Where to frolic with the fam in fall foliage in Winnipeg
When decorative gourd season calls, Winnipeg's rural attractions answer.
As the leaves turn gold and crunchy our surrounding fantastic farm-based experiences bring out their very best, creating environments more autumny than a carnival squash in a crotched sweater sipping a pumpkin spice latte.
Here are a few spots within and surrounding Winnipeg where autumn is amped for the whole fam jam.
A Maze in Corn – If peak fall flavour is pumpkin spice, then peak fall sound is that rustle of stalks and leaves as you navigate a maze of maize. A Maze in Corn really has it all come autumn, including its marquee corn maze that takes more than 20 minutes to navigate.
On top of that, you can reach the top of a hay bale pyramid for some prairie views then interact with super cute goats, lambs and kittens in the petting zoo. Go on horse-drawn or pony-pulled hayrides as the sun sets (every bit as charming as it sounds) and make sure you shop for produce and all manner of squash within its large Pumpkin Barn. Bring home some local honey, sweet corn and sunflower bouquets that were just harvested after its equally popular Sunflower Expo in August.
Know before you go: The website is updated daily with what activities will be available when visiting.
Aurora Farms – Kid you not, Aurora Farms is the GOAT when it comes to fun informative farm tours. This quaint vegetarian farm has been sustainably producing outstanding goat milk soap for years now and has also made a name for itself as a top destination for goat yoga.
Families can book the one-hour Experience Aurora Tour in advance that gets you up close to its animals –– a cast that also includes heritage horses, alpacas, fowl and a mini donkey –– while also showcasing its gardens and how the farm’s products are made and how sustainable farm practices are utilized. While you are there, you can also visit the Aurora Farm General Store featuring products produced right on the farm, including that famed soap, alpaca yarn and skin care products.
Experience Aurora Tours can be booked here.
Deer Meadow Farms – Dearest readers, whenever we need a pick-me-up we just look at a picture of our little guy holding the fluffiest bunny we’ve ever seen at Deer Meadow Farms and all seems well in the world (see the gallery below).
This place is honestly cuter than watching an elderly couple holding hands over the dinner table at a bistro. Your kids will relish its large petting zoo with its miniature horses, pigs, goats, calves, lambs and sheep, while its BunnyVille contains all these little enclosures for the world’s cutest puff balls to hide in.
Even the Headless Horseman would fawn over its wagon rides, which take you through the forested meadow and bring you up close to the tiny European fallow deer that you wish you could take home.
There’s also games, a licensed patio, a pumpkin patch and an impressive corn maze to explore.
More of its jaunty offerings include Farmer Golf (a nine-hole mini golf course), the pumpkin patch (where you can purchase gorgeous and gigantic gourds) and Haunted Hayrides to the Forbidden Forest, which features massive, macabre sets within a 15-acre forest (so that last one is just for adults and older kids).
For full hours, dates and tickets click here.
The Little Red Barn Micro-Sanctuary – What a heart-warming experience it is visiting this farm located right within Charleswood.
It’s a place where former farm animals go to gently live out their days, while visitors can partake in thematic tours like the Children Compassion Private Tour and the Zen Bovine Cow Cuddling tour –– all with an emphasis on empathy. Farm residents include characters like Lucy the Pig, Ellie the Cow, Nigerian-pygmy goats Casey and Finnegan, hens with names like Matilda and Francis and big old Scotty, the Belgium Draft Gelding horse.
Winnipeg's major parks – If animals and getting rural aren't your thing, head to some of the city's largest parks –– including Assiniboine Park and Kildonan Park –– to capture the season on your phone. Both parks have ample gardens and tree-lined paths where you can savour the ever-changing colours as oak and elm leaves crunch underfoot.
FortWhyte Alive – Located in the city's south-west end, FortWhyte Alive offers ample space to stroll through aspen forests as they turn to gold. Along with birding, hiking, biking and paddling on its lakes during the day, come sunset you'll witness one of this region's top fall spectacles –– migration season! Each evening in autumn FortWhyte plays host to thousands of geese and waterfowl that descend and make a splash on Lake Devonian after foraging in the surrounding farmers' fields all day. You can catch this magical scene from the deck of its Interpretive Centre, while its Buffalo Stone Cafe often hosts Goose Flight Feasts that pair this spectacle with a seasonal three-course meal.
The Riverwalk – Connecting The Forks to the handsome Manitoba Legislature Grounds, this path is an absolute stunner in fall, offering an archway of golden foliage to stroll beneath. This gentle trail follows the Assiniboine River, providing views along the waterways that are brimming with the colours of the season, while above you'll note downtown's tallest apartment buildings framing it all together. An absolute peachy scene if there ever was one.
