While searching the internet for local pumpkin patches, we discovered the Hunter Orchards Pumpkin Patch in Grenada. It looked really interesting, and had even been mentioned in the San Francisco Chronicle, so we drove up last Sunday to pay a visit.
Hunter Orchards is a family-owned farm located about 15 minutes north of Mt. Shasta. It’s located just a couple miles west of I-5; close enough for easy access, but far enough away so you can’t hear or see the freeway. The farm features eye-popping views of Mt. Shasta to the southeast, and is a great activity for those with or without children.
As you pull into their gravel driveway off Old Westside Road, you drive a short distance to a small parking area in front of the family home. At this point, you realize that you’re on a working family farm, something you don’t see very often in today’s age.
As you exit the car, you find yourself in front of an open air farmer’s market shopping area, filled with a variety of squashes and pumpkins of every size. If you’re thirsty, you can even buy freshly-squeezed apple cider. Those who are interested in cooking will enjoy the farmer’s market area because there’s so many ideas for autumn cooking.
If you have children, they might be interested in the Hay Maze nearby, made out of straw bales. But if you want to enter the pumpkin field, you can pick up a wheel barrow and get started. The field is huge, and covered with thousands of pumpkins with diameters ranging from 8 inches all the way up to giants nearly two feet wide.
After you select your pumpkins, you wheel them back to the checkout area. At our visit, the field pumpkins cost 35 cents per pound.
Cost of admission: Free
Hunter Orchards
14431 Old Westside Road
Grenada, CA
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