Article published September 17, 2009
Amazing corn mazes
They can be high-tech or old-fashioned, but they're always fun to explore
By RYAN E. SMITH
BLADE STAFF WRITER
In a time when everything seems to be going high-tech, it makes sense that even corn mazes are being made with the help of global-positioning systems. Maybe more interesting, then, are the hold-outs.
Count Charles Helwig, the namesake of Farmer Charley's Maze Adventures in Monroe, among them.
"We find that the old-fashioned way works faster than GPS," he said. "The good lord put a computer in your head."
So instead of relying on the latest in 21st-century technology to make sure that every line is straight and each path goes where it should, Farmer Charley's invokes simpler methods for its three corn mazes carved out of 10 acres.
"We paint the maze on the ground in orange construction paint," Helwig said. "The grid is the corn that I plant. Then we cut it out with a zero-turn lawn mower."
The attraction, whose theme this season celebrates The Wizard of Oz as it turns 70, went retro with its methods a few years ago after its previous GPS-aided designs were off by just a tad, he said.In Pandora, Ohio, Suter's Corn Maze is another traditionalist that takes things back even further, beginning with its subject matter: ancient Egypt. Its maze includes images of a Pyramid, Sphinx, mummy, and more. And all of it was done like the Egyptians would have done it - by hand.
"The way we do it, we will grid out the field and then measure so many steps up and so many steps over in the grid and then put a flag there and we just put a series of flags all the way through the maze, drawing the picture with flags in the corn," said Tom Suter, who created the design.
Then a few people grab their hoes and clear out the necessary corn to make the pathways.
"They're kind of like artists in a corn field," Suter said.
The Corn Maze at the Butterfly House in Whitehouse couldn't be more different in its designs or methods. Both are about as modern as you can get.
Its Sarah Palin maze last year garnered global attention and a flyover by the Republican vice presidential candidate. This year, its 16 acres of labyrinths tie into the area's new hockey team, the Toledo Walleye. Thanks to professional help that used a GPS system to carve the design into the field, it includes the image of two players, the squad's logo, a helmet, and the word "Toledo."
"We wanted to help the Toledo Walleye create some excitement in the community," said Christy Wheeler, a manager at the maze. "We do contemporary themes ... I think it's because we want to stand out and be unique."Area attractions
•The Corn Maze at the Butterfly House, 11455 Obee Rd., Whitehouse. Size: 16 acres. Hours: 3 to 10 p.m. Thursday, 3 p.m. to midnight Friday, noon to midnight Saturday, noon to 8 p.m. Sunday. Wednesdays by appointment. Open through Oct. 31. Cost: $8 adults, $7 for seniors 65 and older and children ages 6 to 9 with adult, free for children ages 5 and younger with adult. Group rates available. Design: Toledo Walleye hockey. Information: 419-877-2733 or whitehousecornmaze.com.
•Country Lane Tree Farm's corn maze and haunted tree maze, 3525 North Bolander Rd., Genoa, Ohio. Size: 4-acre maze and 3-acre maze. Hours: 4 p.m. to dark Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to dark Saturday and Sunday. Open Saturday through Oct. 31. Cost: $5 for 4-acre maze, $3 for 3-acre maze, free for children ages 2 and younger and active military personnel with ID. Haunted tree maze on Saturdays in October only, $5. Combination tickets and group rates available. Design: SpongeBob SquarePants and Patrick. Information: 419-461-1298 or countrylanetreefarm.com.
•Crots Corn Maze, 4800 West Temperance Rd. near Lambertville. Size: 40 acres. Hours: 11 a.m. to dark Saturday and 1 p.m. to dark Sunday. Open Saturday through Nov. 1. Cost: $5.50 adults, $4.50 children ages 5 to 15, and free for kids younger than 5. Group rates available. Design: Farming. Information: 734-856-7183 or cornmaze.itgo.com.
•Farmer Charley's Maze Adventures, 6421 North Stony Creek Rd., Monroe. Size: 10 acres for three corn mazes and a courtyard maze. Hours: 4 to 10 p.m. Thursday, 4 to 11 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday. Open though Nov. 1. Cost: $10 adults, $8 seniors, free for children age 3 and younger. Thursdays are half price. Kids ages 4 to 11 are half price from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday and Sunday. Group rates available. Design: Wizard of Oz. Information: 734-240-0825 or farmercharleys.com.
•Farmer J's Corn Maze, Pherdon Road behind Cabela's in Dundee, Mich. Size: 22 acres for three mazes. Hours: 5 to 9 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Open through Nov. 1. Cost: $9.50 adults, $5 children ages 6 to 11, and free for kids 5 and younger. Group rates available. Design: wild animals. Information: 734-216-6230 or cornmazefun.net.
•Fleitz Pumpkin Farm Corn Maze , 7133 Seaman Rd., Oregon. Size: 5-acre maze and 1-acre maze. Hours: Daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Open Saturday through Oct. 31. Cost: $2 for 5-acre maze, $1 for 1-acre maze. Design: General maze. Information: 419-836-7613 or fleitzpumpkinfarm.com.
•Fun Acres Corn Maze and Family Fun Farm, 11665 Haggerman, South Rockwood, Mich. Size: 10 acres for two mazes. Hours: 4 to 10 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday. Open through Nov. 1. Cost: $6 for ages 4 and over, free for kids 3 and under. Combination tickets for hayrides and group rates available. Design: Sam I Am, Green Eggs and Ham. Information: 734-934-6532 or funacrescornmaze.com
•Kernel Cooper's Corn Maze, 9867 Mendon Rd., Van Wert, Ohio. Size: 17 acres for two mazes. Hours: 7 p.m. to midnight Friday, noon to midnight Saturday, and 1 to 9 p.m. Sunday. Open through Oct. 31. Cost: $7 adults, $5 children ages 5 to 11, and free for kids 4 and under. Group rates available. Design: Abraham Lincoln. Information: 419-968-2536 or kernelcoopers.com.
•Leaders Family Farms and ScreamAcres haunted cornfield, O-064 Henry County Road 16, Napoleon, Ohio. Size: 7 acres. Hours: 7 to 10 p.m. Friday, 2 to 10 p.m. Saturday, 2 to 9 p.m. Sunday. Open Oct. 2 through Nov. 1. Cost: $8 adults, $6 children ages 5 to 11, free for kids 4 and under. ScreamAcres is $12 for everyone. Combination tickets and group rates available. Design: Mouse and cheese. Information: 419-599-1570 or leadersfamilyfarms.com.
•Riehm Farm Market and Corn Maze, 7244 North State Rt. 53, between Tiffin and Fremont. Size: 5 acres. Hours: 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, noon to 7 p.m. Saturday, and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Weekdays by appointment. Open Saturday through Nov. 1. Cost: $7 for maze and activities, free for kids under 2. Group rates available. Design: Wizard of Oz. Information: 419-992-4392 or funacres.net.
•Suter's Corn Maze, 2 miles south of Pandora, Ohio at 8251 County Road R in Putnam County. Size: 8 acres. Hours: 1 to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Open Saturday through Nov. 1. Cost: $6 adults, $4.50 students from kindergarten to college, and free for those younger. Group rates available. Design: Egypt. Information: 419-384-3331 or suterproduce.com.
•Talladay Farms corn maze, 6270 Judd Rd., Milan, Mich. Size: 26 acres. Hours: 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, 1 to 10 p.m. Saturday, 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday. Open tomorrow through Nov. 1. Cost: $6 adults, $5 children ages 5 to 11, free for children age 4 or younger. Group rates available. Design: Dinosaurs. Information: 734-645-1791 or talladayfarms.com.
•Uncle Sam's Corn Maze, 6263 Sterns Rd., Ottawa Lake, Mich. Size: 26 acres for three mazes. Hours: 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. go 10 p.m. Sunday. Open through Nov. 1. Cost: $10 for adults, $8 children ages 5 to 11, and free for kids 4 and under. Group rates available. Design: Frankenstein and Halloween items. Information: 734-854-3752.
Contact Ryan E. Smith at:
ryansmith@theblade.com
or 419-724-6103
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