Finally a time of year where scraggly beards and eccentric outfits are acceptable by the masses! Halloween is fast approaching, and if you’re like me, your costume won’t be ready until October 30th around 10 p.m. To get you started on that long procrastinated tradition, here are 10 outdoor themed Halloween costumes to impress the trick-or-treaters, to dazzle your friends at your Halloween party, and in the very least, to get you thinking about what last-minute costume to prepare this year:
1. Climbing Rope Gang
An easy but fun group costume idea. Bust out your harnesses (preferably retired if you have one), and grab a good length of retired climbing rope*. Have everyone in your group harness up and tie enough butterfly knots in the rope to connect everyone to your rope gang, and voilà, you have your costume. Whatever you do though, throughout the night make sure you leave no climber behind and start thinking about how you want to tackle the issue of bathroom breaks.
*note, be careful using non-retired gear for safety’s sake next time you hit the crag.
2. Lost HikerAlright this one is easy enough. Compass? check. Map? Check. Grizzly beard and unkempt hair? Check. Alright you don’t have to have a beard (but it helps) for this costume. All you need to do is preferably have all the bells and whistles a hiker might have, and then tatter your clothing up a bit, unfold the map, point in a sure direction, and then scratch your head and wander around your surroundings aimlessly. Sure to be a party favorite.
3. Unemployed Smokey Bear
For this costume simply dress up as Smokey Bear (just go bear costume up top, blue jeans on the bottom and accessorize with a hat, shovel, and hiking boots), and hold up the classic “Will Work for Food” sign, or carry around the classifieds with copies of your resume.
4. Bear Grylls
This Halloween, go as one of the most famous adventurers in pop culture today. There’s a lot of different directions you can go with this one, but I would suggest practicing your accent, constantly finding yourself in some perilous situation where you need to do some hand jamming or scrambling, and carrying around a couple bags of gummy worms and other candy insects to devour with delight.
5. Lumberjack
A Halloween costume classic for a reason. Now I’m not saying a beard is totally required for a good lumberjack costume, but I’ve never trusted a lumberjack without some scruff. So ladies or young gentleman, you can pull off the lumberjack as well, just find yourself some fake hair at a theatrical shop or sweep the floors at your local barbershop; but whatever you do, just don’t forget to wear the plaid.
6. Recycling Numbers 1–7
Alright, this one takes a little bit of creativity, and like any good group costume, you may look a little silly dressed as a plastic bottle if you lose the rest of your gang. But, pull this one off and you could be the environmental all-star of your next Halloween shindig. Simply construct costumes from your favorite recycling numbers (I call cardboard!), and go to your event single-stream style.
7. Boy Scout/Girl Scout
Alright, grab every single merit badge, or just patches, and line up that shirt of yours. No sense in going as a non-motivated scout member; trick-or-treating merit badge, nose-picking merit badge, really good hug giver merit badge; the possibilities are endless. Just be sure to be a good scout member and polish those shoes and tuck in your shirt, there still might be time to get that best costume merit badge.
8. Bob Ross
Probably one of the most famous afro-hair, soft-talking, cable nature painters around; Bob Ross is an instant classic Halloween costume. Be sure to get the perm, carry around plenty of paintbrushes, and a lot of bonus points if you can carry around an easel with some happy trees and amazing waterfalls jumping from the canvass.
9. Frontiersman/Woman
Think Daniel Boone for this one. Grab the coonskin cap and brown leather boots, you’ve got new parties to attend and a multitude of candy bowls to explore. Again, beard recommended, but if you can get the burlap flask or traditional frontiersman and frontierswoman staff, everyone will understand your are the person leading the way.
10. Captain Planet Crew
Earth,wind, fire, water, & love! This classic Halloween costume is a classic for a reason. If you want to stick to the original cartoon, grab a group of friends and all adorn the appropriate costume of your choice. The real question however, is which one of your friends can pull off the bustling pectorals, blue skin, and green hair of CAPTAIIINNNN PLLAAAANNNEETTTTTT!
Enjoy your Halloween and practice safe trick-or-treating practices.