The Pumpkin Patch 2009

Well, its Pumpkin Patch time! A.J. and Lisa Nuckols, the owners of White Fall Farm in Mount Airy near Gretna in Pittsylvania County of Virginia http://whitefallfarm.com/ , have again set up a wonderful pumpkin patch. They have literally acres of pumpkins of all sorts and sizes.

They have a variety of farm animals for the kids to see, along with farm equipment that they will be more than happy to tell you about.

Every year I am amazed at all that they do. This year when I drove up I was blown away. They had built a hay bale castle, 3 levels high.

But its also a maze, where you have to find the entrance and stairs to the next level. Fortunately I had A.J. as a guide to tell me which way to turn.

This is a look at level 2. The bales are fitted together and stacked atop one another.

This is the view from the third level, looking back at the entrance. That's the hay bale maze on the right and the picnic tables on the left under the trees.

This is the "King of the Mountain" hay pile. I think they had planned it for the small kids, but it looks like the bigger kids like it, too.

This is the picnic area where you can eat or just rest with a soft drink.

This is looking up the hill towards the castle, with the hay maze on the left. The tractor is for hay rides and takes folks out to the pumpkins to make their choices. Now, I didn't make the walk back to the corn maze, you'll have to see it later. But, it covers several acres all by itself. On Saturdays and Sundays they have pumpkin hunts and then bonfires after the sun goes down.

On Saturdays, Saint Andrews UMC sells hotdogs, chips, and drinks. So if you think you might get hungry, drive on down on a Saturday. Joanne and I will be working the stand on October the 17th, stop by and say hello. The hours are 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Saturdays and 3:00 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays. They also do age appropriate group visits during the week by appointment. Oh yeah, I almost forgot, on Saturdays when the sun goes down and the bonfire blazes, the live music starts at the Pumpkin Patch. So, don't plan on running home when it gets dark, it isn't over until late, stick around. They have several performers scheduled:
Oct 17th - Matt Marstin and Lance Meadows & maybe others!
Oct 24th - Pier 19 (Josh Crew and band)!
Oct 31st - Bridget Rowles, the current "Miss Gretna"!

This my third year of being able to enjoy the pumpkin patch. I honestly look forward to it all year. If you're looking for something fun to do and not only for the little kids, you need to come on down. You take route 29 South or North to Gretna, then take Route 40 East for ten miles. The Pumpkin Patch is then 1/4 mile South on Route 640. If you have a GPS, just plug these directions in; 6001 Riceville Road, Gretna, Virginia 24557. When you get there tell A.J. that you saw it on the blog and that Charlie sent you. Come on down and enjoy the day.