Knott's Taste of Fall-O-Ween 2020: Camp Snoopy Trick-or-Treat Trail, Characters, Extras, and Into the Fog Art Show
Knott’s Berry Farm, Buena Park, CA
Happy Monday, folks! Welcome to Day 2 of our Knott’s Taste of Fall-O-Ween coverage! In the tradition of our multi-part Knott’s Scary Farm updates, we’re following up our general review yesterday with a deeper drive into various aspects of the event. Today, we’re taking a closer look at the incredibly charming and also Haunt-callback-filled Camp Snoopy Trick-or-Treat Trail, plus a look at the wonderful street talent that has been added to the park, little bonuses and Easter eggs (and there were things we missed too), and finally a tour of this year’s Into the Fog art exhibit.
Really, though, it’s an excuse to post more photos of the park decked out in wonderful Halloween decorations. So join us as we explore Knott’s celebration of things Halloween. It’s a bit of Spooky Farm and Scary Farm rolled into one!
Camp Snoopy Trick-or-Treat Trail
The Taste of Knott’s expanded Knott’s open area from just Ghost Town to also Fiesta Village and Boardwalk. The Taste of Fall-O-Ween grows the nopublicly accessible area further—but not in the way you’d expect. Instead of having more tasting booths occupying Camp Snoopy for greater capacity, a trick-or-treat trail has been set up to allow kids (and their chaperones) to enjoy an enchanting stroll through autumn whimsy that also doubles as memory lane for Haunt afficionados (sorry, though, there’s nothing from the actual Trick or Treat maze here)!
Admission into the Trick-or-Treat Trail is included in the children’s tasting card admission. Adults who want to participate will need to purchase an add-on ticket at the beginning of the trail (located on the Fiesta Village side of Camp Snoopy), but on Friday at least, adults who simply wanted to walk through were able to do so without any add-on purchase. I’m not 100% sure if this was simply because the trail wasn’t that busy or if it’s standard policy, so anyone who does find out, feel free to let me know!
This scarecrow is named Freddy Cat (get it?) and is new on the job. He seems to scare himself more than the crows.
The Trail itself is basically the pathway through Camp Snoopy, with added props and hay bales to create a more winding path and section off scenic sets and interactive characters who greet guests along the way. At the start, the trail takes on an autumn harvest vibe, and fittingly, there are scarecrows who can engage with guests as they pass by. Each of them has a different personality—some veteran and confident, others new and unsure. And in a similar vein to Ghost Town Alive, they rely on improvisational skills to share little moments with guests small and large.
The Calico Coffin Creepers have taken a hiatus from the Log Ride Halloween Hootenanny to perform in Camp Snoopy this fall.
The sights of the Camp Snoopy Trick-or-Treat Trail are a delightful surprise to veteran guests of Knott’s Scary Farm. With no mazes, scare zones, or attraction overlays to use them on, Knott’s has adopted multiple animatronics, backdrops, and theming elements from mazes of Haunt near and distant past as atmospheric elements for the trail! Tombs from Forsaken Lake, musicians from the Log Ride’s Halloween Hootenanny, and the spooky coney fog machine enclosures from The Hollow are easily recognizable for guests of the past couple of year’s Scary Farm runs. But there’s also a rock monster from mazes ranging from Dead of Winter to End Games to Beowulf, carriages and figures from the old Gypsy Camp, and other homages to mazes of far Haunt past.
Familiar sights from Forsaken Lake have made their way over to Camp Snoopy.
Remember these scenes from Gypsy Camp, in the backstage area of Ghost Town behind Ghostrider?
Maybe my favorite part of the Camp Snoopy Trick-or-Treat Trail are the posed skeleton ride scenes that evoke a playful Boney Island sort of appeal. Each ride features at least several skeletons enjoying the attraction, frozen in action. From boney folks seated around the High Sierra Ferris Wheel to decayed off-roaders on Pig Pen’s Mud Buggies to Supermanning fliers on Linus Launchers to airtime seekers on Woodstock’s Airmail to skeletal swingers on Charlie Brown’s Kite Flyer and more, there are plenty of cute, comical caricatures of amusement park enjoyment. There are even a pair of skeletons pushing their own carts on Huff ‘n’ Puff. It’s all really, positively delightful.
A skeleton conductor waves from the Grand Sierra Railroad.
A pair of skeletons enjoy the ups and downs of Woodstock’s Airmail. There’s even a ride operator watching the action too. All the rides along the Trick-or-Treat Trail feature this sort of fancifulness.
There is also general Halloween theming that is more of the Knott’s Spooky Farm style. Jack-O-Lanterns and the Peanuts gang make appearances in various forms. My favorite is a crashed UFO of Woodstocks interacting with a few nearby aliens. It’s reminiscent of the Space Beagle stage show from the Peanuts Celebration earlier in the year and ridiculously adorable. Over by Grizzly Creek Lodge and the Sierra Sidewinder Station, various Peanuts characters can also be seen waving at guests and offering their spookiest Halloween poses.
Happy pumpkins fill the green landscape of Camp Snoopy.
These UFO Woodstock characters are captivating.
Lucy shows off her scariest pose!
The Trick-or-Treat Trail is even more atmospheric at night. In addition to those nostalgic Haunt vibes, there are also fun projections along the waterfalls and rocks next to Grizzly Creek Lodge. And of course, those Hollow coney fog machines offer a small taste of Camp Snoopy Streets—just without the monsters.
Camp Forsaken Lake Snoopy at night.
Spooky but delightful projections of jack-o-lanterns and ghosts materialize on the rocks by the Grizzly Creek play area and caverns.
The Hollow lives on in its own way at the Taste of Fall-O-Ween!
Street Characters and Entertainment
Much like the Taste of Calico and Taste of Knott’s, the Taste of Fall-O-Ween still has no official shows to offer. But in the vein of Ghost Town Alive! and Knott’s Scary Farm’s past couple of years, the Taste of Fall-O-Ween has been infused with a selection unscheduled entertainment, roaming street atmosphere characters, and plenty of little surprises for people at the right place and the right time and/or looking in the right area.
Cheers to you, Deputy Mayor! Or Dead-puty Mayor?
Overhead, on the balconies of Ghost Town, various citizens of Calico continue to make recurring appearances to interact with passers-by below. For the fall season, they’ve taken on a more macabre appearance, befitting something a little closer to a cursed Calico full of the dead come back to life. There are familiar faces like the Deputy Mayor, plus unique members of Calico not previously seen in the Taste of Knott’s or Taste of Calico.
Closer to the ground, there are additional characters on various porches, inside some of the peak-in’s, or over by the Calico Railroad, also poised to engage with guests. Close-up interaction in the vein of Ghost Town Alive! does not occur due to COVID safety protocols, but from where these other citizens stand, they can maintain social distance but still conversate with guests, lending some semblance of the interactions from the beloved summertime event. With humorous, punny names like Nosy Rosie and Ollie Board, these folks add some fun to the Ghost Town scene. Some also provide entertaining interactions with each other, such as the judge’s distaste for Nosy Rosie’s constant gossiping and yelling out at guests down below. I even saw some guests currying verbal messages from one character to another—a nod to some of the Ghost Town Alive! interactive activities as well!
Judge Roy Bean looks oddly different…
The street characters don their masks when they are en route to or from their positions in the streets. They are unmasked once in position and safely socially distanced away from guests.
Conductor Ollie Board fulfills a familiar Scary Farm role, but this one’s a speakie!
Ghost Town isn’t the only place with roaming street characters. The Boardwalk celebrates its autumn carnival roots with a stilt walker and sideshow entertainment too. Acrobatic displays of athleticism coupled with friendly photo ops lend some enjoyment to the area.
Boardwalk has its own street characters too.
Over at the Calico Mine Stage, Professor Mayhem presents Pseudo-Scientific Deceptions of the Absurd, an illusionist and variety show during the day time. Meanwhile, closer to late afternoon and the evening, the big screen at the Calico Mine Stage broadcasts a virtual concert from Krazy Kirk and the Hillbillies—this one themed to Halloween! It’s a fall version of what was offered during the Taste of Knott’s, but the looping movie show is a safer way of providing musical entertainment than having the live band potentially attract a larger, more packed crowd.
Krazy Kirk and his band give a devilish performance at the Calico Mine Stage… screen.
All though Ghost Town, there are little secrets and surprises in the windows to the town’s buildings. Mysterious and possibly supernatural sights can be seen at Gertie’s Dress Shop—an act that seems to be heralded in a copy of the Calico Gazette inside the local newspaper office. Sad Eye Joe has taken a furrier turn this fall, though he’s at least well behaved, unlike his Scary Farm self. And perhaps most interesting of all is an appearance by the Green Witch! Her silhouette is visible through one of the windows at Sarah Marshall’s house near Ghost Town Grub.
As our friend, Chris Glass put it, “All that power just to be a home maker.” Well, I guess even the Green Witch can’t spend every year on vengeance and destruction…
The surprises don’t stop at sundown, however. Head over to Boot Hill Cemetery to see the ghosts rise, and in particular, some of the souls who call Boot Hill their home for eternity! Charming projections of a trio of Calico folk who met untimely demises tell their sad tales in rhyme. It’s yet another example of the fun yet slightly supernatural touch that pervades the Taste of Fall-O-Ween.
The spirits come alive at the Boot Hill Cemetery at night. Come catch their stories after dark!
All of these little bonuses are definitely geared more toward child-age guests, and there are no startle or jump scare effects at all. But they also encompass the wonder of the magical holiday that so often attracts us Halloween fans when we are young, perfectly capturing the spirit of that balance between fun and slightly frightening!
Into the Fog Art Show
Finally, literally in the inspiration of Knott’s Scary Farm, the Into the Fog art show returns to the park, even if the monsters and mayhem are taking a break. This year, the gallery is housed in Cordy’s Corner, across the walkway from the former Voyage to the Iron Reef / future Bear-y Tales 4D attraction building and basically on the other side of the street from where Into the Fog has been presented in previous years.
Pins, wardrobe, cups, and other memorabilia abound at Into the Fog.
This display of artistic tribute to the Halloween Haunt grows bigger and bigger every year, and this year offers the most pieces of art yet! Although paintings and graphic arts dominates the field, there are also a couple of model items and even an awesome photographic print featured. The contributors make up a diverse background of Knott’s fans, actors, influencers, designers, and Scary Farm talent, and their art pieces are pretty astounding.
The list of artists grows larger and larger every year and features many recognizable faces!
Guests have the option of purchasing the original prints at their asking prices (though many / most of the pieces have sold out in the first weekend), but there are also reproductions for sale. Just ask the cashier for the catalog to peruse and obtain pricing.
Among my favorites this year were a series of “monster montage” type paintings, a couple of awesome lenticular creations, and an eerie, scenic Ghost Town Streets landscape. There’s also a wickedly cool “trading card” of Death from Ghost Town Streets, created by our pal Gabe Montoya of Theme Park Duo. It is truly inspiring and marvelous to see such excellent creative endeavors dedicated to a common love.
Love this ensemble of iconic Haunt figures by Rachel Hanson, entitled “The Witch’s Dominion.”
The talented Richard Wallace offers a lenticular portrayal of Sarah Marshall / the Green Witch in “The Witch of Calico.”
Levi Lack’s “Autumn” paints the supernatural forces that engulf Ghost Town within the veil every year.
Who would have thought there’d be not one but two lenticular pieces? This one is “Till Death Do Us Part,” by Brandon Starr. Everyone loves the Bride—except those who are terrified of her!
Knott’s designer Jon Asperin provides another fantastic montage in a sort of vintage aesthetic in “I Am Scary Farm.”
Another monster montage, “Monsters Unveiled,” by Mackenzie Puls features more notorious faces.
The Into the Fog art gallery is also the place to get all assortments of Taste of Fall-O-Ween merchandise and Scary Farm memorabilia that would have been offered at the park had Haunt not been cancelled. New additions to the legacy maze pins, new T-shirts, and vintage Scary Farm prints and posters offer some great souvenirs for Haunt fans of any generation!
That does it for today’s exploration of the Taste of Fall-O-Ween. We’ll be back with the second half of the deep dives, featuring pretty pictures of the scenery and environment of Ghost Town, Boardwalk, and Fiesta Village decked out in their Halloween decor. This is truly a wonderfully put-together event and the best and safest alternative to Knott’s Scary Farm that the park could put on. It’s sure to be a popular one too, as evidenced by the fact that every Saturday of the event has already sold out (remember, tickets can only be purchased in advanced, online). Capacity to the event is significantly limited to comply with COVID-19 safety protocols, so if you deem this to be something you are comfortable enough venturing out to, booking admission reservations is better done sooner rather than later!
Architect. Photographer. Disney nerd. Haunt enthusiast. Travel bugged. Concert fiend. Asian.
