Esquimalt home’s spooky spectacle draws spectators for 13 years

For 13 years, Barb Stokes has been gathering disfigured limbs, tombstones, zombie heads and battery-powered ghouls.

Come Oct. 1, walking up to Stokes’ Esquimalt home is a fun-filled and fear-inducing experience, complete with wailing zombie babies, a pop-up spider and tall, motion-triggered robed skeletons. With a wave of her arm, Stokes triggers a child ghost, swinging from her front tree, to begin humming an eery tune.

“The main thing is having the kids enjoy it,” Stokes said. “And every year they can’t wait to come.”

Stokes started collecting spooky items at the Dollar Store more than a decade ago. Now she sources new bone-chilling additions from Costco and Canadian Tire. She said she typically gets about 80 trick-or-treaters on Halloween night, many who come from other neighbourhoods just to experience her spooky setup.

But over the years, more and more people come by in the weeks before Halloween, just to check out one of the ‘scariest’ houses in Victoria. Stokes also decorates her property for Christmas and in the last few years, Easter.

“It’s just enjoyment,” she said. “I get enjoyment out of it too.”