By Kelly McCabe '07

Fall is one of the best seasons in New Paltz. The weather is still nice and the scenery is incredible. Spending time outside this time of year is amazing. There are so many places to go within walking distance of our campus.

Halloween
With Halloween right around the corner, there are so many fun things to do.

The Headless Horseman Hayride and Haunted Houses in Kingston is open before and during Halloween. I went with my residence hall staff just a few days ago and it was so much fun. You take a hayride through the "story" of the headless horseman and then go through a haunted corn-maze and haunted houses. It is the most popular haunted house in the area.

Haunted Huguenot Street, a special haunted guided tour of the historic street, is another fun option. I went a few years ago and it was very interesting; you can learn all of the scary stories about the town and many interesting facts about New Paltz's history. For more information on the tour, call (845) 255-1660.

Other hauntings:

• The New Paltz Halloween Parade - Starts on Main Street and Manheim Boulevard on Halloween at 6 p.m. and ends at the Fire House where the Lion's Club distributes apples and candy.
• Night of 100 Pumpkins - Enjoy free cocoa, hot cider and pumpkin bread at the annual pumpkin creations contest from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. this Halloween.
• Haunted House at the Teen Scene, 220 Main Street. For more information, call (845) 255-5140.

After Halloween
Once the fun of Halloween is over, there are still a lot of other fun things to do in the area.

• Visit a farm
  Just a few days ago, my residence hall had an apple and pumpkin-picking program. We got to ride a tractor up the hill at Apple Hill Farm across from the campus and had so much fun climbing trees to get the best apples. It was a blast!
• Be entertained
  New York City is a short train or bus-ride south and many times, SUNY New Paltz's Student Association sometimes sponsors buses to go down to see Broadway shows and other attractions. Last year, I went with many of my friends and residents to see the Broadway musical "Avenue Q".
  
  New Paltz Cinemas is open everyday and on Tuesday nights there is a $4 movie night, which is definitely beneficial to those on a college budget. For movie times, call (845) 255-0240.

About Kelly
Kelly McCabe is a senior resident mentor at SUNY New Paltz, studying adolescent education.

Sharon Feder, intern in the Office of Public Affairs, contributed to this article.