Giant spiderwebs, jack-o’-lanterns with a variety of different expressions and creepy red lights adorned the driveways of many houses in Bellgrove Circle. One particular house hangs a bed sheet ghost in the window, illuminated by an eerie blue light.
Bellgrove Circle, located past Highway 85 on Saratoga Ave, is known for being a favorite for trick-o-treating in Saratoga. It boasts a close community, as well as a substantial population of high school trick-or-treaters. With so many familiar faces, it is almost like trick-or-treating with a huge group of friends.
Bellgrove also promises a good haul of candy every year.
“Of course, there’s always those people who simply just leave out bowls of candy on their doorsteps and put up a sign telling people to ‘take one,’” said junior Alyssa Wu, a resident of Bellgrove Circle.
“But I remember one year, there was this lady who was giving out handfuls of king-sized candy bars.”
Some houses have wonderful Halloween spirit, extensively decorating their houses in creative ways. Houses oftentimes will decorate with a purpose to frighten trick-or-treaters, such as decorations in the doorways that make a lot of noise, or human-like figures with covered faces.
“There’s always some houses that have really cool decorations,” said Wu. “There’s also a lot of the really scary houses. I tend to avoid them since I’m a wimp, but I really appreciate the elaborate decorations.”
Not only favorable to kids, Bellgrove is a site parents approve of as well. It’s impossible to get lost in as it is a loop, and is complete with sidewalks, street lamps and a lot of adult supervision.
“A lot of parents take their kids around Bellgrove since its really safe,” said Wu. “It’s a really nice place to trick-or-treat.”
Although in recent years, participation has slightly lessened due to the younger kids growing up, the remaining crowd still enjoys dressing up and trick-or-treating every year.
“It’s really funny to see your neighbors and friends from school dressing up in such silly costumes that they would normally never wear,” said junior Kelsey Owyang, who also lives in Bellgrove, “but it’s Halloween, so every one’s [just having a lot] of fun.”