Grand Haven Harvest Traditions: Pumpkin Picking

by Marjorie Steele, Cars for Keeps Social Media Manager

Let's take a break from auto repair to talk about fun activities happening around Grand Haven - namely, pumpkin picking! After all, you've already attended to your vehicle's fall maintenance, right?

It's Halloween season again, and for those of us lucky enough to live in West Michigan, harvest season means more than trick or treating. Thanks to an abundance of local farms, Halloween in Michigan offers families many opportunities for outdoor fun. Picking your own pumpkin out of the field is much more fun than picking one from the grocery store - especially for the kids - and most pumpkin patches also offer apple picking, cider making exhibitions, corn mazes and hay rides.

Grand Haven has a number of nearby pumpkin patches which offer plenty of activities for friends, couples and families.


Bethke Farms is the closest, being located just outside of Grand Haven proper. Bethke has a u-pick pumpkin patch, a corn maze and a beautiful 20 minute hayride for the family to enjoy. Open through October 31st, 10-7 Friday through Sunday and 4-7 Monday through Thursday. Click the link to learn more about visiting Bethke.

Kent Harvest Trails is a Grand Rapids-based organization which has put together a comprehensive list of pumpkin patches and farm tours available throughout the Grand Rapids area - most of them are a short 30 minute ride from Grand Haven. Activities range from huge, 15 acre corn mazes to scarecrow building and petting zoos. Visit their list of pumpkin patch farms to learn more about each farm's activities, hours and location.

I think this weekend, I'll be trying out the corn maze at Fruit Ridge Hayrides. What will your family be doing?
needs, right?