PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Last September 13 (and it was FRIDAY!), I was fortunate enough to spend an entire day at Camp No Be Bo Sco, the Boy Scout camp where the orginal Friday the 13th was filmed in 1979. My friend, Jeff Seeman, invited me to do some location shooting for his upcoming horror tour-based film, On Location, and of course, I said yes. A chance to spend 13 hours in my mecca, Camp Crystal Lake, with cast and crew was something I have been dreaming about since age 8.
We drove 10 hours to Blairstown, NJ where sweet Annie caught a ride with Enos to her demise. The town has changed a bit in the past 40 years, but is still incredibly recognizable to any Friday the 13th fan. The arches that Annie walks through, the store fronts, the concrete bridge: they all are still intact. We ran into several other “campers” and excitedly toured the town, recreating shots from the film like a bunch of goofy tourists. We then headed to the Blairstown Diner for a bite to eat, just like Steve Christy did… almost. As we were eating, the fabulous Tom Savini walked in, sat in the booth next to us, and we got to have a lengthy conversation with him and his lovely wife, Jody.
Being the Friday geeks that we are, Jeff and I drove to our hotel with stupid grins on our faces, not knowing how this weekend could get any better. We checked into what we thought was a hotel room but ended up being an entire vacation home (!!!), watched the movie – you know, in case we had forgotten anything – and rested with sweet dreams of the next day at camp.
Four hundred excited fans showed up on that sunny Friday morning for the massive event, all with the same smiles and joy that we had. We got there early, checked in, wandered around, and swapped stories with other superfans while we waited for the opening ceremony to start in the pavilion where the counselors sang campfire songs in 1958.
The opening ceremony was EPIC. We sat right in front of the fireplace as each Friday the 13th alum came out to be introduced. Ron Millke (Officer Dorf), Robbi Morgan (Annie), Jeannine Taylor (Marcie), and Adrienne King (Alice) all came out in character with incredible enthusiasm. Composer Harry Manfredini (now one of my favorite humans on earth) also entertained us, along with Savini and his FX partner, Taso Stavrakis, and Mrs. Voorhees’ actual head, making this the largest reunion of the original film in 40 years.
We were split into two groups: one would do the camp tour and the other would stay in a large open tent visiting with the cast and crew and doing photo ops. I was in the first tour group, so we headed off with our camp counselor (literally – all of the tour guides are counselors at the still-active camp in the summer) to explore the grounds.
I will say that the most amazing thing about this part is how identical the camp looks to the film. Jack and Marcie’s cabin has since burned down, but most everything else is preserved in pristine condition. Photo ops were set up in many of the buildings (you could sit at a strip monopoly table in the counselors’ cabin, for example) and we were given a ton of time to explore and be little fanboys and fangirls. I even found the spot where Mrs. Voorhees watched the kids put the dock together and got cut on a thorn doing it! I may be the only person in the history of the world who has cried tears of joy from bleeding at Camp Crystal Lake.
After a FABULOUS catered lunch, we switched to hanging out with the celebs. Two things to note about this tour are that it is run by a non-profit organization that gives every dime made from these tours back to the Boy Scouts to keep the camp looking great for the kids and the fans. The other thing is that the celebrities did not make any money either. Their appearance, signatures, pictures, and props they brought for raffle were all donated to the camp as well. Getting to talk to so many of these generous people who shaped my life and love for horror in a relaxed manner for an extended amount of time was sheer heaven.
After another wonderful meal, we were given time to just explore with no supervision and no rules. This whole weekend was filled with moments I will never forget, but being by myself, far from anyone else on the edge of Crystal Lake stands out as a truly spiritual experience.
We eventually made our way to the beach where a huge inflatable screen was set up on the edge of the water. As if this day couldn’t get any better, we were going to watch the film ON CRYSTAL LAKE. The cast and crew did a lengthy and enjoyable Q&A before and they actually passed out popcorn and candy to all of us as the movie started.
I thought that when the day was over, I would walk away in sadness, never wanting it to end. Instead, I hiked back to the car with a smile on my face like a kid who just had the best Christmas ever. We went back to our enormous cabin but crashed immediately from the exhaustion of excitement (and the walking) of the day. Before we left the area on Saturday, we went back to visit Hope, the town that provided some of the exteriors of Blairstown in the beginning.
The tour IS costly and limited to those who win a ticket lottery, but any true Friday the 13th fan should visit their site in hopes of going on one of these tours. The memories and friends I gained on that weekend were worth much more than the cost of the trip. If you want to see me geek out in real time at camp, I did a recap video for my YouTube channel.
Read other PopHorror writers’ thoughts on the 40th anniversary of Friday the 13th here and here.
