, where a gentleman was
telling ghost stories, this is new to me, there was no fire the last
time I was there.  After about 20 minutes listening to stories and warming up by the fire, our numbers were called and we proceded to the line.  This line would have been uneventfull, had it not been for the above mentioned animals, it was fun watching them.  After about 20 minutes in this line we entered the cornfield.  The cornfield had AMAZING effects, I couldn't even begin to guess how much money was spent on props and electricity.  There were a minimal amount of actors in the haunt, which was a little dissapointing to me, I would have liked more interaction.  With that said Meadowbrook went above and beyond decorating the haunt.  The best part, by far was an animitronic at the end that was reminiscent of an alien from the Alien films, fery good detail and very big!  The field took a good 45 minutes to an hour to get though.  In all, Meadowbrook is probably the best haunt for your money, long and detailed, Meadowbrook knows what they are doing! 

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Wisconsin Fear Grounds, what a treat this was!  Three haunts in one, all three completely different.  Our night began with a little confusion, as the grounds have many areas , and not all of them are haunt related!  We arrived only to discover we went to the wrong area.  This was totally our fault as there were signs directing us to the haunt, that we missed.  Once we finally made it to the right area, things ran smoothly.  Tickets and concessions along with port-o-pottys are readily available.  We got our tickets and headed into a short waiting area.  The line wasn't too ling and was entertaining due to a television that was running a loop of one of the hallways in the haunt.  You could see, thanks to night vision, some visitors being scared, some to the point of falling!  Next, we were herded up like cattle and lead to a pen, where I can only guess houses cows during the fair season.  The pen was entertaining because just when you thought it was just another waiting area, out come some ghouls to get you!  They were great, smelling us and telling my girlfriend she had gone bad!  After the pen, we were led to the first of three haunts...

Morgan Manor:  Manor was great, reminiscent of haunts I attended as a child, relying heavily on props and ambiance to scare you.  There were few actors in here, but the decoration and effort they had to put in payed off.  Loud sounds, darkness, and ghoulish props made manor very fun and creepy.  This haunt lasted about 10-15 minutes, after we exited, there was a path that led to the next haunt...

Morgans Torment:  Torment was the best of the three haunts.  Torment  utilizes darkness, which is always my favorite feature of a haunt.  The best part of the house was the vinyl balloonish material on the walls and ceiling to give you that claustrophobic feeling as you have to SQUEEZE your way though these hallways.  It was great!  I have experienced this before, but my girlfriend had never, and it totally blew her mind!  There were a few actors in this house, which played there parts very well, separating us from the rest of the group to add an additional scare to those who fear abandonment! 

Unstable:  Unstable was a the most actor friendly of the three houses.  You are first greeted by a tall goat man, who talks similar to Jim Breuer's "Goat Boy" character on SNL, he was a laugh riot, very funny.  This haunt was very much like walking though an insane asylum, lots of crazies, and creepy rednecks!  The actors were very into what they were doing and committed, no pun intended, to spooking you out!   

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This was my first time at Neenah's Most Haunted, and it was well worth the drive.  It is put on by the Neenah Youth Go, which is a youth drop in center in Neenah. Don't let the above fool you, it's not your typical youth run non-profit haunt. They boast 24 years of experience and it really shows through. While it was not the scariest haunt I have ever been to, the actor's really got into their roles. As soon as you step into the first room, you know how the haunt is going to be. When the king gives you the background on the kingdom, you can see through the dedication he has that he has rehearsed the role to perfection. It sets the remainder of the haunt up very well, and you do not know what to expect around the next corner. The haunt uses their space effectively, with quite a few dark mazes and confusing passages. It took us 24 minutes to get through on an average pace, which was the right amount of scenes in the right amount of time. They also had nice use of common things such as strings, ribbons and mattress pads, all of which you need to see for yourself. Overall, I would say it would be good for anyone ages 10 and up. There are definitely enough scares for those who scare moderately easily, and even a few surprises for those who don't get scared. It is definitely worth your time and money as the quality of the acting and scenes are above average.

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