When most college students go to a haunted house, they often pay upwards of $20 and are often let down; however, one haunted house promises not to disappoint.
Terror Trails is a Halloween event open every Friday and Saturday night in October. It is a joint haunted house and haunted trail located in Yantis, Texas, which is about 45 minutes from Texas A&M University-Commerce.
“We’ve been running Terror Trails for 12 seasons,” Gary Hughes, owner of Terror Trails, said. “I have actually been working on it for 13 years, so this year is a lucky year for me.”
Snookie Tennerman, Gary Hughes and Lance Nichols, who runs the ticket booth, started Terror Trails 12 years ago with the intention of befitting the Yantis Volunteer Fire Department.
“We have actually sent our proceeds to several organizations,” Hughes said. “We have donated money to the Salvation Army, the Winnsboro Library, and the Lake Fork Lions Club. We have had several other beneficiaries such as the PTA and the Pilot’s Club.”
Terror Trails is not what someone would expect a haunted house to be like in the middle of nowhere. First off, its out-of-the-way location adds to the scariness of the haunted house. It is very meticulously themed; even the port-a-potties are draped in black paint.
“From the moment people step out of their car, or even before they do that, I want them to be immersed in the experience,” Hughes said. “I’ve been to several haunted houses all around and in Dallas, and I remember thinking ‘I can do better than this’.”
Hughes has strived to make his park the best. Though Yantis is considered rural, Terror Trails boasts a fully functional House of Terror. Hughes was a former student of A&M-Commerce (when it was formerly named East Texas State University) majoring in Radio/Television. Perhaps because of this, his House of Terror is extremely high-tech and up-to-date in its attractions.
Much of the technology is focused on tracking patrons of the House of Terror. Motion sensors and cameras track patrons’ movements.
The House of Terror has several differently themed rooms. It boasts the normal scary things such as ghosts and zombies; however, patrons will notice rooms in the House of Terror have themes not normally seen in haunted houses, like an electrocution and a pharaoh’s tomb.
“I think a lot of the themes are what scares me,” Hughes said. “Like a dog growling or snakes. Snakes scare me to death. It may not be your normal haunted house things. My scares will even scare me a lot of times.”
The house is not the only attraction at Terror Trails. It also boasts a half-mile long trail to walk on. Though the trail may seem dangerous, patrons should not worry about their safety. Security personnel are always present at the park. If there are any accidents on the grounds, they are always there to help patrons.
Wesley Crist, the fire chief of the Yantis Fire Department, makes sure of this.
“We’ve been out here every year since it started,” Crist said. “We do parking detail, take tickets and we help out if there is any trouble out here.” Another feature of Terror Trails is the food. Unlike many haunted houses who mostly serve pre-packaged food, Terror Trails has their own Transylvainian Pizza Lab. The pizza lab cranks out generous helpings of wood fire pizza cooked in a brick oven, giving it a distinctive taste, and is available for $3 a slice.
“I like coming out here,” Tiffany Culver, sophomore animal science major said. “It’s fun, the pizza is great, and it’s pretty cheap in comparison with other haunted houses.”
Admission is $8 a person or $15 for a combo ticket. For more information, patrons should visit www.terrortrails.com.