Browsing rows of pumpkins to find the perfect one, messy jelly-filled donuts, and even a spooky corn maze; these are all hallmarks of the fall season and can be found at the Melon Shack

Located on NE Garden Ave. off of Northeast Highway 20, the Melon Shack offers fun activities and sweet treats, from September 29 to October 28 to celebrate Fall. 

Family-friendly activities include picking out your favorite pumpkins from the pumpkin patch, with each pumpkin being 38 cents per pound. You can also enjoy a hayride around the farm as well as a nice stroll through the corn maze, and let’s not forget some of the goodies from the food vendors that will be available.

This fall, among the food carts you can taste  Matt & Mitty’s fan-favorite Caramel apple grilled cheese among their many other delicious treats. Taste of Paradise offers mouthwatering Mexican cuisine.  And you can satisfy your sweet tooth with donuts from Gnomenuts.

Once the sun sets, although the food vendors will still be open, the pumpkin patch closes at 6:00 p.m. and a more eerie atmosphere begins to settle on the farm grounds as the corn maze slowly becomes haunted.

The Melon Shack’s haunted corn maze is open to all ages on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from 7:30 p.m. to 10 p.m., as long as you are in line at 10 p.m. you are guaranteed a walk through the corn maze. 

With Corvallis being notorious for closing early, at the Melon Shack students who may not have enough free time in the day to pick out pumpkins still have the opportunity to enjoy a night of anticipation and fun.  

Tickets are $14 per person on Thursdays and $16 per person on Fridays and Saturdays.

All experiences within the maze are unique and will keep you guessing what’s around every turn.

 “Each feature gets a little tweak every week, so by next week [the haunts] are different than the first weekend. It’s got more to it now,” said Tim Winn, owner of the Melon Shack.

“Every year it gets bigger, better, scarier, [and] more frightening,” said Count Dracula himself, a character within the maze. 

If you feel that may be too spooky for you, don’t worry. The maze was created in a way that if the first half is too much, one can come out halfway, explained Greg O’Neal, security personnel for the haunted corn maze.

The Melon Shack opened 12 years ago, “soon after that, we started doing pumpkins and then right after that we started doing the corn maze,” Winn said.

“For the most part, we use a lot of family in our business,” shared Winn. Many of the staff, including those who run the food carts have also been involved for quite some time Winn explained.

“So we’ve grown, they’re grown with us… it’s just out of friendship and tradition that… as long as they want to be here, they’ve got a place to be,” Winn said. 

With fall being the start of the rainy season, the food vendors will still be serving delicious food, and the haunted corn maze will be filled with characters and spooky scenery to scare you rain or shine.