A New Jersey Fall Adventure: Haunted House, Pumpkins, & Camping

It’s my favorite time of the year! There’s nothing better than some nice fall foliage here in New Jersey. This October felt like a blur as I tried to enjoy everything related to fall. From pumpkin mayhem to romance at the haunted house, it was definitely an October to remember.

It started with a not-so-scary haunted house, where I was kissed on the neck by a pirate-looking zombie. I guess that’s just what’s in these days. The place was called Field of Terror located in East Windsor, New Jersey. For someone who gets scared very easily, I’d rank this as a minimum scare level. I only ran once at the sound of the chainsaw.

Then I treated my parents to The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze in Croton-on-Hudson, NY. It’s part of the Historic Hudson Valley Halloween events. The Blaze takes you out on a 45-minute walking trail where you get to see all these cool exhibits of carved pumpkins. My dad had to tap each one to make sure they were real. Honestly, we still don’t know. My favorites were the dinosaurs and the carnival. Here’s the dinosaur exhibit:

Then, I went camping out in Stokes State Forest with my dad. We went hiking at High Point, the highest point in New Jersey. At this strange obelisk monument that you see in the photo below, you can see New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and New York all bordering each other. A cool little snack bar sat at the top, and we enjoyed a toasty hot chocolate and a pumpkin donut. Back at the campsite, we roasted s’mores and huddled around the fire.

After surviving the cold, we went fly fishing. It was my second time trying it. It’s growing on me! I like how you don’t have to use any bait. You just swing the rod around to mimic an insect and fling it into the water and hope for the best. I got one bite that day and fought a fish before he wiggled away.

We met some nice fishermen (one was a fisherboy) across the river. I swear people who fish are some of the most genuine humans out there. It takes a lot of patience to stand there and wait for a bite all day long. I couldn’t believe I spent five hours out there in the water! I couldn’t feel my toesies!

I ended October strong by celebrating Halloween, answering the door to happy (and sometimes greedy) customers. It was fun seeing all the kids’ costumes and how excited they all were for junk food. A mom dressed in a skin tight Tron costume sent the neighborhood dads’ heads spinning as she walked from house to house in her high heels. Good for her! The neighborhood dads will be talking about that one for many years to come.

While answering the door, I was also hard at work at the operating table, carving out pumpkins. You can see my masterpiece below. Not too bad! I collected all the pumpkin seeds, cooked them in the oven with a bunch of yummy spices, and spent the remainder of the evening bundled up, eating my seeds, and watching The Terminator.

It was the perfect end to a great October.