Organizer Frank Lloyd is really looking forward to seeing all the different ways this year’s volunteers can make their tour groups jump at the annual Haunted Museum tour at the Sukanen Ship Pioneer Village & Museum.
Every year, the Haunted Museum sees about 600 people gather to take a dark, spooky walking tour through the museum, which is set up to feel like a ghost town. There are no lights, which means the “scares” lurking in the shadows are sure to make anyone jump.
“We have some similar scares, but who knows when and where. It may be the same scare but it maybe got moved, or maybe there's no scare at all but your own imagination,” said Lloyd. “It's really just good old fashioned "boo" factor.”
Lloyd promises that the tour’s route will be different and the volunteers have put together a whole new set of scares from last year’s lineup — to keep people on their toes. Groups will be leaving the recreation hall every five minutes, to make sure that everyone gets a chance to experience the fright.
While the tour is scary in a family-friendly way, it is only reccomended for ages eight and up. It usually takes about 20 minutes to walk the full route, so Lloyd recommends dressing warm.
The Haunted Museum tour will take place on Oct. 26. Gates will open at 7 p.m., with a $10 admission, and close at 9 p.m. Tours will run until everyone inside the gates has been properly spooked.
A small concession will be available, and tour guests must bring cash for both the concession and the admission.
All of the funds collected from the tour will go right back towards the Sukanen, to help with various operation costs and ongoing maintenance projects.
Lloyd recommends stopping by and taking a chance on the walking tour. For those who are easily spooked, as well as those who are hardened haunted house survivors, he’s confident the Haunted Museum will be worth the trip.
“We've had people come in and can't make it through, and some people who've come all the way through and said, 'eh,’” said Lloyd. “But we get them somewhere, we always get everyone somehow.”
The Sukanen Ship Pioneer Village & Museum is located about 13 kilometres south of Moose Jaw on Highway 2.
