Over 350 people came out to celebrate the animals and the spooky season

ATASCADERO — Halloween festivities kicked off in Atascadero last weekend with not one (like years before) but two nights of Charles Paddock Zoo’s spooky Zoo Boo. Families and children of all ages filled the paths of the zoo on Friday, Oct. 25, and Saturday, Oct. 26, from 5 to 8:30 p.m. each night.

“We worked really hard and did two nights. We also did online ticket sales this year, which is different, and it’s just been smooth as silk,” stated Zoo Director Dr. Cynthia Stringfield.

During both nights, there were games and mazes every couple of feet for kids of all ages to play and explore. All of the spooky fun didn’t get too scary, and the smiles on every single person proved that everyone was having a great time. 

“[It’s] really fun. Very cute. The anteater was the highlight of the evening so far,” said mother and Atascadero resident Tess Cheek. “This is a really fun activity to be able to bring babies to.”

Cheek was there on Saturday night with her friend Aisha Todd and their two 13-month-olds in strollers, who aren’t quite ready for traditional trick-or-treating.

“We were having a hard time finding a spot for babies, and this is really baby-friendly because they can be in the stroller and look at the animals and the lights and stuff,” added Todd.

Dr. Stringfield added that because of events going on at the local schools, Friday night’s crowd was a lot of the really little kids, who, for the most part, had the animals, games, and mazes to themselves. Saturday night brought a crowd of older kids, while both nights brought all the Halloween fun.

The Master Gardeners, who teamed up with the zoo back in July of this year, also had a booth at Zoo Boo on both nights. They have been busy helping beautify the zoo’s grounds and have many plans for the future.  

“As Master Gardeners, we were giving out trick-or-treat milkweed seeds,” said UC Master Gardner in SLO County Christine Maness. “So, in other words we weren’t giving candy to kids, we were giving sugar to Monarchs.”

Maness added that they had planted over 100 California native plants at the zoo on Saturday morning. At their booth, they featured tarantulas, bats, and owls. They also had marigolds to represent the Day of the Dead.

“We talked about the creepy Spanish moss that hangs in the trees that everybody wants to know what that creepy stuff is. We talked about pumpkins. We gave away stickers and just had a lot of fun taking the mystery out of the scary things that are around Halloween,” added Maness.

This year’s Zoo Boo had sold 350 tickets online before ticket sales were shut down leading up to the weekend, but Stringfield added that there were plenty of walk-ups each night, leading to a very successful weekend.

“I just want to thank everybody in the community for coming out. I love this event. Halloween’s my favorite holiday, so it’s just so fun to see families together and the kids all dressed up,” said Stringfield.

Zoo Boo will be back next year for two days near the end of October 2025. Exact dates will be released closer to the event. To find out more about the Charles Paddock Zoo and keep updated on events, go to charlespaddockzoo.org.

Featured Image: Over 350 people filled the Charles Paddock Zoo for Zoo Boo. Photo by Rick Evans