Tucked in Browne’s Addition just across from Coeur D’ Alene Park sits one of Spokane’s most elaborate mansions. Built in 1897 by famous architect Kirtland Cutter for the Clark family, this mansion was built in a Moorish style and is filled with Tiffany glass and wood carved accents.
We’ve all been there. The dread, the woe and the living hell that is arguing with your partner about whether you want a leather or cloth sofa. Sure, the cloth is comfier, but the cats will have a field day scratching up the side that your guests will see most frequently. On the flip side, maybe the leather just doesn’t feel right. Regardless, if you’re me then you’re wrong and you just go with what the wife decides anyway.
Bellingham is home to family-owned farms, Halloween activities, spooky tours, and more during the fall season! There is always something to do and this fall you can fill your weekends with fun, local activities.
Just North of Downtown Bellingham in Ferndale, Washington is SM’ Apples U-Pick Orchard. This U-pick orchard is family-owned and home to about a dozen varieties of apples. You can check out their website here to find harvest dates and prices for their apples. Their U-pick Orchard is a great family-friendly activity for this fall! Spend the day tromping through the rows of trees picking apples for apple pie, apple sauce, canning apples, and more!
At Bellewood Farms and Distillery, you can experience a farm-to-glass distillery in action. Bellewood takes apples grown on their very own farm and turns them into their award-winning Gin, Brandy, and Vodka. Their unique tasting room is open Wed-Sun from 10 am to 5 pm. They aim to put the highest quality fruits into their distilled products, and they are proud to focus on sustainable agriculture.
If you are looking for family-friendly activities, Bellewood Farms and Distillery offer a host of fun activities for all age. Their U-pick apples are a fan favorite, and during September and October, they are known for their Orin, Sonata, Bellewood Prince, Honeycrisp, and Fuji apples. You can take their bin train out to the field and spend the day picking apples.
During late September through October, their Harvest Happens event runs every day from 9 am to 4 pm. In addition to apple picking, they have a large field of pumpkins to choose from, Fresh Cider Doughnuts and kettle corn on the weekends, and much more. Bellewood Farms and Distillery is an excellent place to celebrate fall and local harvests.
If you are looking for stunning views of the Puget sound paired with a bit of fall, driving down Chuckanut Drive is a great option. Chuckanut Drive is a winding road that follows Bellingham Bay from Edison to Bellingham. With excellent scenic views, this drive is popular year-round. Covered by a canopy of trees, during the fall, this drive becomes a colorful fall fairytale. If you have part of the day to spend, do this drive and perhaps stop at Taylors Shellfish as you pass by for excellent views of the water and even better locally harvested Oysters.
Every fall, Bellinghistory with the Good Time Girls offers a Gore and Lore tour of Bellingham. The Gore and Lore Tours feature Creepy tales from downtown Bellingham’s crypts – unsettling hauntings, strange historical happenings, and horrific true crimes in the dark heart of Bellingham. If you are looking for a creepy activity to do this Halloween season, check out the Gore and Lore Tour.
Also hosted by Bellinghistory with the Good Time Girls, you can take a Sin and Gin tour. These tours follow Bellingham’s saloon history through the prohibition era. This tour is 18+ and is an excellent option for adults looking to get to know Bellingham’s past.
If you are looking for a unique fall event this season, consider checking out Bellingham’s Irish Festival. From October 8th- 10th, you can enjoy educational workshops, classes, and performances, as well as several theaters, shops, and restaurants that are participating. This is a fun way to learn about Irish culture and enjoy a weekend.
Fall in the Pacific Northwest is notably mild. The weather is clear during much of September and October, and the temperatures are mild, making for great outdoor recreation. In the Bellingham area, an outdoor enthusiast’s playground awaits. There are a number of relays, races, and hikes that the city of Bellingham hosts in the fall that are open to anyone to sign up. Several bike races in September and October are an excellent way to enjoy the lovely fall weather outside.
If you are looking to be a bit more adventurous, the Puget Sound and Bellingham bay are calm and the same temperature year-round. Many people enjoy paddleboarding, kayaking, and other water sports throughout the fall. Bellingham Bay is a perfect space to kayak through September and October.
Lake Padden is home to an excellent outdoor walking trail that is mostly paved or gravel, which means it will not get as muddy as other trails during the wetter months. Fragrance Lake is another great hiking option year-round as it is a 5-mile trail that brings you to a lake. The hike does not have very many extended viewpoints, which means your experience will not be impacted by weather.
During most Halloween Seasons, Bellingham hosts a number of fun, family-friendly events. In previous years, Halloween scavenger hunts, virtual Halloween historical tours, scary storytellings, Farmers Market Pumpkin Hunts, and more have all been on the Calendar for October. Make sure to check in with the City of Bellingham’s website this October to see all the activities.
Bellingham is full of activities year-round, and fall is no exception. If you are ready to celebrate the fall harvest, there are pumpkin patches and farmer’s markets galore for apple picking, corn mazes, and more if you are a Halloween adventurer, spooky tours, Halloween nights, and more on the horizon in Bellingham this fall. If you are just looking for more ways to be outside. Now that summer has ended, there is plenty of hiking, biking, and water sports options for you to enjoy in Bellingham through October. Cozy Flannels, hot apple cider, and pumpkin season are quickly approaching, so make sure to check out all of the options in your area of Bellingham.
Check back into the Bellingham Clever Neighbor to find more season activities, recommendations, and more.
While the rest of Washington State begins to fall into the rainy fall weather and things button up for the cold weather, Skagit County is entering one of the year’s busiest seasons. As Skagit County is a farming community, there is much to harvest and celebrate in the fall months. September and October are alive with festivals, harvests, and plenty of picture-worthy colors and activities. Fall in Skagit County is beautiful and full of harvest colors and pumpkin patches for the whole family.
While many people think that the end of August brings the end of good weather in Western Washington, during an average year, the weather remains clear and warm during September, and October temperatures stay in the 50s. It is an excellent time to dive into all of the agriculture in the PNW.
Fall in the Skagit Valley is beautiful whether you love pumpkin patches, harvest dinners, farm stops, or bird watching. There is something fun for everyone to partake in.
If you are looking for fall colors, Instagram-worthy photos, and pumpkins galore, Gordon Skagit Farms in West Mt. Vernon is the place to visit. This outdoor playground is full of beautiful pumpkin displays full of every type of pumpkin and gourds you can imagine.
Gordon’s pumpkin patch prides itself on honing in on the best of Skagit Valley in the fall. This pumpkin patch is dedicated to fall, so you will not find any spooky spider webs or gouls hiding around the corners. You can, however, find local apples, dried flowers, and corn stalks.
If you are lucky, you might run into the horses and chickens that live on the property. In addition to the animals, you can find beautiful dresses, people, and other structures made out of corn and dried flowers. Gordon Skagit Farms is the quintessential fall in Skagit County.
Schuh farms is the perfect mix of Halloween and Fall festivities. While Schuh farms is open during most of the year, they truly shine during September and October. They have a large field where you can go out and pick your pumpkin. It is always fun to weed through rows and rows of pumpkins to find the perfect one to carve.
Schuh Farm is also in west Mt. Vernon and is home to a cute farm stand, farm animals, and lots of local delicacies. There are apple hand pies, local honey sticks, apples, and homemade applesauce. For young children, there are some Halloween-themed decorations and activities. The fan-favorite activity at Schuh farms is the animal area where goats, chicks, and sometimes pigs are often there.
Fall bird watching is another excellent fall activity in the Skagit Valley. In October, the Snow Geese migrate back to the Skagit Valley from Russia’s Wrangel Island and parts of Alaska. The department of Fish and Wildlife estimates that nearly 80,000 Snow Geese spend their winters in Western Washington.
They are indeed a sight to behold. These Snow Geese are recognizable by their black wing tips and red feet. They come to Fir Island in Early October and Stay until mid-April. They move in huge groups across Fir Island and the Flats of La Conner and Mt. Vernon. On any given day in the winter in Skagit Valley, you are able to find them nestled in a farm field somewhere. They eating worms and other goodies leftover from the crop season.
In addition to the Snow Geese, Skagit County is home to many other birds during the fall and winter. With farmlands, marine areas, mountains, and forests, there are many environments for many different species. From Eagles to Blue Heron and more, Skagit County is the place to visit if you are a bird lover.
The Skagit Bay- Skagit Wildlife Area – Wylie Slough Area on Fir Island is just one of the many areas for birding in Skagit County. From the sea to the mountains and all of the farmland and forests in between are full of some of the best birding in Washington State. If you are ready to go birding on your own, simply decide what birds you want to see and head to the right water basin area in the valley.
If you are new to birding or want a guided tour of a new area, check out Skagit Guided Adventures for their birding tours. They offer several different birding tours throughout the year for different areas and types of birds. Even if you aren’t out specifically looking for birds, make sure to look up every so often as you adventure around the valley because you never know when you might spot a bald eagle, a nest, a hawk, or a flock of Snow Geese.
The Festival of Family Farms is one of the highlights of the fall season in Skagit County. The festival is a way for the county to celebrate the hard work of farmers through the busy season. Part of the main fun of the Festival is where everyone can learn what it takes to run a farm. From growing crops to feeding and tending animals, many of the Festival of Family Farms activities are hands-on experiences.
Participating farms, wineries, and other agriculture or livestock-based farms across Skagit County every year. This year’s festival of family farms will happen the weekend of October 2nd, and 3rd from 10 am-4 pm on both days. Corn mazes, pumpkin patches, kid’s activities, farm tours, and animal exhibits are all common occurrences at the festival. Local restaurants often set up booths at the farms to sell goodies, and each stop turns into a mini farmers market of sorts. Whether you are traveling with young children or solo, the Festival of Family Farms is a must-do activity in the fall.
While many people associate the spring and summer with fresh fruits and veggies, Skagit Valley crops are harvested year-round. The fertile grounds and mild winters make for the perfect growing climate for leafy greens and root vegetables. A fun fact on fall harvests: Skagit Valley produces 95% of the red potatoes grown in the state of Washington.
If you are local to Northwest Washington and want to take your local buying year-round, consider a winter CSA. A CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. A CSA is a model where members pay upfront to help farmers cover the cost of growing the food, and in return, members get a portion of the harvest. This is a great avenue to support local farmers and eat local veggies year-round.
There are CSA’s nearly year-round in Skagit Valley with Pickup spots as far north as Bellingham and as far south as Seattle and Renton. Boldly Grown Farm offers a fall and winter CSA program that offers all sorts of locally grown goodies from November to March.
If you are a pumpkin enthusiast, the Burlington Harvest Festival and Pumpkin Patch is for you. This family-friendly event happens on the last Saturday of September at Skagit River Park from 10 am to 4 pm. This is a great event for small children because of the inflatables, pony rides, kid’s activities, and more. This event is completely free and takes a love of squash to a new level. There are often cars made out of zucchinis hurling around the park, a great pumpkin weigh-in contest, and best of all, the pumpkin patch.
Imagine pumpkins flying hundreds of feet through the air at high velocity. Every year, pumpkin pitch competitors build catapults or traction trebuchets to launch their pumpkins the entire length of the park. The pumpkins crash land at the end of the field, and the winner takes bragging rights for the year. The Burlington Harvest Festival and Pumpkin Pitch is truly a fun way to spend a Saturday.
There are so many fun things to do in Skagit County in the fall. Don’t let the rainy weather and clouds stop you from adventuring! On any given weekend in Skagit County in the fall, there is a farm festival, pumpkin-themed event, or a crop to be harvested. If you are ever looking for an additional way to spend the day, simply drive through the farm fields and see what is being grown and harvested.
While tourist season in Skagit County definitely peaks in the spring and summer, there is so much to explore and do in the county year-round. The fall can be a great time to beat the crowds and still enjoy mild weather. Biking, hiking, fishing, and other outdoor activities are extremely popular past times September- Early November before freezing temperatures come.
If you need activities to do in Skagit County in all of the other seasons of the year, make sure to check back in with the Clever Neighbor!
“Agriculture is our wisest pursuit, because it will in the end contribute most to real wealth, good morals, and happiness.”
-Thomas Jefferson
Of all the holidays we celebrate in the Northwest, Halloween offers some of the greatest opportunities to connect adults and children with their local farms and produce. There are a number farms across the South Sound region that are open to the public during late September and October–with hay rides, corn mazes and fields of pumpkins to peruse on a lazy afternoon.
Surely it’s a joy to clutch a hot coffee, or cider and get some mud on your boots, but is there some greater purpose to this tradition? As evenings wane into darkness, and temperatures invite longer sleeves, what is it that draws us back each year?
A 2014 English study found that Farmers, Forestry workers and Fishermen were happier with their jobs than other professionals, including bankers and entertainers. Perhaps this is one of underlying reasons to why urban dwellers are developing green thumbs—we all secretly want to be farmers.
Learn about Mosby Farms community supported Veggie Club CSA .
I remember as a child getting marigold seeds in my Happy Meal. I planted those seeds and watched in wonderment as their flowers bloomed. Today in the cities you may see a front yard sewn into a garden, or the median between a sidewalk and road transformed with fruit trees, a “Topsy Turvy” Tomato planter hanging from a balcony, and lavender grown beside the door. Maps are being drawn, across the nation, of existing fruit trees, connecting urban harvesters with potential crops.
For those too busy to garden, or lacking the space, CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) programs provide fresh supplies of sustainable, local produce throughout the growing season. And of course there are your local farmer’s markets, where you can purchase produce from those that grow it. And then we are left with winter.
Is the autumnal stroll through corn stalks, framed by hills of orange and calls of geese something of a memorial? Is it all at once a recalibration of what we’ve done with what we might do next year? Perhaps the fiscal calendar has it right. Perhaps the year has ended with the harvest and we have already embarked on the new.
“The farmer has to be an optimist or he wouldn’t still be a farmer.”
– Will Rogers
This year as you arrange your squash aesthetically, and boil your cranberries with sugar, imagine if you will the farms and farmers that touched those items. Imagine the bogs, and the fields; the black cup of coffee before a hard days work, and as for the pumpkin. If all you do is carve out the guts, roast the seeds and stick a candle inside, know that you are supporting a farm, and in some small way celebrating the American Farmer.
All photos were taken by the author at Mosby Farms in Auburn, Washington