Fall in Western Montana brings pumpkin patches, corn mazes, haunted attractions and plenty of seasonal flavors. Spend an afternoon on the farm, find your way through a corn maze, brave a haunted hayride or raise a glass to the season with local beer and cider. Here are a few ways to experience fall in Western Montana’s Glacier Country.
PUMPKIN PATCHES
Pumpkin picking is just the beginning at Western Montana’s pumpkin patches. At Sweet Pickin’s Pumpkin Patch in Kalispell, pick a pumpkin, visit the petting zoo, ride the Bumble Bee Barrel Train and let the kids loose on giant jumping pillows, pedal carts and a giant sandbox. Stop by the Mercantile and grab some of Sweet Pickin’s famous kettle corn or other fall treats while you’re there.
Turner Farms in Missoula offers a different experience on its five-acre working farm. Wander through the pumpkin patch, see crops and livestock, feed some of the farm animals, explore the gourd tunnel and peruse the Farm Store and Fall Shop. On select October weekends and Friday evenings, the experience expands with live music, food trucks, face painting and other seasonal activities.
For a more traditional pick-your-own experience, head to Meadowlark Farm in Hamilton and wander the patch in search of the perfect pumpkin. The patch typically opens in mid- to late September and continues through Halloween or until the pumpkins run out.
CORN MAZES
Get lost in a corn maze, then stick around for even more fall fun. At The Missoula Fall Fest, choose from three corn maze difficulty levels, take a hayride through the corn or bring younger kids to the hay maze, barrel train and giant hay slide. The 20-acre festival grounds also include a petting zoo, pumpkin patch and plenty of fall photo opportunities.
In Kalispell, Fritz Corn Maze cuts a new design into its field of towering corn each year, complete with a scavenger hunt hidden inside. Outside the maze, take a ride on the cow train, race down the culvert slides or navigate the smaller bale maze. For a scarier experience, return after dark for the Haunted Trail and Haunted Barn.
For a more frightening corn maze experience, head to Field of Screams in Victor, where a 10-acre cornfield transforms into a full Halloween haunt after dark. Make your way through towering corn while encountering chainsaws, creepy clowns, swamp creatures, a haunted dollhouse and other scares along the way. For a less frightening experience, zombie-free evenings feature the maze’s lighting, sound and fog effects without actors or jump scares.
HAUNTED HAPPENINGS
For a full-scale scare, enter the Missoula Haunted House, where this year’s outdoor haunt takes you into a post-apocalyptic cornfield inhabited by a cult of cannibals. Designed to be intense and frightening, the experience is recommended for ages 12 and older.
In Arlee, Apocalypse Zombie Hunt & Haunt offers two ways to face the undead. Make your way through a haunted farmhouse or board a bus equipped for a zombie paintball hunt through the apocalypse.
Climb aboard the Haunted Hayride at Clydesdale Outpost in Whitefish for a themed ride through the grounds, with a new storyline bringing the scares each year. Before or after your ride, explore the Midway for live entertainment, carnival games, local vendors, food and drinks, a blackout maze, axe throwing and other Halloween activities.
For something more mysterious than terrifying, explore the Conrad Mansion in Kalispell by candlelight during its October Ghost Tours. Hear stories of unexplained happenings and paranormal activity as you make your way through the historic mansion—and decide for yourself whether it might be haunted.
FALL FLAVORS
Raise a glass to fall with seasonal releases from Western Montana’s breweries, where autumn brings darker beers, harvest-inspired flavors and limited releases to taprooms. Look for pumpkin ales, Oktoberfest-style lagers and other brews made for cooler days.
Fall also means apple season, and local cideries celebrate the harvest with hard ciders made from Montana-grown fruit. Visit a tasting room to sample seasonal releases and discover how local apples make their way from orchard to glass.
Fall festivals and gatherings offer another way to taste the flavors of the season. Sample beer from breweries across the state at the Montana Brewers Fall Rendezvous in Missoula, celebrate the local apple harvest at the Troy Apple Festival or head to Hamilton for McIntosh Apple Day and Liquid Apple Night, where apples take center stage with fresh-pressed cider by day and hard cider tastings in the evening.
Please note: We ask that all our visitors and residents recreate responsibly by being mindful of the following: know before you go; plan ahead; play it safe; leave no trace; tread lightly; and help build an inclusive outdoors.
September 14, 2026
Related: Breweries, Fall Fun, Family Fun, Hamilton, Holidays, Kalispell, Lolo, Missoula, Montana, Outdoor Fun, Victor
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