During the day, Coupeville’s scarecrows are a fun sight to photograph and examine up close. But in the dead of night, the uncanny gaze of the new neighbors can send chills down the spines of lone drivers and walkers.

The theme for the 2024 Scarecrow Tour is “Beetlejuice,” Tim Burton’s horror comedy franchise that has become the epitome of Halloween and weirdness. Community members and visitors from afar have until the end of the month to tour the scarecrow displays located around Coupeville and vote for the best creation in the game.

After over 17 years of scarecrow competitions adding a touch of whimsy to Coupeville, Lynda Eccles and Rebecca Robinson said this has been the most creative and successful year to date. Robinson has been the scarecrow tour coordinator — or “scarecrow queen” as she jokingly called herself — for a decade and this is her last year, while Eccles has been leading the Coupeville Chamber of Commerce for about 15 years.

While a typical good year will feature about 25 entries, this year’s Scarecrow Tour showcases a record of 36 displays. In many cases, the effort is led by enthusiastic employees.

Ever since Robinson got involved and shared advice with participants, the contest has gotten more bizarre and competitive, Eccles said. And while the scarecrows used to cover the downtown area only, now they have haunted areas as far as The Enchanted Beedle on Highway 20, Callen’s and Fort Casey Historical Park by the Keystone Ferry, according to the tour’s map.

“We’ve created a monster,” Robinson said. “Excuse the pun for Halloween.”

Among this year’s participants there are a record of 12 first-timers, Robinson said.

For their first try, Alexandria Platt and her colleagues at Platt, Thompson and Buescher, Attorneys at Law recreated a small scene from the original “Beetlejuice” movie, where Beetlejuice attempts to scare away the new family that has moved into the home of his deceased clients. With his abnormally long arms, yellow grin and wide open eyes, Beetlejuice looks like pure nightmare material.

The Coupeville Garden Club has been in the game since 2014. This year, their creation at Cooks Corner Park left Eccles and Robinson wondering for a moment if they were looking at scarecrows or actual people. The human scarecrows were in fact painted to resemble Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin, according to Club Secretary Kim Rocha. Beetlejuice and a shrunken-head guy are also sitting at the park, enjoying the sight of bewildered passersby.

Shell Blouin, assistant dining room manager at Callen’s Restaurant and Coffee, said the restaurant has been participating for the past three or four competitions. The display, which also takes inspiration from the waiting room in the movie, depicts Beetlejuice’s two halves and noodly arms relaxing in the restaurant’s actual waiting room while bats fly around his head.

Just outside of Goldie’s and The Roost, staff created a pizza-tongued monster to match the restaurant, General Manager Lauren Rittenour said.

Walking around town, people can also spot the Vail Wine Shop’s punny and minimalist sculpture named “Bottlejuice Bottlejuice,” or a giant sandworm eating a whole human being at the Island County Historical Museum.

Past themes have included “Your Favorite Song,” “Harry Potter” and of course “Practical Magic,” the movie that made Coupeville famous. The most recent ones — “Hocus Pocus,” “The Addams Family” and “Beetlejuice” — coincided by pure serendipity with the release of a remake or sequel, Eccles and Robinson said.

Robinson said participants and locals are already asking what next year’s theme will be. While it has yet to be announced, Eccles and Robinson invite anyone in Coupeville to participate — businesses, nonprofits and individuals, regardless of whether they are chamber members or not.

People can grab a map at the chamber’s office, at a local business or online at hauntingofcoupeville.org, where they can also find a complete list of events happening in town during spooky season.

Over 300 people have voted so far, Eccles said. To vote, people can scan a QR code on the sign by the display or visit the website. According to Eccles and Robinson, the original website ending in .com has been hacked, so they ask to avoid it.

Eccles and Robinson are grateful to the participants for the time, effort and money they have put into their displays, which along with the other Haunting of Coupeville events, have helped the town consolidate into a Halloween destination.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) The Port of Coupeville’s display welcomes visitors to the Wharf.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) A hungry sandworm pays a visit to the Island County Historical Museum.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) A ghost has haunted the Kingfisher Bookstore.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) The Magician’s Assistant keeps herself busy with some knitting at Sea Bre’s Yarn.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) Miss Argentina looks confident outside of the Seaside Spa & Salon.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) Harry the Hunter and Beetlejuice sit at Cooks Corner Park as part of the Coupeville Garden Club’s display.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) The Coupeville Garden Club’s display.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) Anchorage Inn’s display.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) Goldie’s and The Roost turned Barbara Maitland’s tongue into pizza.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) Town Hall has also embraced this year’s theme.

(Photo by Luisa Loi) Barbara and Adam Maitland run away from a sandworm, seeking shelter at the Coupeville United Methodist Church.

(Photo provided) The Enchanted Beedle’s display, aptly titled “Enchanted Beedle,” greets drivers on Highway 20.