Haunted Hayride Sure to Make You Scream

During the summer,  is a busy yet unassuming farm and marketplace, with nothing untoward peering out. The fruit grows and the flowers bloom.

But it's not summer anymore.

Gone are the hot days (maybe), and the humidity (well, in New Jersey? Maybe not so much). It's fall, the time to start thinking about spooky things, goblins, ghosts and goodies.

Yes, Halloween's approaching, and with it comes the Haunted Hayride at C. Casola Farms. (This venue is not part of the Antonio Casola Halloween farm attractions on Route 34 in Holmdel.) At this yearly event, the (crypt) keepers of the farm deck out the place in several shades of scary, with frightful attractions that range from the slightly weird (for the youngest in the crowd) to the sincerely unsettling (for advanced thrill-seekers).

“We have been doing the haunted hayrides on Route 79 in Marlboro for 15 years,” said Cindy Nankervis, who handles customer relations for C. Casola Farms. “We have four attractions: Haunted Hayride, Barn, Wooded Trail, and new this year is our Living Maze.”

The titular “haunted hayride” is the Hayride of Terror, taking visitors into the back woods of New Jersey, where dark legends and strange things live. The 3D Haunted Barn is a take on the traditional funhouse, with some very nontraditional surprises waiting to emerge. The Haunted Wooded Trail takes the old, creepy forest and adds a new layer of menace and thrills. This is not your typical nature walk. Finally, this year’s newest addition to the ghoulish family fun is The Living Maze—full of unexpected twists and wrong turns, and the occasional feeling you’re being watched.

But it's all in fun. The Halloween attraction was developed to offer something to the public during what is usually a very quiet (some would say “dead,” heh-heh) time of the year, approaching the end of the harvest and the onset of colder temperatures and longer, darker nights.

With that in mind, Cindy Nankervis offered this bit of advice: dress appropriately. “I would dress warm, some nights can be cold,” she said. 

For those who need a warm-up, or would simply like a festive treat, Casola Farms has you covered (and not just with the Halloween gear it's happy to sell you). Refreshments and snacks include hot apple cider, hot chocolate, pies, cookies, hot caramel apples, candy, popcorn, hot dogs and soda. The store will fix you up with Halloween novelty items, scarecrows, fall decorations, pumpkins, gourds, Jack-Be-Littles, Indian corn and other holiday-themed goodies.

See ticket prices at this link.

You’ll Probably Get Hungry:  C. Casola Farms is located on Route 79, right next store to  and which also leads you to restaurants like ,  and . Farther south Route 79 leads into Freehold's business district, where there are lots of options including the always fun  or the cozy .