Patterson’s offers family atmosphere, tasty treats

The beginning of fall is well underway, and a popular way to get fully immersed in the autumn spirit is visiting Patterson’s Fruit Farm. It offers hayrides, mazes and apple picking, as well as a fair of homemade delicacies from their famous apple fritters to their caramel popcorn hot out of the kettle.

From the entrance of Patterson’s all the way through, the fall vibe is vivacious, adorned with hay stacks, corn stalks and pumpkins of every color, all meticulously placed to give the perfect fall feel.

Before visitors even hit the gates, they are entranced by the mouth-watering aromas of the food fair. It would be an understatement to say that Patterson’s gets crowded, with wait times of over 20 minutes long, which people willingly accept in order to purchase their pick of warm, gooey pies and other home-baked delicacies.

Sydni Burg
People come from near and far to taste Patterson’s soft and sweet apple fritters, baked fresh all day. The freshly–squeezed lemonade booth is also popular, and fascinates people, as sweet lemonade is squeezed right before their eyes. The bulk of the fair-and the pungent scents- includes all the different stands with various homemade recipes from steaming apple pies to warm squash soups.

The end of the food fair meets the beginning of the pumpkin patch. With a huge selection of white, green and vibrant orange pumpkins, everyone is sure to leave with his own perfect pumpkin.

In the kitchen, pumpkins are gutted for fresh pies and the seeds are extracted, baked, salted and sold. At this point in the process in any household, the carcass would be trashed. But Patterson’s carves the hollowed pumpkins at the jack-o-lantern stand for the public to “ooh” and “ahh” over.

Beyond the pumpkin patch lies a child’s heaven (or any adult who’s a child at heart), with acres of mazes, hayrides and farm games. One of the newer features is the treehouse playground with swings that allow riders to hurl themselves into pillows of hay and 50-foot double slides with cornstalks as cushions to slide down on (this, of course is for the daring, speed-seeking kids).

There is also free pumpkin painting for children along with the Family Fun Fest occurring weekdays through Nov. 1, offering pony rides, horse-drawn carriage rides, wagon rides and nature walks with free admission to the treehouse playgrounds.

Finally, customers also have an opportunity to go apple picking. The scenic route down to the orchard is a nature walk path through the hills which wraps around trickling streams and a sparkling lake.

After weaving through a patch of forest, and moseying along a gravel path that runs about a half of a mile, there is a seemingly endless apple orchard with rows of apple trees, growing tart Golden Delicious, succulent Ida Red and sweet Granny Smith apples.

When the sun begins to set, a satisfying day of fun fall activities calls for a quick hot chocolate (with extra whipped cream) upon leaving Patterson’s. If looking for an event for the family, or just a nice afternoon with some friends, Paterson’s is definitely the place to go.