Community Corner

Amazing Corn Mazes Offer Adventure

Families can find corn mazes and pumpkin picking at area farms.

 

Looking for a little exercise and adventure? Farms in McHenry and Lake counties have built some intricate corn mazes this fall season, including “Salute to Our Military” at Richardson Farm in Spring Grove and “Everyday Heroes,” a 9/11 tribute, at Meadow View Farm in Harvard.

When Richardson Farm built its first corn maze, 11 years ago they wanted to go big, said Wendy Richardson. They started with an intricate design on 24 acres. This year's maze is at 33 acres. While there may be larger mazes, Richardson said theirs is still the "largest and most intricate."

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This year's theme, "Salute to Our Military" is a result of Richardson Farms' relationship with Great Lake Naval Base. The farm has a Trees for Troops program at Christmas and the Richardson wanted to recognize the naval base's 100th anniversary.

"We decided to expand the theme to honor all branches of our military," Richardson said.

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Richardson said her family decides on a theme the previous winter and sends the design to a corn maze designer in Idaho.

"He uses GPS, a computer and a rototiller," Richardson said.

She explained that the corn is not planted in traditional rows, but instead in an east-west, north-south pattern. The maze designer, Shawn Stolworthy, comes to Richardson Farm in the spring, when the corn is about 10-inches, and cuts the design with a rototiller. 

Meadow View Farm in Harvard uses a similar process to build its 10-acre maze. "Every Day Heroes" honors the first responders to 9/11 in this 10th year anniversary, said John Stauss.

The Stauss family uses  Corn Mazes America, a company out of Janesville, WI, to design and build its maze. Stauss said the company maze designer uses a GPS system.

"He cuts through the maze where his lawnmower tells him to go; we have to go through and cut three to four more times over the summer," Stauss said.

This is the second year Meadow View Farm has built a corn maze and the Stauss family is hoping to make it a tradition.

Here are some area farms that include corn mazes and much more:

  • Richardson Farm in Spring Grove boasts the largest, most intricate corn maze in the world. There are actually five separate mazes that wind through 33 acres. The simplest takes just 10 minutes, while another maze, Farm Scene Investigation, FSI, is based on the board game Clue; it offers a challenging adventure. The farm also has a pumpkin patch, a 700-foot zip line, a petting zoo that includes a miniature cow, giant jumping pillows and many other activities.
  • Kroll’s Fall Harvest Farm in Waukegan has a corn maze, petting zoo, pumpkin picking and farm tour hayrides. This year's maze pictures a dairy barn with silo and farm animals.
  • Meadow View Farm in Harvard has a 10-acre puzzle with the theme of “Everyday Heroes,” a 10-year commemorative maze to honor those who died on Sept. 11, 2001. The maze is a picture of a police car, fire truck and the Twin Towers. The farm also has a two-acre pumpkin patch, hayrides, moon walks, a corn kernel pit, food, and fall décor.
  • All Seasons Apple orchard in Woodstock  has a 12-acre corn maze, pick-your-own apple orchard, and pumpkin patch.
  • Stade’s Farm & Market in McHenry holds its Shades of Autumn festival, which includes pumpkin picking, fresh produce, hayrides, a petting zoo, corn maze, live music, a Pumpkin Cannon, and a variety of other attractions.


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