The Best Neighborhoods to Trick or Treat

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IMG_0461The age old question still stands: where should you go to trick-or-treat on All Hallow’s Eve?

The three largest neighborhoods in East’s district are undoubtedly the Woods Hood (an affectionate term for the area encompassing Chapel Woods, Woodstream Farms, Wellington Woods, and Roxbury Park), Renaissance (to the east of East, known for the multiple streets that branch off of Covent Garden and Renaissance all the way to Transit Road), and Loch Lea (the huge area that used to need four buses for the single neighborhood in middle school near the East Amherst/Clarence border).

Most students know at least one person who lives in each of these areas, so it’s difficult to decide where the loot will be found this year. You could be adventurous and tackle all three– but doing so in this year’s rainy, chilly weather may lead to hypothermia. The best way, without compromising your health (but hey, if you’re going around trying to score pounds of candy, I’m not sure if your health is the first thing on your mind anyways), is to decide on one area to harness under your command.

After trick-or-treating in all three of these neighborhoods, I decided to compile a list of the pros and cons of each of these neighborhoods, hoping that you will choose one (or all three) to conquer tonight.

 

The Woods Hood

As a Chapel Woods native, I’m going to let you in on a little secret. One of the houses on the northern end of the street gives out goody bags full of rare candies because the owner runs a candy shop. Where this Narnia is, I will not tell you, but it’s up to you to decide whether or not to discover it.

There are also several houses on Deer Run (the street that connects Chapel Woods to Roxbury Park) that give out king sized candy bars towards the end of the night because most youngsters stay within their own mini-hood and do not venture down the half-mile long road.

The cons? Well, as I said before, the Woods Hood is a conglomerate of neighborhoods, so it’s very time consuming to walk the miles upon miles to gather your loot. If you’re going to go through the area, I’d suggest you either take the Roxbury Park-Deer Run-Chapel Woods route, or the Woodstream Farms-Wellington Woods-Chapel Woods route. It’s hard to hit Roxbury Park and Woodstream Farms in the same route, but it’s possible! Just remember to use your phone GPS if you get lost.

 

Renaissance

I’ve only trick-or-treated in Renaissance once, but I have to admit, they are the most liberal candy givers. There’s also a nice woman on Via Foresta who gives out cold drinks and has chairs set up if you would like to take a brief rest.

However, the people on Renaissance tend to have younger children, and therefore close shop relatively early in comparison to those in Loch Lea and the Woods Hood. If you’re planning on going to a party after trick-or-treating or are bringing a younger sibling, this is probably your best bet.

 

Loch Lea

Ahh, Loch Lea. Maybe it’s the sheer magnitude of it- rows upon rows of houses- or the amount of king-sized candy bars given out at this locale, but it has been the most popular neighborhood in recent years. This is definitely an older (cough high school aged) crowd, and you’ll have to bring good sturdy boots or shoes because a. you’ll be tired from running around, and b. it will probably be muddy due to the rainy forecast, and Loch Lea does not have sidewalks. I do have a horror story in which I thought it would be a good idea to wear moccasins one year while trick-or-treating on a Halloween that occurred the day after a downpour- big mistake.

If you’re planning on trick-or-treating until the double digited hours of the night, this place is for you. However, due to the number of people flocking here, many houses do run out of candy and it’s quite crowded whatever street you’re on.

So there you have it folks. Choose wisely, be safe, and in Mr. Nogowski’s words, “don’t do anything stupid”.