Knott's Scary Farm 2022: Scare Zones
Knott’s Berry Farm, Buena Park, CA
We take another little interlude in our never-ending 2022 haunt coverage to return to Knott’s Scary Farm and check out the scare zones this year. With the scare zones identical to last year, this update functions more as a photo gallery for the five creepy realms through which The Conductor traverses. So enjoy this photo journal of the monsters and moods that make Knott’s Scary Farm oh so atmospheric and frightening!
Ghost Town Streets
The oldest and original scare zone of the event, Ghost Town Streets is typically our favorite each year, owing to its size, naturally eerie environment, iconic monsters, and bountiful scare opportunities. Walking down Fog Alley is always an absolute rush, with that veil crawling through Calico and creating zero visibility conditions, punctuated only by the screams of unfortunate guests caught in the snarls of the street monsters. Ghost Town is classic Halloween Haunt—a timeless, wonderful scare zone that set the bar for scare zones at all haunted attractions!
Also be sure to catch the opening ceremony from Ghost Town, the most dramatic location, as the monsters come out of the veil and bring forth Scary Farm. Guests will need to get to rope drop at least an hour early to get the prime spots, but it’s certainly quite a sight!
The Green Witch doesn’t roam Ghost Town these days, but GTS still looks great in green!
The Bride still stalks prey in Ghost Town, though!
Billy is always reading, always studying, always scaring the lights out of guests who come too close.
People usually hear Fork before they see her. This is a rare instance of this elusive monster in stasis.
Cordelia Knott is back for another season of questionable pie offerings and plenty of frights!
Carnevil
Bright, fogless, and open, Carnevil is the absolute antithesis of Ghost Town. With limited advantages for hiding spots, the scareactors here must rely on coulrophobia to achieve their scares. But barring that, they’re also the most hilarious scareactors in the park, because they get to live up to their stereotype was pranksters and maniacs and entertainers. Whether it’s with improvised skits using their own scare props, stalking or mocking guests, or role playing some absurd game with each other as a distraction for team-up scares, the clowns in Carnevil put on quite a show. We do wish that Knott’s would incorporate more set pieces—even if they were mobile—to give the area more ambiance than just colorful lights and freak show banners, but the fantastic talent still find a way to get their frights and startles.
Teddy and Granny point out new victims.
The clowns are always searching, watching, finding new targets.
Simply sitting nearby and ignoring them doesn’t help.
The Charleston Circle fountain has been pumpkin-fied for Scary Farm (and Spooky Farm)!
Forsaken Lake
The second newest scare zone, Forsake Lake has grown into its own from a scenic perspective, with sets scattered around the former Reflection Lake and the purple and green lighting creating an eerie, marshy ambiance that is delightfully Gothic and echoes a bayou backdrop. This scare zone seemed less trafficked than usual during our visits, likely because of the ongoing Fiesta Village construction, which was constrained pathways. But the characters still go about their undead ways. Plus, the unscheduled funeral procession mini-show is always chilling to catch, and it takes place twice a night!
The sunken souls of Forsaken Lake rise up in the mist to walk among the living.
The Hollow
This is the final year for The Hollow, which premiered in 2016 alongside its accompanying Pumpkin Eater maze. However, the scare zone still remains ominous, taking advantage of its more wooded setting to provide a creepy environment. The talent here has plenty of nooks and crannies in which to hide and spring upon inattentive guests. The various scarecrows and creatures and hunters all provide a menacing presence.
We don’t know what will replace The Hollow next year for Knott’s Scary Farm’s 50th Anniversary, though many people are hoping for a return of the legendary Camp Snoopy scare zone, The Gauntlet. In the meantime, enjoy The Hollow for one last time this season!
It’s been seven years and six seasons for The Hollow, but it will be going away soon.
The talent is still on top of their game, though, bringing great energy and activity.
Catch The Hollow before it fades into the night!
Gore-ing 20’s
The fan-favorite is back this year for another season down Memory Lane, where strange afflictions take hold, and the Devil’s Elixir flows freely. This 1920’s-themed zone is a little less interactive than last year, but the street characters are still engaging and constantly in character. From gangsters to flapper girls to the elite to grease monkeys to religious zealots, there’s a lot to explore and pay attention to in this intimate area. Plus, there’s a swing band that plays on the balcony of the Walter Knott Theater at select times each evening!
The Gore-ing 20’s is not a place for the faint-hearted
Everyone carries their own dark secrets.
Never trust a pretty lady with a bloody bat.
There are also protesters and preachers who speak out against the sin and corruption in Memory Lane.
After hours, before this sinister caper resumes the next Scary Farm night.
Front Gate
Lastly, we’ll close the update with some photos of the beautiful front gate entry area. Knott’s had been changing this up every year, but the current set-up is pretty iconic and has remained generally the same—dominated by the trio of towering skeletons (long before Home Depot made them commonplace) and a gravely setting. It’s a regular photo op spot throughout the night and after park closing, much like Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland—if only that castle was made of bones!
An empty shot of the beautiful park entrance at Knott’s Scary Farm this year.
That wraps up this photo spread and stop by Knott’s Scary Farm. Our last update from Haunt will feature the mazes and will come around after our next series of independent haunts. October seems to just be flying, so get out there and enjoy those spooks while they last!
Architect. Photographer. Disney nerd. Haunt enthusiast. Travel bugged. Concert fiend. Asian.
