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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Oregon State Police involved in Salem shooting after suspect flees ... Portland man arrested, accused of stealing woman's underwear; 'It's getting worse' ... Car crashes into Talent post office ... Oregon State Police involved in Salem shooting after suspect flees ... Portland man arrested, accused of stealing woman's underwear; 'It's getting worse' ... Car crashes into Talent post office ... A maze to amaze: Halloween fun in Central Point bigger than ever Trail couple's Halloween fun bigger than ever Comment By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Oct. 27, 2015 at 4:51 PM Updated Oct 27, 2015 at 5:13 PM The Hay Maze at The Expo Jackson County Fairgrounds is open. By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Oct. 27, 2015 at 4:51 PM Updated Oct 27, 2015 at 5:13 PM » RELATED CONTENT • Haunted Houses and Farm Festivals » Social News The Haymazing Straw-Maze in Central Point has been confounding all those who enter for fun every fall since 2013, and this year it's bigger than ever. "I know it was three lefts and then straight, but now I have no idea where I am," says Grants Pass 12-year-old Jarod Cline, who came with friends to conquer the serpentine maze near The Expo Saturday afternoon. "It's like someone is walking behind me moving stuff around to confuse me." Maze founders Lowell Driver and Shannon McMills of Trail started out with 4,600 hay bales covering 22,000 feet. The maze is now 5,400 bales stretching between 24,000 and 25,000 feet. "It's gotten more complex," Driver says. "People get used to it, so I have to keep coming up with new ideas to make it more challenging. Got to keep them coming back for more." McMills, who grew up helping with her sister Arata's Pumpkin Patch and Hay Maze, has been helping run Halloween attractions for half her lifetime. She and Driver moved to Trail a half-dozen years ago but returned home each year to help with the family business. "My sister has done one on her ranch for over 25 years. The first time (Driver) went through it, he immediately wanted to try to build one," McMills says. Driver says his creation takes about a half hour to an hour to navigate. "Some people take two hours because they want to be in there longer," Driver says. "Sometimes people get lucky and come out really fast, then go a second time and get lost." Perched on top of the maze, Driver offers visitors hints where needed and helps with timely exits for bathroom breaks. Driver says this year's maze took him and five helpers 16 days to build and required 10 truckloads of wheat straw from a ranch in Klamath County. While some mazes may be intricately designed and plotted, Driver says he simply moves bale after bale, creating twists and turns and striving toward bigger and more confusing mazes. "I don't really have a plan when I build it," he says. "I just have a few ideas that I incorporate into the maze and kind of a rough idea of what I want to do. There's no blueprint," he says. Driver says he gets the same satisfaction building the maze as patrons get going through. "Some people, you tell them they're going to be in there at least a half hour and they say, 'Awe, I'll be out in five minutes.' They never are, though." Getting lost, according to 14-year-old Jamie Jensen of Ashland, is the point. "It isn't fun if you don't get lost a few times," she says, waiting for friends to come out and venture through again. "It wouldn't be fun if it was easy and fast to get through it. Me and my friends come here because we want to get lost and run around and freak each other out. We want to come back on Halloween and wear masks and go through it. It gives us something to do for Halloween, so I'm glad it's here." Located next door to the Rogue Valley Family Fun Center at 1 Peninger Road, Haymazing Straw-Maze is open 3 to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 3 to 10 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Admission is $7 for unlimited same-day trips into the maze. For more information, call 650-208-3645 or see the Haymazing Straw-Maze Facebook page. Reach Medford freelance writer Buffy Pollock at [email protected]. By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Oct. 27, 2015 at 4:51 PM Updated Oct 27, 2015 at 5:13 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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