It's already December 10th! Do you still have some holiday gifts to pick up...especially for those hard-to-buy-for people that seem to already have everything? Why not treat your friends and family to a little bit of West Virginia---paranormal style, of course!
Ever since it was announced that Fallout 76 would take place in a post-apocalyptic Mountain State and feature plenty of West Virginia monsters, legends, and haunted locations, there's been a lot of interest in our area's history as well as our more...offbeat...lore. And of course, there's been plenty of merchandise to back it up. I've culled just a few of my favorite gifts that would be perfect for those gamers in your life who cannot get enough of Fallout 76 or those who simply appreciate a good dose of spooky West Virginia history.
1.
Season Passes to Camden Park: If your gift recipient is in the tri-state area, consider giving the gift of history AND summer time fun with a season pass from West Virginia's own amusement park. Passes start at $49.99 per adult and would be a great gift for the thrill-seekers on your list. When the images of the Camden Park sign in the game were released, people around here were thrilled, including me! If you follow my blog or follow me on Facebook, you've probably seen me posting about the
haunted history of the park. But, even if your gift recipient isn't a believer in phantoms and spirits, how cool would it be to hang out in the actual location featured in the Fallout 76 game?
2.
Greenbrier Bunker Tour: This unique gift is one that I would personally love to receive! Well before Fallout 76 came along, it has pretty much been common knowledge throughout West Virginia that our state's swank resort, The Greenbrier, held a dark secret. Below its posh halls was an underground bunker system, designed to house important government officials in the case of an emergency...such as a nuclear attack. The government let the secret slip, and since then, the resort has been offering tours of the facility. These tours are offered year-round with a few exceptions and can get a tad pricey at $39 per adult. If you combine your tour with an overnight stay or simply just an on-site meal, you're looking at a good chunk of change, but one hell of a gift! As an added bonus, the Greenbrier has a long history of
reputed hauntings, as well!
3.
Official Fallout Mothman Museum T-Shirt: These awesome t-shirts, showing off one of MY favorite West Virginia monsters, are official Fallout merchandise, and can be purchased online, or on-site at the actual
Mothman Museum. Obviously, Mothman himself, WV's favorite flying humanoid, makes an appearance in the game, but so does the museum dedicated to him! This particular t-shirt runs $22, but there are others to choose from, plus plenty of other awesome Mothman merchandise at all price points. Shot glasses, stickers, pins, and other small items make great stocking stuffers, or add them to a t-shirt or larger souvenir for an awesome gift basket!
4.
Grafton Monster Print: The Grafton Monster is one of the lesser-known creepy creatures to be featured in the Fallout 76 game, but I'm glad to see him finally getting some much deserved recognition! Previously, The Grafton Monster wasn't very well known outside of paranormal enthusiast circles, but now even he has his own merch, available through
The Best Dam Town website! For $30, your gift recipient can be the proud owner of this 11x7 art print! T-shirts and other items are also available. I suggest following the Grafton Monster on
Facebook for more information on this strange creature as well as updates on new items available for purchase!
5.
Flatwoods Monster Lantern: Every home needs one of these Flatwoods Monster lanterns, in my opinion! In 1952, a group of boys, joined later by the mother of two of the group, witnessed something strange in the hills of Flatwoods, WV. The strange creature they saw has been the cause of speculation for decades, and in recent years, has really gained a lot of attention, locally and nationally. Its inclusion in Fallout 76 has just been icing on the cake for this up and coming cryptid! The link provided will take you to a bunch of Flatwoods Monster merch, including the lantern (which costs about $28), but if you find yourself in the Sutton area, definitely stop by the
Flatwoods Monster Museum for some in-museum only gifts!
6.
Lunatic--A book about the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum: This book, by author Edward Gleason, is the quintessential tome on the history of West Virginia's historic mental health institution, the
Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. The book, packed FULL of interesting facts about TALA and the history of the mental asylum in general, will surely fascinate the history buff on your list and is a must-have for anyone planning any upcoming investigations at the hospital! Unfortunately, there isn't a lot of discussion about the ghosts that haunt the massive building, featured obviously in the Fallout game, so if that's more your gift recipient's thing, check out the book,
The Haunted History of the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum by Sherri Brake. You can find it on Amazon in paperback form for $12!
7.
Overnight Investigation at the WV State Penitentiary in Moundsville: Another one of West Virginia's massive, historic, HAUNTED buildings to be featured in Fallout 76 is the former state penitentiary at Moundsville! Now, I'm a huge fan of gifting experiences, and what better experience for a paranormal enthusiast, or just a curious Fallout fan than an overnight investigation experience at a real haunted prison? Unfortunately, bookings for overnight investigations won't resume on the prison's website until mid-January, so perhaps you can craft up a fancy IOU or be a tad late in your holiday gift-giving! Either way, its a fun gift that they're sure to remember!
This was our third year meeting and second year having our family photo taken with everyone's favorite Christmas demon. Krampus is a hard-working guy; after making it through another Krampusnacht on December 5th, he took the time to meet and greet both pets and families at Mike Winland Studios in Kanawha City! We loved our pictures from last year so much, that we absolutely knew we had to go back again this year...and once again, we were not disappointed. Luke was a little braver this year...but not too much! When it was our turn to have out photo taken, the photographer (Mike himself) recognized Luke from last year. In fact, Luke's photo from last year was used on one of the ads for this year's event, so he was feeling pretty famous and important. And then, he was feeling abject terror as Krampus stood behind him and giggled maniacally at seeing him back for another year. We took a few fun poses, and as we waited to choose our photo, the Krampus stared at Luke, waved at him, and generally creeped him out fully. I loved it, lol! We are so lucky to have this opportunity to share a little culture and history with our son AND support a local artist/business owner. This Krampus was so detailed and spooky, and his actions and mannerisms were so spot on that it was really easy to forget that this wasn't an actual Germanic monster straight out of folklore, ready to beat you with a birch branch.
We started off with a kid's card making craft at Rock Paper Sisters, a local business. The craft was free, and Luke had a great time making a card for me and Aaron. The girls who own the shop were extremely helpful and sweet, and made sure Luke had everything he needed to make a beautiful Christmas card. While we were there, a group of carolers in Victorian dress sang some Christmas favorites for us, which was fun. Afterwards, we headed over to the Hidden Creek Mercantile to see a dramatic reading of Dickens' A Christmas Carol.
