It’s that time of year, so enjoy it and be respectful.
Welcome back to the Mailbag!
Fall is, without question, this writer's favorite time of year.
There are many reasons for that. It's football season, so that helps. There's more candy, a major plus. It's not a trillion-billion degrees outside, so there's that. There are usually some cool outdoor concerts. Fire pits in the backyard are fun. Hoodies make their long-awaited return.
Thanks to an all-Texas American League Championship Series and the assuredness of there being a Texas team in the World Series, this fall even added a baseball element I care about.
Mostly, fall is awesome because this is the time of year to get out and about. So, today we're going to talk about something near and dear to our hearts here in the Lubbock area: agritourism.
If you're wondering what agritourism is, it's what happens around here in the fall, when families and friends and couples looking for a day out in this lovely weather visit a farm, pumpkin patch, corn maze, or any other kind of agricultural property in search of a good time.
With so many places around Lubbock to visit – Everything Lubbock put together a great list here – it's easy to see that visiting farms is a big part of the fall festivities in the area.
Knowing my wife, if we haven't walked the maze at At'l Do Farms or visited the pumpkin trail by the end of October, I'll be hearing about it all the way to Christmas.
Bow season is also upon us, with the full deer season just around the corner, another hugely popular form of agritourism. And while we're on the topic, there are some pretty good hiking spots in the Texas Panhandle that are very much worth visiting this time of year. Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Caprock Canyons State Park & Trailways and Palo Duro Canyon State Park all offer some nice hikes and views.
Alongside attending football games, agritourism is what many people in West Texas do in the fall. It's where we choose to spend our dollars. It's part of the lifeblood of the communities in the region and one of the things that helps ensure the vitality of the Texas Panhandle.
With supporting our local farmers and communities in mind, we'd like to ask a favor of Red Raider nation.
While you're out having all this fun, picking pumpkins and wandering through mazes and hunting, keep in mind that the land you're on is somebody else's business. It takes a ton of work to get a crop ready. That alone is a commitment. But inviting the public to experience the land takes even more work.
No matter if you're visiting a local farm for sunflowers and pumpkins, trying to find the prettiest place to take some fall pictures, working with a landowner for a hunting lease, or visiting a park for a nice long hike, let's all make sure we're taking care of our people.
Be respectful of the land. Park where you're supposed to park. Walk where you're supposed to walk. Don't pick plants that aren't meant to be picked.
And if you go to Caprock Canyon, don't try to pet the fluffy cows.
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