Autumn Farm Adventures
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
The air is crisp and scented with apple and fallen leaves. It’s time to enjoy a farm adventure with savory flavors and a bounty of harvest time fun.
Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards in Lafayette is renowned for its fall apple picking. The on-site orchards feature 20 varieties. The sizable “apple campus” boasts a large farm shop, tasting room for its 1911 Established brand, live events, picnic tables and fall activities. Check the website to see what’s happening at Beak & Skiff.
Strawberry Fields Hydroponic Farm & Florist in Auburn hosts seasonal events and grows an annual sunflower maze ready in late summer through early fall. Dress for photos, as this is a great opportunity for some very pretty portraits among the sunny blooms. Visitors may also pick sunflowers. Don’t miss the fantastic gift shop filled to the brim with local artisan creations and local farm goods and take home fresh-cut flowers to enjoy.
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Sprawling across 350-acres, Critz Farms in Cazenovia offers pick-your-own pumpkins and apples, along with a sunflower labyrinth and a corn maze. Bring along the grandkids for the playgrounds, wagon ride, farm animals, farm tour, hiking and lawn games. The farm also has a café, tasteful gift shop and taproom with beer and hard cider. Check the website for special events.
Behling Orchards in Mexico grows more than 20 apple varieties and pumpkins. The farm hosts Fall Fun Weekends which include a corn maze with slides and tunnel, inflatable slides, ziplines, Ferris wheel, large jumping pillow, inflatable pirate ship and inflatable obstacle course. Savor fall treats like doughnuts, cider and candy apples. Wine tasting and wine slushies from Ashley Lynn Winery are available as well.
The third weekend in September is when Ontario Orchards in Sterling hosts its family-friendly Fall Jamboree. Bring the whole clan for live entertainment, food, corn maze, hay wagon rides, henna, face painting, petting zoo, fall décor, zip lining, craft vendors, wine slushies, corn maze and you-pick apples and pumpkins, all right on the farm.
Fly Creek Cider Mill & Orchard in Cooperstown won the honor of Nation’s Best Cidery 2024 by USA Today. Sip freshly pressed apple cider, craft beverages and artisanal products and peruse the sizable Mill Store Marketplace, selling artisan value-added products and local goods. The site also includes a restaurant featuring local foods and a bakery. Bring along the grandchildren to enjoy the little-trike track and a wooden climb-on tractor. The farm’s tasting room offers flights of ciders, wines, spirits and craft beers overlooking the pond.
Old McDonald’s Farm in Sackets Harbor grows a large pumpkin patch where guests can select their favorites. The farm also offers a huge 10-acre corn maze, sunflower field, fresh apple cider doughnuts, storybook hayride, jumping pillow, children’s zipline, giant slide and miniature golf. The farm is also home to more than 200 animals, including cows, goats, and reindeer. Stop by the café and gift shop, which includes seasonal décor.