Spooky Ranch 2014 Review

Spooky Ranch (Columbia Station, OH)
“Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary”
By Noah Wullkotte: Jollypumpkin@aol.com

Columbia Station, Ohio is home to Spooky Ranch, one of Ohio’s best places to have fun while getting scared. It was cold, but there wasn’t a drop of rain in sight. This is City Blood’s review of Spooky Ranch. Will we survive the curse of Bloody Mary?

Spooky Ranch’s Famous Haunted Hayride has been giving people chills and thrills for over two decades. This is a unique hayride with a few scenes that you’re not going to see anywhere else in Ohio. The Sunset Casket Company features a new actor taking over the role of the casket salesman. We were pretty impressed with how he took control of the crowd and wasn’t afraid to interact with customers. He ended up putting a hair piece on a man with a receding hair line and tormented one poor girl. But everyone on board seemed to enjoy it and have fun.

If nature calls, be sure to stop at the outhouse. This is a pretty creative scene where you might get wet. You’re the judge, jury and executioner tonight as a killer is sentenced to death by ways of hanging. You might think he’s dead, but think again. The scarecrow field is full of unusual monsters and scarecrows. Did that scarecrow just move or was it your imagination? The Famous Haunted Hayride has a variety of scenes that are sure to make you jump out of your seat.

There are impressive props everywhere and you’ll even experience real flames that heat up the night. The Haunted Barn features the most impressive scenes found at the hayride. Enter a barn where a large skull has glowing green eyes. The door shuts and the show is about to begin. A dragon that breathes smoke attacks the passengers and a large vampire bat flies above your head. There’s a werewolf that’s hungry and you never know what’s hiding in the shadows.

This is a quality haunted hayride where you’ll get wet, meet a half man/half pumpkin creature and you might even wake a sleeping giant. The best actor has to be the coffin salesman. There were other memorable characters, but there were too many times where an actor would just yell instead of using dialogue. The total tour time is 20 minutes.

Bloody Mary’s Revenge takes the place of Extreme Nightmares. Spooky Ranch is the only place to obtain the license for the Bloody Mary haunt which was previously at Universal Studios. There are many of the same scenes from Extreme Nightmares, but the intensity has been taken up a notch and there are some new frightening rooms. There are also new special effects and characters. Ghostly Gus is the first character you’ll encounter. Kiss his rat and get ready to meet Bloody Mary herself. You’ll come face to face with Bloody Mary several times throughout your journey. The actress portraying the Urban Legend is pretty frightening as she twists and bends her body.

Bloody Mary’s Revenge has you walking through various scenes such as a haunted cemetery, a sewer, a mine shaft and more. I’m usually hard to scare, but once again a simple prop made me jump. A corpse holding a shovel shot a huge blast of air in my ear which made me almost fall over. This is a fun haunt where the legend of Bloody Mary is real. Get ready to meet the legend. All I can say is that Bloody Mary eventually grows in size and she’s very angry. The total experience lasted around 15 minutes give or take a few.

Crazy Clowns 3D plays on your fears of clowns or what is referred to as Coulrophobia. Put on your 3D glasses and get ready to experience real madness. This is a colorful haunt with great artwork, off the wall clowns and some startling surprises. You’ll experience scenes such as an Egyptian Temple, alien invasion, toxic waste zone and more. Cover your ears as a cannon is shot off. You better be on high alert because there’s a large monster hiding and its ready to attack.

This is a short haunt only lasting around 6 minutes. The acting could be improved. One actor tried to intimidate us instead of trying to scare us by yelling in our face multiple times. With that being said, it’s still a fun haunt. If you have a fear of clowns then you’re going to be petrified of Crazy Clowns 3D.

Tickets are $20 a piece for the Bloody Mary Package which includes all 5 attractions. Skip the lines and waiting with a Speed Pass which is $35 a person. We definitely recommend the Speed Pass because lines can be large on Fridays and Saturdays. Package 2 includes the Famous Haunted Hayride, The Haunted Barn plus the Funny Fun House. This package is $18 a person. Package 3 just includes the Famous Haunted Hayride and Haunted Barn for $16 a person. Prices vary for children 10 and under. Please visit www.spookyranch.com for more details. Discount coupons are available at all Drug Mart Locations. Show a military ID Thursday and Sunday nights for a free ticket.

The last attraction is the Funny Fun House which is great for young children who might be too afraid to experience the other attractions. You can go through as many times as you want and it is pretty fun. It’s like an old fashioned fun house with mirrors, a vortex tunnel, bright lights and more.

There are plenty of concessions available. You can get yourself a hamburger, nachos, cotton candy, funnel cakes, pop and more. Don’t forget to check out the Farm Market/Halloween Store where you can purchase pumpkins, crafts and much more. Spooky Ranch is a great place where you can bring your friends and family. It’s scary, fun and a great value. It’s definitely worth your time and money. Please don’t forget to got to the Rockin R Ranch Old West Pumpkin Fest during the day. It features pumpkin painting, pony rides, a petting farm, hayrides to the pumpkin patch and more. For more information, please visit www.clevelandhayride.com.

Final Stab For Each Haunt
The Famous Haunted Hayride (Includes Haunted Barn)
Length-9  Design-9  Props/Animatronics-9  Acting-8  Scare Effect-8  Final Stab: 8.6