It’s going to be a different Halloween, this fright night of 2020. In this era of coronavirus and numbers ticking up in Connecticut, I don’t expect to see sidewalks crowded with kids in costumes and out of an abundance of caution I think we will see fewer houses where people are giving out Skittles, candy corn and Hershey bars.

Many people I have spoken with are either not giving out treats or leaving out a bucket of candy for those who are trick-or-treating. A neighbor of mine posted that he plans to hand out candy through a long PVC pipe to practice safe social distancing.

Our family loves to dress up for Halloween and we will maintain that tradition, with a small gathering at the house to play games. Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, so there is no rush to get to bed for school the next morning. If we venture out to trick or treat, it will be to homes of our children’s classmates, whom they are cohorting with on a daily basis.

As for decorating for Halloween, I’ve noticed many houses still putting out the witches, goblins and pumpkins. On such house that is an annual destination for Halloween aficionados is on Kenyon Street in Hartford’s West End. People drive in from all over just to see the amazing display put on by the very creative and talented Ron and Scott Pacheco. The display is different every year and 2020’s theme is the Wizard of Oz complete with flying monkeys and a tornado. They aren’t giving out candy this year due to COVID, but the sight is worth the trip. They posted these awesome pictures.

Another destination worth checking out this year is on North Main Street in West Hartford where Matt Warshauer always features a thought provoking display. This year the theme is coronavirus and Black Lives Matter.

This pic is courtesy Ronni Newton who has more details here: https://we-ha.com/covid-19-and-black-lives-matter-scary-themes-for-west-hartford-halloween-house/

As for the House family? Every year we traverse our great state for an annual trip to a pumpkin patch to pick up some fall favorites and partake in the Connecticut tradition of cider and donuts. This year we took the Roadmaster to Brown’s Harvest in Windsor, where we visited with the kids years ago when Kara and I were invited to read a Halloween book to the customers. It’s a great place.

We picked out the perfect pumpkins, and within a day of their arrival at our house, they were attacked by squirrels. Any recommendations? Fake pumpkins next year ?

Also here are the state guidelines for Halloween night.

Here’s a list of great places in Connecticut to get pumpkins: https://www.ctvisit.com/articles/pumpkin-season-connecticut