Photos and story by Elizabeth Juengling/ Contributing Writer
Lucky Ladd Farms held the first Fall Family Fun weekend of the season on Saturday, Sept. 21 in Rutherford County. There was fun for all ages with “ag-venture” fun park attractions, educational activities, animal displays, and of course–pumpkins.
Lucky Ladd provided children with fun, farm-themed games and rides. They showcased giant swings, duck races, mega slides, tractor train rides, pony rides and a “corn box” instead of a sand box. They even had large versions of classic board games like an agricultural variation of “Guess Who?” called “Who’s Your Chick?”
The main “ag-venture” attraction during Fall Family Fun was the corn maze. This year, the corn maze was Lion King themed and featured an image of the characters Mufasa and Simba. One of the other specialty “ag-venture” sections for event weekends was the “Back-Forty Range Games.” This section included pumpkin slingshots, lassos, bulls-eye archery and corn cannons.
The event even made education fun through interactive attractions like “Animals Around Us,” a challenge to identify animals and their habitats, and the “Korny Kackle Show,” an animatronic experience with songs, jokes and chicken facts.
The most popular educational attraction is the Wagon Ride. The ride travels through the Cedar Glades to teach patrons about Tennessee’s vast wildlife. Cindy Ellis, a patron and grandmother, said “The wagon ride was very interesting and very fun.”
Autumn themed characters walked around the play areas and greeted guests. The most popular character was the Pumpkin Princess. The princess, Sophie Sadler, was dressed in a beautiful, flowing orange gown and a pumpkin crown.
Salder said the princesses and other characters are a great addition to the Fall Family Fun Festival because “they get everyone’s spirits up and people love seeing the characters.”
The animal attractions were extremely popular amongst all ages.
Both children and adults had a great time feeding and petting barnyard animals. The petting zoo and feeding areas featured goats, llamas, alpacas, cows, turkeys, peacocks and tortoises. Lucky Ladd Farms also opened a new animal section called Critter Alley. Currently, Critter Alley features emus, with more habitats coming soon.
The farm had an extensive selection of different types of pumpkins and gourds so guests could take a bit of the farm home with them. In addition, they had autumn refreshments like apple cider slushies, homemade caramel apples, fresh apple cinnamon donuts and kettle corn.
Lucky Ladd Farms provided a fun, educational experience that patrons of all ages could enjoy. Lucky Ladd will host the Fall Family Fun Festival every weekend from Sept. 21 to Nov. 1.
To contact Lifestyles Editor Brandon Black, email lifestyles@mtsusidelines.com.
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