Free Fall Family Activities
Ten Free Activities for Autumn for Your Family
Finding the Freebies
Fall is my favorite season here in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. The leaves turn bright red, and the air gets crisp and fresh. Many of the farms in our area are open for visitors and have pumpkins, squash, and more for sale. There are enough in our area that we could go to a different pumpkin patch every weekend if we wanted. We seek out pumpkin patches that have free entrances, and we will make a purchase in exchange for our visit.
Autumn is one of the best seasons for free activities to do with your whole family. I compiled a list of 10 of our family favorites, but I’m sure there are more! If you know of one that I didn’t add, feel free to leave a comment.
10 Free Family Activities for Fall
- Pumpkin patch. As mentioned earlier, there are many farms that have free entrances.
- Fall hikes. Tis the season for hiking, or in our case, with very little Littles, a walk that takes a very long time because of so much stopping and looking at everything that could possibly be looked at. Little kids are great at slowing us down 🙂
- Chicken of the Woods. While you are on your hike, keep an eye out for Chicken of the Woods, which is an edible mushroom that you can then cook up back at home. Make sure to identify it properly. Here is a great site for mushroom identification if you are unsure.
- Harvest veggies. Now is the time for lots of vegetables to be harvested. If you aren’t a gardener, I bet you know someone who is, or ask in a local Facebook group. Cucumbers, summer squash, pumpkin, corn, peppers, and more are all plentiful during the autumn season. I just received a huge box of cucumbers from a friend, who wasn’t able to use them all. We eat a lot of cucumbers, and can pickle the rest. We have too many jalapeños, basil, and mint, and would gladly give them to someone who asked. If you aren’t sure how to use it, throw it in a soup.
- Find free local events. In our area, the City will frequently have an event, or the library, or even the college. Make sure to be following different pages of your local Facebook pages to be in the know.
- Bike riding. People say summer is for bike riding, and I’m going to disagree and say autumn is way better for biking. It just isn’t as hot, and feels so much better during the fall.
- Read together. The season of books starts now! Get cozy, grab a stack of some new library books and slow down.
- Pick a fall plant to do a nature study on. Find a mushroom, leaf, autumn flower, or whatever you want and try and draw or even paint it.
- Play catch. It’s a classic, for a reason.
- Bake and cook together. Zucchini bread, autumn soups, pumpkin desserts…mmmmm…It’s making me hungry just thinking about it.
Take a Deep Breath and Slow Down
The main thing to remember is to take a deep breath of that fresh, crispy air and slow down. You can skip the Starbucks Pumpkin Spiced Latte and still enjoy autumn. It can be wonderful, AND still affordable.
