Warning: The Forest of Fear hides chainsaws, body parts — and Grafton Lions
There are boxes full of spiders inside the Grafton Lions Clubhouse. Disembodied heads and skulls rolling around tables. A checklist that references both clowns and vampires. Outside, the filmy shrouds of ghosts are fluttering in the breeze.
“My goal through all of this is simple,” said Debbie Perron. “I want to scare the pants off people.”
Expect to see a lot of pants littering the Lions Club ground on Friday, October22 and Saturday, October 23, when the hay wagons will roll through the “Forest of Fear,” the seventh hayride that’s brought screams of horror and delight to the wood of 68 Brigham Hill Road.
Normally, Lions Club members’ thoughts turn to Halloween horrors in January — throwing out ideas, working out the year’s theme, ;laughing their heads off (not quite literally, although there have been rumors) at some of the more ridiculous suggestions. But the Forest of Fear has now existed in their thoughts for two solid years. In 2019, the threat of mosquitos carrying EEE shut down all activities in Grafton after dusk. And in 2020, the resurgence of COVID-19 was causing enough real world horror and the event was downgraded to a “trunk or treat.”
Lions Perron, Amy O’Neill, and Tara Colaizzi were at work on the property Saturday, walking through the bare bones of what will be 13 scenes (plus a bonus) of the 20-minute hayride. There are areas overseen by Boy Scout Troop 106, Girl Scout Troop 32186, and the Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational-Technical School’s Lions Club.
“This is going to be a graveyard. It’s going to be huge,” Perron said, waving to an innocent-looking field, where a rabbit hops against a backdrop of turning foliage. “Over here, picture a production line of body parts.”
Sound a little too gruesome for your kids? Here’s what to think about: the hayride is in an old-fashioned cart enclosed by high, gridded sides — no one is going to be reaching inside. A child can easily be placed in a middle seat, comfortably surrounded by adults.
“We will have chainsaws,” Perron said. “We will have some very scary individuals. There will be jump-scares. But nothing can touch you.”
While Perron gets a lot of calls at this time of year from parents interested in volunteering their kids to work on the hayrides, she cautions that everyone, no matter the age, needs to commit to a lot of work.”You have to meet a certain criteria. It’s hard work and it’s not always sweetness and light.”
Residents are asked to avoid walking on the Lions Club property until after the hayride weekend is complete. It’s not just to avoid spoilers and damage to the sets — while under construction, the grounds can be hazardous.
“Forest of Fear,” a haunted hayride at the Grafton Lions Club, 68 Brigham Hill Road, October 22 and 23, 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. Admission is $15 for adults, $10 for children under 10. Purchase tickets at the door or in advance online.
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