It’s decorative gourd season. And on social media, that means it’s time for #pumpkinpicking and #cornmazes.
Pinterest is poppin’ with pumpkin-decor trends and tricks, and on Instagram, it’s time to show off your perfect pumpkin finds, whether that means big and impressive, tiny and adorable or comically misshapen.
With an agricultural history, Northern Colorado and the Boulder area is prime pumpkin picking territory. Boulder and Broomfield counties boast an impressive selection of farms, corn fields and pumpkin patches that hold special events and activities in the fall. Venture a bit farther east and north to Weld and Larimer counties for an even wider selection of farms.
Here are some of the most fantastic fall fields to check out this season, so you can pick out the prettiest pumpkin for your front step or Instagram or both.
Anderson Farms, Erie
Anderson Farms, 6728 County Road 3 ½, has the standard fun stretched across 30 acres. For families, there’s the annual Fall Festival, which includes Colorado’s longest-running corn maze and pumpkin patch. There are also hayrides, pumpkin launching (from a cannon), pedal karts, mine cars (aka the “redneck rollercoaster”), farm animals, a maze, a kiddie fort and more.
If pumpkins are what you’re after, hitch a ride on the wagon and choose from more than 70 different kinds of pumpkins and gourds Monday-Wednesday until about 5:30 p.m. and Thursday-Sunday until about 6 p.m. Note: Due to cross-pollination, you may even find some unique pumpkin hybrids here.
Anderson Farms also gets a bit spooky for Halloween. After dark, take a 30-minute “haunted hayride” on a tractor and ghost town experience, where your ride will encounter scary monsters and creatures along the way. For a different kind of rush but without sacrificing the gore, try the Zombie Paintball Hunt corn maze game.
Terror in the Corn runs through Oct. 29. The Fall Fest goes until Halloween.
Cottonwood Farm, Boulder
This farm is right in Boulder, at 75th Street and Arapahoe Road. It’s not huge — the hand-cut corn maze is 2 acres — but the whole place is family-friendly. In addition to multiple corn and hay bale mazes, you can buy pumpkins and produce here, browse a farm stand and see farm animals and tractors and a steam engine.
Everything is free, except you pay for your pumpkins, of course, and the weekend wagon ride has a small fee.
The family-run farm offers fall activities through Halloween, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily.
Rock Creek, Broomfield
You’ll have to venture to Broomfield (2005 S. 112th St.) for this farm, but it’s worth it: more than six miles of corn mazes of varying difficulties and (wait for it) 100-plus-acres of you-pick-’em pumpkins, straight from the vine. This has to be one of the best selections of pumpkins around. It’s huge.
Top off the day with farm animals — goats, ponies, chickens, pigs, donkeys — fall-themed snacks, a hay bale maze, a family fun area with a massive inflatable slide and more. Fall food spans caramel apples, baked goods, pumpkin bread and more.
Admission is totally free, plus whatever your pumpkin and food costs.
Local tip: The corn mazes are now open after dark on Fridays and Saturdays, so bring a flashlight. They’re open through 10 p.m., but don’t fear; they’re ghost-free.
Red Wagon Organic Farm, Longmont
Venture out to Longmont, 7694 N. 63rd St., for this organic farm where you can get a pumpkin patch tour that includes a hayride, a mini pumpkin per child and more. The 90-minute tours, offered weekdays by appointment, are inexpensive and set up for groups of children, like classrooms.
General admission here is free and includes farm animals like alpacas, llamas, chickens, goats and geese, as well as access to the pumpkin patch, where you can pick your own straight from the vine (or select from a pre-cut pile). Kids can also explore a straw bale maze.
The farm is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily through Halloween.
Rocky Mountain Pumpkin Patch, Longmont
Longmont is also home to the Rocky Mountain Pumpkin Patch, 9057 Colo. 6. The focal point of the pumpkin patch here is the unique “pumpkin tree.”
Take a tour of the grounds and try out the obstacle course, paint a pumpkin, ride a pony, hug a llama or baby cow, go down the slide, jump in the bouncy house, pet farm animals and see how fast you can get through the hay maze and corn stalk tunnel. There are also carnival rides here, making this destination definitely worth the drive from Boulder.
The pumpkin carnival is only offered on weekends, although some of the other activities are offered daily. Carnival highlights include mini airplane rides, carousel car rides and more.
General admission is free and so is parking. The carnival activities on the weekend require inexpensive tickets. At the Rocky Mountain Pumpkin Patch, you can also shop the organic farm stand, with more than 100 different kinds of veggies. \
At the Rocky Mountain Pumpkin Patch, you can also shop the organic farm stand, with more than 100 different kinds of veggies. All produce here is handpicked and certified organic, including the pumpkins.
If all this action has left you hungry, the farm has food vendors selling carnival-style food like cotton candy, caramel apples, hot dogs, big pretzels, snow cones, popcorn and brats.
This pumpkin patch is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays and until 6 p.m. in October.
Munson Farms, Boulder
This is another farm in Boulder, located at North 75th Street and Valmont Road. The corn maze here is small, but it and the pumpkin patch are free to walk through. You can also enjoy an inexpensive hay ride.
The farm itself isn’t tiny; it spans more than 100 acres of produce, including pumpkins and sweet corn grown right on site. In addition to fresh-picked pumpkins, get some sweet corn, picked the same day you buy it.
The farm is open through Nov. 1.
Beyond Boulder County
Here are some other corn mazes and pumpkin patches just a bit farther beyond BoCo:
- Bartels Farm, Fort Collins: Hay rides, corn maze, pumpkin patch and more.
- Harvest Farm, Wellington: Non-haunted mazes, pumpkin patch, hay rides, hay bale maze, petting zoo, kids games, goats and evening campfires.
- Something From the Farm, Fort Collins: Animals, pumpkin patch, hay rides, corn maze, pumpkin launching, country store.
- Osborn Farm, Loveland: Hay rides, horse-drawn rides, petting zoo, pumpkin patch, barnyard.
- NoCo Corn Maze, Fort Collins: Corn maze, scavenger hunt, multiple pumpkin patches, pedal cars, bouncy house, haunted corn maze and ride at night.
- Fritzler’s Corn Maze, LaSalle: Corn maze, haunted corn maze, go-karts, pumpkin cannon, obstacle course and more.
- The Farm at Lee Martinez Park, Fort Collins: Educational zoo, pumpkin patch, storytime, pony rides, trick-or-treating for dogs and more.
