By Cecilia Cortez, Staff Writer

Psychopath, like a ghost, has disappeared. Psychopath was a haunted trail located in Manteo at the site of The Lost Colony.

Thrill-seekers entered the trail in a group of about six and tried to mentally prepare for the spooks to come. The path went through buildings, woods, a boardwalk by the sound and The Lost Colony stage. Every twist and turn of the treacherous path was full of sinister monsters and mind-boggling special effects.

After three years of scares, Psychopath has been sent to an early grave. The event served as a fundraiser for The Lost Colony production, and according to Lost Colony CEO Bill Coleman, Psychopath wasn’t a very good fundraiser.

“Ultimately, we spent a lot of money on it and it costs a lot of money for the labor, so it was never something that made us a whole lot of money,” Coleman said. “Without sponsorships and grants it was difficult to pull off.”

The Lost Colony directors were hoping to get a grant from the visitors bureau and convert some money that was supposed to be used for a wine festival; however, that was not able to happen.

Some First Flight students were shocked that Psychopath closed because of money issues.

“There were always a lot of people there,” freshman Genevieve Olinger said. “We had to wait in line for at least 30 minutes every time we went.”

Students said Psychopath was worth the wait. It was entertaining in a hair-raising type of way. According to sophomore Jia Fitzgerald, Psychopath was her favorite part of Halloween other than trick-or-treating.

This year, students were either unnerved or electrified for Psychopath after seeing early advertising for a new theme. “Carnevil” was going to include creepy clowns, an idea that has made national news in recent months.

“I do not like clowns at all,” sophomore Parker Sylvia said. “I might have changed my decision because I would have gotten really freaked out, but at the same time it kind of made me want to go more.”

Psychopath was not only a trail students went on for the spine-chilling experience, but also offered a chance to socialize with friends.

“We always went in a large group of friends, usually around seven, ever since sixth grade,” Genevieve said.

Although there are other options such as Wanchese Woods and Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, people seem to think that those don’t compare to Psychopath.

“Wanchese Woods definitely comes in second place for me,” freshman CeeCee Donahue said. “That place is so scary sometimes, especially last year. That was really fun, though. Howl-O-Scream comes in third for me. It has its ups and downs. Psychopath has been my favorite for the past three years.”

In the years to come, Psychopath is going to be replaced with a wine festival as a fall Lost Colony fundraiser.
Just like zombies, however, Psychopath might come back from the dead.

Sophomore Cecilia Cortez can be reached at cortezce1029@daretolearn.org.