An enchanting Spooktacular to remember
Boothbay Railway Village's Halloween celebration, the Railway Spooktacular, drew costumed kids and adults for an afternoon of ghoulish fun and games on Oct. 26. Marketing Director Lori Reynolds reported 500 people attended.
In addition to trick or treating, there were barrel train rides, facepainting by Sherry Casas and Gigi Delisle, a bouncy house, the "Pumpkin Pound" where young witches, ghosts, skeletons and princesses pounded golf tees into pumpkins set up in a "pumpkin patch," a high striker, and cornhole.
Animated witches greeted everyone at the Town Hall with the witch trio inside being popular for photos. Crafts included spin art, small pumpkin art with Boothbay Sea and Science Center; and the steam train kept running thanks to ghoulish engineers Cathy and John Orne. The costumed and uncostumed waited in line for a ride aboard the steam train throughout the event held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Local businesses and organizations each had a trick -or-treat table around the perimeter of the Village Green decorated in high Halloween fashion. These included event sponsor Pier 1 Pizza; Nathan's Wellness Pharmacy & Apothecary, in addition to candy, Witch Priestess Maria also had small hypodermic needle pens; Eastside Waterfront Park, Community Resource Council, Boothay Harbor Inn/Three Buoys, Dead River Company, Boothbay Region Elementary School, Bayside B&B (aka The Graveside Inn), BRYMCA, Y Arts, St. Columba's Youth Group, Boothbay Region Land Trust, Boothbay Region Clean Drinking Water Initiative, Boothbay Harbor Rotary Club, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Harbor Montessori and Child Enrichment Center, Maci's Hair Salon, and Atlantic Edge Lobster. Fundraisers were held by Boothbay Region High School, Boothbay Railway Village and Boothbay Sea and Science Center.
The Witch's Kitchen, created by people with Eastside Waterfront Park, reminscent of the Milton Bradley game "Feeley Meeley" from the 1960s, cauldrons contained a variety of staples in any witch's kitchen: bat wings, toes, a severed hand, and rat droppings.
Food made by volunteers, including Lisa Hallinan who was called upon to make a second emergency pot of her mac & cheese, was yummy. Pizza slices, popcorn, and a variety of sweets at the Boothbay Region High School table, along with water or cider to wash it all down made for a fine gnosh.
The Halloween soundtrack was wicked good, too!