Spooktacular fun at Washington State Parks Foundation camp-in

If you want to provide your kids a full-on outdoor autumn experience with all the fixings — campfire and food, spooky stories and night sky gazing — while staying snug and safe indoors, the Washington State Parks Foundation has you covered Friday night.

OK, you can’t eat the food, which will be virtual. So will the rest of the Camp-In Spooktacular event, which streams live on the Washington State Parks Foundation’s YouTube page starting at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 30. Related content and a live chat will also be available at waparks.org/spooktacular.

“We wanted to do something fun since Halloween is such a challenging holiday during COVID,” said Foundation Director John Floberg. Public health authorities have urged folks not to do traditional trick-or-treating or Halloween parties this year because of the risk of spreading the coronavirus.

The Great Washington Camp-In Spooktacular is one way you can attend a Halloween party — and a campout — while staying home. It will feature campfire stories and songs; a full moon program from Goldendale Observatory State Park ranger Troy Carpenter; a presentation on bats, spiders and Halloween creatures from Ranger Laura Busby; shadow hand monsters from award-winning magician Louie Foxx; and camp-cooking demonstrations by Chef Corso. Participants can also download and print a free Townsend’s bat mask and a Halloween puzzle that will be part of the program.

But don’t let your screen do all the work. The Washington State Parks Foundation encourages campers to get into the spirit by donning costumes and setting up haunted tents in their yards (or living rooms). Submit photos of your haunted tent to the Foundation’s Night of the Haunted Tent contest during the event or by Nov. 2; prizes will be announced at the end of the program and then on Halloween and Day of the Dead (Nov. 2).