With the spooky season now passed, the main thing that many thrill-seekers seek is a good scare. Many typical adrenaline-inducing activities include haunted houses, horror games, and movies. This year introduced many horror films such as Backrooms, Obsession, Scream 7, and most recently, Resident Evil. However, sitting down and thoroughly enjoying a cinematic film isn’t cheap. Offering a more local experience in Malden, a cheaper, yet just-as-thrilling experience resides in the woods of Pine Banks.
Created by Ari Taylor, the Haunted Woods is a recurring annual event in Malden’s Ward 5, entering its third year. Event setup began at 12:00 P.M., with members from Malden High School’s YMCA Leaders Club assisting with prep work. The actual event, however, ran from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M.
Designated underneath a light-ornamented gazebo was the volunteer check-in, where piles of cryptic signs, eerie props, and decorations awaited preparation.
As you delved down the path to a playground, you found yourself tangled in cobwebs, face-to-face with a demonic doll. Towards the pond, the remains of human and animal skeletons enticed you. Adjacent to the pile of bones, guarding the Pine Banks pond, was Cthulhu: a fictional entity resembling an anthropomorphic octopus dressed as a pirate, created by American writer H.P. Lovecraft.
Around 4:00 P.M., a new wave of volunteers found their way to the site, consisting of scare actors and tour guides. The scare actors prepared by dressing into their attire and applying makeup, with most actors costumed as zombies and clowns. Food and drinks were later accommodated alongside hand and foot warmers as the temperature dropped. Around 5:00 P.M., tour guide volunteers followed Taylor to do a practice run around the entire course to get a feel for the trail, ending at the entrance where she gave instructions to the actors.
Junior Tenzin Tseten shared that her experience was quite “unique and enjoyable.” As most scare actors were from the community, her favorite aspect was seeing the “costumes and makeup” of the people she knew
And then, an ominous darkness loomed upon the woods; the wind breezing through the trees. Scare actors hid themselves amongst the wilderness as tour guides prepared for incoming guests. Once the clock struck 6:00, lines of guests piled up outside Pine Banks, the atmosphere full of excitement as more people lined up waiting to enter.
Visitors checked in at the front, forming groups of various numbers before being paired with two tour guides who accompanied them throughout the trail. Before entering the experience, visitors were given the option to hold a light-up broom, which signaled they did not want to be jump-scared on the experience.
Junior Julio Cesar De Oliveria, a volunteer for the Malden YMCA Leaders, noted his versatility in tasks, expressing how he “was a free-range person” who helped out with tours and set up.
Once each group was checked off, they were granted entry in spaced-out increments to prevent group overlap; then the horrors of the haunted woods commenced. Right after entering, visitors encountered the giant skeleton on the ground, which was followed by two princesses who warned them of the terrors of the woods.
Tseten expressed that most of the fun came with the children in her group, sharing how she was able to “tell them scary stories along the way and really feed into their spooky energy to make the experience exciting for them.”
Oliveira added that they were able to “run through a dark forest with friends, which made the experience thrilling.”
Each tour group was hit with comical jokes by Darth Vader, who was stationed further down the path. Across from him stood an opportunity to take pictures in front of a spooky background, complete with different props to pose with.
Further down into the forest, as the groups approached the playground, the decorations and characters became increasingly frightening. Volunteers dressed up as zombies and clowns appeared along the trail, running up to visitors while screaming, adding to the haunted atmosphere.
However, the walk halted when a series of haunted characters approached the visitor groups, with the most notable being a staged scene with a masked scare actor holding a chainsaw.
Approaching the end of the trail, tour guides directed the visitors to the exit, looping them back to the entrance. The night concluded with the echoes of the screaming guests and actors that could be heard outside of the woods.
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