{"id":35236,"date":"2024-10-22T11:59:39","date_gmt":"2024-10-22T15:59:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/?p=35236"},"modified":"2024-10-31T16:34:26","modified_gmt":"2024-10-31T20:34:26","slug":"sheppards-bush-will-be-spooky-destination-this-weekend-as-haunted-forest-returns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/sheppards-bush-will-be-spooky-destination-this-weekend-as-haunted-forest-returns\/","title":{"rendered":"Sheppard\u2019s Bush will be spooky destination this weekend as Haunted Forest returns"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

There will be plenty of chills at Sheppard\u2019s Bush this weekend as the ever-popular, and ever-spooky Haunted Forest returns to the Conservation Area this Saturday, October 26.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Set to run from 6 \u2013 9 p.m. at Sheppard\u2019s Bush, with family-friendly activities also taking place at the Aurora Family Leisure Complex on Industrial Parkway North, the event offers something for everyone \u2013 from the youngest goblins having the chance to get up close and personal with some of their favourite characters, to older youth and adults able to take part in a bone-chilling experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two types of wristbands are now on sale for Saturday\u2019s event at the AFLC, Aurora Town Hall, Aurora Town Square, the Joint Operations Centre, and the Stronach Aurora Recreation Complex. A $5 wristband will offer access to the family trail, family cabin and ghost stories, while a $6 wristband offers access to all trails, all cabins, and ghost stories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had really good weather leading up to this, which has really enabled us to get to work and put the energy into our displays,\u201d says Shelley Ware, Special Events Coordinator for the Town of Aurora, noting that the two-wristband option has been put in place for the first time this year to address last year\u2019s \u201cmassive\u201d lineups to see the cabin space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cStart your fun early with indoor activities at the Aurora Family Leisure Complex,\u201d she continues. \u201cThere is a minimum of seven different interactive family activities that people can participate in \u2013 then they can get zoomed on a broom up to the Bush.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not exactly a broom as shuttle buses run between each location, but Halloween is a time for imagination!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There in the Bush, Ware promises two trails with nearly 50 displays for all tastes, culminating in the cabin, which has been decked out in its ghoulish and beastly best by volunteers, the Knuth family. A family cabin, spearheaded by Marquee Theatrical Productions, will offer a pirate theme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEven for us, the Bush changes every single day as it matures and gets into the later fall season,\u201d says Ware. \u201cEvery step of the trail is going to be unique and it is going to be fresh. People are able to do the trails multiple times; they just have to keep going in the same direction. It\u2019s a lot to take in because we have displays on both sides of the trail. It really stops you in your tracks as you take in a certain display and go onto the next one.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Helping bring the rest of the Haunted Forest to life this year will be more than 150 student volunteers who have been hard at work carving 200 pumpkins, which will illuminate the trails on the day of, creating additional displays with the Aurora Youth Engagement Committee, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe event is really created by the community for the community and it might be one of the reasons it has made the Top 100 Festivals and Events in Ontario list,\u201d says Ware. \u201cIt\u2019s nice that the community\u2019s efforts are celebrated, appreciated and known throughout the Province, and events of this nature are very unique. There are so many complex logistics that come into play far above just the weather-related impacts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhether [attendees] are new to the event or returning, the Bush does look different every single year. If we have poor weather on the day of, it actually adds to the excitement and the eeriness of the Bush. A lot of care and attention is put towards making and ensuring it is an enjoyable family experience, but that there is also a really solid experience for those who are really coming for a good fright.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re several days ahead of Halloween, so this is another way for families to enjoy this holiday, which is the second-most participated-in holiday in the Canadian year. It\u2019s a big day, and with Halloween following the next week, a great way to kick off the spirit in your families.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more on Aurora\u2019s 2024 Haunted Forest, visit aurora.ca\/hauntedforest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Brock Weir<\/strong><\/p>\n\r\n\"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"mail\"<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There will be plenty of chills at Sheppard\u2019s Bush this weekend as the ever-popular, and ever-spooky Haunted Forest returns to the Conservation Area this Saturday, October 26. Set to run from 6 \u2013 9 p.m. at Sheppard\u2019s Bush, with family-friendly activities also taking place at the Aurora Family Leisure Complex on Industrial Parkway North, the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35236","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general_news","category-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3D2k4-9ak","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-29 09:51:13","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35236","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35236"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35236\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}