October has always been my favorite month of the year, ever since I was a young girl. When I was in High School and College, October signified the middle of Cross Country Season (which I loved). The trees were turning colors, the mornings were brisk, and the days were warm. I used to love to run through the leaves that had fallen and hear the crunching beneath my feet.
While I have moved on from my youth and from my Cross Country days, my love for October has not wavered. October is still my favorite month of the year. I still love seeing all of the magnificent colors, and I love the start of the change in seasons. The days are still warm, while the mornings and evenings are brisk.
Sharing this love of October with my daughter and seeing it through her eyes has made my heart fill with so much joy. While my husband has been away, we have visited five pumpkin patches in the last week soaking up everything that Boulder in October has to offer.
I’m excited to share my experiences with you, and to give you some insight into pumpkin patch family fun.
Here are my three favorite pumpkin patches in the Boulder area.
1. Anderson Farms – 6728 County Road, Erie, CO | 303-828-5210 | www.andersonfarms.com
Admission: Adults – Monday-Friday-$10; Saturday & Sunday $13; Children under 3 years-Free
Anderson Farms was the first pumpkin patch I visited. Driving up and parking I couldn’t help but notice how HUGE the property is! While we were at Anderson Farms we enjoyed a hayride (included with admission price) to pick out our pumpkins. The hayride was about 10 minutes long and my daughter loved being in the back of a truck with the wind blowing through her hair! She really loved being able to run through the pumpkin fields to pick out her very own pumpkin. (My advice is to wear boots or close toed shoes stable shoes. I wore flip flops-which was a mistake.)
Included with admission price is the barnyard 500 pedal carts, which looked like a ton of fun, barrel train – perfect for my two-year-old, feeding the farm animals, playing on “tire mountain”, and a 30-acre corn maze which is open all day and night, and an awesome playground!
There are a few things that are offered at Anderson Farm at an extra price that my daughter insisted on, such as pony rides ($5). She loved this! Picking a pumpkin (cost is by the size of the beast). Gem Mining, Gourd launching, Private Campfire Sites, Face Painting, and Paint a Pumpkin Junction are all also offered at an extra price.
For the older kids/adults they offer “Terror in the Corn” and Zombie paintball. You can check that out here.
There is a darling general store on site that offers fun trinkets and food. We did have a bite to eat at the little restaurant on site, and our meal included apple juice, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and chips. If you are gluten free or require a special diet, bring your own lunch.
2. Cottonwood Farms – 1535 N 75th Street Boulder, CO 80303 | 720-890-4766 | www.cottonwoodfarms.com
Admission: FREE
If you are looking for a mellow time at a pumpkin patch and are not looking to spend a small fortune, this is the place to go. Admission is free which is AWESOME! The first thing that we did after we parked was collect a little red wagon to go on our search for the perfect pumpkin. My daughter jumped in her wagon and we took our time out to the pumpkin patch to check out the fenced in animals which included a donkey, a pony, some chicken, kittens, and bunnies! There is a corn maze for the little ones that seemed like fun. My daughter was a little small for that so we didn’t try it. Hay rides are an extra $3 but we enjoyed the walk out to the pumpkin patch. And she really loved picking out her own pumpkin.
3. Rocky Mountain Pumpkin Ranch | 9057 Ute Hwy, Longmont CO 80503 | www.rockymtnpumpkinranch.com
Admission: Free | Activities: $1 per ticket
Weekdays: Self guided tours and Organic Farmers Market; Saturdays and Sundays: Fall Festival
If you want your sprightly toddler to sleep 12-13 hours at night then take them here during the Fall Carnival, which is every Saturday and Sunday through October 31st. My daughter had the time of her life with everything offered at this small and inviting ranch. We did it all!
Jumpy Castle – Check. Pony rides – Check. Petting Zoo – Check. Pick-a-duck for a prize (six times!) – Check. Barrel Train Ride – Check. Paint a Pumpkin – Check. Face Painting – Check. The only things we didn’t do were the things that she was too small to do, like ride the mini roller coaster. Parents beware: everything costs money. Rides typically cost three tickets ($3). Pony rides are five tickets. It all adds up quickly! I think by the end of my day at the Ranch I had spent $40! I was a bit surprised, especially at how quickly it went! But I felt like it was worth every penny. My two-year-old daughter had the time of her life!
Food: We brought a small lunch but we enjoyed some of the food from the food truck that was on site. I especially loved their fresh squeezed lemonade and snow cones. The downside to the ranch is that after 11am it gets REALLY busy. Be prepared!
Enjoy your October and if you know of any other awesome Pumpkin Patches, let me know – we are always on the hunt!