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A FEW TIPS Daytrips are different in the pandemic age. Try these tips for a safe, obstacle-free experience: • Before getting in the car, even for outdoor events, check websites for safety and sanitation protocols, revised hours, group sizes and any restrictions. • Make reservations for ticketed events well in advance. • Try non-peak nights. Field of Screams sells out on Saturdays, but it's just as spine-tingling on ursdays, Fridays and Sundays. • Make a full day or weekend of the excursion by patronizing surrounding restaurants, hotels and B&Bs. • If you're not ready for travel, consider nearby autumn offerings from the Pride of the Susquehanna, 3rd in the Burg or Hersheypark. • Support local destinations by buying gift cards. ey fit nicely into holiday stockings. Owners reviewed guidelines and regulations "up and down and all over" before deciding that the venerable Halloween attraction could go on, said co-owner Jim Schopf. Fans "really are yearning for a fall experience and to have a somewhat normal time, just letting their guard down and having fun." Safety restrictions mean reduced capacity, and tickets must be purchased online and in advance. All Field of Screams actors are trained—at "Scare School"—in COVID protocols. Face coverings are worn underneath makeup, or they slipped easily into costume designs—surgical masks in "Frightmare Asylum," gas masks in "Nocturnal Wasteland." "We got a little creative with the coverings," Schopf said. Veteran patrons would rather cancel Christmas and birthdays than Field of Screams, and people are ready to scream out the frustrations of a tense year, Schopf said. He used to describe the attraction as a safe scare, where no one gets hurt or injured. Now, safe means protected through protocols, distancing and sanitizing stations. "It takes on a whole new meaning this year," he said. BOTTOM'S UP Fall. Beer. "It's hard to think about fall and not think about beer trails or breweries," said VHH's Smith. "Fall and beer, for some reason, go hand in hand." Which makes the new VHH Beer Barons Brew Trail a natural fit. Using a mobile app, beer tourists can explore more than 20 local breweries that are open for business and offering events such as live music or special releases. And because Gettysburg Ghost Tours is next door to the Tattered Flag Taproom, there just have to be Craft Beer and Spirit Tours, Friday and Saturday nights—and those "spirits" can be the ghostly kind or the mixed-drink kind. Hop over to the Brewery at Hershey and Vineyard at Hershey, and daytrippers can get in the seasonal mood with the Oktoberfest Flash Gourd'n Pumpkin Ale, or the nice dry Firefly red wine. While wine and beer are still on the menu, the events that have drawn visitors for days that linger into nights have been scaled back but reimagined. Under strict safety protocols, offerings include free music on weekends. Unleash your creative side with a craft class. At October's end, dress up the schnauzer for the doggy Halloween party. Purchase food from a food truck parked on site, and under pandemic rules, you can buy alcohol. "We work with a lot of local food truck owners, and they have been hit hard," said the Vineyard at Hershey Director of Operations Lynn Day. "A lot of those big festivals that typically happen during the summer season didn't happen. So, they're desperate to get out, as well." e Vineyard at Hershey's commitment to fellow businesses extends to Small Business Sunday on Oct. 11, when local vendors set up stands and visitors can shop in the great outdoors. "We want to help support these small businesses that have just been decimated by this pandemic," said Day. FRESH AIR In autumn, nature takes center stage. Pumpkins. Hay rides. Corn mazes. Ziplines. "We have a 600-foot zipline," said Debbie Smith, co-owner with her husband, Chris Smith, of Fields of Adventure, in Aspers, Adams County. "at's fun for those who don't want to do a whole zipline trail but just want to try it." e region's agritourism takes a deep dive into fall fun. Most are less than an hour's drive from Harrisburg, scattered around Perry, Lancaster and Cumberland counties. e 40-acre Fields of Adventure attractions include a corn maze for daytime or flashlight exploring. When you're hungry, try a Fields of Adventure farm-raised farmburger, pulled pork sandwich, chicken wrap, or popcorn (yes, it grows on cobs). Little ones can ride horse swings. Teens love the human foosball court. Hay rides go into the pick- your-own pumpkin patch. Of course, you can buy a pumpkin at the Fields of Adventure farm stand, along with its pasture-raised meats and poultry, but "it's fun for the family to go out and walk through the patch and pick their pumpkins." "We're a family farm," Smith said. "We just want to share our space and have folks come out, especially this year. People just want a place that's outside, in fresh air, but mostly just to spend time together." Costumes from Field of Screams. Images courtesy of Field of Screams.

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