Follow the Trail of Terror

The Trail of Terror covers 11 counties and features everything from pumpkin patches to haunted houses. Events begin this month and continue through October.

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While the Trail of Terror sounds like a nightmare, it’s really a dream come true for those who enjoy autumn.

Beginning this month and running through October, the trail consists of festivals, cemetery walks, haunted houses, and pumpkin patches in Boone, Carroll, Cook, DeKalb, Jo Daviess, Lee, McHenry, Ogle, Stephenson, Winnebago, and Whiteside counties.

This is a self-guided and informal tour that can provide several day trips that need not be spooky. Festivals range from Oregon’s Autumn on Parade to Mount Carroll’s Oktoberfest.



Not so spooky

■ Autumn on Parade in Oregon – 8 a.m to 5 p.m. Oct. 3-4: This festival features a popular craft fair, farmers market, antique tractors, a downtown parade and the Olde English Faire at Stronghold Castle. www.autumnonparade.org/

■ Fall Festival in Fulton – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 10-11: Pumpkin painting, wagon rides, scavenger hunt downtown, and a look at pioneer life at Heritage Canyon. www.cityoffulton.us/

■ Pumpkin Festival in Sycamore – 5-9 p.m. Oct. 21-22, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Oct. 23-24, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 25: youth costume contest, pie-eating contest, carnival and display of carved pumpkins. www.sycamorepumpkinfestival.com

■ Oktoberfest in Mount Carroll – 8 a.m to 11 p.m. Oct. 24: cemetery tour, farmers market, antique tractor show, 5K walk/run, beer tents, and music.

A little more spooky

■ Country Memory Trails, 10568 Caledonia Road, Belvidere – 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays Sept. 25 through October: wagon rides along the Haunted Trail, maze at night; daytime activities as well. www.countrymemorytrail.com

■ Great Pumpkin Patch, 16470 Black Road, Lyndon – 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily from today through Nov. 1: fresh baked pie, hayrides, train ride through wooded area, haunted house. http://thegreatpumpkinpatchfestival.com/

■ Selmi’s Pumpkin Patch, 1206 Dixon Ave., Rock Falls – 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily Sept. 25 through Oct. 31: petting zoo, corn maze, weekend wagon rides. On Fridays and Saturdays starting Oct. 9, from 7 p.m. to midnight is the Sterling/Rock Falls Jaycees haunted house. www.selmi.com



Spooky by nature

■ Haunted Barns of Lena, 609 N. Schuyler St., Lena – 6:30-9:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, Oct. 2 through Oct. 31: seven levels of darkness in two large old barns. Self-guided. Cost: $9. 800-369-2955

■ Old Haunted Mill, High Street, Orangeville: Seven levels of fright, starting at the fire station. Fridays and Saturdays, Oct. 2 through Oct. 31. www.oldhauntedmill.org

■ Terror on the Railroad, 7000 Olson Road, Union – 7-11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, Oct. 9 through Oct. 31: abandoned Train of Chills, antique streetcar ride through a haunted cemetery. www.terrorontherailroad.com

■ Haunted Forest Festival, 1030 Viaduct Road, Savanna – sunset to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, Oct. 17 through Oct. 31: wagon ride through tunnel of terror. Cost: $8 for adults, $4 for children. 815-273-3292

■ Spook Walk, Old Mills Park, state routes 52 and 64, Savanna – 6-10 p.m. Oct. 31: walk into the haunted woods with its monsters. Cost: $3. 815-273-2722

■ Train of Terror, 2954 S. Walnut Road, Freeport – 6-9 p.m. Oct. 3, 10 and 17: Stephenson County Antique Engine Club, 4 miles of train ride with spooky action on both sides of the track. Cost: $7. www.thefreeportshow.com

To learn more

Call Blackhawk Waterways Convention and Visitors Bureau at 800-678-2108 or Freeport/Stephenson County Convention and Visitors Bureau at 800-369-2955, or visit www.trail-of-terror.com on the Web.