Pumpkin Patch Days return to park

This Is the Place Heritage Park will be celebrating Halloween throughout October, with ghost stories, headless horsemen and a traditional pumpkin patch.

On Oct. 8, 15 and 22, Pumpkin Patch Days returns to the park from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. New this year, guests dressed in Halloween costumes can parade down Main Street and join the harvest scavenger hunt. Crafts, dancing and pioneer games will go on throughout the day and guests can pick a pumpkin to take home. Admission is $6 for adults, $4 for children and seniors.

Also on Oct. 8, 15 and 22, for $2 per person, Ghost Tales show will feature witches Wizzle, Frieda and Greta brewing up Halloween fun. Storytelling, music, dancing and refreshments will be part of the 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. shows. Reservations are recommended.

On Oct. 14, 15, 20, 21, 22 and 24-29, two main events will be going on at the park: Haunted Deseret and Sleepy Hollow. Both events are $15 per person, begin at 7 p.m., are not recommended for children under 12 and require reservations.

For the chills and scares of myths, legends and ghost stories, Haunted Deseret starts the evening off with food and festivities, but an eerie candlelit walk through the village sets the tone for some of Utah's scariest, true ghost stores. Stories from Utah's past and unexplained phenomena at the park will be told at three locations, including the Brigham Young Forest Farmhouse. The farmhouse is listed as one of the most haunted sites in Utah and thought to be haunted by Brigham Young's 19th wife.

For an entertaining night of live music, dancing and refreshments, the Van Tassel family of Sleepy Hollow will tell stories in the interactive theater show. Guests will meet Ichabod Crane, Brom Bones and even the mysterious Headless Horseman.

The nonprofit This Is the Place Heritage Park is located at 2601 E. Sunnyside Ave. in Salt Lake City. For more information and reservations call 582-1847 or visit www.thisistheplace.org.