15 Pumpkin Patches You Must Visit This October

For most of the year, we completely ignore the majesty and grandeur that is the pumpkin. Thankfully, it's that time of year to completely lose your mind and sense of decorum over these carefully grown festive gourds.

Carve them, eat them, stick them outside to mock the neighbors and their ineffective ability to ring in the season. It's a magical, spooky time of year. Now get on out there and see some of the best patches around.

The Los Angeles area has a destination patch in Underwood Family Farms, which is celebrating its 21st Fall Harvest Festival. There will be demonstrations, live music and a wild west theme taking place on Oct. 20 and 21. Contrary to popular belief, you can enjoy the seasons in Southern California.

How much fun can you have inside hay? It turns out quite a bit. Bishop's Orchard has a Little Red Barn and Pumpkin Patch that features an apple train, hay tunnel, hay pyramid and something called the corn kingdom. Save some time and energy because the rest of Connecticut is calling.

The Great Pumpkin Patch doesn't mess around with the word "great." This destination will have you gobsmacked with over 300 varieties of pumpkins and other gourds from over 30 countries. On the weekends you get the sweet sounds of live music as you amble about the gardens and mazes. The aroma you smell is the onsite bakery; it's calling.

Papa's Pumpkin Patch is dominating the game in Bismarck, garnering about 500,000 pounds of pumpkin every year. If you are looking for more than the heavy orange stuff, they have you well entertained with a log gym, nature trail, mazes, obstacle course and the wonderfully titled Papa'sville.

The Great Pumpkin Farm in Clarence, New York is like a blast to the soul of all the things you want during this time of year. Yes, there will be pumpkins, but also a pumpkin cannon, homemade treats, live music, hayrides, Halloween decorations, a pumpkin pie eating contest (an excuse to practice at home) and even a BBQ cook-off. Yes, they thought of everything.

If you're in the Chicago area you'll find no shortage of great food. That extends to Bengtson's Pumpkin Farm in Homer Glen. The farm has been doing their thing since 1981 and will continue to woo travelers with its bakery and fresh made apple cider donuts. The little ones can work off the treats with nine kid rides and the spectacle that is a pig race. And if you're looking for fall fun around Chicago, we have you covered in that regard.

Craven Farm is a truly wonderful celebration of pumpkins, harvest and all that the season encompasses. There are myriad varieties of pumpkins, a 15-acre maze complete with three secret rooms and an awesome Alice in Wonderland theme. They also have something we simply have to experience once called Human Foosball.

Kroll's Fall Harvest Farm certainly has you covered with Hayrides, Farm Animals and Corn Maze. It's that last item that will really have you coming back annually. It's carefully drawn out on graph paper before growing and hand tilled to make sure it's pristine and comfortable to walk. And I hope you work up an appetite because there's also pumpkin doughnuts and apple cider to devour.

You can power the day with pedal cars or sit back and relax on a hayride. Or, if you are so inclined, let the little ones douse themselves in fun in the corn bath. Cool Patch Pumpkins has plenty of food options to fill the belly on weekends and a maze you won't believe.

Siegel's Cottonwood Farm will take you to the pumpkins. Hop on their hayride and pick out a pumpkin right off the vine. The kids will have a blast with things like their farm animals, playland and on-site slide. You will definitely come away with everlasting memories and an appreciation for farm life.

If you are in the mood for something chillier than the weather, Winding Brook Farm is sure to be a pleasant fright. It offers the usual fare of pumpkin pizazz but also features a haunted hayride, haunted hay maze and corn walk of horror. Sounds ghastly. Here's a list of more spooky destinations.

Jumbo's Pumpkin Patch is the perfect place to both pick your pumpkins and shop till you drop, boasting over 6,500 square feet of shopping potential. For those looking to merely wander, there is also a 15-acre maze to enjoy.

Clear the calendar because the whole family will want to pick out the perfect seasonal pumpkin at Assiter Punkin Ranch in Floyada, Texas.

Prepare to ride in a punkin train and play in the petting zoo. We aren't certain whether punkins are better than pumpkins but are willing to find out.

Cox Farms understands there are two kinds of October. There is the harvest season that we all love to celebrate with decorations and food and then there's the Halloween spectacle that mandates a healthy selection of scares. This place has both with its Fall Festival and Fields of Fear locations.

If you build it, they will provide pumpkins. MacDonald's Ranch offers pumpkins sourced from local farms. That's not all. It also boasts whimsy such as gold mining; a petting zoo with miniature animals such as donkeys and ponies and a BBQ food truck to sate that hunger of yours. At the end of the day, you can relax in all that Scottsdale has to offer.