HALLOWEEN HAUNTS: FROM CHAINS TO ZORRO, SCARINESS VARIES AT HAUNTED HOUSES

Leon Grotto remembers his mother's ghost stories, especially this time of year."But one thing she always reminded me was there is no record of a ghost ever hurting anyone," said Grotto, who lives in Perryville. "The ones you have to be afraid of are living people."As Grotto and his wife, Debbie, and 8-year-old daughter, Kristen, stood in line with hundreds of others at the A.C. Brase Arena Building on Saturday night, no one seemed afraid of each other. Most were bored standing in the hour-long line at the Haunted Halls of Horror. They were waiting to be scared.The Arena Building is just one of several locations where people can pay a few dollars for fright this weekend. The normally tame hayrides at Rocky Holler near Jackson will be haunted again, said Ted Elliott, owner of the 78 acres that make up Rocky Holler. This makes the ninth year for the haunted hayrides.The haunted hayrides started in part from a suggestion given to Elliott by a friend in St. Louis. After he came home, he found that his daughter, Molly, was already working on props for the hayride with friends. About 35 people help the Elliotts run the haunted hayride each year. They operate the six tractors that pull trailers stacked with hay bales, and play the roles of frightening characters along the trail. Frankenstein, Dracula and the man with a chainsaw all jump out at unexpected moments during the 45-minute ride. The ghost of Zorro seems to be most popular, Elliott said."A lot of the girls will ask him for his autograph," he said. "But he keeps jumping off the stagecoach every year when the trailers come around, even though I've told him not to do it."Elvis' ghost also haunts the trail with a few melodies as the tractors pass by a 1959 Ford, Elliott said.The tractors run constantly, Elliott said, since as many as 900 people have come to Rocky Holler in a night.At the end of the ride, there's a bonfire with hot dogs and marshmallows which can be bought to roast. For those who want a scare without a chainsaw, there's the Haunted Ghost Town at Black Forest Village."We've never had chainsaws, and we never will," said Darla Macke, who operates the attraction with her husband, Greg.The Mackes try to avoid modern movie themes in their 1870s-era haunted town. They stick with werewolves , Dracula and other old-time standards, she said.Guests are escorted through the first part of the 20-minute walk by a guide. This is a deserted Old West town and five theme rooms, one of them this year a graveyard. The themes change every year, Macke said."My sister, Diana, and I design the rooms, and my husband builds them," she said.Coming up with new ideas has gotten easier over the five years they've been operating, Macke said.After the ghost town, people wander into a very dark barn divided into black aisles."When I went through it last weekend I could feel the lady in front of me but I couldn't see her," Macke said.The end is a three-bale-high straw maze.Although Macke doesn't recommend the haunted walkthrough for children 5 or younger, all children are permitted at parents' discretion."We have tried to create something that the whole family can enjoy," she said.For families looking for a scare of another kind, Lynwood Baptist Church has "Judgement House.""We call it a tour of your final destination," said Philip Davidson, youth pastor at the church.Visitors are taken on a guided walk through events at fictitious River Ridge High School, where some students and staff die when a tornado strikes. Nine scenes are played out in different rooms, two of which offer views of heaven and hell.The last room experienced is heaven, Davidson said."We want people to come out encouraged, understanding what is life after death ," he said.Reservations are no longer being taken for the 50-minute tour, Davidson said, but 100 walkins will be accepted each night on a first-come basis. Some rooms might not be appropriate for children 10 or younger, he said. If parents wish, children can wait outside certain rooms to continue with the tour.Children of all ages walked through the Haunted Halls of Horror last Saturday. Grotto's daughter, Kristen, playfully tried to scare her mother as the family waited in line. At the end, after running down a long corridor to the exit with someone wielding a chainsaw in pursuit, she just held her mother tightly."She could probably go through it another night, but not again today," Grotto said.

HAUNTED HOUSES, SCARY PLACES AND HALLOWEEN EVENTS

Haunted Ghost TownWhen: From 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.Where: Black Forest VillageCost: $3 for adults, $2 for children 6 to 12.Information: 335-0899. Haunted HayridesWhen: From 7 to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.Where: Rocky Holler, near Jackson.Cost: $5 for all.Information: 243-6440. Haunted Halls of HorrorWhen: From 7 to 11 p.m., Friday through Sunday.Where: Brase Arena Building in Arena Park.Cost: $3 for adults, $2 for children 12 and under.Information: 334-2859. Judgement HouseWhen: From 6:30 to 10 p.m. on Thursday, Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Nov. 5.Where: Lynwood Baptist Church.Cost: Free (admission limited).Information: 334-3964 Trick Or Treat WalkWhen: From 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday.Where: The Bootheel Youth Museum in Malden.Cost: $4 per person.Information: 276-3600. Haunted Train CarWhen: 7 to 11 p.m. today, Friday, Saturday and SundayWhere: St. Louis Iron Mountain Railway, Jackson.Cost: $3 per adult, $2 children 12 and under.Information: 243-1688. Halloween Costume ContestWhen: From 3 to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Where: West Park Mall.Cost: Free.Information: 339-1333.