Hooves are clomping up the Main Avenue sidewalk. The thick October fog darkens the skies. He has arrived in Morton: The Headless Horseman.
But he’s not to be feared.
He just wants to pass out candy to the kids.
Bobbie Dalton, a 26-year Morton resident, has been donning The Headless Horseman costume and saddling up her 17-year-old horse Tallulah Jane for Halloween since 2013.
It’s the only time she ever rides anymore. She continues because the kids love it. Her grandchildren see through the facade now, she says, but many others still find it certifiably scary.
“If the kids come up to me and say ‘trick or treat,’ they get candy. That's the only prerequisite I have. If they're too scared, I'll give it to their parents,” Dalton said.
In the years Halloween landed on a school day, she would begin her headless ride in time to arrive at the elementary school as the bell rang.
Dalton works in Puyallup as a veterinary assistant and loves living in Morton because of the “small-town quality,” she said.
Halloween is a yearly highlight for her. Besides her annual jaunt as the ghostly equestrian, she also does home decorations and has made other costumes, including Cruella de Vil and an Austin Powers getup with her husband.
For the future, she is considering other horse-themed costumes such as Paul Revere or Pegasus and his rider, but Dalton isn’t sure Tallulah Jane would be thrilled about wearing wings. Otherwise, she’s a lovely horse who’s great with the kids.
“I swear she's the most photographed horse in Lewis County,” Dalton said.
The Headless Horseman will make his appearance around 3 p.m. on Halloween this year.
Kids can also attend the haunted house at the new Morton fire station that night. There will be a non-scary, lights-on version at 5:30 p.m. and a scary, lights-off version running from 6 to 8 p.m.
