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Sign of the Season: Fritz Corn Maze

Family-fun weekend planned for Oct. 3-4 at the corn maze

By Molly Priddy
Visitors navigate the Fritz Corn Maze in Kalispell on Sept. 27, 2015. Greg Lindstrom | Flathead Beacon

As the Flathead Valley continues to transition into autumn, with October approaching and the summer’s heat and smoke becoming a distant if not unwelcome memory, it’s time for the crispness and seasonal fun fall offers.

And though the Fritz Corn Maze isn’t necessarily the longest tradition – it opened to the public in 2007 – it is quickly becoming one of the pillars of autumn here. To celebrate the seasonal return, Heidi Fritz said the corn maze will host a family-fun weekend on Oct. 3 and 4.

“For the beginning of October, that’s usually our biggest time, we’re going to have a family-fun weekend,” she said. “For that weekendm we have all the same attractions and also some extra things.”

Typical activities at the 10-acres corn maze include wandering through the maze itself, which also includes a scavenger hunt, the cow train – a train made of plastic barrels painted as cows pulled by a tractor – the culvert slides, a smaller hay-bale maze, bean bag toss, and more.

New activities for the Oct. 3-4 weekend will include gourd decorating, farm activity sheets, a coloring contest, pedal tractors, family sack races, and roping practice.

Admission for the weekend is still $5, and everything is included in the price.

“October is our biggest month, so to get more people out, we’re having this party to kick it off,” Fritz said.

Fritz also said new this year are the “corn circle party rooms,” which are circles cut from the existing corn to provide a bit of separation for private birthday parties or other private groups renting out a section of the maze.

The Fritzes also hope to host a scarecrow contest on Oct. 10 and 11, which would also include a scarecrow workshop on Oct. 9. The Fritzes will provide the straw for the scarecrows. Winners of the contest will be chosen through a vote.

And starting Oct. 29, the maze is home to extra-creepy ghouls for the Haunted Trail, running from Oct. 29-31.

Otherwise, the Fritz Corn Maze is open Friday through Sunday; Friday from 3 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

For more information on the corn maze, visit www.fritzcornmaze.weebly.com or call 406-755-4210.