O trick or treat, O trick or treat. How lovely are thine satchels?
Maybe that wasn’t the proper lyrics, season or equipment, but it’s that time of year when your youngsters go door-to-door in the neighborhood and demand people to smell their feet and provide their taste buds with some nourishing sugar treats.
For if your neighbors refrain from providing tasty treats, these children have don’t have a care in the world and will proceed to embarrass you in front of the whole community by removing your undergarments. So if you want our advice, give the kiddies the candy they deserve. However, there are a few guidelines about trick or treating this year due to the public health crisis, so the spooky holiday can be a safe one. Continue here to learn more.
Submit your little ghouls in costume (and masked) into the #LetsSnapLakeCounty Photo Contest. Participants have the opportunity to win a prize with their imagery! Click here to learn more.
Create a great experience for your little goblins by marking the times for trick or treat hours in Lake County on your calendar.
So whether you’re a sewer clown that is wise with one pence, a warrior weatherman that knows the exact moment winter arrives, a human arachnid with certain “senses,” or a peculiar gang of youngsters that see strange things, get ready because it’s Halloween in Lake County.
Here are the trick or treat hours in Lake County 2020.
Historic Downtown Long Grove: October 23; 2-5 p.m. Scarecrow Day: October 10; 11 a.m.-6 p.m. INFO» Pet Costume Parade: October 25; 11 a.m. INFO» Halloween Town: Now-October 25
Village of Mundelein: October 31; 4-8 p.m. Doggy Trick or Treat in Mundelein at Barefoot Bay: October 10 & 17; noon-2 p.m. INFO» Boo Bash Grab & Go Drive Thru at Barefoot Bay: October 24; 2:30-5 p.m. INFO»
Village of Vernon Hills: October 31; 4-8 p.m.; Masks required Hawthorn Mall Drive-thru Trick or Treat: October 30; 11 a.m.-noon INFO» Vernon Hills Park District Trunk or Treat Drive-Thru: OCtober 31; 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
City of Waukegan: October 30; 2-5 p.m.; masks Required Jack Benny for the Arts Sugar Skull/Calaveritas de Azucar Workshops:10 a.m.-noon. INFO» Waukegan Park District Trick or Treat Activity: October 16; 6-7 p.m. INFO»
City of Zion: October 31; 2-5 p.m. Trail of Treats Drive-Thru hosted by the Zion Park District: October 30; 4-6 p.m. INFO»
Who will be the best-dressed ghoul in the show? Whether you are a black panther, a character from Fortnite, a Mandalorian with a baby Yoda or a troll, contestants must submit their photos of your costume by October 28. Ten costume categories will be announced, and your little monstered will be entered to win a cauldron full of Halloween sweets.
Unwind after a ruff week and bring your costumed four-legged friend to Mundelein Park District’s annual Doggy Trick-or-Treat event. Strut your pup through Barefoot Bay’s parking lot and experience a variety of “howl-o-ween” activities. In addition to the trick or treating and fashion show, your canine can bob for weenies, scamper on an agility course, capture a photo-op in the booth, search for bones in the graveyard and more. The fare will be available for purchase at this event, and all dogs must be accompanied by an owner age 15 years and older. Face coverings are required for the free Mundelein event.
Hay, Hay! It’s a great weekend to visit Historic Downtown Long Grove for their annual DIY Scarecrow Day. Attendees at the beloved autumnal event will build a custom scarecrow to be displayed throughout the historic village’s main street throughout October. The village’s business district will provide each participant with the basic structure for the scarecrows, bales of straw and building guidance. Haymaking masons are encouraged to bring old clothing and accessories to decorate their creations. Visitors will have the opportunity to cast votes online for the scariest, funniest and most creative scarecrows. Walk-ins are allowed, but registration is recommended. Makers are required to wear masks and practice social distancing guidelines.
Let's all be honest with one another. Pictures from the 1920s and 30s are ghostly enough. Halloween costumes from that era are even more terrifying. Learn, be spooked and celebrate with Lake County Forest Preserves as they will throw a virtual party via Zoom. The Libertyville district will share info on decorations, costumes, fare, entertainment and so much more. As an added Halloween sweetener, they will share some of Lake County's spookiest stories. Visit LCFPD.org to register and for more info.
The hoopla is back, but this year it's in a three-part series. The first of the sessions passed on October 3, but on October 24, the Halloween Hoopla will feature the Family Fun Fest in the second installment, while the third edition will be a Costume Walk. The Family Fun Fest is highlighted by balloon twisters, Halloween-themed arts and crafts, airbrush tattoos and other treats. The Costume Walk is a new addition to the fall festivities. After showing off their threads, participants will receive a Halloween Fun Walk medal upon completion, not to mention a treat bag and an opportunity to participate in the virtual costume contest. All participants must register for both events. The Costume Walk is free, while the Family Fun Fest is $5 per person.
This is not for Halloween. In Mexico, people visit their loved ones in the cemetery and decorate gravesites with Cempaxúchitl or Marigold flowers, candles, toys, bottles of favorite drinks and food as offerings. The Waukegan center keeps the tradition alive on Lake County soil with their own Dia de Muertos celebration of sugar skull workshops, while getting a ton of information about the Latinx holiday.
Ghastly ghouls haunt the trails of Volo Bog this weekend at the quaking bog’s Ghost Stories Plus event. This year's version of the annual event will be virtual. Reporting live from the Ingleside bog's center will be Jim May and the Friends of Volo Bog via Zoom. From 7-7:45, youngsters will attend the ghost, ghoulies and pajamas stories. From 8-9 p.m., teens and adults will stay for the spookier tales. Pour yourself a glass of hot cocoa, turn out the lights and surround the computer for scary stories.
Every third Saturday of the year, you get a touch of culture with the different mediums you see from ArtWauk. However, downtown Waukegan is transformed into Halloween town as ArtWauk runs alongside its annual ZombieWauk. The event will feature live entertainment, suds and eats vendors, face painters and flesh-eating abominations clutter the streets as they attempt to hunt you down. Beware of the masked walking dead.
Princess Ella, who has a similar name and look to an ice wielding Disney woman, hosts a storytime (socially-distanced edition) with the youngsters at Hawthorn Mall. The event is highlighted by storytime, a pumpkin craft and a socially distanced snap with the royalty.
Loft 21 in Lincolnshire, in collaboration with Major League Baseball player’s rising star Tim Anderson of the Chicago White Sox and the League of Leaders Charity, is hosting a makeshift drive-in movie theater on Fridays this Halloween season. The parking lot closes at 8:20 p.m., and if you are not parked by then, your ticket is null and void. All vehicles will be spaced six feet apart, and if you leave your automobile, visitors are required to wear masks. Here's a list of the films they'll be showing:
It may be late in the golf season, but there's never a bad day to work on that short game - maybe even dressed as "Tiger, Tiger Woods Y'all." You'll have a frightfully good time, playing the Park District of Highland Park's Halloween-themed links. When you tee off, just continue saying FORE, not 666.
Hop in the car and buckle up, because Highland Park is going to scare the living daylights out of you. The zombie-themed event features live characters, moving props and spooky music. After it's all over, cool your jets with seasonal treats. Tickets must be bought via pre-registration and facemasks are required. The route runs from Debbie Gottlieb Beitler Dog Park to Deer Creek Racquet Club.
Just over the northern Illinois border, Boundless Adventures will be illuminated for adventurers of all ages. Visit the Bristol, WI facility dressed as your favorite character. Boundless Adventures will be spinning the spooky slaps and serve you the holiday's nectar for purchase: apple cider and hot chocolate.
Howl at the moon with your little critter as they don their best threads for the Pet Costume Parade. All dogs must remain leashed and participants must wear a mask. The parade will step off at 11 a.m.
The Fox Lake Police Department is throwing a howling shindig. Celebrate the spooky season at the annual festival that features a meet and greet with officers, a bouncy house, hayrides, hot chocolate, tricks and, of course, treats like candy apples.
