Taking a trip out to Hillcrest Farms has become an annual fall tradition in our family. Though it’s a bit of a drive, the beautiful landscape and fall fun make the 40 minute drive from Fresno, well worth it!
The pumpkin patch and farm are open every weekend from 10am-5pm from September 28 to October 27. Hillcrest charges an entrance fee per carload. The first two weekends (Sept 28 & 29 and Oct 5 & 6) are $5 per car. The remaining weekends through October 27 are $10 per car. There are two parking lots: one above near the train and one below near the pumpkin patch. We have parked in both but have come to prefer the one above near the train.
This year we went on their opening weekend and it was fantastic! The crowds were light and the weather was perfect. We love the layout of Hillcrest and all of the fun little areas for the kids to explore and play at their own pace. Per Kellan’s request, we opted to “look around and see everything they have to do” before going on the main attraction – the train ride!
At the other end of the corn path lies the pumpkin patch. We often skip buying a pumpkin here because they’re a little pricey and we don’t really want to lug the pumpkins around on the rest of our visit, BUT they are quite lovely pumpkins and gourds of varying shapes and colors. We usually just play and explore around the patch as they have toy tractors and a fantastic old swing! Plus, this area provides photo ops galore!
After spending sometime at the patch we hike on through a little barn tunnel onto the wobbly bridge. Be warned, this bridge is no joke! Hold on!
And finally, after hiking full circle back to the upper level, it was time for the train ride!
A morning at Hillcrest should definitely be on every Fresno-area family’s Fall Bucket lists! They also host events seasonally throughout the year, so checkout their website for all the info… or just keep following us because we’ll likely be visiting again soon! 😉
