The moon was bright, the air was chilly, and a wall of green cornstalks loomed reminiscent of the labyrinth.

Those willing to pay the $9 fee to enter the Cobb?s Ranch Cornfield Maze must brave two and a half miles of twists, turns and dead ends, without the threat of a Minotaur. The six-acre maze seems to test willpower, but, at the same time, can be an enjoyable experience.

Getting lost can be half the fun. Entering the maze, our first impulse was to take off running into the dark, taking whichever turn felt right. Like the Greek mythological story of Theseus in the Minotaur?s labyrinth, we found ourselves lost in the muddle of blinding darkness.

Staying together was all but impossible. At one point I was deserted and left to wander in the sea of corn. I came stumbling out of the foliage, crashing into Spenser Koleen [?06], and was reunited with my disoriented friends.

?Overall I enjoyed the corn maze,? Daniel Kessler, ?06, said. ?It was a little easy but I think I?m just too superb for it.?

In an amazing feat, 23 minutes was all it took to complete the monstrous labyrinth. However, finding the end was only the beginning. Not wanting our night to end, we turned around and dove back into the maize maze, finding it harder backwards.

?After searching for hours- actually 23 minutes- we found the exit,? Matthew Karahadian, ?06, said. ?I was thoroughly disappointed with how easy it was.?

As we feared hunger might have become a problem, we had arrived prepared with granola bars and a handful of Jolly Ranchers to satiate us. Without this sustenance we would have had to revert to eating raw corn.

As if starvation and confusion weren?t bad enough, corn projectiles were constantly flying overhead. Hearing the screams of kids and whistle-blowing corn cops, we made our way toward the confusion and joined in the corny chaos.

If a corn maze is not your idea of a fun night, there are many alternatives for the Halloween season.

Satterstrom?s Pumpkin Festival Pumpkin Patch in Sanger is one of the biggest and most anticipated venues for Halloween activities. The haunted house attracts many patrons from all over the Valley every year.

?We?ve been running for 19 years now,? Bonnie Davis, Satterstrom?s owner, said. ?Our main attractions are our haunted house and the hay ride, which is themed as ?Sleepy Hollow? this year. We also have a pumpkin patch, which is open through Halloween.?

There are many additional activities in the Fresno area during October.

Halloween at Hobb’s Grove in Sanger runs through Oct. 30. For further information on their haunted forest and haunted house, call 875-8150 or visit www.hobbsgrove.com.

Haunted Nights and Spooktacular at Roeding Park will be open through Oct. 31. For more information on this event, call 233-2980.

?Scream If You Can? haunted house on Clovis Ave. will open for one night on Oct. 30. For more information call 215-4994.

Satterstrom’s Pumpkin Festival Pumpkin Patch will run October 1-31, and the Haunted Events at Conejo and Road 40 in Reedley will run from October 13-31. For more information call 559-897-3685 or visit www.gofresnocounty.com

For more information on the Cobb?s Ranch Corn Maze go online to www.cobbranch.com.

Spenser Koleen also contributed to this article