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Camp Spook at Alexandria

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Lorna Thomas, Addison Paul and Layne Wolfe man a guillotine along a haunted walk through the woods in the west campground during the annual Camp Spook Halloween event at Alexandria State Recreation Area.
Lorna Thomas, Addison Paul and Layne Wolfe man a guillotine along a haunted walk through the woods in the west campground during the annual Camp Spook Halloween event at Alexandria State Recreation Area. Photo by Eric Fowler, Nebraskaland Magazine.

Story and Photos by Eric Fowler

In 2013, inspired by an event they saw at a lake in Kansas, area residents hosted the first Camp Spook to celebrate Halloween at Alexandria State Recreation Area in Jefferson County.

Just eight recreational vehicles showed up that first year, and not many more the next. The past five years, however, has seen attendance boom, making it the busiest weekend the quiet park sees all year.

Campers now start rolling into the park on Tuesday to snap up the best sites, with some coming from as far away as Lincoln and Kansas. Nearly all the campsites in both of the park’s campgrounds are filled with RVs by Saturday morning. Most sport decorations ranging from simple lights, pumpkins and inflatables to animatronic monsters and smoke-filled tunnels of terror, all to the delight of hundreds of trick-or-treaters who arrive from Bruning, Hebron, Meridian and other nearby towns to get an early start on gathering free sweets.

A young trick-or-treater gets an up-close look at an animatronic ghoul gracing a campsite at Alexandria SRA.
A young trick-or-treater gets an up-close look at an animatronic ghoul gracing a campsite at Alexandria SRA. Photo by Eric Fowler, Nebraskaland Magazine.

Shelia Durflinger of Bruning organizes the event, having taken over for a family member in 2019 after being a participant for a few years. She works with other families to create a haunted walk through the woods on a trail connecting two sections of the park’s west campground. There, visitors might find their heart skip a beat when someone jumps out of a bush or from behind a tree, be begged for help from someone strapped in a guillotine or grossed out by the body parts on the butcher’s table.

“It’s just a lot of fun,” Durflinger said. “We’ve been doing it since our kids were little. They really get into it and like helping, and they liked trick-or-treating. Now they like being the scarers.

“I live in the country, so no one comes to my house trick-or-treating and no one gets to see my decorations, so I take them to Alex for a weekend and let everybody see them.”

Visitors had to walk through a smoky tunnel to get treats at this campsite.
Visitors had to walk through a smoky tunnel to get treats at this campsite. Photo by Eric Fowler, Nebraskaland Magazine.

Whether you enjoy watching smiles on the faces of your children as they roam the campgrounds in costume, or like passing out candy to those smiling faces in front of your camper, Alexandria SRA is a bloody good place to be on a Saturday night in late October.

A trail connecting two sections of the west campground at Alexandria becomes a haunted walk through the woods during Camp Spook.
A trail connecting two sections of the west campground at Alexandria becomes a haunted walk through the woods during Camp Spook. Photo by Eric Fowler, Nebraskaland Magazine.
Daniel Durflinger and Brent and Layne Wolfe man their butcher’s table along the haunted walk through the woods.
Daniel Durflinger and Brent and Layne Wolfe man their butcher’s table along the haunted walk through the woods. Photo by Eric Fowler, Nebraskaland Magazine.
Not all campsites are decorated with ghouls and goblins. This one carries a theme of Charles Schultz’ Peanuts classic television special, “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.”
Not all campsites are decorated with ghouls and goblins. This one carries a theme of Charles Schultz’ Peanuts classic television special, “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.” Photo by Eric Fowler, Nebraskaland Magazine.
Alexandria SRA has become a hotspot for campers looking to dole out treats and trick-or-treaters wanting to load up on candy.
Alexandria SRA has become a hotspot for campers looking to dole out treats and trick-or-treaters wanting to load up on candy. Photo by Eric Fowler, Nebraskaland Magazine.