Spooky goings on in the Dales

Wirksworth’s Rotary Club is hosting a twilight walk this Saturday, setting off from the Market Place at 4pm.

Adults cost £2 with children going free and there will be prizes for the scariest costumes. Proceeds will go towards club funds.

On the same day, between 11am and 4pm The Bower Works, in St John’s Street, Wirksworth, will be open for children to make scary spiders, witches and other items out of clay free of charge.

There will be scary family fun with a Halloween–themed treasure hunt at Haddon Hall from Saturday to Monday.

From 7pm on Halloween night, next Thursday, as well as November 1 and 2, evening tours for those aged over 16 will give visitors a unique experience to explore the historic house in the dark. Tickets cost £20 and tours are not suitable for people with limited mobility.

For the ultimate spooky experience, Haddon Hall will be hosting a spine–chilling tour at the witching hour on Halloween night. It will leave the restaurant at 11.30pm and tickets cost £40.

Tickets must be booked in advance by calling 01629 810912 or by visiting www.haddon.co.uk

A Starlight Halloween event will be held at Crich Tramway Museum on Saturday.

Children dressed in spooky costumes will be admitted free of charge and the vintage trams will take people on scary rides.

Entry is £14 for adults, which will be reduced to £10 for adults in Halloween costume, £11.50 for seniors, £9 for children aged four to 15 years old and a family ticket will cost £39 for two adults and three children.

Call 01773 854321 or visit www.tramway.co.uk for information.

On Halloween evening, award–winning storyteller Maria Whatton will be telling a spooky tale or two at Cromford Mills.

From 6pm and 7pm she will be telling child–friendly stories and weather permitting there will be a short lantern–lit walk around the mill yard. Children are invited to come in costume and bring a torch or battery–operated lantern.

The cost is £6 for adults and £4 for children.

Adults and children aged 12 or more are then invited to join Maria for a warming bowl of pumpkin soup and homemade cake while she tells a few darker tales by lantern light among the dark buildings of the mill yard, weather permitting. The cost is £10 including supper.

Catherine Roth, events officer for the Arkwright Society, said: “Cromford Mills is such an atmospheric venue for the Halloween tales and with such an acclaimed storyteller as Maria Whatton it is sure to be an evening to remember.”

For further details, or to book tickets, contact the Arkwright Society on 01629 825995, visit www.arkwrightsociety.org.uk or call into the reception at Cromford Mills. Advanced bookings are recommended.

Wirksworth’s Stoney Wood group is running a spooky walk in the wood on Halloween night starting at 6.30pm at the bottom entrance to the site.

The 45–minute walk is designed for all the family and people are encouraged to dress up.

It is essential that good footwear and a torch or lantern are taken.

Tickets cost £2 for adults and £1 for children and concessions. People can call Andy Pollock on 01629 823752 to check if the walk is still on in the event of bad weather.