Terror Mills Haunted House holds a special place in our hearts; they’re the first haunt we visited under the name Haunt Junkies. But despite this nostalgia and being in our home state, we had not visited for a while. We were lucky enough to experience this haunt in their very first season when they were in a large, old chicken coop. We enjoyed them so much we went the next year, but they had moved into their current location. Now they are in their 6th year! Wow… time flies! We absolutely could not wait to see how this team had grown into their newer space over the past 4 years. And grow they did!
In addition to nearly completely filling up their building space, Terror Mills also added a ¼ mile haunted trail to their attraction this year. What a GREAT addition! If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a thousand times… we absolutely LOVE haunted trails! Nothing says spooky season more than walking through the woods at night, fall smells wafting through the air, the dead leaves crunching under your feet… and under the feet of whatever else is lurking out there in the shadowy dark…
Now, despite their growth, Terror Mills has still remained a more old school-style haunt, which we were really happy to see. You won’t find any pricey animatronic or pneumatic props here, just a husband and a wife, their team, a deep love for and understanding of all things scary, plus A LOT of hard work creating incredibly creepy sets and themes. Every set feels so real because it is. Most of Terror Mills themes center around real-life backdrops - broken down houses, dirty kitchens, eerie old circus tents, the woods - and then suddenly something other-worldly or shockingly gruesome smacks you in the face.
The first part of Terror Mills haunted house was about Nightmares and we encountered many sleep-deprived characters who warned us about someone who would get us in our sleep. Freddy? we wondered. Nope, even worse, an evil killer clown! After watching the dream clown slaughter a poor girl, he lured us into a dark and sinister Wonderland. Our trip (pun intended) into Wonderland started with a mushroom-infused 3D blacklight experience, included all your favorite characters with a psychotic twist, and ended with the Queen of Hearts, well… doing her thing!
The Trail at Terror Mills is another perfect example of less is more. We were the only ones out there, so it was eerily quiet. The absolute darkness was only sparingly interrupted by strategically placed lighting that didn’t really illuminate anything around us but more so acted as a guide, so we didn’t lose our way… Gooo towards the lighttt…This did not stop our dumb asses from venturing off the path a few times and running into some real-life spiderwebs! This is not a joke with the giant Joro spiders taking over GA right now!!!
There were minimal actors hiding in the darkness, which may have been on purpose or may have been due to the big homecoming game that many of their high-school actors chose to go to instead of scaring the bajeezus out of people. Nevertheless, it totally worked for us! The trail featured several small but creepy vignettes along the way and a few larger structures that we walked through. Again, first year for the trail so we would love to see them continue to build upon it, but what little they did have, we really enjoyed!
Costuming and make-up, while not elaborate or over-the-top, fit in well with their theming and had us thoroughly immersed in the whole haunted experience. The white rabbit was one of our favorites. Their actors’ skill levels widely ranged, because as we mentioned before, Terror Mills features a lot of younger haunters just getting started… and scaring ain’t easy! We’re sure they’ll all grow into their characters as the season progresses and with the guidance from some of their more seasoned actors.
Another addition this year was the High Falls Wing Depot food truck... er… bus. Their decked-out school bus offered everything from cheese nachos to their famous “ghetto” burger and nasty dog. We had a long drive ahead of us, so we just grabbed some quick onion rings, but they were FIRE! We recommend showing up to Terror Mills hungry and grab you some delicious food bus grub. You’ll thank us!
The owners of Terror Mills have an amazing vision, and we had a scary fun time! We’re looking forward to visiting them again and again and watching them continue to grow!
