Friends and families take a cow ride at Pheasant Fields Farm Harvest Festival in Medford Saturday.

Among the pumpkin patches and between the rows of cornfields, visitors to Pheasant Fields Farm kicked off the fall season with tractor-powered train rides, scrumptious treats from Grandma’s Country Kitchen and the yearly hunt for the perfect carving pumpkin to bring home.

The farm’s 19th annual Harvest Festival started off Saturday, coinciding with the first day of the autumn season.

“We’re getting everything set and organized, and it seems to be working out pretty well,” Pheasant Fields Farm owner Ric Reno said. “This is what we call our soft opening, and we’re working out the bugs and making sure everything is set.”

“We’re set up well, we’ve got lots of pumpkins, beautiful specialties and looking forward to people coming out,” said Jeri Reno, Pheasant Fields Farm owner.

The Medford farm is located at 1865 Camp Baker Road and is open from 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, with daytime attractions ending at 7 p.m. and nighttime festivities from 7 to 9:30 p.m.

Eagle Point resident Hannah Munoz made the trip with her kids, Hunter and Sadie, along with her mother-in-law visiting from California.

“We love to come out here, we’ve come out here for the last several years and the kids love the cow train and the bee train, so they were riding those earlier and checking out the pumpkins,” Hannah Munoz said. “We’ve come every October and this is the first time we’ve come on opening day, so we’ll be back in a couple weeks as well.”

Little Hunter Munoz, 7, was scouting the pumpkin patches, looking for the best gourd to take home in the future.

“I like the yellow ones the best because it’s my favorite color,” he said, wearing a yellow hoodie. “I like all the big pumpkins too.”

Ten-year-old Tennasyn Fry was checking out the 30-plus pumpkin varieties as well.

“I want the kind of blue-looking ones,” she said.

“We’re going to pick a lot of pumpkins and take them home and carve some and decorate and kick off the fall season,” said her mother, Jacquelyn Fry.

Beyond the pumpkin patches, train rides and festive food, the Frys were having fun at the farm’s paintball shooting gallery and looking to meet the farm animals.

“We did the shooting gallery and that was fun, so I think we might check out the animals; Bubba the sheep I think was his name,” Jacquelyn Fry said.

For many attendees, the Harvest Festival is a yearly tradition.

“We’ve come the last several years, it’s a nice thing to do and there’s a little bit for everybody,” said Medford mom Tarri Parkerson, attending with her husband and two kids. “We’ve already done the bee train and did the big tractor ride-around thing and learned a little bit about the neighboring farms, and then we went and shot some paintballs.”

Parkerson’s kids, two-year-old Ben and three-year-old Isaac, were having fun climbing the sizable haystack.

“Honestly, it’s probably going to be this haystack, it’s unlimited fun,” Tarri Parkerson said of the kids’ favorite activity so far.

After visiting the festival, “we’re going take some naps and watch some football, and that’s going to be it for us for the day,” she said.

To close out Saturday, the farm is bringing 1995’s “Jumanji” to the big screen for its first outdoor movie night, with gates opening at 6 p.m. and the film starting at 7 p.m., Jeri Reno said.

Fall festivities will only expand for the Harvest Festival as it continues on the weekends until Oct. 29.

On Sunday, farm mascot Phin the pheasant will make his debut around the property, and Adam Gabriel and the Cavaliers will bring their soulful blend of Southern Blues and Folk rock from 1 to 4 p.m. at the stage under the farm’s huge walnut tree.

“(At 3 p.m.) he’s going to show his face for the first time ever,” Jeri Reno said of the pheasant mascot’s debut. “He’s going to be out and about among the farm and visiting the children.”

An array of vendors will fill the property’s big barn on select weekends later on, bringing goods from glass art to tea.

“We want everyone to have a great experience here on the farm and create great memories with their families and their friends,” Jeri Reno said.

General admission tickets cost $13 online and $15 at the ticket booth, and the farm offers a wide range of ticket add-ons available at pheasantfieldsfarm.ticketspice.com/pheasant-fields-farm-fall-2023.

For more details on the festival, visit www.pheasantfieldsfarm.com/harvest-festival-1.

More Fall Events:

The Rogue Valley will be filled with festival fall activities throughout September and into November. To check out the fun, see our listings at https://www.rv-times.com/go_rogue/