'Moors Valley Halloween Trail is spooky fun for everyone'

This year Moors Valley Country Park near Ringwood has unveiled a new spooky trail through the forest.

The event has three stages: Daylight, Twilight and Moonlight. We were booked onto the daylight experience, which is marketed as ‘most suitable for the youngest visitors’

@megan_stanley_ ‘The darker it gets, the spookier it becomes…’ Halloween has officually begun at Moors Valley Country Park 🎃💀 #halloween #pumpkin #ghost #spooky #spookyseason #halloweentiktok #woods ♬ Spooky, quiet, scary atmosphere piano songs - Skittlegirl Sound

I might be 27, but I am a huge scaredy cat so I was pleased that we’d been allotted the least scary option.

Unfortunately, the horror began on the roads. What should’ve been a 30-minute journey took two hours after a couple of incidents on the M27 and A31. While the brilliant emergency services worked to keep everyone safe, we were stuck with hundreds of drivers on the motorway.

We eventually arrived at Moors Valley at 6.30 pm, 90 minutes after our allotted slot and well into the twilight and moonlight zones.

What lurks in the spooky woods? (Image: Newsquest)

Thankfully, the organisers who were well aware of the traffic incidents were accommodating to all the latecomers and let us into the trail with no issues.

You enter the trail under a bask of blue and green, quickly the nice fairy lights turn eerie as you walk past the illuminated trees. What lurks in the darkness? No one knows.

Two children in Grim Reaper costumes took their role very seriously and caused a bit of fright until their mother quickly said ‘oh don’t worry they’re mine!’

If two kids in costume were enough to creep us out, how would we fair with the rest of the journey?

Throughout the trail, we were greeted with spooky statues (anyone else still afraid of the Weeping Angels from when they were kids?), creepy skeletons, and huge spider webs. It was incredible to look at.

Don't forget to look up (Image: Newsquest) As we made our way through the woods, we were greeted by the highwayman who was standing under a cage which held a very ratty-looking skeleton.

The sight of him, made our hearts stop for a moment. Were we about to be terrified? I would like to say we approached him with confidence, but we stood still and waited for the group behind us to catch up so we weren’t alone.

Listen, I said I was a scaredy cat and I meant it.

‘Oh, I see you’ve got a little witch and a dog to protect you – very nice!’ Turns out we didn’t have to be scared at all, he was perfectly friendly. Maybe later on he brings out the fear.

There are plenty of pumpkins to look out for (Image: Newsquest)

Throughout the woods, we came across more characters, including a witch and an undertaker. As the event is family friendly, the scare factor remains quite low which is perfect for the kids and scared adults like us.

That’s not to say the experience isn’t scary, with whispers and tense music following you throughout the trail, it’s easy to fall into the spooky sensations.

The Halloween trail was the perfect event to get us in the spooky spirit, with lots of pumpkins to look out for it’s the perfect family-friendly activity that isn’t too scary.

It took just over an hour to walk the whole trail, but there was food and drink available halfway through for anyone who needed a pit stop.

Ultimately, with any of these things, the question is: Is it worth the cost? I would argue, yes. The team have completely transformed the woods to create a spooky, haunted landscape. It’s a unique experience that is perfect for any Halloween lovers.

Advance tickets start at £16 for adults, £12 for children, and £53 for families. Parking also costs £8. The Halloween trail is open until November 3.

More information can be found at moors-valley.co.uk/events/halloween-at-moors-valley/