Halloween Happenings: The Bates Motel and Haunted Hayride

The spirits are disquiet at The Bates Motel in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. Every October for the past 18 years, the dead and undead alike have walked the earth in the otherwise quiet, suburban town of Gradyville. Halloween sees the transformation of Arasapha Farms into a triple-threat of horror including The Bates Motel, Corn Maze and Haunted Hayride.

Over the years, the Bates Motel has grown and evolved into one of the best and scariest of the Halloween-themed attractions to be found anywhere. Keeping with that tradition, the owners have taken the haunt to new levels of horror for 2008. If putrid, resurrected corpses get your pulse pounding, you'll be thrilled with what you'll find find roaming the property. In addition to the "live" undead. a dozen more animatronic zombies spring to life as guests make their rounds.

With a gleam in his eye, owner Randy Bates, tells about the exploding gas station making it's debut this year. The new feature, conceived by Bates and designed by a Hollywood special effects engineer, is centered around visitors coming across a recent car wreck. The badly mangled car is wrapped around a tree and still smoking as you approach. Gas is leaking from the vehicle and suddenly ignites. Flames rapidly travel a path towards a nearby gas pump and result in a very real and startling explosion.

As much of the attraction has been rebuilt from the ground up for 2008, previous visitors to the site will find many new shocks, features and frights. An all new, 32 channel computer-controlled effects board has been installed, bringing life to the haunt's lighting and digital sound track. Realistic animatronic creatures triggered by motion sensors allow for perfectly timed scares.

The owner's passion, craftsmanship and attention to detail is readily evident in every set and scene. A new, full-scale covered bridge beckons visitors inside. Soft, flickering lights set the mood. You will, of course, sense that something is coming. You just won't know where-- or when.