The Haunted Loft (Fortville, IN)
“The Doctor Is In”
By Noah Wullkotte: Jollypumpkin@aol.com
A skeleton and his skeleton horse are seen in a horse drawn carriage before you enter The Haunted Loft. Get ready for some Halloween attractions that will surely raise the dead. This is City Blood’s review of The Haunted Loft at Piney Acres Farm.
Doctor E. Rex is in and let’s hope that you don’t have the plague. The Haunted Loft is an old school haunt with some interesting scenes and characters. The nurse at the beginning does a great job announcing the rules and the doctor might just make you his next experiment. The Haunted Loft doesn’t follow a specific theme, but there are a variety of rooms that are sure to put a chill down your spine.
You’ll enter a laboratory, boiler room with an oven, dining room with rotting guests, a living room with a suicidal skeleton and much more. The Cold Storage Morgue was pretty realistic. The blue lighting and fabric attached to the ceiling made it look like it was frozen. There is also a shocking surprise that awaits you. Put your hands on the wall to find out.
The Haunted Loft is around 10 minutes long and the actors do a good job at trying to scare the shirt off of you. They come from all directions. You’ll even crawl on your hands and knees and be attacked from above. In terms of design, this is the best looking haunt at Piney Acres and one of our favorites. It’s truly an old school haunt at heart.
Next up on our agenda is Piney Acres Haunted Hayride. This 20 minute journey through the darkness is fun, but there are too many areas where nothing is happening. There are a few scenes such as a sideshow with a half girl half gorilla, a hanging at the gallows, an ATV chase, a chainsaw wielding clown and more. Watch out for the people that hide in the woods because they might just grab you. There is a unique scene you’ll experience, but we’re definitely not going to give it away. We liked how the music changed based on each scene. The lights of the tractor slowly flashed to the sound of a heart beat. We enjoyed our time on the wagon, but most of the experience involved darkness and creepy music.
Last, but certainty not least is Piney Acres Corn Maze. But we would consider this attraction a haunted trail with elements of a corn maze thrown into the mix. You’ll begin your journey by meeting a group of good ol’ boys who want to play a game of slap hands. Clyde was my favorite, but he’s definitely not the brightest. He aimlessly chops wood. You better run or you’ll end up six feet under.
Piney Acres Corn Maze is an interactive haunt with some stand out characters. Father Nicholas was the best actor of the night. I was told to stand against a cross as he blessed me. I was then separated from my group who witnessed flames shoot out from a bible. There are many unique scenes at Piney Acres Corn Maze and this is a very actor driven haunt. You’ll even be asked to help clean a toilet which can get pretty messy. Memorable characters include an unspeakable creature that hisses and crawls on the ground as he’s let out of a cage.
There are some areas that could be improved such as the graveyard. It’s an uneventful scene that relies too heavily on one actor. Low lying fog, scary music, zombies and creepy lighting could enhance the scene. The clown house was a little disappointing, but the actor who chased us with a chainsaw was very enthusiastic and did a good job. It took us nearly 40 minutes to walk the trail. We met some crazy characters, I put a rubber worm in mouth, chewed on an animal carcass and it was an all around fun time.
Piney Acres Farm has a lot going for it. This 50 acre farm is a great destination for friends and family to enjoy a variety of frightful attractions. There are plenty of concessions available such as honey, hot dogs, Halloween props, refreshments and much much more. My favorite was the hillbilly wind chimes which are more or less beer cans that make noise in the wind. There are plenty of pumpkins and even Christmas Trees available to purchase.
Piney Acres Haunted Loft is a quality attraction, but the only thing that’s really holding it back is its short length. Piney Acres Haunted Hayride has lots of room for improvement since there are just too many areas that rely heavily on spooky music instead of scenes. Piney Acres Corn Maze has some great actors and it’s a good value since it lasts nearly 40 minutes. I wasn’t expecting it to be so interactive. The character known as Cliff can be seen interacting with customers at the Hayride. He was very entertaining.
Tickets are $25 at the door and $22 online for The Haunted Loft & Corn Maze. Tickets are $15 at the door and $13 online for The Haunted Loft. Piney Acres Corn Maze is $15 at the door and $13 online. Piney Acres Haunted Hayride is $9 at the door and $7 online. You can purchase a 3 attraction combo package for $32 at the door and $30 online.
Piney Acres Farm is a great destination to bring friends and family. You can really feel the Halloween spirit. You’re going to have a great time and you might even get the living daylights scared out of you.
Final Stab For Each Haunt
Piny Acres Haunted Loft: Length-6 Design-8 Props/Animatronics-7 Acting-7 Scare Effect-7
Final Stab: 7.0
Piney Acres Haunted Hayride: Length-9 Design-5 Props/Animatronics-5 Acting-6 Scare Effect-6
Final Stab: 6.2
Piney Acres Corn Maze: Length-10 Design-7 Props/Animatronics-7 Acting-8 Scare Effect-8
Final Stab: 8.0
www.indyhauntedloft.com