Props for the “The Haunt at Camp Liberty” haunted trail at Camp Liberty. (Hayden Hyatt for The Cullman Tribune)
BATTLEGROUND – Battleground’s Camp Liberty has something special planned for the Halloween season: "a full-immersion, military-themed haunted trail experience," running Fridays and Saturdays from Sept. 21 through Oct. 27.
Helen Philips, organizer of “The Haunt at Camp Liberty,” said the haunt will feature a haunted trail as well as other attractions.
“We have the haunted trial, which is an outdoor 30- to 45-minute walkthrough,” said Philips. “It takes you through the premise that the military was hiding a portal leaking an alternate reality into our universe and they’ve lost control of it. So all of our customers are being recruited to go through and try and shut down the portal.”
This is the first year Camp Liberty has hosted an event like this, but Philips has had years of experience working on Halloween attractions.
“I've been doing this for nine years. I've worked one haunt in Tennessee and I designed a haunted trail and haunted hay ride up in upstate New York,” Philips said. “This is the very first year (at Camp Liberty); (owner) Joseph Land was looking for something to do in his off-season and I was looking for a place to do a haunt, so it worked out really nicely.”
Philips said in addition to the haunted trail the haunt will also feature an escape room.
“It's a 60-minute escape room, but of course it's a haunt, so we put a little twist on it,” said Philips. “We're considering it a haunted escape room; it's basically a mass shooter field hospital and the premise of this one is that there was a doctor that the military brought in, who was doing research on contagions. He was working on a cure, but he didn't get cured himself in time. There will be a nurse they're interacting with, kinda helping them through the game, but she only has an hour before she turns completely.”
Philips continued, “They have to rescue her; they have to get out the two locks on that door and some other little stuff that I don't want to give away throughout the process. I don't want to give away too much, but it's definitely not your average escape room. It's going to be a lot more interactive and literally digging in.”
In addition to the escape room and haunted trail, the haunt will feature food, a gift shop and movies and music, according to Philips.
“We'll have movies playing up on the screen in the amphitheater, we're going to have music going, we have a snack bar that serves hot and cold foods, we have a gift shop,” said Philips. “We have a lot going on, bonfires and the whole nine yards.”
The convenient location of the haunt is sure to be a draw for fright seekers, said Philips.
“It's kinda crunch time right now, getting everything done. One good thing is the location,” Philips said. “Were halfway between Huntsville and Birmingham, so anybody that's traveling for another haunt, they're going to go by us.”
Philips said the event will offer competitive pricing and discounts for active duty military and veterans.
“The trail is going to be $18 per person, the escape room is $25 per person and the combo ticket for both is $40,” said Philips. “On top of that, all active duty military and retired veterans get $2 off for any ticket for up to four people in their party every day.”
The haunt starts Sept. 21 and goes through Oct. 27. Ticket sales start at 7 p.m. and the haunt will generally continue until midnight.
“I hope everybody comes out because it’s going to be a lot of fun,” Philips said. “You might get muddy and dirty, but it's going to be a real experience that you're going to be fully immersed in.”
For more information visit www.thehauntatcampliberty.com/.
Camp Liberty is located at 15719 Alabama Highway 157, Battleground (Vinemont), Alabama 35179.
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