Corn Maze in the Plains
If you’re looking to get lost between the stalks in style, look no further than Corn Maze in the Plains—the Mona Lisa of fall farm labyrinths. Each year, the folks in The Plains carve an intricately designed image into their five-acre field (think monarch butterfly, bald eagle, or horse and jockey) and let amateur explorers twist their way through the switchbacks. After a dizzying course to freedom, pick a pumpkin, take a hayride, meet barnyard animals, and purchase pumpkin butter or fresh apple cider.

Corn Maze in the Plains, 4501 Old Tavern Rd., The Plains; 540-456-7339. Friday through Sunday 10 to 6 through November 8; evening Moonlight Maze open every Friday and Saturday in October starting the 9th, as well as November 6 and 7 from 6 to 10. Adults $9, kids 12 and under $8, free for ages three and under.

Crumland Farms
Covering eight acres, Crumland’s corn maze takes the shape of the farm’s mascot, Mazey the cow. Fun seekers can also slip down a giant slide, watch animals from an overhead walkway, ride the MooChoo train, or peddle giant tricycles. Three shots on the corn cannon cost just $1.

Crumland Farms, 7612 Willow Rd., Frederick; 301-845-8099. Open Saturday and Sunday 10 to 6 through October (last ticket for the corn maze sold at 4:30). Admission $9; children age two and under free.

Lawyers Moonlight Maze
Home of the largest maze in Maryland, Lawyers has curiously tied the theme of its farm to the movie Transformers, modeling its 42-acre (seven-mile-long) maze in the shape of the robots, showing the movie each night at dusk on a 50-foot-wide screen, and planting massive Transformer trucks throughout the property. If you ever find your way out of the maze, launch a pumpkin at a boat, school bus, or—wait for it—a Transformer truck at more than 75 miles per hour with the farm’s pumpkin gun ($10 for 4 shots, $6 for two).

Lawyers Moonlight Maze, 113001 Creagerstown Rd., Thurmont; 240-315-8133. Open Friday from 5 to 10, Saturday from noon to 10, Sundays noon to 5 through October. Admission $5; children age five and under free.

Hubers Farm Haunted Hayride and Corn Maze
After children navigate through two mini-mazes, older siblings (and their parents) can try their luck with the five-acre Crazy Maze. For some goose bumps with your corn, hop aboard a 35-minute haunted hayride and brave the ghosts and ghouls. You can also buy apple cider; pick pumpkins, flowers, and produce; and walk through the farm’s haunted house.

Hubers Farm, 11898 Philadelphia Rd., Kingsville; 410-679-1941. Corn mazes open daily 10 to 5 through October 31. Last admission at 3:30;  $6 adults, $3 ages 12 and under. Haunted hayride: October 9, 10, 16, 17, 23, 24, 25, and 30  7:30 to 10:30. Adults $10, ages 12 and under $5.

Roha Farm Fall Harvest Festival
There’s a laundry list of activities at Roha Farm’s Fall Harvest Festival: Make a scarecrow, paint your face, lose yourself in a corn maze, pet animals at the barn, ride a pony, pick a pumpkin, or climb a giant mountain of straw. After working up a sweat, you’ll want to stop by the market for squash, gourds, apples, and honey.

Roha Farm, 6009 Church La., Hydes; 410-592-8040. Open Saturdays and Sundays in October 10 to 5. Free; charges for individual activities.

Cox Farms
Part fall festival, part playground, Cox Farms spreads its harvest spirit over 90 acres with five giant slides, hayrides, rope swings, straw tunnels, a “goat village,” and more. Can’t get enough of the action? You’re in luck, because the farm is recruiting Fields of Fear staff—folks to run around scaring children. See Cox’s Web site for more details.

Cox Farms 2009 Fall Festival, 15621 Braddock Rd., Centreville; 703-830-4121. Open daily 10 to 6 through November 8; $9 for ages two and up on weekdays, $15 on weekends.

Hill High Farms
Operated by the same family for more than 100 years, Hill High boasts an eight-acre corn maze and animals galore. But don’t miss out on the sweets. “We’re better known for our delicious pumpkin pie fudge than the maze,” says High Hill’s owner. Entrance to the farm is free, though hayrides (which include a free pumpkin and apples) cost $6.

Hill High Farms, 933 Barley La., Winchester; 540-667-7377. Open Saturdays and Sundays in October 10 to 5.

Mayne’s Tree Farm Pumpkin Patch
Shoot mini-pumpkins into a bucket with a slingshot and take home a larger version as your prize. You can also jump from hay bales into straw, play in the moon bounce, meander through a corn maze, and marvel at the antique tractor display.

Mayne’s Tree Farm, 6820 Buckingham La., Frederick; 301-662-4320. Open Monday through Friday in October from 10 to 6, weekends 10 to 5. Free; charges for individual activities.

Butler’s Orchard Pumpkin Festival
A family-owned and operated farm, Butler’s invites guests to compete in a Rubber Ducky Derby, puzzle through a corn maze, take a hayride, and fly down a tube slide. Our favorite activity, however, is the pumpkin cannon; visitors can shoot it for $3 on October 3, 4, 17, 18, and 31, and November 1. We’re told a good shooter can launch a pumpkin well over 100 yards.

Butler’s Orchard, 22200 Davis Mill Rd., Germantown, 301-972-3299. Open Saturdays and Sundays in October 10 to 5. Adults $10, under age 2 free.