Forsythe Family Farms: Same spirit, new location

Special Halloween Day: October 31 from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.!
For years, Forsythe Family Farms was Toronto's closest working farm open to the public. A few years ago, they moved to Uxbridge area.  I recently went to visit the new location and found out it's a lovely country ride as you approach the farm. No wonder their new motto is "A little drive for a whole lot of country".

Driving towards the farm on Cragg Road, west of Marsh Hill Road

Those who knew their other location will recognize this Three Little Pigs scene from their beloved Enchanted Forest. The little forest in their current location did not allow them to reproduce the exact same concept but check the photos below to see how they've turned it into a Fairy Tale Lane with additional I-Spy fun walk in their Forest Discovery Trail.

Forsythe Family Farms has always been good with their attention to detail. Throughout the site and in their Barnyard Adventures, we see cute signs and family-tested simple activities: a fully equipped kitchen in a tiny playhouse, upraised slides, photo ops corners, wagon ride to the Fairy Tale Lane, 2-acre corn maze, and many animals in the Animal Barn, where you can feed them a 50¢ bag of healthy greens.

  

I was surprise to see many teens visiting the place on their own. Not because they were accompanying younger siblings but simply for the fun of it.

You can easily walk to the Fairy Tale Lane (probably a 10-min. walk). When you take the wagon ride, it stops at the entrance of the Forest Discovery Trail and waits for you to return to the farm. I would recommend walking back instead to have more time to look at the fairy tales with the kids and to spot all the items on the list of the I-Spy game.

  

I Spy an owl!

I Spy a frog!

I saw that some people had a sheet that they could put to use at three different spots in the maze, opting for different elements to draw on an empty pumpkin face. At the exit of the maze, they could find out the name of their pumpkin, depending on their overall selection, on a panel with 64 pumpkin faces.

Remember your maths? 4 choices x 4 choices x 4 choices = 64 options

Good to know! You can ask the staff around to let you hold a bunny!

While stopping in their market store to grab a freshly made apple pie, I found out they have a good selection of frozen meat from nearby farms. I was there on the special Apple Cider Day when a mobile cider-making truck was making and pasteurizing cider and putting them in containers that can keep cider on the shelf for a full year! (The farm carries this cider.)

Look at this view! It's so pretty Mr. and Mrs. Forsythe decided to create a patio overlooking it all.

Looking westbound on Cragg Road, on my way back to Marsh Hill Road

mmmmm

mmmmm