The Celebrate Rural Montgomery Fall Festival, originally scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 8, has been rescheduled because of rain for Sunday, Oct. 30 from 2 to 5:30 p.m.
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Fall on the Farm
At Clark's Elioak Farm in Ellicott City, Janelle Chapham, 4, has the goats eating out of her hands. Besides animals, the farm features pieces from the old Enchanted Forest theme park.
(Mark Finkenstaedt)
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Snakes? Sure.
Corpses? Absolutely.
Pitch-black darkness? Oh, yes, plenty of that!
"The more terrified I can make 'em, the more I like it," says a grinning Wright, son of Hill High Farm owners Vernon and Wendy Wright.
Mild-mannered, family-friendly apple orchard and pumpkin patch by day, Hill High by night becomes the site of a high-tech haunted house so frightening that grown-ups sometimes head for the first "chicken exit," as Wright calls the emergency doors in the 4,000-square-foot barn. Now in its fourth year, "Haunted Nightmares" has become a staple of the Wright family's October festivities. Last year, folks waited in line for up to three hours -- in the rain -- to enter the setup, which includes numerous props and special effects, along with 10 to 15 actors who sometimes get in visitors' faces but never touch them.
"We've changed about 50 percent of it this year," says Wright, who attends trade shows to get new ideas and additions. He handles the "pneumatic stuff," while business partner Steve Black operates the building's 18 sound systems.
What scares visitors the most?
"A lot of people are just terrified of clowns -- I don't know what it is," Wright says. People also have problems with the tunnel room, where a rotating cylinder and psychedelic visual effects create a dizzying illusion.
"They can't figure out what's moving -- it messes with their heads," he says.
A sign near the "Haunted Nightmares" entrance lists warnings similar to those found alongside a roller coaster: "Not recommended if you are pregnant, if you suffer from a heart condition, high blood pressure or any physical ailment."
Wright's best advice for first-timers?
"Make sure you use the bathroom before you come in!"
HILL HIGH FARM -- 933 Barley Lane, Winchester. 540-667-7377.http:/
Frequent Weekend contributor Mary Jane Solomon, whose favorite month is October, most recently wrote about apple picking.
