CLARENDON MOMS GUIDE TO THE TOP 4 PUMPKIN PATCHES, FALL FESTIVALS, CORN MAZES AND HAYRIDES FOR FAMILIES (OCTOBER 2012 EDITION)
Autumn is my favorite season! I love the chilly weather, the color of the leaves changing, the fall fashions, Halloween and Thanksgiving! One of my favorite ways to enjoy the season is taking my family to the Fall Festivals and Pumpkin Patches in the area to chase my little ones thru the corn mazes, look at all the decorations and of course go on a hayride. I’ve created a short list of places for you to take your little ones and enjoy everything that is to love about autumn. Enjoy!
1. Cox Farms Fall Festival: This is Northern Virginia’s and the DC Area’s LARGEST Fall Festival and my personal favorite! With over 90 acres of fun, this farm has a ton of slides, straw tunnels, rope swings, nice long and gently spooky hayrides, baby farm animals, a goat village, CORNundrum cornfield adventure, haunted houses, haunted rides, corn mazes, food and concession stands, picnic tables, lots of spots for perfect family photographs and a full day’s worth of fun! You also get a free pumpkin from the pumpkin patch on your way out. Your little one will certainly be ready to go to bed early and sleep in the next morning after a fun-filled day here! I love this place! It is a must to get in the Halloween spirit!
2. Burke Nursery & Garden Center: Daily activities here include: a Pirate’s ship, Pirate’s Camp, a Pumpkin Fort, Ghost Tunnel Slide, a Western Town with mechanical rides, a Money Mountain to hunt for treasure, an authentic Native American Tepee, an Enchanted Castle, Iron Horse Railroad, Swings, Farm Animals and of course Hayrides.
3. Mount Vernon Fall Harvest Family Days: October 27th & 28th from 9 AM to 5 PM. The entire family enjoys autumn activities including wagon rides, wheat treading in the 16-sided barn, 18th-century dancing demonstrations, a straw bale maze, farrier (blacksmithing) demonstrations, apple-roasting, corn husk dolls demonstrations and early-American games and music. Potomac River sightseeing cruises are half-price this weekend only. On Saturday, October 27 at 12 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., the author of Mount Vernon’s newest childrens book “Mount Vernon’s Magnificent Menagerie and the Very Mysterious Guest,” will be at The Shops for a book reading and signing. This charming book, created by a mother and daughter team, is told from the viewpoint of the animals at George Washington’s Mount Vernon.
4. Butler’s Orchard: This family farm is worth the trip if you live in Maryland and just want to take your kids somewhere close to get out for an hour or so. For those of you who want more, skip this and go to Cox Farms! This is a boutique farm with a sprinkling of slides and short hayride and a small corn maze.
