Thanks to an email service I get about “all things Nebraska”, I stumbled upon this little gem of an event in nearby Ashland, Nebraska at Mahoney State Park. From September 30th through October 30th, they had four nights a week you could come and meander through a huge maze of pumpkin carvings and displays. These photos don’t do it justice. There were thousands of carved pumpkins and it took me nearly 90 minutes to walk through the whole thing. There were a lot of people there, so I am guessing SOME people knew about it. There are 3 cities in the U.S. that do this: Lake Zurich, IL, Ashland, NE, and Grand Rapids, MI. I am so glad I was able to discover this on my last October in Nebraska. I highly recommend it! They had food trucks and apple cider and some drinks with a little more warmth to them for the adults. No one else was interested in going with me, so I went alone, but had a really good time! They had displays that were built with dozens of pumpkins and there was appropriate music playing at each section depending on what the theme of the carved pumpkins were. The Chinese dragon was amazing….it was made up of dozens of pumpkins. They had pumpkins glowing pink for the Breast Cancer themed display. The American flag was designed with pumpkins carved of jobs that are done in the United States. It was really cool. The most intricately carved pumpkins were of people. They were amazing. Rosie the Riveter was my favorite. I highly recommend you attend next year! Go online…you have to make reservations!
Messina Musings 