By Alisa Schneider
REXBURG — Halloween is only a few weeks away, and spooky season is in full swing. If you’re looking for a good scare this October, there is still plenty of time to get your fill of fun and fear before the month is up. Here are several great locations within 30 minutes of Rexburg:
The Haunted Hospital – St. Anthony
This old reform school was built in the early 1900’s, and though it’s been decommissioned and empty for over 40 years, there are rumors that some residents never truly left. Now, the Haunted Hospital offers house tours and the hospital maze. While you visit, you can decide for yourself whether what you see and hear are just the haunting employees, or if a ghost from the past is mingling amongst the actors. Come experience a truly haunted attraction with a creepy history and real ghost stories. The hospital is open this every Monday-Saturday for the rest of the month. Admission is $8 on weekdays, $10 on weekends.
This mill has been around for over a century. Like most old locations, there are plenty of ghost stories surrounding it. Whether there are real ghosts or just actors, the mill is still rich with incredible local history. This haunted attraction takes visitors through all four levels of the mill, along with the surrounding area that includes a suspension bridge, abandoned mines, waterfall, and wooded area. Be on the lookout for real ghosts and phantoms as you travel back in time to the old settlers of Southeast Idaho. The mill opens at 7:30 p.m. every Thursday-Saturday through the rest of the month, and on Halloween. Admission starts at $15.
There is a local legend dating back to the mid-1800’s of a feud between a group of settlers and a Native American tribe. The settlers were told that if they ever crossed the river that Wanetaqua (The Soul Taker) would drown them in the river. Elias Beane, the settler’s reverend, refused to believe the “pagan blasphemy”, and riled up his congregation to confront the natives. None of the settlers nor the native tribe were ever seen alive again. Now you have the chance to experience it for yourself at the area’s newest haunted attraction. If you think you have what it takes to cross the river unscathed, make your way out to Menan and experience legends of the past in real time. The Haunted River is open every Friday and Saturday in October, and Halloween night. Admission is $20.
The Straw Maze & Haunted Forest – Archer
If you want a double-feature attraction, look no further than The Straw Maze and Haunted Forest located just a few miles down the Archer highway. The Haunted Forest attraction provides an entire mile of monsters, and begins as you walk across a field to a corn patch. Emerging from the corn, the path leads into the woods, where even more frights await. If you want to try an attraction without a known correct path, you can visit The Straw Maze. This maze offers a full acre of twists, turns, dead ends, and haunters. The Straw Maze and The Haunted Forest both open at 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, plus the last full week of October. Admission starts at $15 for a single attraction, or $25 for both.
For anyone looking for a traditional haunted house, Planet Doom is the attraction for you. But just because it fits the “traditional” style doesn’t mean it’s a cookie cutter haunted attraction. At 32,000 square feet, Planet Doom is the biggest haunted house attraction in the area. You can watch performers dancing while you wait in line to enter the haunted portion. Watch for animatronics and scare actors alike as you make your way through the rooms, all with different themes. Planet Doom opens every Thursday-Saturday at 7 p.m., and on Halloween. Tickets start at $15.
