They may sound corny, but corn mazes can be a lot of fun! The life-sized puzzles cut out of cornfields have become a popular treat for kids and adults to explore during the fall. Some mazes are created to make a design or tell a story. Some are just for fun! Click through the slideshow to see some of the best corn mazes of 2012.
WHITEHOTPIX/ZUMAPRESS.COM
World’s Largest QR Code
It may be time for a bigger phone. The Kraay Family’s cornfield in Lacombe, Canada, has been named the world’s largest functioning Quick Response (QR) code by Guinness World Records. QR codes, like bar codes, store information. When users scan the code with a cell phone, more information on a product or company loads onto the screen. To prove to Guinness that the maze’s QR code works properly, the Kraay family had to hold a phone out of a helicopter window to scan the field.
JOSHUA POLSON ––THE GREELEY TRIBUNE/AP
Got Peyton?
Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning has won many awards, but this may be his highest honor yet. The Fritzler Farms in LaSalle, Colorado, carved Manning into their corn maze this year. The football player is seen waving and holding his helmet by his side. Farm owner Glen Fritzler said he and his son spent five days cutting the maze. This is their fourth time having a Broncos-themed maze.
RICKY CARIOTI—THE WASHINGTON POST/GETTY IMAGES
Vote With Your Feet
Teresa Summers Greenwood wants to remind Americans to vote. She carved images of candidates Barack Obama, left, and Mitt Romney into her corn maze in Frederick, Maryland. Greenwood began work on the maze in June. Cornstalks and pathways create the theme, and visitors use their feet to cast their votes.
DEVRIES CORN MAZE
Argh, Pirates Ahead
Shiver me timbers! For the corn maze at DeVries Farm in Olathe, Coloradofarmer Randy Friend carved two local team mascots, an Indian chief and a pirate. Visitors have to find their way through 20 acres of corn if they want the booty. Friend says completing the maze took 450 hours of labor. That’s a lot of heave-ho!
SMITH ROCK RANCH
Star Wars
Visitors will need the force to get through this eight-acre maze. Brett Herbst designed this year’s Star Wars maze at Smith Rock Ranch in Terrebonne, Oregon. Herbst started making these puzzles 16 years ago. His company, The Maize, is now the largest of its kind in the world. Herbst has proved he is light-years ahead of others in the field.
RICHARDSON FARM
Girl Scouts Code
This is quite an anniversary present! To celebrate 100 years of the Girl Scouts, Bandy’s Pumpkin Patch in Johnston City, Illinois, carved the organization’s logo into their cornfield. Visitors to the 10-acre maze can also enjoy hayrides, a play barn, Girl Scout trivia and plenty of pumpkins. The maze can be visited until October 31, which is also the birthday of Girl Scouts Founder Juliette Gordon.