Located in Half Moon Bay, directly accross the street from Lemos, Patorinos Farm is normally a nursery with huge greenhouses to stroll through but cranks up the Halloween spirit in October. There’s the usual pumpkin patch, jump houses, slider, food stands and hay rides but there are two features that you won’t find anywhere else – a train ride through the greenhouses and a haunted house built inside a littler greenhouse that’s inside the big one. The train ride is the standard farm set up with a diesel tractor pulling some tricked out golf carts so don’t sit up front if...

Located on Roger’s Road near Salinas, Borchard Farms grows some seriously big pumpkins. Like the kind you only see at the county fair or on the front page of a newspapers. They also have the absolute best variety of squash for sale you will find anywhere. Just boxes and boxes of every size, texture, and color possible and all at very competitive prices. The giant pumpkins and squash orgy would more than enough reason for a visit but Borchard boasts a variety of other activities – some standard to most pumpkin farm destinations and some wholly unique to them – to keep the kids whacked...

Located near Hollister, Swank Farms is fun, piled on top of fun, with a dollop of fun on top …and maybe a spritzer of fun for good measure. What separates Swank from many other pumpkin patch maze events is that it’s a blend of authentic farming activities and contrived carnival type attractions. Like Myth Busters type contrived. Like “my buddies thought this up when we high and we decided to build it” type contrived. But don’t bother paying for everything separately – just get one of the package deals and spend a few hours. The first thing you’ll notice is...

Note: DC Cemetery is taking 2010 off. They will up and running again in 2011. My daughter and I went to the November 1st 2009 showing. I drove from Santa Cruz and it was worth every second of the 45 minute drive. DC Cemetery is a labor of love by one Brent Scott, with generous support of his family and friends.  2009 was the 19th year of operation and Brent’s childhood love affair with Halloween has grown into a thriving animatronics prop business. Every year he takes over his parents front yard and driveway and erects a giant graveyard and mousoleum full of moving, screaming and howling...

In October 2009, I found this place tucked away off Highway 1, a half a mile down highway 84. If you don’t look closely at the signage around the place, you’d never know it’s actually called Muzzi’s Ranch. My daughter and I got here around 9am by following some signs promising a corn maze, pumpkin patch, and fresh strawberries. The new and improved Corn Maze sign, which now reads “Porn Maze” made this funky place all that more charming in a hillbilly, slightly creepy way. When we arrive there is no one around, so we just climb the straw pyramid, do the corn maze and...

Located in Half Moon Bay, Lemos Farms is a year around family destination for the little ones, but really goes off in September and October. First off, if you have an irreverent sense of humor, you absolutely must ride the Ghost Train. Really just a series of golf carts tricked out to look like a train, this ride takes you around the park and through Ghost Town. Don’t take the first cart unless you like deisel fumes. Ghost Town is a series of half sized dioramas populated with ever piece of Salvation Army and Halloween Store closeout oddity imaginable. Nothing makes any sense. Girl’s dolls...

If Disney were to make a pumpkin patch it would be Arata Pumpkin Farm. The second you get your first panoramic view as you approach the entrance, you know you’re in for a great time. Free admission but there’s  a modest fee for the maze, haunted barn and hay ride. The maze fee is good all day so do it as many times as you want with a single admission. Decent prices on snacks and food as well. So what can you expect? How about best straw maze in the world. Unbelievable. Find the Minotaur and he’ll give you a golden pumpkin! Giant iron hinges support secret movable doors that hide and...