Dozens of monstrous Diamond Head snakes slither beneath arickety bridge as thrill-seekers cautiously cross over to safety,said haunted house mastermind, Dwayne Sanburn.
Sanburn said as many as 50 people a night “chickenout” before making it through all 13 themed areas of theabandoned downtown building, which his company, MidnightProductions, turns into The 13th Gate every October.
This year, Halloween is not just for trick-or-treaters. Withattractions including The 13th Gate, The Myrtles and The CornMaize, visitors can find chills and thrills close to home.
“The 13th Gate covers 40,000 square feet, and is thelargest haunted house in the South,” Sanburn said.
Sanburn said his company specializes in Halloween attractionsall over the state and is anticipating a large turnout for thethird year of The 13th Gate.
Sanburn said there are several new additions to the hauntedhouse including Psychosis in 3-D, which was painted by StuartSmith, the nations leading 3-D artist.
“Those who enter wear 3-D glasses,” Sanburn said.”You go through and all the artwork looks like it’scoming out of the walls, you seem to be stepping into floor, wallsmove, floors are spinning. It’s very different from a regularhaunted house.”
He said another new attraction is the “Hellevator,”which is a 40 second ride in the dark that brings guests into thehaunted house.
“This is not for those who are claustrophobic or afraid ofelevators,” Sanburn said. “There are two very oldelevators to ride to get down into the haunted house thisyear.”
Sanburn said the 13th Gate, located downtown on 832 St. PhilipsSt., has 13 different themed rooms, where each area can cover 3,000square feet, housing multitudes of guests and trained actors.
He said that one of the rooms includes 75 live Diamond Backwater snakes, that are each three to four feet long.
“The snake bridge is inside and you have to walk over thesnakes, there is no glass separating you and the snakes, they arefour feet down, and the bridge is very rickety,” Sanburnsaid.
The Myrtles Plantation, better known as “The Most HauntedHouse in America,” according to plantation tour directorHester Eby, is also having a “Halloween Extravaganza”that starts the Friday before Oct. 29.
“The guides will be in costume for halloween,” Ebysaid. “They will be dressed to portray people that lived inThe Myrtles during the 1800s.”
Legend has it that the plantation is haunted and Eby is abeliever.
“The main thing is I’ve had my name called and thenno one being there,” Eby said. “The spirits pick upwhatever voices they like, all of us have heard our name calledbefore, it’s always happened to me when I’ve been inthe house alone.”
She said the plantation is rumored to be haunted by a mother andher two children, as well as a slave named Chloe.
“The children are heard playing and laughing,” Ebysaid. “The mother is normally heard crying. Chloe ismischievous at times and is known to tuck people in. Her fragrancesmells like honeysuckle and people see a mist and think it isher.”
The Corn Maize, located on Nicholson Drive, six miles past thefootball stadium, also expects many visitors to come and experiencethe eight and a half acres of cornfield with over two miles ofmaze-carved pathways.
Beth Courville has worked at her family’s”haunted” maize since it began five years ago.
Courville said that the maize, which opened to the public lastmonth, begins its “haunting” everyday at sundown.
“We have props and people who jump out of the cornfield,” Courville said. “Sometimes you can hear thembut you can’t seem them. Just being inside the corn itself isscary because you know that something is around the corner, but youdon’t know where you are going and it’s easy to getlost.”
Courville said that every year the shape of the maize changesand this year the maize pathways were cut to resemble asteamboat.
“I’ve been working here for years and I go throughit and I still get scared,” Courville said. “It’sa big surprise effect, like Children of the Corn all overagain.”