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Pick a Perfect Pumpkin: A Guide to Fall Festivals and Pumpkin Patches

By Allison Fort October 26, 2014
Fall is here, and it seems there's a bit of pumpkin in just about everything this year (pumpkin spaghetti sauce and a pumpkin cheesecake cookie with your pumpkin spice latte, anyone?) - but where's the best place to pick up the real deal? Macaroni Kid Rockville-Gaithersburg readers are lucky to have lots of great pumpkin patches and fall festivals nearby to choose from this year. Here are some of our favorites!

Fun for all ages:

Butler’s Orchard - 34th Annual Pumpkin Festival
22200 Davis Mill Road, Germantown
September 27 & 28, October 4, 5, 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 25, 26. 10:00am – 5:00pm

Enjoy a hayride, jump in the hayloft, swoosh down the giant slides, visit barnyard buddies, play the rubber ducky derby, and explore the straw maze! Enjoy beautiful fall foliage, live music, hand dipped caramel apples, crafts, and lots more! Pick-your-own pumpkins are 65 cents a pound.

$11 per person; Children 2 and under are FREE!

Pick-your-own pumpkins are also available during the week. Fields are open from 8:30 am - 6:00 pm Tuesday - Friday. 

Homestead Farm
15604 Sugarland Road, Poolesville
Apple Picking & Pumpkin Patch
Open 7 days a week!  
Pick-your-own hours: 9am - 5pm
Market hours: 9am - 6pm

Feed the animals in the barnyard, visit the concession stand and shop at the Farmer’s Market.
Hayrides out to the pumpkin patch Saturdays and Sundays in October from 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM unless otherwise noted.  Visitors are welcome to walk to the pumpkin patches on the weekend or weekdays.

Hayride tickets are $3 per person (2 and under – FREE) and pick-your-own pumpkins are 59 cents a pound.

Gaver Tree Farm - Fall Fun Festival and Pick-Your-Own Pumpkin Patch
5501 Detrick Road, Mt. Airy
September 12-November 4.  10:00am to 6:00pm daily

This fun fall festival includes a 5-acre corn maze, farm animal arena, giant jumping pillow and much more! Admission is $6.50 per person (weekdays and nights); $9 per person (weekends). A season pass is available for $28 per person. Children two and under are FREE!

Admission to Gaver's 15 acre pick-your-own pumpkin patch is FREE and open 10 am - 6 pm daily. Free hayrides are available on weekends from 10 am - 6 pm (weather permitting). On weekdays in October, free hayrides are available at noon and 5 pm. The week of October 27-31, weekday hayrides will be available from noon - 6 pm. 

Larriland Farm
2415 Woodbine Road, Woodbine
October 1 – October 31:  open Tuesday – Friday 9 am – 6 pm; Saturday and Sunday 9 am – 5 pm; closed Mondays (except Columbus Day, October 13 - open 9 am - 5 pm).

Come and get lost in the Straw Maze, built with over 1,000 bales of hay! The Straw Maze is open every day the farm is open in October. The Boo Barn is for children ages 4 – 6. It is a dark passage in the bottom of the Red Barn and is filled with animated, not too scary ghosts and goblins. The Straw Maze and Boo Barn are open every day the farm is open in October.

Public hayrides are available October 4, 5, 11, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 25, 26 and November 1 and 2. This 20 minute tractor-drawn hayride goes around the farm, through the woods and over a stream. The woods are decorated with storybook characters handcrafted by Larriland artists. (Please note: this hayride does not include a stop at the pumpkin field). $4 per person, open to all ages. 

Pumpkin and evening hayrides are also available for groups. Call the Hayride Hotline to register: 410-489-7034.

Cabin John Eye Spy Halloween Train
7410 Tuckerman Lane, Rockville
October 11-12, 17-19, 24-26, October 29-November 1

All aboard the Cabin John Eye Spy Halloween Train! This train is great for younger kids (under 8 years old) - it's all about fun, not fright! Each child will receive an Eye Spy card before boarding the train. As you ride through the woods of Cabin John Regional Park, look all around to find Halloween friends hiding there, and mark them off the Eye Spy card. We'll also show free Halloween movies on the side of the train station, and have other fun Halloween activities for the kids. Costumes are encouraged! 

Please bring a canned food donation for your neighbors in need - we'll give them to Manna Food. Ticket price is $5 for all passengers (children under age 2 are free with a paying adult). Choose your day and boarding time and get your tickets online at www.ParkPASS.org! Please remember to print out your ParkPASS confirmation--it's your "eticket" and shows the date and time of your ride.

National Capital Trolley Museum's Pumpkin TrolleyFest
1313 Bonifant Road, Colesville
Every Thursday and Friday in October (10 am - 1:30 pm) plus Saturdays and Sundays from October 18th - 26 (12:30 -3:50 pm)

Pumpkin TrolleyFest includes a stop at Pinson's Pumpkin Market, where children may exchange the tokens purchased with their trolley ride tickets for a pumpkin. Visitors can also decorate their pumpkins onsite before taking them home. 

Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for ages 2-17. Pumpkin tokens are available in the museum shop. 

Best for the older set: 

Wheaton Haunted Train and Creepy Carousel
2002 Shorefield Road, Wheaton
October 11-12, 17-19, 24-26, October 29-November 1

Are you ready for the very scary sights, sounds and creatures? We'll also be showing scary movies, and refreshments will be available for purchase. Each ticket is good for one ride on the Haunted Train and one Creepy Carousel ride. Best for older children (8 and up). 

The train and carousel both run 6-9pm each scheduled night. Trains depart every 30 minutes. Choose your day and boarding time and get your tickets online at www.ParkPASS.org! Admission is just $5 and a can of food. Your canned food donations benefit Metropolitan United Ministries. Please remember to print out your ParkPASS confirmation--it's your "eticket" and shows the date and time of your ride.

Nightmare ScreamPlex Family Night
The Maryland SoccerPlex, 18031 Central Park Circle Boyds, MD 20841
October 7 and November 2

Family Night is a fun and interactive Halloween experience suitable for all ages, and on Family Nights only, regular admission gives you free access to tons of games and activities including paintball, face painting, live magic and more. 

Kids going through the haunt will be given magical rings that are capable of warding off all forms of ghosts and monsters in case they get too scared. The show will be a "lights on" tour but people are welcome to bring flashlights. Come hungry and roast s'mores over the bonfire, or enjoy our other delicious foods.
$20.00 per person