Fall fun begins this weekend at Blackberry Farm

With all apologies to summer, the fall season ranks as my annual favorite.

My daughter Autumn - born in October - can vouch for that.

Sweet as it is, the season is too short. So at every opportunity, we indulge ourselves with spectacular views of blazingly vivid colors while enjoying fresh-pressed apple cider. We show our enthusiasm with festive decorations and dress our children in ghoulish costumes, both fun and frightening.

And then it's over as fast as you can say snow.

Fortunately, the Fox Valley Park District makes the most of this glorious season with its annual Pumpkin Weekends at Blackberry Farm. It's wall-to-wall fall fun for four weekends in October, and Columbus Day as well - fall in its full glory.

Already, the leaf-peepers are on alert, eager to witness nature's dazzling transition from green to gold to orange. The pumpkins are fat and firm. The chilly nights and football tailgate parties confirm that fall is here in all its glory.

You just can't get too much of this.

"We used to do a Fall Festival in October each year, and it was so popular and well-received that we expanded the event to include every weekend," said Sandy Smith, facility supervisor at Blackberry Farm.

Blackberry Farm is the perfect setting for this kind of celebration, for fall harvests go back to the pioneer days when the locals would raise a toast to another bountiful growing season.

Hundreds of years later, the same sense of community lives on with festive gatherings such as Pumpkin Weekends. The kids will delight in the interactive games and wonderful displays; adults will feel the tinge of youth, reminiscent of their own childhoods.

"We don't have the powers of Mother Nature," said Smith, "but we're doing everything we can to make this season last just a little bit longer."

Each weekend will feature a special theme, starting with Pumpkin Games on Saturday, Oct. 3 when kids can decorate masks, make bird feeders from pine cones and enjoy pumpkin-centric games.

The scarecrows come out on Columbus Day weekend, Oct. 10-12. On Saturday, Oct. 10, staffers will conduct a scarecrow decorating class for families, school groups and Scout troops. At the end of the weekend, they'll take home their works of art.

The final two weekends - Oct. 17-18 and Oct. 24-25 - are reserved for traditional favorites. A trick-or-treat walk will be held before the park opens each Saturday. Costumed visitors will make their way around to nine trick-or-treat stations, followed by a costume contest.

And on each of those weekends, an array of carved pumpkins will be on display. If you're feeling creative, take a train ride and visit the pumpkin patch at Blackberry, purchase your own pumpkin and carve your creation right there at the special decorating station.

I'm guessing most of those pumpkins will be wearing broad smiles.

Jeff Long is the public relations manager for the Fox Valley Park District. Contact him at jlong@fvpd.net