Fall Festival
Shades of Autumn Fall Festival
Shades of Autumn 2023 is nine weekends of family fun beginning on Saturday, September 2, 2023, through Sunday, October 29, 2023.
We added several new attractions last year and have surprises for you this year as well! There is something for everyone to enjoy during our festival season. You can check out our admission prices to our Farmtractions Theme Park during Shades of Autumn.
“Shades of Autumn” is the annual Fall Festival at Stade’s Farm & Market. Located in McHenry County in northern Illinois, Shades of Autumn is a great place to bring the whole family to enjoy nature’s bounty, plus great entertainment, during the most beautiful time of the year. During Shades of Autumn, you can experience a day on the farm filled with family fun and forever memories.
Stade’s Farm & Market has been hosting this fall festival for 20+ years, which began in 1997! Not only are pumpkins waiting to be picked out in the patch, the hayride back and forth is fun, too. In our petting zoo, you can play with some of our four-legged friends, including goats, a pony, a turtle, bunnies, Mama Llama and an alpaca. We have mazes in which to test your skills, and the pumpkin barrel train is a big hit with the little ones. There are plenty of children’s activities to enjoy at Stade’s. The pumpkin cannon demonstrations are a “blast” to watch while enjoying some of your favorite festival foods from our vendors. Here at Shades of Autumn, we are more than able to satisfy your sweet tooth, as well as a variety of delicious lunch options. Our farm market is fully stocked with in-season fresh-picked produce and all the fall decorations you might be looking for.
Please Note: We love animals just as much as you do and we are happy to welcome fully-trained service animals in accordance with ADA regulations, but please leave all others at home. If you visited us with your pets, please be cognizant of the weather when you leave them in your car to enjoy the activities on the farm. We thank you kindly for understanding.
For the comfort of all our guests, Stade’s is a SMOKE-FREE farm, (including vaporizers, vape pens, hookah pens, electronic cigarettes (E–Cigarettes), e-pipes, and all other ENDS.) All Children, 15 years and younger, must have adult supervision at all times while visiting the farm.
Shades of Autumn Hours
Opening Day September 2, 2023
10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
September: Saturdays and Sundays
October: Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays
Also open Monday, October 9th
General Admission for 2023 Fall Season*
General Admission for 2023 Fall Season*
- Children age 2 and under admitted free
- September - Ages 3-59 - $20
- October Sat. & Sun.- Ages 3-59 - $25
- October Friday - $20
- Sept. & Oct. - Ages 60 and over – $10
- Season Pass - $70
General admission includes
- FREE Parking!
- Unlimited use of all attractions (except the following: Stade’s Farm Express Train and the Apple Cannons)
- A farmtastically awesome time
"We Make it Easy to Create Family Memories!"
Our Family-Friendly Attractions Include …
All ages welcome. Firing the cannons can be loud and may not be suitable for young children.
($5/10 shots) Available Saturdays and Sundays 10 am - 6 pm. Apple cannons are not available on Fridays.
Authentic Truck Slide
Take a seat in the driver's seat, climb the stairs, and slide down our authentic semi-truck slide. Suitable for all ages.
Enjoy a classic game of baggo while enjoying the fresh air on the farm.
A barn with chalkboard, games, and fun inside.
Play House - small kitchen, play food, play table, and small cars.
Six years and under welcome.
Enjoy a ride on our colorful barrel train.
Bunny Village
Visit our bunny family and watch them play with each other.
Suitable for all ages.
Find your way through our connected cattle trailers.
Suitable for all ages.
Enjoy a ride to the top of the ferris wheel and see the farm's beauty.
For young children only.
Climb and bounce your way across the spider web.
Find your way through our 2-acre corn maze. Test your knowledge with our 12 hidden questions.
All ages welcome.
Stick your feet in our corn bin, slide down into the pile, and bury your friends.
Grab a friend and pump water through the well as quickly as you can. Watch the duck race toward the finish line while you pump.
Dig your hands into our giant sandbox!
All ages welcome.
Take a spin through our hampster run.
See what it's like to sit in the seat of a harvester. Slide down the back of a real combine.
Find your way through our maze of giant hay bales.
Test your strength and compete with your friends. Who is the strongest?
Sit in a real tractor seat and hang on tight to the steering wheel!
Suitable for all ages.
Come feed and visit our zoo of animals. Llamas, rabbits, chickens, horses, pigs, etc.
Take a hayride to visit our 33-acre pumpkin patch. Any pumpkin you can carry is $8.
Wait for the loud horn to go off and watch for our giant pumpkin cannon to shoot off!
Grab ahold of the rope and climb up our giant hill.
Suitable for all ages.
Climb the stair and take a slide down our 3 different slides.
All are welcome!
Stade's Farm Express Train is available on Saturdays & Sundays 10 am - 6 pm.
Whether your driving or a passanger, relax inside the school bus. Draw and color on the giant chalkboard on the outside of the bus.
Open to all ages.
Swing around our strawberry swirl.
Ages 3-12 welcome.
Try your hand at hitting this ball one way around the pole while another tries to hit it the opposite way.
Suitable for all ages.
Test your strength! Can you pull the rope and lift the tractor?
Grab onto the rope and pull the tractor as far as you can! 
Climb up a tower of tractor tires and enjoy the view!
All ages welcome.
Sit on a large tractor tire and swing in circles!
Available for all ages!
Test your strength with a good, old-fashioned game of tug of war.
Suitable for all ages.
Pick you color, put your hands up, and whip you way around the corner on our veggie cars.
Ages 3 to 10 are welcome.
Must be at least 48 inches tall to ride.
Enjoy the ride on our 4 different ziplines!
Separate Pay-As-You-Go Attractions
Stade’s Farm Express Train Farm Tour ($5 each person)
Apple Cannons ($5/10 shots)
These two attractions are available on Saturdays and Sunday 10 am - 6 pm. They are not available on Fridays in October.
Please note that all children 15 years and under require adult supervision at all times. The last entry sold to Farmtractions Theme Park is at 5:00 PM. Most of the activities at Stade’s Farm and Market occur outside. If you are planning a visit, please check the forecast first, as we do sometimes need to close unexpectedly and cease outdoor activities due to inclement weather. Our Facebook page will keep updates on all closures.
No refunds are given for Farmtractions admission due to the weather. Our Market will always remain open, (9 AM – 6 PM) even when the outdoor activities close due to unpleasant weather.