GREENSBORO, N.C. — It’s that time of the year again. The spooky season is here, and a popular Halloween attraction is coming back to life with full force, and implementing COVID-19 safety measures too.

“We're working all year anyway, so when it's actually October, it's like the fruits of our labor,” Actress Erika Jones said.

       What You Need to Know

  • Woods of Terror scaled back operations last year because of the pandemic 
  • This year, McLaurin Farms has it returning in full force 
  • They are taking plenty of safety checks: temperature checks, health screenings, etc. 

Greensboro's McLaurin Farms and its Woods of Terror is known for going big during the Halloween season and always draws a big crowd. 

“It's family, I love it, it is fun. I've met all [my] best friends out here because I come out here all the time,” Jones said. “I moved closer, so I could be out here, literally."

Jones has been an actress for the attraction year after year. Each year, preparation starts months in advance.

"We've been working on this all summer to make sure everything was ordered from the same places,” she said as she puts in a pair of large, blood-red contacts. “I mean, it goes all the way down to…we have contacts."

This year, things are taking shape a bit differently after the pandemic.

“People don't think about this, they just go through a haunted house, and they're like, 'Oh, it's whatever, it's just a haunted house. It's one time a year,’” she said. “For us, it's all the time, it's all year. So, when you don't get to do what you really love, it takes a toll. So, to be back is, like, insane."

With COVID-19, safety is paramount, which is something every haunted house across America has to think about.

“Being outdoors definitely has its pluses, as far as, there's no outdoor mask mandate as of right now,” Jones said. “But we are watching the mandates, so if anything were to change, we'd obviously follow it. We take temperatures of all of our actors to make sure that they are healthy."

The farm is expecting a similar number of people that it got last year, which was around 30,000-40,000. Such a popular spot was jarring at first for Jones.

"I realized how many people are out here at all times, and you have eyes on you, always,” she said. “Like it's never a dull moment."

But now, she's a pro, she says. 

“I can’t wait.”