Many years ago, I can’t remember just when, I attended the first ever Los Angeles Haunted Hayride. It was small but had the workings of a really cool Halloween event. This year I finally went back and my how it has grown! Not only do they have the usual hayride through the old LA zoo, but there are now Knott’s Scary Farm type mazes for guests to enjoy. That’s not all! I’ll break down the experience for you in case you didn’t get to make it this year!
Amazing Pumpkin Display
Although parking was a bit of a pain due to the crowds, the pain quickly subsided when I saw this awesome display of jack-o-lanterns towards the entrance of the event. Definitely got me into the Halloween spirit. After a bit of a confusion in the line to get in we finally entered by walking through a tunnel with billowing fog.
This Year’s Theme: Midnight Falls
The theme of this year is Midnight Falls. I took the following description from their official website: “Midnight Falls is proudly hosting its 13th annual Halloween Festival for 1985. However, this strange town is always celebrating Halloween and it’s always 1985. But that doesn’t stop the citizens from enjoying the festival’s bizarre celebratory offerings. Visiting the Midnight Falls residents in the town square, neighborhoods and exploring the local establishments reveal more of the strange and sinister secrets behind this eerie town.“
Lots Of Halloween Entertainment
This year the Haunted Hayride had a great farm style atmosphere to it. Orange lights were strung up through the large trees and fog drifted in from dark corners. It really gave the place a warm but spooky glow. Right away I purchased a warm cup of apple cider and some chicken tenders with fries. The food was really overpriced but hey, I was super hungry so I would have paid anything to eat. And I can’t enjoy the attractions on an empty stomach. As we ate we saw a band of monsters playing on a stage. The lead singer was belting out great versions of 80’s songs. It really kept the crowd entertained.
I noticed the line for the hayride growing so we quickly wolfed down our fries and got in line. Now let me just say…the line took forever! I mean it.. it was hours long because there were so many people. We passed the time by playing Charades on my friend’s phone. It’s a pretty popular app and before we knew it lots of people were playing the same game with their friends. It really helped the time pass less painfully. Eventually we made it to the front and were loaded on an old wagon filled with hay. Allergies be damned, I sat down and the wagon took off on an old dirt path. Everyone in the wagon was really having fun, even if the monsters that jump out at you weren’t that scary. The ride itself was cool and did have a few interesting effects.
Three Halloween Mazes
Had it not been for the mazes at the hayride, I would have said the event was not worth the entrance price. However these mazes were awesome. The first was called Midnight Mortuary. From the line we could see a man in a totally creepy mask carrying a sledgehammer waiting for us to enter. It only got better inside. The maze was large and scares lurked around every turn. I can’t remember if it was in this maze that we had to crawl through what looked like an oven furnace. The decor was really good. Two thumbs up!
The second maze was called Trick or Treat. It looked like we were visiting the lairs of several monsters. Actually it was set up to look like a trick or treating neighborhood except the monsters had taken it over. Very cool concept. The great thing about these mazes is that there was virtually no one in line. I think most people got pooped out by the hayride line and went home. If you had enough stamina you could go right into the mazes with almost no wait like we did.
The third maze was called Roadkill Ranch. From their website here is their description. “Just on the outskirts of Midnight Falls, mysterious ranch hands are responsible for collecting the main highway’s deceased varmints. However, their hack methods of body disposal come back to bite with an insatiable vengeance. Within the dreadful chaos lurking inside, face the horrifying wrath of an ancient entity crawling inside Roadkill Ranch.“
I think we stayed till almost midnight and by that time we were super tired. I really enjoyed the attractions at Midnight Falls at the Los Angeles Haunted Hayride 2019. Who knows what awaits for us next year!
