Steal this idea – 4 ways your town can celebrate Halloween

Everyone has their favorite summer events – you know, the ones you’ll drive hours to attend, the ones that become traditions for your family and friends. But after a lazy summer of outdoor music, local festivals and weekly farmer’s markets, what is there to look forward to? The temperature is dropping, it’s dark before dinner, you’re in fall harvest overload and you’re too old to anticipate trick or treating.  Hold that thought . . .

Communities around the country build upon the October obsession with all things creepy and pumpkin-related to raise money for charity, spur tourism, and highlight local attractions.

It works for small towns like Niles, MI (pop 11,272) where more than 1.2 million (yes, million) enthusiasts have trekked to their 44-acre site for “the biggest, scariest, most blood-curdling experience…this side of the Continental Divide.” Far more than its Haunted House, the park offers hours of shrieks with a zombie motel, dark terror hayride and field of screams complete with maniac maze. For those who are directionally impaired, a maze simulator is available for pre-visit practice.

Maybe you’re looking for something a little tamer – the Biggest Pumpkin Festival in the World perhaps? Keene, NH (pop 23,099) hosts this one-day extravaganza dedicated to all things pumpkin – seed spitting and pie eating competitions, arts and crafts and the ultimate jack-o-lantern display. More than 10,000 pumpkins are carved by local schoolchildren each year but that’s only about a third of the total.

This is the event’s 20th year and organizers will attempt to best the record of 30,128 pumpkins set by Boston in 2006.  Granted, you may not be able to amass a comparable number of carved masterpieces or set up 40-foot high scaffolding, but even a few hundred could be a draw for small towns on an autumn evening.

A single day isn’t enough? That’s what the residents of Anoka, MN (pop 47,384) decided. Proclaimed by Congress as the Halloween Capital of the World, Anoka spends the week leading up to Halloween celebrating with carving contests, a parade and bonfire, wine-tasting, even an “orange tie” ball. The police and fire departments square off in a chili cook-off, families compete in treasure hunts and costume contests, and neighborhood decorations are to die for.

Ghost towns might seem to be the epitome of setting for Halloween events and some, like Calico near Barstow, CA and Bannack State Park, near Dillon, MT, have capitalized on the holiday with staff and volunteers providing ghostly re-enactments of historical events.But you don’t need to be an actual ghost town to host interpreted walks through your community’s history. Explore the stories and share them with your visitors and guests.

Don’t be afraid to try something new or put your own twist on an idea you’ve seen elsewhere. Get a group of volunteers together and make it happen!