Parents Want to Know 101: Family Fall Outdoor Activities - Bucket List

By Sharon Rose 


During the fall season, our family has made picking out a pumpkin at the pumpkin patch a tradition.

      The fall season is here!  Time to make out a fall family outdoor activities bucket list. The autumnal equinox brought the fall season to the Northern Hemisphere on Wednesday, September 23, 2015, at 4:21 A.M., EST.  The crisp fall weather and beauty of the colorful foliage is the perfect reward to lure families out to play. You may not be able to do all of the activities on our list, but choose your favorites or, better still, something you’ve been yearning to do.  Here is our Family Fall Outdoor Activities Bucket List to get you going!  Make great memories this fall!

1.      Raking Leaves - Raking leaves is a great way to introduce children to fall fun.  They can enjoy this activity without leaving home. The whole family can get involved with cleaning up the yard with the bonus of playing and jumping in the pile of leaves they rake up.  Collect leaves to take indoors for fall arts and crafts activities.

2.   Backyard Camping – Camping, sleeping under the stars, is a childhood memory no one should be denied.  Camping in your backyard is convenient, because you don’t have to pack up anything and leave home.  Make a soft pile of leaves for comfort in your sleeping bag.  Grill a delicious meal, and roast marshmallows to make s’mores.  Be sure to check your local laws for building bonfires or recreational fires.  Some types of fires need a permit.  Safety first!

3.     Pumpkin Patch – Visiting a pumpkin patch is a fall tradition with many families.  Some families like to visit the same one each year, and others like to change it up.  Either way, it is fun for the whole family!  The children enjoy picking out their own pumpkin to take home for carving into a jack-o-lantern or to decorate the home. 

Many families make an annual fall visit to a pumpkin patch.  The children love picking out their very own!

4.     Apple Picking – What fun to pick apples and eat what you pick!  Locate an apple orchard near you and make it a family outing to introduce the children to farm to table healthy eating.  Tip: You may need a ladder.  Parents can continue this learning experience at local farmer markets, likely, closer to home, picking apples from baskets and talking to the farmers on how they grow and care for their apple orchard.

Mother and daughter are enjoying apple picking.  Could a fresh apple pie be in their future?

A barrel of delicious red apples add to the beauty of the fall season!

5.     Corn Maze – Showing their generosity, some farmers transform their cornfields into corn mazes.  Some are even made to be spooky around Halloween time.  Both adults and children have lots of fun getting lost and trying to find their way out of the complicated mazes, designed intricately, to add to the fascination.  You can hear squeals, shouts, and laughter in the cornfield, all evidence of the fun that goes on. 

6.     Hay Ride – Another tradition that started long ago, when farm life was a bigger part of the landscape in America, hay rides are still a favorite fall activity.  A tractor or horse pulling a wagon of bales of hay and riders who sing songs and chatter, makes for a celebratory atmosphere.  Many hay rides are taken in the moonlight for romantics and during Halloween to scare up enjoyment, as well. 

A hay ride is a memorable way to enjoy the beauty of the fall foliage.

7.     Hiking – Hiking is a great exercise that can be done year-round, but is so much more enjoyable when the weather is crisp and cool, and fall is showing off its colorful foliage.  It’s an activity that allows families to enjoy exploring local, state, and national parks.  Take a back pack with water, and snacks or picnic lunch; depending on your hiking plan.  A sturdy shoe should be worn for your safety.

8.     Nature Walk – A nature walk is much like hiking, but with a twist. Nature walking involves walking, exploring, and searching for living things of interest, such as: birds, bugs, butterflies, and types of trees and leaves. 

9.     Scavenger Hunt – Scavenger hunts can be created by making a list of things to collect while on a nature walk.  Often set up as a competition, a scavenger hunt is a fun way to learn about nature.  This is an activity that can be incorporated into a fall birthday party for a child in the family.

10.  River Boating and Tubing – The beautiful foliage and serene atmosphere of the river and river bank, in fall, makes this activity so relaxing.  As well, the areas of the river that are turbulent can make this activity daring and adventurous, and thrilling.  Some of the various river activities are: canoeing, kayaking, tubing, whitewater rafting, pontoon boat fishing, stand-up paddle board, rafting, and riverboat ride.  The family will want to go back again and again!

11. Fishing – Fishing is a great group activity for the family, as well as, one that is enjoyable when done alone.  It takes patience, quiet, and often, getting over a fear of worms used for bait, to succeed.  Some people get a thrill out of taking their catch home, prepping it and having a fresh fish dinner.  Yet many, just enjoy the hunt; so, catch-and-release is the kind of fishing they enjoy.  A valued childhood memory for many children is their first catch.

Families can enjoy the fall scenery while fishing together.  Don't miss the photo-op when you reel in a catch!

12. Bird Watching – Fall is a time of birds migrating south. With migration, local bird watching becomes more interesting and exciting with new species to identify every day.  August through October are peak months, with migration continuing through December for some species.  Basic bird watching allows you to learn about bird migration, species, territories, behavior, nesting, and courtship.  Bird watching is a fun and educational hobby for children and adults, and one the entire family can share in.  Start a bird watching journal to record what you learn.

13. Rock/Wall Climbing – Rock or wall climbing is an indoor/outdoor sport.  Fall is a great season to take it outdoors.  State and national parks are great places to rock or wall climb, but with man-made materials being used, these sporting activities can be done in the middle of an urban area.  Rock climbing can appear intimidating to first-timers due to the gear and special terms that are used, and the assumption that a lot of strength will be needed.  This is an amateur sporting activity that men, women, and children can have fun doing, so don’t be discouraged.  Outdoor rock or wall climbing is a mental and physical work out.  You will need the appropriate gear and instructions.  This is a sporting activity you should do with a partner or a group, especially if you are a first-timer. 

A state or national park to rock climb is a wonderful place to climb to high places to enjoy the fall scenery.

Working their way to the top, is a group doing a teambuilding activity.  Would your family like to try this?

 14. Bike Riding - Bike riding can get the family out for a scenic view of the neighborhood, suburban bike trail, or local, state, and national parks.  Its great exercise and an activity many families have as a hobby.  You will need safety equipment, such: helmet, knee, and elbow pads.

15. Playing in a leaf pile - This activity deserved separate attention of its own.  Such a simple play activity, but one of the most fun and anticipated ones of the fall season.  Being able to jump into the middle of a pile of leaves and throw the leaves in the air, watching them fall to earth like golden brown raindrops, is the best encouragement for children to rake leaves. 

We're so happy the fall season is here!  Aren't you?!  It's raining leaves!

16. Cranberry Bog Tour - Cranberries grow in bogs and a trip to a cranberry bog can be an adventure.  The cranberries are harvested from mid-September to the end of October.  Cranberry bogs can be found all over New England and the East coast of the United States.  There are several in the state of Massachusetts.  The cranberry harvesting method involves flooding the bogs then collecting the loose fruit.  Combined with the brilliant fall foliage, the bright red berries are a beautiful fall sight.  There are many delicious recipes for cranberries!

Cranberry bogs are flooded with water and then the cranberries are harvested.  Some farms who give tours have small boats and knee-highs available for tourists to use to gather cranberries.

When you have made out your fall bucket list, we would love for you to share it in our comment section.  Enjoy the fall season!




Copyright, Parents Want to Know 101: Family Fall Outdoor Activities - Bucket List, Sharon Rose, Parents Want to Know 101, October 9, 2014.  Updated, October 5, 2015. All rights reserved.