It’s officially fall in the Capital District. Pumpkin patches are a riot of orange and apples are ready to be picked. Fall turns this region into an exciting outdoor playground for all ages just waiting to be explored.
Here are some ideas to get you started:
Leaf peeping
The Capital District and Adirondacks are a sight to see this time of year. Whether by boat, foot or rail, the possibilities are endless for enjoying one of nature’s finest shows.
Find family-friendly hiking trails at capital-saratoga.com/things-to-do/hiking or www.adirondack.net/hiking. Or sit back and enjoy the show by catching a ride on the Adirondack Scenic Railroad (www.adirondackrr.com) or the Saratoga and North Creek Railway (www.sncrr.com). For a change of pace, hop on a horse. Lake George (www.visitlakegeorge.com/outdoor-recreation/horseback-riding) has a variety of places where leaf peepers of all ages can travel the terrain on horseback. Check out the sites from above in a hot air balloon (helmsaeroservice.com or www.adkballoonflights.com) or take a cruise on the lake with The Lake George Steamboat Company, which runs sightseeing cruises through the month of October (lakegeorgesteamboat.com).
Find a festival
• The Capital District has a variety of festivals for everyone in the family in October. The 26th annual Goold Orchards Apple Festival and Craft Show in Castleton, will take place on Saturday, Oct. 11, and Sunday, Oct. 12, offering horse-drawn wagon rides, apple and pumpkin picking, live entertainment and wine tastings. For more information, visit goold.com.
• Taste the best chowder in the area at the 8th annual Troy Chowderfest on Sunday, Oct. 12, on River Street in Downtown Troy (www.downtowntroy.org).
• The Saratoga Fall Festival returns for its 13th year on Saturday, Oct. 26, with kid’s activities including face painting, pumpkin rolling races, trick or treating, arts and crafts, trolley rides, a petting zoo, live music and more. The day ends with a kid’s costume parade down Broadway in Downtown Saratoga Springs. For more information, visit www.saratoga.com/fall/fall-festival.cfm.
• Gore Mountain will hold its annual Harvest Festival on Saturday, Oct. 11, and Sunday, Oct. 12. The free event will feature gondola sky rides, scenic helicopter rides, a barbecue buffet and children’s activities. For more information, visit www.goremountain.com/events/gore-mountain-harvest-fest.
• Fall isn’t complete without Mechanicville’s annual Fallapalooza, which returns for its seventh year on Saturday, Oct. 25. Take your pumpkin with you for store-to-store trick-or-treating down Main Street. Food and craft vendors, entertainers and children’s workshops will be available all weekend.
• Maple Ski Ridge will hold its fall festival on Saturday, Oct. 11, with more than 40 crafters, food vendors, haywagon and chairlift rides, a tractor pull and all a car, truck and tractor show.
Rain? No problem
In the event of rain, head to the museum or theater.
On Saturday, Oct. 25, the New York State Museum celebrates fall with a Monster Mash and Bash for kids. The event will include crafts, storytelling, games and a costume parade.
The Home Made Theater at the Spa Little Theater in Saratoga presents “The Addams Family” in October. The musical brings Gomez, Morticia, Wednesday, Pugsley and Fester to life and promises to be frightfully fun for all ages.
Visit a farm
Area farms feature a wide range of activities in the fall. Pick your own apples at Altamont Orchards (www.altamontorchards.com) or Indian Ladder Farms (www.indianladderfarms.com) in Altamont, Goold Orchards (www.goold.com) in Schodack, or Saratoga Apple (saratogaapple.com) in Schuylerville.
Play a game of trivia that provides hints to help navigate the twists and turns of the 11-acre maze at Liberty Ridge Farm (libertyridgefarmny.com) in Schaghticoke, get lost in the Amazing Maize Maze at Ellms Family Farm (www.ellmsfarms.com) in Ballston Spa or explore a maze designed in the shape of Fort Ticonderoga while searching for history clues among towering stalks of corn (www.fortticonderoga.org/visit/detail/id/345.)
Pedal a kart around the Honeycrisp 500 track, shoot rotten apples out of an apple cannon and feed sheep, goats and alpacas at Bowman Orchards in Rexford (www.bowmanorchards.com).
Or simply sit back and enjoy your own private campfire at Liberty Ridge Farm (libertyridgefarmny.com/camp-fire-sites) where you and your family can enjoy your own fireside gathering.
Run a Race
Run with zombies, through corn or along pumpkins at one of the area’s fall races. The 14th annual Great Pumpkin Challenge takes place on Saturday, Oct. 18, in Saratoga State Park. It’s all about the corn at Liberty Ridge farm where runners take their mark at the corn maze for a 5k on Saturday, Oct. 18. If zombies, vampires and werewolves are more your thing, the SCCCared at The Crossings of Colonie and rUNDEAD at Saratoga State Park is for you on Saturday, Oct. 18, and Sunday, Oct. 26. If running isn’t your thing, rUNDEAD will transform you into a zombie on the day of the event, and you can be the one chasing the runners.
Little Zombies are in for a treat at the 1k Zombie Stumble at Collins Park in Scotia on Saturday, Oct. 25. The family event will feature a DJ, face painting, crafts, food and more.
Haunted Happenings
If spooky is what you are looking for, Liberty Ridge’s maze takes on a creepy twist after dark (libertyridgefarmny.com/harvest-haunt) with haunted attractions each weekend in October.
The Double M Haunted Hayrides in Malta will take you through the woods on a tractor-drawn wagon for a narrated and spooky ride full of surprises and terror (doublemhauntedhayrides.com).
The Saratoga Fairgrounds in Ballston Spa is transformed into a haunted playground Friday and Saturday nights from Oct. 10 through Nov. 1. This attraction is not suitable for small children. For more information, call 796-5190.
Learn about the creepy ongoings of the City of Albany on a ghost tour through Downtown Albany. Each tour is 90 minutes long. Learn about Albany’s most famous stories from Ten Broeck Mansion to Graceland Cemetery. Tours cost $25 per person. For more information, visit ghostsofalbany.com.
Saratoga Springs has its own share of haunted tales. Tours meet at The Arts Center on Broadway every Friday and Saturday in October. For more information, visit www.hauntedhistoryghostwalks.com/ghostwalkssaratogasprings.
Throughout October join Capital tour guides as they visit the “hot spots” of the New York State Capital on their Capital Hauntings Tour. Visit the spots where the Capital’s night watchman died in the fire of 1911 and explore the legend of the Secret Demon near the Great Western Staircase. Tours take place Monday through Friday in October. Register at ogs.ny.gov.
Go on an archaeological quest under the light of the full moon in Fort Ticonderoga’s 6-acre corn maze with a flashlight as your guide Friday, Oct. 17, and Saturday, Oct. 18.
Explore the Albany Pine Bush for their annual Halloween Howl Prowl on Friday, Oct. 24. Learn about bats, skulls, spiders and night time sounds and take a half-mile hike through the Pine Bush at night and end the evening with cider and donuts. For more information, visit www.albanypinebush.org.