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BOB REHA: A spook in straw hat and bib overalls rest on the mailbox. A giant black robed ghost towers in the background, tending a cauldron. Welcome to Mel Nygard's haunted farm.

MEL NYGARD: Started out with a horse-drawn hayride. And then Halloween come along, and I just decided, well, let's do something for the kids and put together my haunted hayride, kind of. The next year, I decided to build a little haunted house. Next year, I put it in a cemetery. And it just kept growing.

BOB REHA: The Haunt, as Nygard calls it, now covers most of his four-acre hobby farm. A self-described packrat, broken down vehicles, and rusty equipment litter the grounds. Most of the junk eventually becomes part of the tour.

[DEVICE BEEPING]

[METALLIC SQUEAL]

[DISTANT SCREAM]

The dinosaurs preparing to put a fright on visitors were, in a previous life, parts of an old Auger system. The tour starts in the kitchen of an old farmhouse. A sign on the door advises customers that depends are available for $1.50 a piece.

[GROANS]

A group from a local elementary school weaves through the house. They totter across a narrow ledge, which gives the illusion of crossing a bottomless pit. The house is filled with doors hiding scary monsters. And be careful where you step.

[GRINDING]

CHILD 1: What was that?

BOB REHA: Switches hidden in the floor trigger special effects like spring loaded dummies hidden behind mirrors and doors.

CHILD 2: Can we get out of here?

[CHUCKLING]

It's starting to get freaky.

BOB REHA: There are tunnels and graveyards. And when you least expect it, something is bound to jump out at you.

[CHILD SCREAMS]

[DEVICE BEEPING]

[CLATTERING]

CHILD 3: You guys, stop and wait for us!

BOB REHA: For most visitors, a trip to a haunt is an escape from reality, a little harmless thrill seeking. That might be changing. Dr. Philip Rice is a psychologist at Minnesota State University, Moorhead. He says since the terrorist attacks last month, paying someone to scare you might not seem so attractive to some folks.

DR. PHILLIP RICE: Kind of the face of evil is a little bit too palpable at this time. And the line between fantasy and reality has become a little bit more blurred.

BOB REHA: But Dr. Rice says, in the right context, a little scare might be just the thing to relieve stress.

DR. PHILLIP RICE: Getting kind of a jolt to the system periodically can help us actually operate a little bit more efficiently.

[WOMAN SCREAMING]

BOB REHA: Back at the farm, Mel Nygard says his staff are careful not to make it too scary. Nygard discourages kids under 12 from visiting the haunted farm at night. If they do visit, some of the most frightening elements are eliminated.

MEL NYGARD: One thing I have noticed, I see more families where the kids are with mom and dad, where several times we've had college students with mom and dad. And I have not seen that before.

BOB REHA: Nygard says actors who haunt the farm at night are limited, portraying more traditional spooks. Even to the most hardened cynics, it can be a bit unsettling to walk down a dark, tree-lined path and come face to face with the grim reaper in the pale moonlight.

[CHILDREN SCREAMING]

For 12 years, Merle Hansen has stalked victims along the trails of the farm. He says it gives him a chance to express his mischievous streak. His costume is simple-- a black robe, skeleton mask and hands, and an old scythe he had hanging around the house.

MERLE HENSEN: There's nothing to it, really. You just let the people scare themself. You just kind of sneak up behind them and stand there and let them frighten themself is basically what I do.

[CHILDREN SCREAMING]

BOB REHA: The haunted farm has borrowed liberally from popular movies. Fans of Scream and Blair Witch will recognize a lot. The trick, Nygard says, is to keep people moving. If people linger too long, there is little room for subtlety.

[MACHINE WHIRRING]

[CHILDREN SCREAMING]

Last year, 8,000 people toured the haunted farm. Not bad, considering it's only open three weeks a year. Owner Mel Nygard says the constant challenge is finding new thrills and chills. So far, he's been successful. For the second year, America Online has ranked the haunted farm among the top 10 Halloween attractions in the nation. Bob Reha, Minnesota Public radio, Moorhead.

CHILD 4: I'm scared a monster might--

CHILD 5: I don't care if anybody else is scared, but something's going to jump out, and I just know it.

CHILD 4: Me too. Or something's going to come right behind you.

CHILD 5: I know.