Devils, Dark Pits, and Haunted Hotels: An Outdoor Project Guide to Halloween Adventure

Tradition holds that Halloween is the time of year when the veil that separates the dead from the living momentarily lifts; the dead emerge from their cobwebbed sarcophagi, the devils prowl in search of lost souls, and the dark creatures of the earth grow restless.

Sure, there are the skeptics out there that can't relate, but most of us have felt the chilly fear that settles in when a spooky scene gets too real for comfort. Maybe it was a cold and foggy night by a lake watching the witch's hair dangle off of bony tree branches, or maybe it was the coyotes pitching their shrill cries down a desolate canyon. Or it could have been returning to your hotel room in Fairplay, Colorado, to find the broken television turned on and tuned to static, a dresser drawer inexplicably opened, and a trembling dog that clearly wanted to change rooms.

However you choose to create your next macabre memory, there are plenty of ways to get your Halloween kicks with Outdoor Project. Diabolical destinations? Check. Deep, dark pits? Absolutely. Haunted hotels? Heck yeah.

Here are a few of our top suggestions:

For fans of horror movies, a visit to Timberline Lodge is sure to stir up some memories. This historic structure was the face of the Overlook Hotel in Stanely Kubrick's 1980 version of The Shining (many of the interior shots were done in studio). Who can forget how poor, desperate Danny slides down a mountainous snowbank from his bathroom window to escape his, um, frustrated father?

Timberline lodge in the winter. Photo by Tyson Gillard.

Real fans of Stephen King's book may know that the inspiration for his terrifying story took place in Colorado. King and his wife spent a night in the historic Stanley Hotel at the end of the season when the staff was shutting the hotel down. The grand and elegant structure was devoid of other guests, and in that cavernous estate King's notorious nightmare took root.

Guests at the Claremont Hotel in the East Bay may have some experience in this department, as well. This historic hotel features phantasmagoric legends ranging from doors that won't unlock to children's voices emanating from empty rooms. And, of course, there are the televisions that turn on by themselves. Depending on your objectives, you'll want to avoid or request room 442.

The keeper's house at Heceta Head. Photo by Halvor Tweto.

Plenty of guests, students, and workers have come away from overnight stays in the keeper's house just below Heceta Head Lighthouse firmly convinced it is haunted, as well. Now operated as a bed and breakfast, this old house is a great choice if you want to spend a night fretting over spectral apparitions in your bedroom mirror. According to one popular story, glass from a broken attic window was somehow swept up into a tidy pile overnight, though of course nobody had entered the attic. Start with some of these stories and add a dose of thick and cold Oregon coastal fog and you have a recipe for restlessness.

We've rounded up heaps of additional adventures to get you planning this Halloween, but mostly we'd love to hear your ghost stories! The truth is out there...leave a comment about your paranormal adventures, and have a fantastic Halloween!