ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
It is officially Halloween season, which means it is time for people to go to their local pumpkin patch and select that perfect jack-o-lantern to carve up.
Pumpkin Paradise, LLC, located at 1853 Road 100 in Sublette, is one such pumpkin patch open for the season, and she said there is a lot of excitement in the air.
“We’re so excited to be open, we’re really happy to have a good pumpkin crop this year for people to choose from and we even added a couple new attractions like the big Adirondack chair for photos, tug-of-war, and we also hid some pumpkins in the corn maze,” owner Janet Weidner said. “There’s also a space in the gift shop where you can get your ‘pumpkin name,’ and we’ve got more merchandise in there for shoppers. We started planting everything in early June and we spent most of the summer babying everything and watching everything grow. We were thankful to get the rain we did, that really helped with the pumpkins’ growing and the weeds’ growing, which we weren’t as thrilled about, but we just work at it every day. We don’t have our usual Sasquatch pumpkin this year since none of them grew quite that big, but we definitely have enough pumpkins for people to choose from.”
The facility opened for the season Sept. 27 and will be open from 2 to 7 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays to the public through the end of October. Schools may call to make appointments during the week, and they can call (620) 668-5680 or email
“With the school appointments, our calendar is about half full, so if there’s a group that really wants to come, they should definitely give us a call soon,” Weidner said. “People will love the pumpkins we have, and we have a bunch of games designed for families to play with each other. A lot of people say the games are their favorite part because that’s when they get to really interact with their children and have that fun. We’ve got some really beautiful pumpkins that should make perfect jack-o-lanterns, and I think people will be happy with everything we have. We’ve got so many selections out there, and I think everyone will be happy with what they ultimately end up with. I would also like to remind everyone admission is $6 for people ages 3 years old and older (with children 2 years old and younger free), and they must pay by either cash or check, we do not take cards since we don’t have those capabilities. We also don’t allow pets, and Pumpkin Paradise is also a no smoking/no alcohol facility. With the field trips, this is a great place for children to run around and scatter and have fun and be themselves for a little while, and the teachers are also appreciative of that.”
Like every year, Weidner said she is looking forward to seeing all the families go through the fields to find their pumpkins.
“We can never 100 percent know how each year will be, but we do think we’ll see some good turnout again. People love having a huge pumpkin patch to walk through and games to play with their children and just taking in the spirit of the Halloween season,” Weidner said. “I will say though, if you want to be sure and get the pumpkin you truly want, get here earlier in the season when the crowds aren’t quite as busy and you can have your choice. It’s always around the middle of the season when we get swamped with school visits and family visits, because that’s when everyone feels more in the mood to do fall-related stuff, and like I said, that’s always really fun to watch. We also have to take the weather into consideration, we can never fully predict if a season’s going to be nice and encourage people to be out and about, or not. You can have a beautiful pumpkin patch full of pumpkins, but if the weather’s not great, people aren’t really as inclined to go out and about outdoors. I have the best time talking with people who come on the weekends because we all share memories of tromping through the local pumpkin patch when we were young just like they’re doing with their children, and it’s always fun reminiscing about all that.”
Weidner added she looks forward to opening the pumpkin patch every year.
“I love everything about having the patch open every year. I say this every year, but I absolutely love seeing people come and enjoy themselves in the fields and just relaxing with their families, and there are a lot of families who treat it almost like it’s an amusement park or something similar, which is great,” Weidner said. “It’s great seeing families pick out that perfect jack-o-lantern together, or play the games and just spending that time together. I also really like when I’m working in a part of the field and just having everything peaceful. We’ve even had people from other countries come and visit, and they treat pumpkins like we do spinach or carrots or any other regular vegetable, and it’s fascinating to learn about all of that since we tend to use pumpkins more for desserts or sweets.”
Overall, Weidner said, she wants to help people have a spooktacular Halloween.
“I would just encourage people to come out and see us and pick out that perfect Halloween pumpkin and enjoy the fresh air and all the games,” Weidner said. “It’s just a great time for families and I hope we see a lot of people out here this year.”
