October 31 usually means yards full of glowing, grinning pumpkins, swarms of costumed trick-or-treaters, streams of fake cobwebs and buckets of candy.
“This year was really setting up to be an epic Halloween because it falls on a Saturday and it's not only a full moon, but it's a blue moon. And so with good weather, we may see 20,000 people on Harrison Boulevard,” said Julie Madsen.
Madsen lives on Harrison Boulevard, which is typically the heart of Boise’s Halloween festivities. Every year, the street is closed to cars in order to make room for everything from live performances of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” dance to robotic, fire-breathing dragons.
But like many gatherings in 2020, that celebration has been cancelled.
As Gov. Brad Little pointed out in September:
“Halloween isn’t in our Constitution.”
The governor hasn’t set any restrictions, but Idaho coronavirus cases are increasing.
Idaho is currently in what’s being called a “third-wave” of coronavirus infections. Ada County still has a mask mandate and gatherings of more than 10 people are still prohibited. Gov. Little says trick-or-treating this year would be risky, as does the Centers for Disease Control.
So now, many people are adapting their Halloween plans to celebrate the special day in a different way.
“Parents are going to make it something special, something they remember and we’ll see people decorating their homes more than usual,” said Kyle Zurcher, co-owner of party supply store Zurchers.
He said sales of decorations and supplies have been good, as people strive to celebrate the holiday from home with gusto.
And some Boise residents are turning their houses into haunts for everyone to safely enjoy.
With the cancellation of any formal Harrison Boulevard celebration, Julie Madsen said the neighborhood had to reimagine things.
“I had suggested maybe we do a walking tour or something that would allow us to have a safe experience for folks and spread people out over many more days and many more hours so that people could socially distance and mask and not be placed at risk,” said Madsen.
Starting on Friday, people can enjoy a self-guided walking tour of decorated homes and a neighborhood scavenger hunt around the North End. Masks are required — but that shouldn’t be a problem for most costume choices. Information about the North End neighborhood decoration tour and scavenger hunt can be found on their Facebook page.
Many neighbors are also donating their typical candy funds toCamp Rainbow Gold, a local nonprofit that offers camps for children with cancer.
“I've already budgeted hundreds and hundreds of dollars for candy, and I would happily have that go to a really worthwhile charity that makes days and traditions best for some kids who need that,” said Madsen.
Asking for candy door-to-door may not be pandemic friendly, but there are other fall activities that are.
Hillary Lowe, co-owner of The Farmstead in Kuna, said, “Picking pumpkins in the pumpkin patch — it's a great way to have an activity that fits for the fall season at low risk.”
She said there have been added cleaning and distancing guidelines, but the outdoor activities the farm offers, like the haunted “Field Of Screams” corn maze, were already fairly low-risk.
Despite all of the changes, Harrison Boulevard’s Julie Madsen is still excited.
“We really realize that what we need most now is to be able to safely get together as a community and do something healthy and have normalcy and traditions,” she said.
And for this year, it might mean you’re distancing in a pumpkin patch or Zooming into a costume party. Who knows? Maybe some of these adaptations could change how we celebrate in the coming years, when buffering and screen freezes will be a worry of the past.
Copyright 2020 Boise State Public Radio