The spookiest ways to prepare for spooky month

When the air turns crisp, the leaves turn colors, and there seems to be an incessant amount of Instagram posts taken at apple orchards, the season of spooky month is upon us.

Spooky month is synonymous with October and the time leading up to the spookiest and scariest holiday of Halloween ensuing festivities fit for the spooky fall season.

Although there are multiple ways to prepare the popular season of Halloween and spooky month in general, these are the best four ways to prepare for spooky month.

1. Watch scary movies

To formally get into the spirit of spooky month, scary movies are very helpful to set the mood.

A few fan favorites include “Halloween Town”, “The Addams Family”, and “Hocus Pocus”. These movies are filled with Halloween sentiment and perfectly capture the spirit of spooky month while not being too spooky to give you nightmares.

“To get into the Halloween spirit, I really like to watch ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’ because I really love Tim Burton, and I love his style of animation,” junior Ari Denning said. “It just gets me in the spooky spirit.”

However, if lighthearted Halloween spirit isn’t your style, a few flicks to satisfy the scary side of Halloween consist of “Saw”, “The Conjuring”, and “ The Purge”. But beware, these movies are filled with horrifying plots that are sure to make you hide under your blanket.

2. Pumpkin picking

What better way to immerse yourself in spooky culture than to adorn your porch with a beautifully carved pumpkin? With October just starting, now is the perfect time to make a jaunt to your favorite pumpkin patch.

“There’s so many spooky things to do at a pumpkin patch,” junior Grace Maietta said. “I went to Sonny Acres and they have a haunted corn maze, they have a haunted hay ride, and they have pumpkins everywhere. There are super cute decorations; it’s all spooky themed.”

Sonny Acres Farm, Konow’s Corn Maze, Bengtson’s Pumpkin Farm and Fall Fest all offer loads of pumpkins from different shapes and sizes to pick from as well along with spirited fall festivities fit for the season of spooky month.

Aside from these elaborate pumpkin patches, the local Jewel has its fair share of pumpkins to pick from that will suit your porch just as well as pumpkins from the patches listed above.

After picking the perfect pumpkin, the time comes for carving. Carving can be a tedious and difficult task but the outcome can be beautiful, or at least full of your creativity.

“[Pumpkin carving] is a fun fall family tradition,” senior Abby Ross said.

3. Brave a haunted house

There is a reason spooky month is spooky, and haunted houses are the epitome of spookiness and everything Halloween.

Unlike scary movies, haunted houses present real terrors from actors within the houses dressed as clowns, corpses, serial killers in hockey masks, and guts and gore are sprinkled with the occasional jump scare.

Haunted houses require a strong stomach and a fearless mindset. If you’re easily scared, a haunted house is not a good place for you and your friends to hang out at.

“I love haunted houses because my favorite movie is ‘Monster House’ and it really makes me feel like I’m in ‘Monster House’ so I love it,” senior Nicki Anderson said.

But fear not (literally), there are still multiple fall activities to partake in instead if you choose to not bear the haunted house.

4. Browsing a Halloween store

Instead of terrifying haunted houses, a distinguished spooky month activity is paying a visit to one of the sporadic yet abundant Halloween store. Spooky season is a breeding ground for these random stores that only last for the duration of the season such as the store “Spirit Halloween”.

Despite their short lived life, these Halloween stores are a must-see. With scary and elaborate decorations along with hilarious costumes and props, Halloween stores are a customary tradition of spooky month.

“I love ‘Spirit Halloween’ so much,” junior Lydia Hickey said. “I’m going to buy my ‘Fortnite’ costume there this year and next year.”

Regardless if you intend to buy something at one of these stores, they are definitely worth the trip. Examining the outrageous decorations and out-there costumes is great amusement for October as Halloween approaches.

With spooky month starting to get into full swing, take some time this October to embrace the Halloween spirit while also keeping an eye out for ghosts and clowns, York!