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TAKE YOUR PICK OF FESTIVE FUN

October 29, 2009 12:36 am

FOR THE FREE LANCE-STAR

THE RECIPE FOR an explosion of haunting and hilarious Halloween fun? Take one bubbling cauldron. Add a rich history with lots of potential for ghosts to emerge. Then spice it with a host of generous and creative individuals, associations and organizations that want to show the community a thrilling and chilling good time.

There you have it! Those ingredients have conjured up a bevy of celebrations--ranging from harvest festivals to ghost walks--at sites from Westmoreland County and Orange to the historic streets of Fredericksburg.

FALL FESTIVALS

Fall Festivals will be held in Fredericksburg and Caroline County--one brand new and one with a new twist--and both are free of charge.

The parking lot behind Costco will be transformed into an adventure-land, with giant inflatables ranging from obstacle courses and moon bounces to a jousting ring.

Families can also hop on one of the many hayrides that will be winding through the area--and kids can get acquainted with new fuzzy and fluffy friends at the petting zoo.

Meanwhile, nearly 75 game and craft stations will be set up inside the Towne Centre. And a number of happy families will be walking away with valuable door prizes, including the grand-prize winners who will enjoy free gas for a year.

• Thanks to Ann Tate's generous donation of 40 acres of land for a permanent fairground, the Caroline County Fair Association will be hosting its first annual Fall Fun Festival, free of charge to all who come. Like the State Fair itself, the Festival will feature pens with farm animals as well as plenty of competitions.

Entries are invited for categories including longest ear of corn, most unique gourd, best painted/carved pumpkin and best scarecrow.

Prizes will also be awarded in a children's costume contest, for the funniest, scariest, most original and best homemade outfits.

The festival will feature hayrides and a Spooky (but not too scary!) Corn Maze.

There will be plenty of food on site for purchase, including hot dogs, barbecues and cotton candy--and at 4 p.m., Bill Green will open a booth with his regionally famous secret-sauce barbecue chicken.

Festivities will conclude with a longstanding tradition of Caroline County: Tailgate Trick or Treating, where children receive candy as they walk along a long row of festively decorated car trunks and truck beds. (A trophy will be awarded for the vehicle with the best decorations.)

The carnival will be preceded by the Fair Association's first annual Ag Trade Day, where a panoply of animals and animal-related items will be bought, sold and swapped.

AND MUCH MORE!

• There's lots to do in downtown Fredericksburg, including a kid-centered event sponsored by the Downtown Retail Merchants along with the Fredericksburg Police Department. On Friday, kids can get in their costumes and trick or treat from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at designated merchants along the way -- and then enjoy Charlie Brown's Pumpkin Patch and Hocus Pocus in Market Square from 7 to 9 p.m. Trick or treat bags will be handed out in Market Square by the police department, so this is a good chance for the younger crowd to enjoy some unique time in historic Fredericksburg.

Trick or treat in downtown Fredericksburg, Friday, Oct. 30, 6-7:30 p.m. at designated merchants, including: Art First, Silver Spider, Market Square Antiques, Way Back When Antiques, Virginia Wine Experience, Cats Closet, Legacy, Pickers Supply, Bistro Bethem and Place N Time. More may participate. Charlie Browns Pumpkin Patch and Hocus Pocus in Market Square, 7-9 p.m.

• In the words of Jeff Curtis, president of the Orange Downtown Alliance, "The town will belong to the kids for two hours!" on Friday afternoon with the Downtown Orange Halloween Celebration.

And so it seems. The streets will be cordoned off to create a safe pedestrian route as costumed children trick or treat among the businesses that post orange and black balloons at their entrance.

Meanwhile, the town's central square, Taylor Park, will be bustling with activities, including barrel train rides, a free book fair and a session of bus safety tips with a remote-control model of a school bus.

Cinderella will be on site, leading dances and face painting, and Mickey and Glenda the Good Witch will also be available for photo ops with the kids.

"It's a magical time for kids," said Curtis. "It's a time when parents lift some of their restrictions and the kids can enjoy their very own street party."

• On Saturday evening, Robert E. Lee's birth home will be populated with more "beings" than the usual staff and tourists, as Stratford Hall presents its third annual Historical Haunts program.

A tour of the Great House will reveal more than one roving ghost documented in L.B. Taylor's "Ghosts of Virginia," and guests may consult an 18th-century fortuneteller for clues about their future.

In addition, the evening's program will include pumpkin and gourd painting, and children can craft their own spiders, bats and ghosts to take home.

Even Frankenstein and a witch will be on hand for photo ops at the visitors center, and Halloween-themed snacks and beverages will be served.

"This is a different way to get kids involved with history," said program director Laura Lawfer. "They really enjoy it and it's a lot of fun for us at Stratford, as well!"

• This weekend's Halloween Cemetery Tours, hosted by the Rappahannock Colonial Heritage Society, may not conjure up any ghosts--but, just as exciting, will reveal the characters and experiences of 18th-century residents of our region who have been resting peacefully in Fredericksburg's graveyards for more than 200 years.

As participants travel by trolley to the Masonic cemetery, the Gordon Family cemetery/Mary Washington Monument and St. George's cemetery (the oldest in town), costumed interpreters will give a glimpse into life of the 1700s.

Guest will learn of Samuel Gordon, a Scottish immigrant and Falmouth shipping entrepreneur who bought the Lewis mansion and named it Kenmore; Christiana Campbell, a tavern keeper whose Williamsburg inn was frequented by George Washington and Fielding Lewis; and William Paul, an 18th-century local tailor whose younger brother, John Paul, visited from time to time (known today by the additional last name he adopted: "Jones").

• Craigs Baptist Church has been celebrating its annual Harvest Fest for more than 20 years, inviting the community to share fun, friendship and Brunswick stew--but this year, a new element will be added to the festivities: a host of activities and treats for children, all free of charge.

Kids activities will include a funhouse, a moon bounce and hayrides, as well as a variety of games for tots through teens.

The older kids will enjoy Plinko and Slime Time games, while the little ones can try their luck at the fish pond and a host of indoor games.

Guests are encouraged to dress in a Western (harvest-time) theme. Outdoor activities will be held from 4 to 6 p.m., while a cakewalk, indoor games and the funhouse will be featured from 6 to 8 p.m.

• And, talk about longstanding Halloween traditions in the Fredericksburg area: Special mention goes to the Jaycees Haunted House, which has been providing thrills and chills to kids of all ages for more than three decades. The door creaks open this year at 7 p.m. at its new location, the former "Bogey's" (next to the old ice park in Central Park) and closes when the crowd thins out!

What better place for ghosts, goblins and ghouls to roam than a darkened, vacated building? And with a host of volunteers--both Jaycees and others from the community--the fright nights are always filled with surprises and nothing is predictable.

• The Fulks folks, owners of the Belvedere Plantation, invite all to attend the climax of their 2009 Fall Harvest Festival on their 645-acre working farm, including its Fall Finale on Sunday, Nov. 1, and the weekend of Nov. 6-8, with reduced admission fees.

This year's activities include longtime favorites such as the rope swings in the hay-filled Fun Barn, the barnyard with farm animals, hayrides, zip lines and the Maize Maze with three levels of challenges. (A Moonlight Maze will be featured on the night of Nov. 7, in which participants will use their own flashlights to find their way.)

Throughout the years, features have been added to the festival. The Little Farmers Corral for tots now includes pedal tractors, a slide, straw jump-pile and talking pipes. Two pedal tractor routes have also been added for older children, along with a double-wide mountain slide, a barrel train, hilarious pig races and (new this year) a giant in-ground inflated jumping pillow.

Pony rides are also available for an added fee, with cowboy clothes provided for photo-ops. (Groups may also reserve bonfire/picnic sites, complete with skewers.)