Jennifer Bacher
The Silhouette

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Fall is here! The leaves are changing, the temperature is dropping, and everything is pumpkin spice. Here are some things you must do before you dig out your mittens and toques because winter is coming.

  1. Visit a Local Farm – Go pick some apples and carve a pumpkin. Visit Dyment’s Farm in Dundas on Sydenham Road.
  2. Attend a craft show – Many neighbouring towns host outdoor craft shows such as Ball’s Falls in the Niagara region this weekend. Learn more about the Thanksgiving festival here: http://ballsfalls.ca/whats-on/thanksgiving-festival/
  3. Hike – Why not take a study break by exploring the outdoors. Go to Webster Falls or walk along the Bruce Trail.
  4. Go to cheer on your favourite team – Football isn’t the only sport that has games you can go and watch. Show your Marauder spirit for other teams like rugby, field hockey and soccer.
  5. Canada’s Wonderland Halloween Haunt – Nothing’s better then getting chased around a theme park and riding roller coasters at night.
  6. Rockton’s World Fair – This fair first started in 1852 and is not to be missed. Rides, food trucks, and a demolition derby are just some of the many events. This fair runs from Oct. 11 – 14. More info can be found at http://www.rocktonworldsfair.com
  7. Do a Haunted Hamilton Tour – Walk around the downtown area at night and learn some creepy history. Visit http://hauntedhamilton.com/ghostwalks for tour times.
  8. Niagara-on-the-Lake Heritage District – Visit the many shops on Queen Street and have some Cows ice cream before it gets too cold!
  9. Go for a Bike ride on the Rail Trail – This 32-km trail starts in Hamilton and ends in Brantford. The trail starts on Main St. W and Ewen Rd in Hamilton but there are many access points, such as on Emerson street before Ward Ave.
  10. Visit a Haunted House – Nightmare on Elmore is a Hamilton favourite that has been around for 6 years! Visit any five haunted houses hosted by Screemers. They open Oct. 19.
  11. Drink some hot apple cider and enjoy an outdoor farmer’s market – Dundas has a local farmer’s market that is open every Thursday on Hatt Street till Oct. 24.

By: Miranda Babbitt

 

Walk outside, take a breath. What you smell and what has seeped into your soul is sheer evil, my friends. Hamilton isn’t a place for sissies no more. Maybe London is better for you. Or Waterloo. But not Hamilton.

Walking into the enormous confines of Screemers, Canada’s #1 Haunted Scream Park, you may see a lone, eighteenth century girl slowly stagger by you, or be joyously greeted (in his own charming way) by a chainsaw wielding serial killer. This is all part of the fun, or at least what adrenaline junkies define as fun. A pleasant sign then warns you that you there are no refunds for chickens.

Strangely enough, throughout the night, this fear you feel, these sweaty palms, the quickened beat of your heart, the creeping paranoia about what or who is behind you, it becomes something of a challenge. You begin to want to challenge your nerves. As you pass by the various haunted houses in this empty factory like building, you can hear screams all around you, and the cackles of disturbed clowns, and yet you’re literally being drawn into these dark entrances.

Now don’t get me wrong. I’m often not one to willingly say, “Yes, please terrify me to the point of jumping into the arms of my friends and/or strangers in front of me,” let alone journey through four or five haunted houses in one night, but something flickers inside of you each time you bolt out of the exit, declaring yourself “lucky to survive.” If you’re thinking, “Oh, pshaw, haunted houses are just full of actors anyway,” then I dare you, bold sir, to enter into what is known as The Black Hole. Let’s see how brave you feel when the only thing to guide you is a single red dot in the distance, and the walls creep closer and closer towards you until you’re inching sideways towards the exit… or what you think is the exit.

And even with the mindset that everyone around you is an actor, every clown with his mouth falling off is just another high school boy, or every maniacal creature with eyes darting through the holes in the mask is just a mother on her day off, somehow this isn’t enough to bring your heartbeat back to the casual jogging pace you would like it to be at.

For the first time in my life, I can confidently say that I was relieved to see the two prepubescent boys, with their hats delicately placed at an angle to convince us of their evident swag, book past us at a startlingly confident pace, acting as our first line of defense against the creatures lurking behind each corner.

Entering into Screemers shows you just how you’d cope in a horror movie. Will you freeze or will you run? Will you scream or will you shout? Will you laugh or will you cry? Your horror movie persona awaits you.

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