Great Connecticut Fall Attractions

There's far more to do in the fall than most people know. Corn mazes, are well represented in the states of Connecticut alone.

While it's certainly busy in Fairfield County, New Haven and Hartford, as you go north and east, things begin to calm down a bit in the far quieter countryside, at least until you get into casino territory in the east, but everywhere you go, fall is very much in evidence when the season passes through the state.

Not once do we remember having a muted fall. The leaves were always resplendent in their autumnal finery and much admired as long as they stayed on the trees. Once on the ground, however, the heavy lifting began.

On this and page 2 of our Connecticut attractions pages, we list some activities and places where you can see and do a great many things.

"We discovered in our research that some of the bigger farms here and in the other states offer a range of products and services now being called "agritouism." For instance, some have corn mazes, or welcome you to pick your own apples and pumpkins, while thy're giving hay rides to families and friends who enjoy a romp through the farmland.

Judging by the number of corn mazes below, there's a lot of farmland in the state; it's a nice thing to see when you realize that we lose otoo many farms countrywide at an alarming rate every day. But it's become a whole new tourism industry in an of itself, and gives people a great deal more to do in the fall thank peek at leaves.

We've checked out the places we selected for you and all of the businesses on the attractions pages passes with flying colors.

Connecticut, like every other New England state has been hard at work to offer people, families, groups and busloads of kids the time of their lives. We've added halloween-related attarctions and events to our list, along with Hay rides, Oktoberfest celebrations, train and trolly trips, amusement parks (leaving lake Compounce out, for instance, would be heretical!)

There's so much to do here that there is not just something for everybody. In Connecticut there are somethings for everybody. Many of the farms offer horse and pony rides. Together with corn mazes, some farms have built hay mazes. In visiting some of the agritourist sites, we found the farmers and folks who work at the farms having as much fun as the guests.

We picked businesses and farms from all over the state, so you should be able to find something of interest that is close to you. Doubtless, we missed some, so don't be shy. If you know of a great place not on our list, please send an email to: jim.hyde@newenglandtimes.com. I'll look into the business and add them to the list for you. That goes for anyone out there who has a business that isn't listed. Let us know about yourself so we can add you to the list.

Also, two important bits of news: We're planning a Thanksgiving section much like this section, so if you have places to recommend where one can get fresh turkeys, please let us know. More importantly to us, if you know of any homless or other shelters to which we can donate turkeys and all the trimmings, we're particularly interested in those. If you sell Thanksgiving products or services, please let us know. We'll look forward to hearing from you.

In the mean time, enjoy the fall. The way the weather is going up here in Vermont, it's going to be a great foliage season. There's more than enough to do out there, and the season is just getting started. You can pick apples one weekend, go through some corn mazes the next and go for a hay ride later. Just go and have some fun.