Exploration Acres to host Purdue Day on Oct. 20

Exploration Acres, Northwest Indiana’s largest corn maze and pumpkin patch, created an 18-acre corn maze commemorating Purdue's “150 Years of Giant Leaps.”

Exploration Acres will host Purdue Day from noon to 7 p.m. on Sunday (Oct. 20). Anyone with a Purdue student, faculty, staff or alumni ID or who wears Purdue gear will receive $3 off adult admission. Exploration Acres is Northwest Indiana’s largest corn maze and pumpkin patch.

Purdue Pete and the Boilermaker Special will make an appearance from 2 to 4 p.m.

From noon to 4 p.m. the College of Liberal Arts, Purdue Alumni Association, Purdue Federal Credit Union, College of Engineering, College of Education, College of Health and Human Sciences, and College of Agriculture will be on hand providing interactive activities.

The corn maze covers more than 18 acres and features 494,000 stalks of corn. It is designed to commemorate Purdue’s “150 Years of Giant Leaps,” including images of alumnus Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, and Amelia Earhart, the first woman to attempt to circumnavigate the globe and an advisor for young women at Purdue in the 1930s. It won USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards for best corn maze.

Exploration Acres is located at 6042 Newcastle Road southeast of Lafayette and offers more than 20 activities that are family fun, including a pick-your-own pumpkin patch, fire pit rentals, and hay rides. Visitors also can purchase food and beverages from local vendors.

Exploration Acres will remain open for the season until Oct. 27. For more information about admissions, activities, and hours of operation, visit https://explorationacres.com/.

Purdue University’s Giant Leaps sesquicentennial campaign was a series of events that connect world-renowned speakers and Purdue expertise in a conversation on the most critical problems facing the world. The 150th anniversary celebration of Purdue concluded with an astronaut reunion at Homecoming on Oct. 12.

Writer: Kelsey Schnieders Lefever, kschnied@purdue.edu