Tunnel of Terror awaits visitors

RATHDRUM - The Tunnel of Terror is one dark place.

"It's flat-out black in some spots," Ruth Maryott said of the Rathdrum Halloween attraction made from hay hales that she and husband Ed are behind.

The Maryotts are in their 10th year of scaring folks as a hobby on their property at 7980 W. Diagonal Road just north of town off Highway 41.

This year's tunnel - the largest ever at 525 feet - opens tonight.

"You'll have to figure out where to go by using your hands to guide you along, but watch out," Ruth said. "There may be something that's slimy feeling along the wall or something that brushes against your face."

Visitors will stumble upon a jerking gentleman that's hanging, a skeleton in a graveyard, among other frightening sights. Freddy Krueger and friends are waiting.

The tunnel has grown from 35 feet in its first year. It started out as an attraction only for friends and family.

And Ruth, 65, and Ed, 73, have no immediate plans of letting up.

"It truly is a labor of love; we don't do it for the profit," Ruth said. "We get a lot of satisfaction out of hearing how people enjoy it. We'll do this as long as we're physically able to."

Ruth said the couple spends between $7,000 to $10,000 a year on the tunnel. All of the proceeds, she said, go toward expanding the tunnel the following year.

"Some of it comes out of our own pockets," she said.

The Maryotts use friends and family - all volunteers - to assist in building the tunnel and spooking people.

Ruth said she wasn't allowed to participate in Halloween activities growing up.

"After I got married and had kids, I started having fun with it," she said.

The tunnel is open every Friday and Saturday in October from 7-10 p.m. It is also open from 7 p.m. to midnight on Halloween. Cost is $5 for ages 12 and older and $3 for ages 6-11. If visitors bring two cans of food for the food bank on Oct. 19, $1 will be reduced from admission.

Kids 6 and younger are admitted for free, but aren't recommended.

"It really isn't suitable for little kids, but that's the parents' discretion," Ruth said. "We back off with the younger kids. But, with the older ones, look out. You're fair game."