13 frights

Whether aboard ship or gondola, wary of woods or castle keep, fear will surely factor in

October 25, 2009|Patricia Harris and David Lyon, Globe Correspondents

Don’t say you weren’t warned. New England can be a pretty scary place at the end of October with ghoulies, ghosties, long-leggedy beasties, and things that go bump in the night. Add a few celluloid nightmares, mix well with hayrides, long shadows, and a big dose of animatronics, and you have deliciously frightful scream scenes designed to scare you out of your skin. Here are 13 ways to get a charge out of Halloween.

Holiday central

Salem

owns Halloween like the North Pole owns Christmas, although it’s best not to think too hard about the rather tenuous link between the 1692 witch trials and the modern, monthlong Haunted Happenings ( www.hauntedhappenings.org ). The mix of free activities and ticketed-admission events builds to a fever pitch next weekend with live music for dancing in the streets, Edgar Allan Poe tales interpreted by the Salem Theatre Company at the Custom House ($15 ages 13 and older, $10 ages 6-12), and even a Salem Witches Magic Circle on the Common. The capper is the Hawthorne Hotel’s “Reality Bites’’ costume ball ($90) on Oct. 31.

Ghostbusters

If you prefer ghosts to witches, the real-life ghost hunters of Mass Paranormal lead Ghost Tours of the USS Salem ( 739 Washington St., Quincy, www.hauntedship.com, 617-479-7900, open Oct. 29-31, ghost tours $15), looking for the disembodied souls of former crew members and people who died awaiting care in the ship’s hospital. The investigation into the haunts began last year, and tour leaders say that most tour visitors have heard voices, seen shadows, or watched meters suddenly register major changes in electromagnetic fields. The tours cover about a quarter of the 716 1/2-foot heavy cruiser, while the rest becomes a haunted house-type attraction as The Haunted Ship. Ask about combination tickets.

Macabre mill

It can be hard to tell where history ends and the paranormal begins on the Mill & Mysteries tour offered at Slater Mill ( 67 Roosevelt Ave., Pawtucket, R.I., 401-725-8638, www.slatermill.org, Oct. 30-31 and Nov. 6-7, 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., $15). The nighttime walking tour around the mill site and along the Blackstone River began as a recounting of historical events - until visitors started experiencing spectral visions and disembodied voices. Ooo-eee-ooooo.

Height of terror