Fall is Officially Here This Weekend! 3 Pumpkin Patches You Can Visit Near Prospector Ranch to Ring in the Fall Season
~ Natalia Radcliffe ~ This weekend marks the date of the fall equinox, a point when the Earth’s tilt and orbit around the sun will be at just the right moment to where the daylight hours and nighttime hours are the same. It is called the fall equinox, because it marks the beginning of shorter days and longer nights, marching its way to the winter solstice, in which it is the point in the Earth’s tilt and orbit where we experience the shortest daylight hours of the year.
Here in California, the start of fall doesn’t always necessarily mean cooler temperatures, but we can hope, right? The best case scenario is experiencing cool mornings and evenings, with warmer temperatures during the day. Ahhh, California fall. Cool in the morning, warm in the afternoon, and back to cool in the evening.
However, just because the weather may not feel like typical fall weather, that doesn’t mean you still can’t enjoy fall activities! What better way to ring in the fall season then visiting a pumpkin patch? With October just around the corner, Halloween will be here before we all know it. If you’re around Southern California or staying at one of our AirBnbs, we have three ideas for pumpkin patches that you can visit that everyone, young and old, can enjoy.
1. Prancer’s Farm Fall Festival
Located in Santa Paula, this event goes from September 27th through October 31. You of course can pick out the perfect pumpkin for your jack-o-lantern to display on Halloween, but there is so much more to see at the ranch as well, making it for a fun day trip. The ranch features activities such as a petting zoo, opportunities to pick your own strawberries from their strawberry fields, a fruit stand where you can choose from a section of fresh picked fruit to buy, going on a hayride, and of course, plenty of spaces to take picture-perfect memories. Tickets are anywhere from $13 to $26, depending on the day you decide to go.
2. Boccali Ranch Pumpkin Patch
Boccali Pumpkin Patch is located in Ojai, behind their restaurant. They offer a variety of sizes of pumpkins, as well as other types of produce. In the past, during the weekends, they have also offered hayrides and for the adults, wine tasting at Boccali Vineyards next door. They have not updated their website for 2024 events, but last year admission was free, and the event went from October 5th through the 31st, so it is safe to assume something similar will probably happen again this year. Check back on their website for more details as it gets closer to October.
Seasonal Adventures is having a pop up pumpkin patch in Thousand Oaks in October. People will be able to browse from a large section of pumpkins, as well as squash and gourds. In addition, there will also be some attractions to check out, such as mechanical rides, bounce houses, blow up slides, obstacle courses, and a petting zoo. Admission and parking is free, but if you want to participate in any of the attractions, you will need to purchase tickets.
