It was a classic fall scene Saturday afternoon at Tolay Lake Regional Park as parents and kids disembarked from a hay ride to the park’s pumpkin patch, the kids running ahead with small orange squash and the parents waddling forth under the weight of giant orbs.
From there, they fanned out to explore the offerings at the park’s 9th annual fall festival, from a replica Native American village to an elaborate hay maze. Local activity groups hosted archery, astronomy and candle-making booths. Nearby, kids had a chance to show their mettle in a pumpkin seed spitting contest.
Rangers also led tours around the golden hills and open grasslands of the sprawling, 1,769-acre park.
Introducing people to the park, one of the largest in Sonoma County, is a main goal of the festival, said Ranger Jeff Taylor. The park was purchased by the county’s Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District for $18 million from the Cardoza family in 2005. It is not fully open to the public, pending the completion of a master plan for the property, which is home to numerous threatened species and the site of a historic spiritual center for Native Americans. Interested people can attend an orientation session and obtain a permit to visit the park. But for others, the Tolay Fall Festival provides a chance to get acquainted with the wide-open landscape. In total, about 18,000 people attended last year during the festival’s two-weekend run, he said.
“We want to make people aware of what’s out here,” Taylor said. “It belongs to everybody.”
José Villagomez, visiting from Windsor with his wife and 3-year-old daughter, said he had never been to the park and enjoyed getting to experience it on the long hay ride to the pumpkin patch. “It’s great to see the beautiful views of the rolling hills and get the open air,” he said.
He and his daughter, Marlise, were resting in the shade after trying on some potato sacks and racing each other across an open field.
“She really wanted to try it, and she loves it,” he said.
The festival grew out of a tradition started by the Cardoza family, which each fall hosted a pumpkin patch and other activities, like a haunted house.
“When the public acquired the property, we didn’t want to let the tradition die,” Taylor said. “So we took a twist on (the old event) and made it educational.”
Hence what has become a favorite for many children, the Nighttime Creatures Barn, where volunteers introduced curious visitors to animals ranging from the Northern Pygmy Owl to baby rattlesnakes.
Also in the cool, dark barn, families peered at scorpions glowing under black lights, a function of a chemical in their exoskeletons. Volunteer Penny Grillo sat by the tank holding about 60 of the arthropods and answered questions from youngsters including, “Are these scorpions really poisonous?” and “Will they pinch you?”
She was one of more than 100 volunteers at the event and said she loved learning about the scorpions and talking about them with kids.
Taylor said the parks department relied on volunteers to hold the event: “It wouldn’t happen without them.”
Eliza Turner, who traveled with her three children from Larkspur to Tolay, said she appreciated the festival’s educational focus. In fact, it’s what drew her family back after attending a few years ago. “It doesn’t feel like it’s a big commercial push, it’s just here to teach kids stuff,” she said.
The Costa family of Santa Rosa was also attracted by a chance to explore nature and learn about science. In the animal barn, Kim Costa’s twin granddaughters Mia and Lily Costa gazed intently into an aquarium brimming with aquatic creatures. “That’s a crawfish,” Lily Costa told her grandmother, her face close to the tank, then went on to identify a beetle and a dragonfly larvae.
“This is the best pumpkin patch in Sonoma County,” said Kim Costa, a schoolbus driver. “And I’ve been to a lot.”
The festival continues Sunday, as well as Oct. 18 and 19 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $4 for adults and teens, and $1 for kids 12 and under. Parking is $7. Regional Parks members are allowed free parking and one-time free admission for up to two adults and two children.
The park is located at 5869 Lakeville Highway at Cannon Lane in Petaluma.
Staff Writer Jamie Hansen blogs about education at extracredit.blogs.pressdemocrat.com. You can reach her at 521-5205 or jamie.hansen@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jamiehansen.
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