Archive for September, 2014

Balloon Lift off September 27th 2014, Corn Maze wagon rides and a whole lot more.

Thursday, September 11th, 2014
Lots of hot air!

Lots of hot air!

We open our Corn Maze in Mid-September but our Balloon Lift has grown into our sort of unofficial Kick Off for the fall harvest season. It takes a few crisp mornings and few trees changing color to get people thinking about a trip to the pumpkin patch or corn maze.

Up close and personal

Up close and personal

Our balloon lift started over a dozen years ago when I asked a neighbor who owned a balloon if he would get a few friends together and take off from our farm. It has gotten to be a fall tradition. We launch between six and eight balloons from the meadow up back near our corn maze and campfire site area. Folks are welcome to get a up close view of the balloon crews at work as they prepare to take to the skies.

Grab a seat wherever you can!

Grab a seat wherever you can!

You can bring a blanket a lawn chair or grab a seat wherever you can! Our giant hay/straw crawl is a favorite place to relax as the balloons unfold and inflate and take to the skies.

Or just keep crawling!

Or just keep crawling!

Kids just love to climb on things! One thing we learned over the years is if it sticks up out of the field, Kids love to climb on it so we just go with it. We try and build as many farm theme consistent safe and fun fresh air opportunities to get out and have fun!

Wide open spaces!

Wide open spaces!

One unique thing about our farm is the setting. We sit up on a nice gentle hilltop surrounded by fields. The field we launch balloons from we make hay off of.

Somebody left their "sippy cup" unattended!

Somebody left their "sippy cup" unattended!

Some people ask can you have alcohol at a “family event”? We say yes you can. There are three to six hours worth of activities depending upon your level of abilities and interests. Folks can easily enjoy our wines or now new craft beers responsibly and be safe going home.

Did I mention kids like to climb?

Did I mention kids like to climb?

We encourage parents to get out and have fun with their off spring! We have lots of places for fresh air and exercise. So come on out September 27th, visit the balloon lift link on our web site for more information.

Corn Maze Disaster!! Oh my what a birthday present!

Friday, September 5th, 2014

It was my 50th birthday and I’m REAL hard to buy for so my wonderful wife planned an awesome trip over to the Finger Lakes wine country in Western New York state. It was a great time, we took our camper just the two of us and I made place to haul my motorcycle on the back. We had a blast, we spent a few days riding around the area then headed back home on my birthday July 10th.

And we are ready to roll!

And we are ready to roll!

On our way home we drove in pouring across 90. It got so bad I pulled off as I was afraid I might get rear ended because visibility was so bad. We got through it and drove home. As we got close we heard Akron had huge flooding and it stormed pretty hard but didn’t think much about it. The next day I went out and checked the fields not expecting what I’d find.

What was 5 feet tall yesterday was 1 foot tall today

What was 5 feet tall yesterday was 1 foot tall today

We got about 2.5 inches of rain in about a half an hour with heavy wind gusts that bent the corn over to the ground.

Flattened near the observation tower.

Flattened near the observation tower.

Corn is a tough plant and I’d seen it blown over before and stand back up but not when it was this tall. Much of this field was over five feet tall and it was bent and broken just a few inches above ground level.

The flattened corn fell into the maze paths

The flattened corn fell into the maze paths

The flattened corn had fallen into the maze paths I had proudly cut just a few weeks earlier and made me uncertain would I be able to still craft a maze into this field. I still needed to roto-till these paths yet, and I wasn’t sure what I had in the way of design left. The soil was saturated and if you tried to pick up a stalk it snapped off at the ground.

What to do with this mess?

What to do with this mess?

So I took the advise of my father in law Kay and my buddy Dave from Iowa, walk away and come back in a week.

About 10 days later this is what I found!

About 10 days later this is what I found!

I came back and this what I found…..It mostly stood back up, at least enough to make a corn maze!

Bent at the base but still standing!

Bent at the base but still standing!

The stalks were “Goosenecked” and bent but the plants had mostly righted themselves. The field sort of shifted over about a foot but it all moved in a relative fashion so the paths I had mowed earlier were maintained.

Roto tilling went well!

Roto tilling went well!

Tilling the paths went well and we were able to clean up the edges nicely and it made for a great aerial photo.

2013 LoCo Motion final photo

2013 LoCo Motion final photo

We ended up getting a great picture and had a record year for the fall. And best of all when we harvested later in November the field yielded over 140 bushels to the acre even with all the paths cut out of it!