| HAUNTED HYDRO:
A spooky, old hearse waits just inside the entrance to Freemont’s
Haunted
Hydro. Climb aboard for a surprising scare, and crawl your way
on through as the All Fired Up experience begins. The Hydro
itself is a unique, intimidating structure, loaded with clowns, and consisting
of uneven floors, shrinking hallways, and an iron bar maze that once housed
an area hydroelectric power plant. Vampire torsos decorate its walls;
animated creatures move about on their own attempting to escape their cages,
and all sorts of psychotic, ghoulish fiends just can’t wait to discover
the identity of their next victims! Visit cemeteries, a mortuary,
and Granite’s Tomb. Fight your way through the fog-filled area, and
uncover the vast array of demonic surprises trapped within! Walkways
are bounded by wooden, picket fences, and house a variety of wicked encounters.
Meet up with a frenzied character selling body parts, who’s desperately
seeking a liver to add to his collection, or stop by the Hydro barbershop
for a “trim,” but be forewarned that the deranged coiffeur‘s definition
may not fit your own, as his shop is equipped with instruments like a guillotine,
and his shelves are stocked with the heads of his previous customers!
If you make it out with yours still intact, it’s onto a wickedly laughing
“Doctor,” who takes his show on the road, practicing his demented
form of medicine out of a self-explanatory old carriage he calls Rat
Catcher. The aforementioned maze, a preposterous encounter with
a bizarre little girl insisting on playing patty cake, and several more
downright crazy characters, lead to skeletons, coffins, catacombs and mummies,
a hanging, a loony with a knife in his head, and some unexpected surprises
as The Haunted Hydro literally turns your world upside down!
Analysis:
LENGTH - 7½, About 12 minutes.
ACTORS - 9+, Lots of make-up, tons of energy, and engaging
dialogue, but not overly aggressive. Barber, Doctor,
and body part “Salesman” are among the best, although Patty-Cake
Girl left the most lasting impression.
SCARINESS - 8, While the haunt is a lot of fun, it’s
not overwhelmingly scary. Intimidating actors do a good job making
you feel uneasy. Unfortunately, we visited on "Clown Night"
and the jokesters were more playful, than evil.
PROPS - 9, Great scenes, some animatronics, and the actors
all have unique items to work with.
DESIGN - 9+, Could stand to be a bit longer, but never
a dull moment! The legitimacy of the facility is a tremendous asset,
while a scarier theme would score significantly higher, given the atmosphere.
Different themes are conducted throughout the season, with performances
of Vampire, Zombie, and Clown nights.
VALUE - 9, Just $10 as a stand-alone event, or $7.50
as part of the Rage in the Cage combo.
RATING: 8½,
Haunted Hydro
is the largest and longest running haunted house in northwest Ohio, and
was awarded the 2007 Best Cast Award from Tourist Attractions
and Parks magazine. Door Characters interact with groups
setting them up to enter the haunts themselves, and various creatures
roam the Twilight Zone area that features Crazy Bob's Ghoulish
Gift Shop, as well as several other complimentary activities including,
Tarot card readings, and Wheel of Fortune/Misfortune.
You can also bash a "Haunted Hooptie" with a sledgehammer and support the
Humane Society's fundraiser, where procedes benefit the Wood and Huron
County shelters. There's plenty to do, and lots of fun to be had
at The Hydro, but remember, NEVER COME ALONE! |
 RAGE
IN THE CAGE: New for ’07, Rage
in the Cage is a secondary haunt at The Hydro Complex, consisting
of an enormously foggy, chain-link fence maze that features flashing strobes,
honking horns, laughing, disorienting characters, and the like. A
series of doors helps to provide one of several surprises you’ll encounter
along the way. Just when you think you’ve completed the course and
reached the safety of the outdoors, a talkative girl-ghoul named “Dementia”
chaperones you through a few more horrific scenes, then back into The
Cage! The second go-round is similar to the first, and eventually
leads to an encounter with Dr. Iffems, demanding one of your body
parts before he’ll allow you to escape Rage in the Cage.
Analysis:
LENGTH - 7, Less than ten minutes.
ACTORS - 7½, Not that many, but those present
climb on the fences, wickedly laugh, and help provide distractions. Dementia
is best.
SCARINESS - 7, Fog, strobes and the resulting disorientation
are the primary scares.
PROPS - N/A, Although some are present, it’s always difficult
to do much with this type of infrastructure, therefore this category doesn’t
apply to mazes.
DESIGN - 7, The course is just too simple. Not
enough loops or dead-ends to score any higher. Leaving the Cage,
then re-entering for a second time is most unexpected, as well as the best
aspect of the entrapment. Experience would benefit from some type
of warning siren, or other assaulting sounds to accompany the journey through
the fog-filled maze.
VALUE - 8, Best when purchased as part of the 2-haunt
combo.
RATING: 7, A twisting, turning adventure
through foggy, fence enclosed surroundings, Rage in the Cage serves
as a nice compliment to Haunted Hydro. |
