HALLOWEEN 2025 PHOTO BLOG: Where the Pumpkin Shells Cast Evil Spells!
Waking up on a cold, overcast and rainy late-September morning could mean only one thing: Invasion It was time to pack up the family and hit the road to make our way on down to Arata’s farm for this year’s pumpkin selections! My wife and I were lucky enough to stumble across this beautiful spot down in Half Moon Bay a half decade ago and needless to say: It instantly became an Autumn tradition of ours (as well as the official kickoff to the Halloween season).
Let’s have a look!
It’s never been planned this way but we typically hit the farm a little bit earlier in the month than how it shook out on this trip. And despite the pretty moist weather and *muddy grounds (or maybe because of it), the place was pretty hopping. Lots of families with little ones running around posing for photos, riding the little train, navigating the hay maze and dodging incoming miniature tractors that clearly brake for nobody.
*my advice if you really want to have a good time: don’t wear white sneakers that you really like a lot
Showing up later than usual had plenty of benefits though as there were a lot more decorations set up all over the place. We even finally managed to catch a glimpse of their open for business haunted farmhouse which is closed until closer to October. I think it’s one of those deals where you walk through a few garbage bag covered halls and some nerds in masks hop out behind you for a cheap jump scare. I can’t say that I’m a fan of that kinda thing but they do have a pretty heavy metal little greeting crew just above the entrance that makes the place look bit more promising than that. We haven’t had the chance to walk through and scope the whole thing out for ourselves yet but maybe next time!
On previous trips, our daughter Alice immediately headed for the little pumpkin pull carts to hop inside of but this time she was too excited to sprint through the patch on her own to ride in anything other than the train. She was happy to help push it from behind though as our new baby boy Leland provided cross eyed supervision.
We didn’t pick any of the pumpkins pictured above but the one you see here was just the right size and weight for this three year old to patiently pose with for a photo. After that, it was time grab a few more snapshots before putting the phone away to really soak up the mood that this place has to offer.
Talk about everything coming together this year. The rainy skies, the ambient sound of kids running around laughing, the creaky movements of beat up old animatronic monsters and pumpkin covered locomotives, not to mention that unmistakable smell of a wet barnyard: It all combined to create a very specifically satisfying October energy cocktail that’ll have us coming back for more!
