Tis the Season: Fall + Halloween = ?

It's become it's own season, Fall-O-Ween: fall nowadays is full of pre-Halloween events that run right through October. Meanwhile, Fall Foliage weekend packages are more and more popular. Add to this the bumper crop of corn mazes, and what you have is -- Fall-O-Ween. The double-bonus for families is the chance to enjoy The Great Outdoors plus many spooky activities.

Read about Fall-o-Ween in Illinois, which combines fall foliage, pumpkins, and corn mazes,plus harvest festivals and Halloween spookiness

See also:

• more Halloween events and spooky weekends throughout October
• corn mazes
• fall foliage vacations

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Fall-O-Ween in Illinois: September 1 through October 31

Fall-O-Ween in Illinois has become a distinctive fifth season of the year, with harvest festivals and spooky events, fall foliage, pumpkins and corn mazes.

Fall Foliage: Illinois has brilliant colors and scenic drives.

• The Spoon River Valley Scenic Drive -- a self-guided tour-- is part of the 38th Annual Fall Festival in Fulton County, October 1-2 and 8-9. )And on the 200-mile Ohio River Scenic Route, the Shawnee National Forest is a highlight.

Pumpkins: you may not have known it, but Illinois is the No. 1 pumpkin-producing state.

• Sycamore’s Pumpkin Festival, October 26-30, began in 1956 when a Mr. Wally Thurow put a few decorated pumpkins on his front lawn. Now there are thousands on display.

• The Dollinger Family Farm in Minooka has pumpkins, haunted barn, horse-drawn hayrides.

"The pumpkin capital of the world", Morton is the location of Nestle/Libby's pumpkin packing plant, and has a Punkin Chuckin' Contest October 22 and 23.

Corn Mazes: Cornfusion Corn Maze at Hardy’s Reindeer Ranch in Rantoul has a ten-acre corn maze with special moonlight maze nights. Tanner's Orchard in Speer (near Peoria) has a 7-acre Statue of Liberty maze, and there are lots more corn creations where kids can get lost and found again.

For more about Illinois see:

• www.enjoyillinois.com, for weekly fall color updates for the state's seven regions, and for free travel resources, including an Illinois Travel Kit. Travel resources are also available by calling 1-800-2CONNECT to speak with an Illinois travel counselor.