By Audrey Pellico

Fall is a season that brings many holidays and many activities to do. It also brings the start of school and on the weekends when you just need a break here are some fun ideas.

Pumpkin picking is personally one of my favorites and it also goes with the great holiday of Halloween. Abbey Farms is a great place for pumpkin picking and is also located by Marmion which isn’t that far. Another fun fall activity is apple picking. Kuiper’s Family Farm, Keller’s Farmstand, and Windy Acres are all great places that aren’t that far away. Fall is also known for its pretty leaves and even just going on a drive down a scenic route or a walk to enjoy the crisp weather and the colorful leaves.

Also when it is cold out what always helps is baking. Some classics are pumpkin bread, any type of pie, toasted pumpkin seeds, and candy apples. Toasted pumpkin seeds are easy to make; you just take the seeds out of a pumpkin, put them in the oven, take them out and salt them.

Back to the topic of Halloween, you must watch a scary movie and to make it even better, you can have warm apple cider with cinnamon. Haunted houses also really add to the effect. My favorite haunted house is Stateville. Even if you wanted to, you could try out a haunted hayride. Or if you don’t like scary things just go for a regular hayride or get lost in a corn maze with some friends. Some great scary movies are The Shining, The Blair Witch Project, Psycho, The Conjuring, The Cabin in the Woods, Sinister, Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, and The Ring.

Camping outside in your backyard also is an easy and affordable way to have fun. While you are out there, make a bonfire to roast marshmallows or even go on a hike around town. Even instead of hiking you can go for a run, fall is the perfect temperature for them. The path down by the quarry is a great place to run. Also, Johnson’s Mound and Nelson Lake are places to either run or walk.

Finally, since fall has literally the most sports, grab some friends and some Batavia wear and go cheer our school on. For example, football, volleyball, cross country, dance, soccer, and tennis are all in season. Most games are after school, on Fridays, or even during the weekdays.

Overall, by the time fall rolls around I’m super excited for all the activities you can do with friends and maybe even your family. The holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving, and even Christmas get me excited or maybe it’s just the fresh crisp air.