Pumpkin Patch Review: Clayton Valley Pumpkin Farm

Clayton Valley Pumpkin Farm

We like the Clayton Valley Pumpkin Patch partly because it is not too far from us. Even so, it is a very nice pumpkin patch, with lots for kids to do.

The Clayton pumpkin patch seems to have expanded somewhat this year since our last visit a few years ago. They have two separate play areas for kids now instead of the one they had at our last visit. With a separate charge for each one, although they do offer a combination charge that saves you all of $1 if you do both. We decided against going down to the play areas this year due to the cost. It felt overpriced the last time we were there to me, although the kids loved it.

There is also a very small train ride for a smaller cost that makes a loop around the upper patch area. We did take a train ride this year, and it was what one would expect for that type of ride, although there were some cute decorations set up along the route to look at and even a tunnel to go through.

Even without spending much money, there was enough to keep our kids busy and happy for the hour or so we spent at the Clayton Pumpkin Patch. There was a small hay tunnel that they went in and out of over and over and over again with enthusiasm. I understand there is a much larger version of this in the pay-to-play area.

There are also a few farm animals to look at. Two pigs and two goats that we could see the day we visited. While the kids can't go in with the animals or touch them, they have a neat contraption for the kids to feed them with. It is sort of a stationary bike connected to a pulley. They can buy animal feed for a quarter, put the food into a can, and then peddle the can up where it will tip over the fence into a bowl before coming back down. My children were a little disappointed that the animals were not interested in the food pellets they peddled into their bowl, but not disappointed enough to keep them from asking to do it again.

Then there are the pumpkins. They are divided into piles by size. They even have piles of the more exotic green and white pumpkins some folks like. There are wheelbarrows in the pumpkin area to load up your pumpkins to take to the payment counter. The wheelbarrows are small and easy enough to handle that I never touched it, my 5 and 9 year old kids could maneuver them on their own. My husband learned that they don't actually grow the pumpkins there at the Clayton Farm; they are brought in from other places in California.

They also have a shop with other nice fall items, such as gourds, Indian corn, and Halloween decorations. The prices were not the lowest I've seen, but they are reasonable. The workers were all very helpful, and did their best to keep anyone from waiting for help.



We visited in mid-morning, and never had to wait in a line except for the train, and then not more than maybe 5 minutes. However, by the time we left, parking was very full, and I noticed that the train line was easily 5 times as long as when we had taken our ride. So aim for an earlier visit if you want to avoid the more crowded parts of the day.

Tilden Park in Berkley

Tilden Park in Berkley

Tilden Park in Berkley is a very big place. The first time we visited for a hike, we could have easily come and gone without ever knowing what other fun places there were for kids and families to visit there.

The hiking alone in Tilden Park is wonderful. It is a wooded area, and tends to be fairly cool compared to many other places around the bay. Our preschooler didn’t have any trouble with the trail we hiked, but since we have only hiked twice here, I am sure there are places with much more challenging trails. However, if you want to hike with little ones, you won’t have trouble finding a good place to do so in Tilden.

In addition to the lovely hiking trails, Tilden Park also has a small train that can take you for a short ride through the woods, and even smaller trains that can take kids for a ride around the miniature train yard. The train runs on weekends only and parking is fairly limited in the lot right by the train. The trains open at 11:00 am, and it is best to get there a little before they start if you want to park close by.

There is also an Environmental Education Center. Inside there is a room-sized model of the Bay Area, and a few other displays to look at. Naturalists also occasionally bring out some of their educational wildlife ambassadors and give short talks about them. We were fortunate enough to get to see a small snake and a tarantula on our visit.

Right next to the Education Center, is what they call the “Little Farm”. It’s basically what it sounds like, a small area with farm animals. There are cows, sheep, goats, chickens and ducks, and rabbits. It isn’t a petting zoo, but if the animals happen to come up to the fence, they can be touched.  When we last visited, guests were allowed to feed lettuce or celery that they had brought from home to the animals. My kids were a little sad that we had nothing to feed because we didn’t know ahead of time. I know from experience that the feeding rules can change at these places depending on the health needs of the animals, so if you bring something, please make sure to check the posted signs to make sure what you brought is safe to feed before you give anything to the animals.

While we have never visited it ourselves, there is also a merry-go-round, a botanic garden, and something called the Brazil building at Tilden. We hope to go explore these other area soon. Most of these attractions are not grouped together, but spread around the park, so we haven’t been able to see more than one or two areas at each visit. To see a map to plan your trip, and check hours of operation and costs, you can visit the Tilden Park page of the East County Parks website.

Western Railway Museum Pumpkin Festival in Suisun

It has been several years since our most recent visit to the Western Railway Museum in Suisun, but it is a trip we remember very fondly each time, and it is on our list of pumpkin patches that we are strongly considering returning to this year.

The Western Railway Museum is open on weekends year round (except for major holidays), and some weekdays over the summer. They have restored electric trains and streetcars on display.

During their Pumpkin Festival, which runs weekends from Oct 13^th thru the 28^th this year, they also add a hay bale fort, tractor ride, music, and games. They also have pumpkins for sale of course, but I wouldn't consider the pumpkin selection to ever have been the strongest point for the Railway Museum's Pumpkin Festival on the times we've been. Even so, they have pumpkins available, and when we go this counts as our pumpkin patch visit for the year.

The hay fort and tractor rides are nothing amazing, but they are nice, and the kids love them. They always ask for a few more minutes in the fort, or another ride on the wagon, so these are winning features in their eyes.

For the grown-ups in our group, the highlight instead is usually the ride over to the play / pumpkin patch area on board one of the historic rail cars. I don't recall how long the ride takes. It is more than a few minutes, but not long enough to drag on. Maybe 15 to 20 minutes? You ride the train to the area with the fort and pumpkins, stay as long as you like there, and catch another train back to the museum when you are ready. Trains run every 30 minutes starting at 10:00 am.

The actual museum part, including the restored streetcars and rail trains was probably more of a hit with the adults in our group, again, but the kids did look around and seemed to really enjoy seeing the trains. They were just "done" sooner with that part of the visit.

The last time we visited, one of our favorite bands, The Hip Waders, was playing, so we spent extra time watching them. They often let the kids perform along with them onstage with toy instruments. I checked, and they will be at the Western Railway's Pumpkin Festival again this year on Oct 21^st, 27^th, and 28^th starting at 11:00 am.

The admission cost for the Pumpkin Festival is slightly more than the regular Railway Resume admission cost. It is $12 for adults, and $9 for kids, $11 for seniors. You could easily, however, take a picnic lunch with you and make a whole day of it in the pumpkin patch / play area.