BARK RIVER, Mich. (WZMQ) – A Bark River pumpkin patch opened for another fall season on Friday.
The Porath family has been running the pumpkin patch at 5299 F Road for just over a decade.
“I really love pumpkins,” said Jessica Porath, who co-owns the patch with her husband, Paul, and operates it with the help of her three children and her in-laws. “My whole family does. We all kind of get into it, go picking them, planting them. We started real small and we’ve grown every year.”
In that time, some growing seasons have been better than others, with 2024 notably being a tough year for pumpkins. This year, conditions are much better.
“The smoke from Canada was a little bit of a challenge, but we had plenty of water to make the pumpkins grow,” Jessica said. “We actually have a large jack-o-lantern that we weighed this spring was 82. Some of our Atlantic giant pumpkins will get bigger than that.”
The Porath family grows between 90 and 100 varieties, from those large Atlantic pumpkins to small, decorative gourds. Jessica says it is always interesting to see which ones become popular from year to year.
“A lot of people are very traditional,” she said. “A lot of our funkier varieties are catching on, though. A lot of people are starting to get into more of the yellows and the greens and the warty stuff. Early season customers tend to gravitate towards brighter colors, and then as Halloween approaches, people start looking for their perfect jack-o-lantern for Halloween carving.”
When guests come to pick pumpkins, they can get the full farm experience by visiting the animals.
“We do 4-H, so we have two lambs, a goat, rabbits,” said Jessica. “We have ducks and some peacocks and some chickens, and then Shellington [the cat] too! He’s always around and he likes to greet customers.”
Guests can also purchase straw bales and corn bundles, take photos, and enjoy the new corn maze. The maze features a more advanced maze for older guests, along with something special for little ones.
“We did a little storybook walk, so young kids can kind of walk around and read the story as they go through the corn maze,” Jessica explained. “The kids loved the decorating and getting involved and putting up little skeletons and things like that. This was a good year for corn, so it’s probably twelve-foot corn. It’s really tall.”
Jessica and her family can’t wait to welcome new and returning customers for a new year of fall fun.
“It makes your heart happy when you hear people just excited about what you’re doing and excited about coming out and seeing the pumpkins,” she said. “I get all excited too when I find a pumpkin that I really like, so it’s just something fun for us. It’s really a passion of ours.”
The Porath Pumpkin Patch is open seven days a week during daylight hours. A box is set up to accept payment at times when the patch is unattended. The corn maze is operational from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. during weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekends, and it costs $5 per person ages 6 and older.
For more information on the business or to see updates throughout the season, follow Porath Pumpkin Patch on Facebook.
