Are you looking for a scare this Halloween season? Do you want to walk through a haunted house? What about an attempt at escaping a haunted room? Or would you enjoy throwing hatchets in a haunted atmosphere? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you should consider visiting the “13th Hour Haunted House” in Wharton, NJ.
“13th Hour”, formerly known as “The Haunted Scarehouse”, offers three different haunted houses, eight escape rooms, and one hatchet throwing experience. These fright-filled attractions have contributed to the house’s popularity and award winning reputation. Not only has it been awarded with America’s Best Haunts, it also won various statewide awards including the NJ Top Haunts Winner for three years straight from 2017-2019, Fear NJ Best Haunts, Scare NJ Official Selection, and more. The escape rooms have also won various awards including Best Escape Rooms USA for 2017 and 2018, Best Escape Rooms NJ in 2017 and 2018, and Golden Lock-in for 2017 and 2018.
All haunted attractions found at “13th Hour” feature the intricate secrets kept by the Hayden family. This family of four called Wharton their home beginning in the 1970s. They moved into a farmhouse in a lively neighborhood, but always kept their distance for reasons unknown. Whenever a neighbor approached the door, no one would answer or could be heard inside. However, as time passed, they became a local attraction when, at weird times in the night, they began receiving visitors nobody recognized. This led to their home being commonly referred to as “the haunted scarehouse” by many in the community. When no one was near the house, “inhuman and eerie sounds” could be heard stemming from the property. Along with these noises, odors of decay could be smelt emanating from the property, especially in warmer weather.
Hurricane Doria caused major damage to the Hayden property, causing the family to flee. When reporters and members of the community began to investigate the ruins of the once beautiful farmhouse, what they found was a horrendous display of the dark things of which humans are capable. Blood- stained floors, walls, and ceilings, discolored and unreadable old drug bottles, rusty cages thought to be used for experiments, moldy food, and more were all in abundance.
The spirits of those tortured by the Hayden family have come back for the thirteenth hour. This is the time span between when the clock strikes 12:59 am/pm and 1:00am/pm, when those who were once earth-bound, but no longer are, can make their return for a one hour span. Prepare to be transported back to the 1970s for an inside look at the horrors and secrets kept in the Hayden farmhouse.
The haunted houses feature movie quality sets and special effects to deliver the best scares possible to all people willing to take a stroll through them. “The House of Nightmares” is the main house in the Hayden family complex, which is accompanied by “The Attic”. These houses are not for the faint of heart, however, those who possess another level of courage and wish to put it to the test can walk through a third haunted house. “The Darkside” offers a walk through the pitch black with live actors and animatronics to present a thrilling, one-of-a-kind experience.
Along with the selection of haunted houses, “13th Hour” offers an even wider selection of escape rooms from which to choose. Each room varies in content and difficulty, however, most of these rooms also feature the Hayden family and their expansive property.
This begins with the “Trophy Room”. In this room, John Hayden collects trophies from all but one of his victims. Those who enter will have one hour to help Hayden and find this trophy, which has always evaded him.
Next comes the “John Hayden Room” where people will enter John Hayden’s bedroom. All entrants attempt to reveal his next victim among the clues hidden.
Then, there is the “Great Room”. This is the room which holds all of the Hayden family secrets, causing those who enter to be faced with various secret passageways and puzzles.
“The Cookhouse” also features secret passageways and multiple sections. This is where those who have been invited to dine with the Hayden family will enter to try to find out what their secret ingredient is.
“The Grand Parlor” follows, where Bishop Hayden’s ashes have been lost. Those who enter will need to locate them and reunite him with the late wife, Edna Hayden, in the afterlife.
Finally, “The Dungeon” has been made available to those who wish to test their courage even more. Each person in the group is blindfolded and taken into a cell, where they are chained to the wall and tasked with escaping. All of the rooms in the Hayden family complex feature live actors to bring the most exciting escape possible.
“The 13th Hour” also has escape room options for those wishing to test their wit, but not so much their fright-tolerance. This includes their new room: “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”. All those who enter will have one hour to help Dorothy make her journey to Oz. Another room without as much scare is “The Gate”. This features an Egyptian tomb which has been opened and let out a curse. Those who enter join a secret military mission to crack the code and reverse the curse.
Those who enjoy hatchet throwing without being scared to death are invited to partake in the “Haunted Hatchets” experience “13th Hour” has to offer. There are six lanes total with both private and party lanes available. Each party lane can accommodate up to eight throwers. The lanes are complete with special targets and hatchets which have glow in the dark features to enhance the thrill and excitement.
If any of these activities sound appealing to you, you should add “visiting 13th Hour” to your fall bucket list! Tickets may be purchased online or at the door, with prices ranging from $40 to $80 per person depending on whether it is a combo ticket. For specific time slots, it is best to pre-order your tickets as they often sell-out most nights. The “13th Hour” haunted house and hatchets are open every weekend in October, along with Halloween Day and November 4th, however, the times which they are open vary. The escape rooms are open all year and everyday except Monday. All activities are rain or shine, since they are inside and tents are set up for waiting in the case of poor weather. For more information and a complete history of the Hayden Family, check out “The 13th Hour” website! Personally, I know I will be staying far away from Wharton this Halloween season.
