At this time of year, families love to head out to do some pumpkin picking in time for Halloween events and there's a host of farms doing special events. But we've also found a farm doing something a little bit different this year - with a pumpkin MAZE to pick your perfect gourd.
The cute pumpkin maze is all undercover in a barn at Pye Ash Farm near Macclesfield so you're less likely to get muddy feet or soaked in the unpredictable British weather. You can choose either a large wheelbarrow or small for the little pumpkin pickers to wheel their way through the hay-bale maze.
You can then choose your favourite pumpkins from a spectaular array of the Autumnal fruit - including traditional orange as well as pink, white and even blue. The pastel blue pumpkins, known as the Crown Prince variety, have all been grown especially on the farm to raise funds for the East Cheshire Hospice - with every £5 paid for one of these going direct to the charity.
Read more : Places to go pumpkin picking in and around Manchester
After selecting all your pumpkins and navigating the maze, you take your array to be measured and then pay based on size - from £1 up to £12 for the largest. And there are some huge pumpkins here, including one that has grown to weigh 50lb!
The pumpkin maze is open on Saturdays and Sundays throughout October at the farm in Bosley, Cheshire. It is accessible for wheelchairs and prams, although visitors are warned it is a barn still so the ground is uneven.
You don't have to pre-book, but tickets to enter the farm are £5 per car, and for that everyone can also get access to see the farm animals including, sheep, pigs, cows and chickens. There are also hourly sheep dog demonstrations run by farmer James Gilman, and a pumpkin trail for kids across the field.
The farm has been run by the Gilman family since the 1930s and is traditionally a sheep and beef farm now run by James. But in more recent years James' daughter Martha Gilman, 26, has looked at bringing more events to the farm.
They started with "Lambing Live" events in the barn, where people can come and meet the baby lambs at Easter. Then last year they started the pumpkin maze which proved so popular that they've brought it back this year with a huge crop of pumpkins all grown in their fields.
The farm itself has a stunning setting in Bosley, between Congleton and Macclesfield, looking out across to local landmark The Cloud. The farm sits just off the main A523, around 20 miles from Manchester.
Martha said the Pumpkin Maze has been particularly popular as it saves getting too muddy for families. She says: "Everyone likes the concept, particularly of it not being so muddy being indoors.
"There are lots of places to stop and have a photo as well as we know people like to post it on the 'gram! We've got a height chart as well to measure yourself next to the pumpkins.
"We just thought it would be something a little different and it proved really popular last year. So this year we grew everything ourselves on the farm.
"Because it's a traditional sheep and beef farm we were initially worried that the pumpkins wouldn't grow. But we've had a really bumper crop and now it's a case of doing the best we can to harvest the fields to cope with demand."
The farm has already raised £10,000 for the East Cheshire Hospice over the past two years of holding events, and aims to raise thousands more this year with the special Crown Prince pumpkins. Martha says that they're also the tastiest variety for those keen to use the fruit inside the pumpkin for tasty recipes.
They've been working with local restaurant businesses on recipe cards that are free for visitors to take away on the day - giving suggestions of recipes to make with the pumpkin flesh. While on the farm you can also pay the horse box drinks and food stalls a visit - where you can get fresh made pumpkin soup for £4.50, a raft of homemade cakes and hot drinks too.
There's also a licensed bar where you can snap up a cup of Baileys hot chocolate and local beers. Hot food includes baps with farm-fresh sausages and burgers.
Martha says: "The mini cafes are serving all farm-fresh food - it's important for us to be using lots of local suppliers and supporting the farming community.
"It's also great to see people so interested in the sheep dog demonstrations, we want to try and explain why we have sheep dogs and why we have sheep. Everyone is so engaged and it's lovely to see that."
Pye Ash Farm Pumpkin Maze, Dene House, Bosley, Macclesfield SK11 0PN is open every weekend (Saturdays and Sundays) in October from 10am to 4pm. It will also open during half-term school holiday from 10am to 4pm on Wednesday October 26, Thursday October 27 and Friday October 28.
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