We’ve been seeing social media posts for Fifer Orchards more and more recently with the start to the fall season, so when we found ourselves with a free Saturday, we decided to the make the day trip to Camden, Delaware to see what all the fuss was about. With a corn maze, apple and pumpkin picking, quaint country store, and an endless supply of children’s games from zip lines to face painting, we quickly realized that we were wise to block out an entire day for the visit.
The charming town had a total “main street vibe” (think Berlin) with rows of trees, people walking their dogs and signs pointing to the Saturday yard sales. After making our way through the small town, we turned onto a classic farm road and finally saw our destination. Fifer Orchards. To say it highly exceeded all of our expectations would be an understatement. Fifer Orchards began in 1919 when Charles Fifer moved to the fertile lands of Kent County, Delaware. He recognized the growing demand for fresh fruits and vegetables and knew that the mild climate would be the perfect growing spot. Today, in 2014 the Fifer Farm is operated by its 4th generation, working to preserve the legacy their great, great, great grandfather started. Each season, Fifer’s highlights the time of year by hosting festivals featuring the in-season fruits and vegetables. For example, in May they host a strawberry festival with you-pick strawberries to celebrate springtime. In the beginning of summer, it’s all about the blueberries. This is where Fifer’s celebrates the peak season of the blueberry crop with live music and blueberry specials. Starting in August, it’s peach! (Their famous peach ice cream is pretty much to die for). When fall rolls around, bring on the apples and pumpkins. And finally, they celebrate Christmas with a cider fest that runs all the way through December 13th.
But we’re focusing on fall… the busiest time of the year for Fifer Orchards. And now we understand why…we had a blast! Fifer’s Fall Fest runs from September 15th until November 1st every single Saturday. “It’s every Saturday for seven weeks,” said Michael Fennemore, Fifer Orchard’s GM. “And it gets steadily busier. Last week was our first week, this is the second so usually the third and fourth week are the busiest, if the weather is good of course. That’s why we have seven; you’re bound to lose a couple for weather.”
Fifer’s Fall Fest is one of the most beautiful, well put together events we’ve come across lately. When you pull up to the farm, you’re directed to park in a convenient spot before walking through their Farmer’s Market, where local vendors are selling everything from handmade soaps to freshly made cream cheese pumpkin rolls. (Shopping Tip: wait until you go into Fifer’s Country Store. We may have gone a little crazy. More on that later!) Then, you step into what is a hub of fall friendly activities, food trucks, a pumpkin train, face painting stations, hot apple cider, pumpkin pie doughnuts, pumpkin pie ICE CREAM… the list goes on. Straight ahead is a field full of activities for all ages(called the Fun Park)… a pumpkin painting station, super straw slides, spider straw castle with farm volleyball, zip lines, pony hop races, mini straw maze, pedal tractors, corn cribs, octoball, rubber ducky races, pumpkin checkers, pumpkin bowling, pumpkin tic-tac-toe games, loco-motion wheels and a scarecrow corn tunnel. Whew! We’re tired just reminiscing on all the activities. There is truly something for everyone! “It’s a labor of love,” laughed Fennemore. “We had u-pick-apples but we weren’t really getting people to the farm for those particular activities.”
Past the Fun Park is a giant corn maze that people from all over the region come to see. “Every year we have a theme for the corn maze and this year’s is the Fifer’s Express,” said Fennemore. “So when you go inside and find the different stations they all have connections to our theme. So they talk about the history of the railroad, Delaware, agriculture and canneries.” The farm hosts field trips from schools all over Delaware and Maryland and the corn maze is always a hit. “We try to make it entertaining but also educational, and that’s where the corn maze comes in,” said Fennemore. “You try to find the stations and read the information.” The corn maze isn’t just for kids though; tons of families come on the weekends to try their luck at finding their way out. “It was just sort of an afterthought, so we thought if we added the corn maze, we already had a retail store, it would kind of give us a hub of activities for people,” said Fennemore.
A hub of activities is right- the place is full of things to do everywhere you turn. In addition to all of that, there are huge fields where you can choose to either pick pumpkins in their pumpkin patch or jump on the tractor hay ride to pick fresh apples off their beautiful orchard. Before leaving Fifer Orchards though, don’t forget to go to the market! You can pick up mums, ANY kind of pumpkin you can think of, fresh desserts and baked goods made with the farm’s produce, and yummy snacks.
With folk music playing in the background, glorious fall weather, the smell of pumpkin pie doughnuts wafting through the air and quality time with your family… this truly is your perfect Saturday. Don’t miss out… Fall Fest ends on November 1st.
