Deep in the dark Savage Woods north of Boulder County, you will find it: the area’s scariest activity.
You and the Colorado outdoors. Your imagination. In the dark. At the base of the aptly named Devil’s Backbone, a jagged red-rock formation that juts out from the earth between Loveland and Estes Park.
What was that sound?
This isn’t your ordinary haunted house. This is the Creepy Walk in the Woods, one of the area’s most unique and heart-pumping annual Halloween events.
It’s just what it sounds like (and just as scary): You walk into the Savage Woods (yes, that the real name, year-round) at night and follow a trail through different areas of the forest. Some spots feel like you just stumbled upon them, like a scarecrow field or a haunted fairy garden.
But there are other surprises along the way that you might never expect to find deep in the woods. Zombies and witches are said to linger here. However, the only way to know for certain what monsters await around the next bend is to venture out into the darkness yourself.
There is no guide for this walk, no one to help you find your way out or assure you that it’s almost over. There is no guide, but you are definitely not alone.
Needless to say, this hike is best suited for adults, and especially not kids under the age of 11. In the past, the Creepy Walk in the Woods has offered a family-friendly version, but not this year.
The Creepy Walk organizers claim the land was once sacred, but is now cursed. At least that’s how the tales go. “Some will live to tell the tale, some will never be seen again, some will be forever changed,” the website warns.
The walk itself isn’t long (less than a half a mile), but you might find yourself walking slowly in anxious anticipation of what’s next.
These walks are limited, offered only six nights in the month: October 11, 12, 18, 19, 25 and 26. The gates open at 6 p.m. and the walks begin at 7 p.m. and run until 11 p.m. Find the Savage Woods at 1750 Savage Road just west of Loveland.
Here’s a treat with your tricks: It might surprise you to learn the family-owned Creepy Walk in the Woods is also a nonprofit that donates a portion of admission tickets to causes, such as floods, fire and other natural disasters, as determined by a board of directors.
