For one weekend each October, a quarter-mile of wooded path in southern Covington stops being an ordinary walking trail and becomes something considerably less friendly. Witches lurk in the brush. Goblins and ghosts wait around the bends. Lanterns light the way, but they don't necessarily make anyone feel safer.
That's the annual Haunted Trail at Middleton-Mills Park, and this year Kenton County Parks and Recreation is expanding it. For the first time, the trail will run for two nights instead of one — Friday, Oct. 16, and Saturday, Oct. 17, from 7 to 10 p.m. each evening. Admission and parking are at the football field at 3415 Mills Road, with the trail itself staged around Shelter House #2.
The event has been a fixture on the county's fall calendar for a long time. A 2017 public notice from Kenton County Parks and Recreation advertised that year's edition as the "19th Annual Haunted Halloween Trails." The mechanics of the thing haven't changed much. The trail is a quarter-mile long and, as the county puts it plainly, "the purpose of the trail is to scare." The recommended age is six and up, though the county leaves the final call to parents, who know their own children best. Along the lantern-lit path, visitors encounter creepy creatures, lurking witches, goblins, ghosts and what the county describes as "plenty of surprises."
There's a reward waiting at the other end. Survivors who make it through arrive at a shelter house where the county's "friendly Ghostesses" serve complimentary cups of Bat's Blood — which is punch, despite the name. Hayride shuttles then carry guests back to the parking area, a nice touch for anyone who doesn't relish the idea of walking back through the woods they just escaped. Concessions are available for purchase.
The entrance closes at 10 p.m. both nights, but anyone already in line at that hour still gets to walk the trail. No advance registration is required.
What makes the Haunted Trail unusual among haunted attractions is its price. Rather than a per-person ticket, admission is either a non-perishable food or personal care item donation for Be Concerned, or $1 per person. Be Concerned is a Covington-based nonprofit that began in 1968 as the Christmas Store, helping low-income families celebrate the holidays, and has since grown into one of the largest free food pantries in Northern Kentucky. The organization now serves more than 2,000 families a month and operates locations in Covington and Erlanger. Every can of soup or bar of soap dropped off at the trailhead goes to that work.
The result is a haunted house with no cap on attendance and no real barrier to entry — a dollar or a grocery item gets you in. That's a rarity in a Halloween landscape increasingly dominated by ticketed, professionally produced attractions that can run $30 or more per person.
The county also relies heavily on volunteers to make the trail happen. It's looking for people to help set up, direct traffic, manage sound effects and decorate the trail. Volunteers must be 13 or older and accompanied by an adult at all times, and they're asked to arrive by 6 p.m. on the night they work. Registration is online.
The park itself is a 100-acre spread in southern Covington, with two ponds stocked with trout and catfish through the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife's Fishing in Neighborhoods program, plus baseball, football and soccer fields, playgrounds, a fishing pier and a FitCore Extreme fitness obstacle course. It's also home field for the Independence Soccer Club. For most of the year, it's a place for youth sports and weekend fishing. In mid-October, it turns into something else entirely.
For families with younger children — or anyone who'd rather not be frightened — the county offers a gentler alternative the same weekend. The Boo Bash & Trail Trek runs Saturday, Oct. 17, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Shelter House #2, hosted in partnership with the Girl Scouts of Kentucky's Wilderness Road Council. It features crafts, activities and friendly Halloween characters handing out sweet treats. Admission there is also a non-perishable food or personal care item donation for Be Concerned, and no registration is needed. Volunteers for that event are asked to arrive by 1 p.m.
Between the two events, the county has built a Halloween weekend that covers both ends of the spectrum — the kids who want candy from a smiling character, and the ones who want to be genuinely scared in the dark. The Haunted Trail remains the anchor.
For more information, the county points visitors to its online catalog at bit.ly/kcprcatalog or the parks line at 859-525-PLAY (7529).