Fall activities near you in NEPA

EYEWITNESS NEWS (WBRE/WYOU) — The autumn season throughout the area is a beautiful sight to see, whether you’re taking in the foliage of the mountains or going to a haunted hayride, NEPA is filled with different types of fun for fall.

Roba Family Farms, located at 200 Cranston Avenue, North Abington Township, Lackawanna County has many fall activities from their Pumpkin Harvest Festival, the Jurassic Farm Dino Fest, and even Halloween On The Farm.

But this year Roba Family Farms is featuring something new, a Glowing Pumpkin Trail. The brand-new attraction is included with admission and visitors can tour the ¼ mile walking trail through the woods to experience over 25 scenes of carved pumpkins, multi-colored lights, fog machines, and sound effects in one experience. Some of the scenes include a pumpkin barnyard, pumpkin carnival, pumpkin dinosaurs, pumpkins under the sea, and more.

Roba Family Farms Glowing Pumpkin Trail:

• The Glowing Pumpkin Trail is included with general admission and season passes.
• Reservations are no longer necessary and access is on a first-come, first-served basis.
• Children 15 years old and under may not enter the Glowing Pumpkin Trail without an adult chaperone.
• Chaperones must be at least 21 years old with a valid ID if requested. One chaperone may accompany no more than 5 children 15 & under. Chaperones must remain with their group for the entirety of the Glowing Pumpkin Trail.
• Guests must remain on the walking path for the entirety of the Glowing Pumpkin Trail and are asked not to touch the pumpkins.
• More information on purchasing tickets can be found on their website.

• The 41 annual Covered Bridge & Arts Festival
  • The Covered Bridge & Arts Festival, sponsored by the Columbia-Montour Visitors Bureau, is being held at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds, 620 W. Third Street, Bloomsburg, Columbia County, from Thursday, October 5 through Sunday, October 8.
  • The festival’s new hours are as follows:
    • Thursday – Saturday, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., and Sunday 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
  • There is also free parking and there is no cost for admission.
  • The four-day event features over 300 fine arts and craft vendors, food vendors, wine, beer, and spirit tastings, fall activities, live fine artist crafting demonstrations, a petting zoo, and more.

Horror attractions like haunted walk-throughs and hayrides are also very popular in the area during the fall season.

• Reaper’s Revenge Haunted Hayride and Attractions, located at 460 Green Grove Road, Blakely, Lackawanna County.
  • Reaper’s Revenge has five different attractions for visitors to choose from including:
    • The Haunted Hayride is a 66-acre journey of dark trails, where even darker monsters climb aboard to try and pull visitors off of the tractor-pulled wagon.
    • The Lost Carnival is a sideshow filled with the souls of deranged and demented freaks, clowns, and other rare oddities waiting for visitors.
    • Delirium is a world of multiple dimensions where everything is coming off the walls to scare you at every turn. In an altered reality this attraction really “tests your fate.”
    • Pitch Black, built in 1862, Pitch Black Inc. was a light bulb factory that employed a large portion of the population from Lackawanna County. A horrific electrical accident took place in 1924, causing the factory to close for good. However, many locals think Pitch Black Inc. is still very much alive, even though the lights have been off for years. It has been reported that a few brave souls have entered the darkness over the years but were never seen again.
    • Sector 13 is a maze where visitors are among the few survivors to escape the cannibalistic mutants and make it to Sector 13, the last remaining bridge to the relatively “normal” Western US. But Sector 13 was made to contain mutants – not provide a quick exit. New terrors await around each corner as you navigate to safety, and not all the inmates can be contained. Will you escape the maze, or find yourself at a dead end? Be careful where you go, because in this high-intensity maze of psychological scares, turning back may not be an option.
  • Open Fridays and Saturdays from 5:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. and Sundays from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
    • General admission tickets are $69 and they are available by credit card online and cash only at the ticket booth.
    • Friday Night Only – Box Office Ticket $59 (with printed coupon); coupons must be printed and there is a limit of one per person with the purchase of a ticket at the ticket booth, and it’s cash only.  
    • Sunday Night Only – Box Office Ticket $49 (with printed coupon); coupons must be printed and there is a limit of one per person with the purchase of a ticket at the ticket booth, and it’s cash only.
    • The cost of parking is $3, payable in cash only at the parking lot attendance gate.
      
• Horror Hall: located at 11 E. Poplar Street in Nanticoke, Luzerne County.
  • Horror Hall is NEPA’s longest-running, all-indoor, 20,000-square-foot, haunted attraction with 40 years of haunted traditions.
  • Featuring new scares for 2023, Horror Hall is open every weekend in October and the hours are as follows:
    • Friday and Saturday from 6:00-11:00 p.m., and Sunday from 6:00-10:00 p.m.
  • Tickets are available at the door or online and prices are:
    • $20 for General Admission
    • $25 Fast Pass
    • $29 All Night Pass
  • The haunted attraction is open rain or shine.
    
• Hellstead Manor: located just minutes away from the Hallstead Exit (230) off I-81, between Scranton, PA, and Binghamton, NY. 
  • Now their eighth year in operation the manor’s staff can’t wait to show what they have in store this season.
  • Venture the halls of the manor to the new attraction, “The Cannibillies,” where you and your friends try to escape being the next meal for bloodthirsty cannibal hillbillies.
  • The Wretched Woods has also been expanded for this season.
  • The Manor opened its doors Friday, September 22, and is open to guests Friday and Saturday nights beginning Friday, September 22 at 7:00 p.m. through Saturday, October 28.
  • The general admission price to the haunted attraction is $38 and VIP admission is $48.
  • Check out the brand new attraction Swamp of Sorrows and celebrate your trip through wickedness at the Brew-Garten with a pint of “Hellstead O- Negative”, the official after-haunt nerve calmer, or cozy up to our bonfire and enjoy various refreshments from the refreshments stand.

And of course, it wouldn’t be Halloween without a Trunk or Treat for the little ones to have some spooky fun.

• The 3 annual Touch A Truck or Treat, hosted by the West Wyoming Parks & Recreation at the Fire-Rescue headquarters, 926 Shoemaker Avenue, West Wyoming, Luzerne County.
  • The staff is hosting this community event to provide a “safe, fun, and educational afternoon for families, whether rain or shine.
  • The event will be both indoors and outdoors and all are welcome, Saturday, October 21, from 12:00 to 3:00 p.m.
  • Also from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. is reserved for anyone who requires a small quiet crowd (special needs, autism, etc.)
  • The event will feature a live DJ and a photo booth.
  • Visitors will be able to participate in “Touch a Truck” like a fire truck and an ambulance and there will also be awesome cars, trucks, and heavy machinery to look at.
  • “Trunk or Treat” will have decorated trunks handing out candy.
  • There will also be raffle baskets, fire prevention demonstrations, fire prevention handouts, a “Smokehouse Trailer,” and a special appearance from Sparky the Fire Dog.
• Refreshments, food trucks, and face painting will be available all the while Halloween-themed movies are playing in the background.

• The 4 annual Ultimate Trunk or Treat and Halloween Market Place, hosted at the Circle Drive-In, 1911 Scranton/Carbondale Highway in Dickson City, Lackawanna County.
  • The event is scheduled for Saturday, October 21 from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
    • The Trunk or Treat and Halloween Marketplace will be free to the community and host local vendors and artisans.
    • There will be lots of activities for the kids, plenty of trunks for treating, and prizes for best costume, best trunk, and best vendor set up.

• The Wilkes-Barre Township Police Department and Fire Department are hosting their annual Trunk or Treat event.
  • Wilkes-Barre Township Police & Fire Department’s Trunk or Treat is scheduled for Halloween, Tuesday, October 31, from 5:00-7:00 p.m.
  • Anyone wishing to participate or donate candy is asked to contact Detective Lee Ann Reh at 570-208-4635 ext. 250 or stop by the Police Department anytime.
  • Last year they had over 400 children at the event and are looking forward to seeing everyone again this year.

No matter which event you or your family attends this year, be sure to have fun and be safe.