Spookapalooza!

Spookapalooza!

Halloween Weekend 2018

Treats, Fun, & Games!

Join the staff and volunteers of Alabama State Parks for a weekend of fun events guaranteed to run shivers up and down your spine! Trick or treating, games, live animals, storytelling, and more are in store during this popular annual event. Grab your favorite costume, bring the family, and come stay with us! All events are free to the public & great for all ages! 

Date: October 26-October 27th, 2018 (Halloween Weekend) 

Where: DeSoto State Park in Fort Payne, Alabama

Call 256.997.5025 or email for details

Photos

Photos Gallery

All programs are free & open to the public. If you wish to stay at DeSoto State Park during this weekend, it is a very good idea to make your reservation months in advance due to popularity of this particular time of year.
 
Call DeSoto State Park’s Lodge for Cabins, Chalets, & Motel Rooms. 
1-800-568-8840
Call DeSoto State Park’s Country Store for Improved & Primitive Camping
1-800-760-4089
 
For information on any program, 
Contact: Brittney M. Hughes-
DeSoto State Park Naturalist
256-997-5025   Email
 
 
 To see our photo collection of Spookapalooza in years past, see our Facebook Fan Page:
 
DeSoto State Park~Fort Payne, Alabama    

 

Spookapalooza schedule poster Campground Map PLEASE NOTE:  Parking for trick or treating can be found at the campground bathhouses and along the roadsides in the campground. Please carpool if possible, parking is limited and this event has high visitation. Some parking can be found at the Country Store, and the campground accessed by the short trail behind the store deck.  In the Improved Campground, the upper & lower loop will be CLOSED TO VEHICLE TRAFFIC from 2:30 pm to 6:00 pm NO Food/drink vendors will be on site

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Schedule

Spookapalooza Pumpkin Carving Contest

DeSoto State Park is glad to host the 7th Annual Spookapalooza Pumpkin Carving Contest! Entries will be judged on overall appearance, creativeness, neatness, and originality.  Entries can have any theme or design, i.e., Halloween, nature, fall season, etc. All ages may enter contest.

Date: Entries must be turned in no later than 12:00 noon on Saturday, October 27th. Turn in at the Nature Center, next to the Country Store. Winners will be announced at the Campfire Ring in the Improved Campground, 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 27th

Where: DeSoto State Park in Fort Payne, Alabama.

All entries will be on display during DSP’s Spookapalooza festivities.

Entries may be picked up at the DSP Country Store on Sunday, October 28th

Fee: Free and Open to all ages. Call 256.997.5025 for details

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Campfire Talk: Owl Prowl

Please note: HAS BEEN MOVED TO THE CCC PAVILION

Join us for a fun campfire talk in the Great Outdoors! Campfire Talks are a series of educational & entertaining programs located in the great outdoors. Campfire programs are held many Friday & Saturday evening (May –October) in DeSoto State Park.

Ever wonder whooo's going "hoot" in the night? Get better acquainted with everyone's favorite nighttime raptor with the Alabama Wildlife Center, Alabama's oldest and largest wildlife rehabilitation and education center. Learn what makes these captivating predators so unique, meet live owls up close, and much more!

Be sure to bring your own comfortable camp chair or blanket, as seating is limited. Great for all ages!

Date: Friday, October 26, 2018

Time: 7:00 pm

Where: DeSoto State Park-Fort Payne, Alabama. Campfire Ring in the Improved Campground (gate will be open to the public) Large CCC Pavilion in the Picnic Area in case of rain

Fee: Free & open to everyone. 

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Batty About Bats!

Vicky Beckham Smith, ‘AKA the Bat Lady’ presents a fascinating program about those night creatures people either love or hate….Bats! Bring along the family to see Vicki’s live collection of bats.

Be sure to sign up for a chance to win a one-chamber bat house from Habitat for Bats. The drawing will occur right after Vicki’s program…so stick around!

Program sponsored by Friends of the Little River Canyon National Preserve, JSU Field Schools and DeSoto State Park.

Date: Saturday, October 27, 2018

Times: 10:00 am – enjoy bat crafts…color sheets, puzzles, bat masks, and hanging bats for Halloween fun

11:00 a.m. Come to the Auditorium to lean from Vicky all about the fantastic night flyers that have the very important jobs of devouring insects or pollinating plants.

Where: JSU’s Little River Canyon Center in Fort Payne, Alabama (within 15 minutes of DeSoto State Park)

Fee: Free and open to everyone. For info, call the Canyon Center 256.845.3548

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Trick or Treating

in DeSoto State Park’s Improved Campground

Wear your favorite costume if you wish! Candy stations are located through-out the campground. Parents must accompany children at all times. Dress up your pets and bring them along! (Always on a leash)

PLEASE NOTE: Parking can be found at the campground bathhouses and along the roadsides in the campground. Please carpool if possible, parking is limited and this event has high visitation. Some parking can be found at the Country Store, and the campground accessed by the short trail behind the store deck.

In the Improved Campground, the upper & lower loop will be CLOSED TO VEHICLE TRAFFIC from 2:30 pm to 6:00 pm

Date: Saturday, October 27, 2018

Where: DeSoto State Park in Fort Payne, Alabama-Improved Campground.

Time: Starting around 3:00 p.m., ending at 5:30 pm

Fee: Free & Open to everyone; Great for all ages! 

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Campfire Talk: BATS ALIVE!

Part of Spookapalooza

Join us for a fun campfire talk in the Great Outdoors! Campfire Talks are a series of educational & entertaining programs located in the great outdoors. Campfire programs are held many Friday & Saturday evening (May –October) in DeSoto State Park.

Vicky Beckham Smith of A-Z ANIMALS presents a fascinating program about those night creatures people either love or hate….Bats!

Bats are the only mammals capable of true flight. With extremely elongated fingers and a wing membrane stretched between, the bat’s wing anatomically resembles the human hand. Almost 1,000 bat species can be found worldwide. In fact, bats make up a quarter of all mammal species on earth! A little known fact is that the bat plays an important role in many ecosystems. They help to keep the populations of insects and bugs from getting too high & also help with pollination, something that the bees and birds are usually given all of the credit for. Bring along the family to see Vicki’s live collection of bats!

Program sponsored by Friends of the Little River Canyon National Preserve, JSU Field Schools and DeSoto State Park. Be sure to bring your own comfortable camp chair or blanket, as seating is limited.

Date: Saturday, October 27, 2018

Time: 7:00 pm

Where: DeSoto State Park in Fort Payne, Alabama. Campfire Ring in the Improved Campground. (Campground gate will be open to the public). Large CCC Pavilion in the Picnic Area in case of rain

Fee: Free & open to everyone. 

 

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