Looking for a weekend vacation, a road trip into the countryside to a destination that will amuse the kids and give you a chance to unwind? This is the season for corn mazes, elaborate puzzles carved into cornfields that provide an excuse for a stroll in the sunshine.
These maize mazes are a growing phenomenon from coast to coast and finding one is fairly simple. If you haven't heard of any from your friends, just fire up your Web browser and type "corn maze" and your state into your favorite search engine.
For a drive through scenic New England, the Amazing Vermont Moose Cornfield Maze - is the latest at the Apple Barn near Bennington. They say creating the pathway for this year's maze required the removal of 225,000 corn stalks. Save room in your trunk for apples and maple syrup.
Massachusetts has the Davis' Mega Maze - at the town of Sterling. This seventh generation family farm made its first corn maze in 1998.
In the nation's Corn Belt, a picture of Willie Nelson was cut into a corn field last year at Bloomsbury Family Farm - near Atkins, Iowa. Click on "Attractions" to see the pattern they used this year. They also claim to have the region's biggest pumpkin patch.
Weekend travelers west of the Rockies can head for Del'Osso Farms - at Lathrop, Calif., east of the San Francisco Bay area. After exploring their 20-acre maze you might get to try your luck with the Pumpkin Blaster, pictured on page 3 of "Attractions."
The American Maze Co. - says it created the first cornfield maze in 1993 in a field at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pa. They have a short directory to mazes open this year in Pennsylvania and New York, and a link at the bottom of the page to the CornMaze Network will take you to more maze farm links.
More farms are listed at Maize Quest - which designs mazes for many applications.
The Maize - says it is the world's largest designer of mazes, and if you click on "Visiting a Maize" you'll find an interactive map with corn maze farms all over the country, including several in Canada.
Click on "Maze Locator" at MazePlay Inc. - or click on one of the green states on the map. This design company has links for states from New England to Texas and from Washington state to Georgia.
In the Rockies, the state of Colorado maintains a directory of mazes - at spots including Miller Farms, near Platteville. Look under "Events" for their "Fall Harvest Festival."