Denver's 2010 Halloween Events & Pumpkin Patches050

It's that time of year again: There's a chill in the air, the leaves are a-turnin', and kids are jonesing for pumpkins, Halloween haunts, and corn maze adventures. Where to head if you're a Denver-Front Range resident in need of great kids' seasonal and Halloween activities?

Pumpkin patches

Supporting a family-owned farm is a great way to get your fall fix, and thanks to our close proximity to agricultural communities all along the Front Range, it's easy to get out for a day. Some of our favorite places to find pumpkins (and all kinds of festive seasonal goodies and events) include Berry Patch Farms (and its October-weekends event, Country Harvest Days); Cottonwood Farms, which also offers visitors a Halloween event throughout October; Munson Farms; Ollin Farms; Hill's Harvest Pumpkin Patch in Thornton; May Farms in Byers and its Halloween Harvest Festival; Mazzotti Farms Pumpkin Patch and Corn Maze>; Anderson Farms's Fall Fest 2010; Flat Acre Farms Fall Fest; Rock Creek Farm in Broomfield; and Rocky Mountain Pumpkin Ranch in Longmont and its fabulous October Pumpkin Festival.

Family Halloween Events

Elitch's Fright Fest is a great destination for families - the attraction features both scary-for-teens and sweet-for-youngsters activities.

The first weekend in October marks the opening of BooTown and 3D Maze Craze at Heritage Square and the debut of the Festival Playhouse's production of Dracula.

On the weekend of October 9-10, families can attend the Annual Pumpkin Festival at Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield; Jack-O-Launch & PumpkinFest at DeLaney Farm; the Harvest Fest at the Littleton Historical Museum; or, in Olde Town Arvada, the 14th annual Festival of Scarecrows.

On the weekend of October 15-17, Lookout Mountain Nature Center hosts Halloween Tales & Trails (advance reservations are required), while the Morrison Star K Ranch hosts the Spooky Animals presentation. Also this weekend, Chautauqua hosts a bone-chilling, outdoor production of Nosferatu - The Death of Dracula, performed by Theater Hikes on the trails of the mountain park. Near Castle Rock, the Colorado Horse Center hosts Halloween with Horses. At the Denver Botanic Gardens, visitors can learn about the site's cemetery history during Ghosts in the Gardens (which repeats October 23 and 29-30.

Parents Picks favorite My Art Workshop hosts some Halloween Fun and Pizza Party on October 19.

On the weekend of October 22-24, kids can head to a Disney Store for Halloween Dress Rehearsal Party; The Butterfly Pavilion hosts a buggy party to celebrate Halloween, Bug-a-Boo; Families can sweat it out at the Scream Scram 5k Run/Fun Walk; The Morrison Nature Center at Star K Ranch hosts Trick or Treat Nature Trail; the Ink Lounge hosts a crafty afternoon with Trick Out Your Bag: Screenprint Workshop for Kids; Thornton hosts Trunk or Treat in Thornton; Littleton hosts The Haunts of Littleton Walking Tour; and the Great Broomfield Pumpkin Festival takes place at 1stBank Center. Families can also have an overnight adventure when the Denver Firefighters Museum hosts its Firehouse Ghosts sleepover.

On October 28, families can get a taste of spooky history with Mt. Vernon Ghost Town Tales at Matthews/Winters Park (reservations required).

The weekend of Halloween itself has numerous activities:

Trick or Treat Train & Railroad Halloween Town at the Colorado Railroad Museum

Victorian Halloween at the Littleton Historical Museum

Halloween Family Friday Night at the Highlands Ranch Tattered Cover

Trunk or Treat and Spooky Fest at the Erie Community Center

Englewood Rec Center's Halloween Carnival

A Halloween Full Tea at the Molly Brown House

Boulder's Pearl Street Mall hosts its annual Munchkin Masquerade.

Boo at the Zoo at the Denver Zoo

Live Bats! at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science

Bats Aren't Just for Halloween workshop at the CU Natural History Museum (reservations required!)

The Great Pumpkin Hayride at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal Refuge

Mary Sue and Cari's Halloween Concert at the Boulder Public Library

The Littleton Symphony Orchestra performs its annual, free Children's Halloween Concert

The Children's Museum's Trick or Treat Street

The Downtown Aquarium's Kids' Halloween Fest

Trick or Treat OFF the Street at The Wildlife Experience Museum

A Halloween Cemetery Tour

Colorado Mountain Mamas's Trek or Treat at Lookout Mountain Nature Center

Old South Gaylord Safe Street Halloween

A Halloween Moo to You at the Children's Museum

Trick-or-Treat Trail at Southlands

Tennyson Trick or Treat

Castle Rock Trick or Treat Street

Littleton Trick or Treat Street

Trick or Treat Street at Aspen Grove

The Westminster City Park Rec Center's Halloween Carnival

The Great Pumpkin Hayride at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal

The esteemed Brown Palace Hotel serves up two seasonal events: Brown Palace Ghost Tours and Monster Brunch

and Garden of Goodies Halloween at Hudson Garden.

For Big Kids

Finally, for the not-faint-of-heart, several spookier or extreme attractions can be found around town. Those on our older kids' and teens' radars: The Asylum Haunted House in Northglenn; Haunted Field of Screams & Dead Man's Night Maze in Thornton; the I Scream Factory in Brighton; Spider Mansion at Heritage Square; Victorian Horrors at the Molly Brown House; the City of the Dead Haunted House; I Scream Factory in Brighton; Haunted Hayrides at Stockton's Stables; Golden Cemetery Tours; and in Littleton, two events: the Reinke Brothers Haunted Mansion and the Second Annual Zombie Crawl in Historic Downtown Littleton. Teens may also want to test their scare limits at the Mile High Horror Film Fest.

What Halloween and autumn activities are your family's favorites in the Denver/Front Range area? Let us know by sending an email to denver@parentsconnect.com and we'll add it to our list here!