With the autumn equinox just a little over a week ahead of us, here are four local ways to ring in the crisp fall air in the greater Lexington area.
Pumpkin Patches
Central Kentucky is home to several great orchards and pumpkin patches, and visiting any of them during the fall season is a wonderful treat. Take Evan’s Orchard, for instance: located in nearby Georgetown, their Apple Cider donuts are famous throughout the area. Equally beloved is their enormous pumpkin patch, where you’re virtually guaranteed to track down your perfect gourd, be it for a jack ‘o lantern or a pie. You can also sit back and enjoy a scenic hayride; or, if you’re in a more adventurous mood, you can head to Eckert’s Versailles location and find your way through a corn maze. Eckert’s also hosts events like AppleFest and Pumpkin Jamboree, full of live music, wagon rides, and more. Other nearby haunts for finding the pumpkin of your dreams include Georgetown’s Bi-Water Farm & Greenhouse, Happy Jack Pumpkin Farm in Frankfort, and Baldwin Farms in Richmond.
Fall Workshops
You’ll also find plenty of autumn-focused events for arts and crafts lovers– as well as foodies, outdoors enthusiasts, and more. The Versailles County Extension Office hosts an annual Fall Gardening Workshop, which you can check out here. Cut & Paste Crafts studio located in Lexington proper hosts a Fall Break Paint Crafting Workshop for kids who are itching to get creative during Fayette County Public Schools’ fall break. Plant shop Forage has an upcoming workshop for those interested in making their own fall wreath. If you have a hobby you’d like to brush up on, fall is a great time to keep your eyes peeled for community opportunities.
Festivals
There is no shortage of fall festivals in Lexington and the surrounding Central KY area. The first Bluegrass Craft Beer and Bourbon Festival will be held at Lexington’s Moondance Amphitheater (and a short day trip to Bardstown will take you to the Kentucky Bourbon Festival, held in the historic town with its nine different distilleries.) Midway’s Fall Festival is a regional favorite as well, with its myriad of artisan vendors and local food drawing big crowds each year. Also well worth checking out is Berea’s Spoonbread Festival, with delicious eats and all kinds of entertainment for kids and adults alike. Oh, and of course, there’s Lexington’s Halloween Festival and Thriller Parade– an essential part of the city’s Halloween tradition and a prime opportunity to show off your best zombie costume.
Decor
If you’re a Halloween decor fanatic, then you’ll love checking out the houses participating in the city’s various decorating contests, as well as local landmarks like Keeneland getting into the spirit. One of the city’s most well-known Halloween traditions is that of Transylvania University’s Pumpkin Mania. The event has made national news throughout the years with its hundreds of hand-carved and lit pumpkins set upon the steps of historic Old Morrison. Pumpkin Mania draws local crowds each night, making quite the memorable experience (and photo opportunity– really, when is the next time you’re going to see that many jack ‘o lanterns in one place?)
