For Glenda Miller, Halloween is the biggest holiday of the year.

The Cloquet woman started decorating the back of her garage to scare children who came trick-or-treating.

Seven years ago she decided to open her haunted yard to the public, for free.

Fast-forward to today, where she and her family started setting up Haunted Hawthorne in September. The haunted maze fills her yard, complete with themed rooms featuring aliens, an animatronic Krampus, clowns, witches and more.

“It’s like Christmas to me,” Miller said. “There’s nothing better than Halloween.”

Haunted Hawthorne, 827 Hawthorne St., Cloquet, will open Friday, Oct. 8, at 7 p.m. It will run Fridays and Saturdays through the end of the month from 7-10 p.m. Admission is free, though there is a donation box for people to leave money if they get a good fright.

Miller estimated it takes about 10 minutes to get through the maze, and everyone gets candy afterward. People can enter into a raffle to win a Haunted Hawthorne T-shirt, with raffle ticket prices set at $5. She said the maze is appropriate for anyone over age 5.

One of Miller’s favorite things is when people get a good scare in the maze and tell her how much they enjoyed the experience.

She said she has always enjoyed haunted houses.

“I used to enjoy going to different haunted houses, so I decided when I grew up I wanted to have my own,” she said.

And her homegrown display has regulars who come back every year.

Jason Borovac, of Cloquet, and his now 13-year-old son stumbled upon Haunted Hawthorne the first year it opened after seeing a sign by Super One.

His son loves Halloween and horror films, so the family has visited numerous haunted attractions over the years.

They keep coming back to Haunted Hawthorne because it’s a creative, fun display that’s close to home, he said.

"It’s just a family, but they do a really super job," Borovac said.

They also appreciate that Miller and her family host the attraction because they love Halloween.

“They do it for the fun of it,” he said. “That’s the same reason we go — Halloween is the best.”

If you go

Haunted Hawthorne, 827 Hawthorne St., Cloquet.

Runs from 7-10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays from Oct. 8 through the end of the month.

Free admission, though donations are accepted.

For more information, visit the Haunted Hawthorne Facebook page .

1/3: Glenda Miller checks on an animatronic witch in her backyard haunted maze Monday evening, Oct. 4, 2021, in Cloquet. Jed Carlson / Superior Telegram

2/3: Glenda Miller uses her phone to look for the extension cord in the alien room at the haunted maze in the backyard of her Cloquet home Monday evening, Oct. 4, 2021. Jed Carlson / Superior Telegram

3/3: Brittany Miller laughs as fog pours out of the machine she is checking at the haunted maze in the family's backyard in Cloquet on Monday evening, Oct. 4, 2021. Jed Carlson / Superior Telegram