If you’re on the hunt for a truly autumnal family-day-out in the Scottish Borders this October, this little gem in Hawick is worth your calendar space. The team at Stouslie Farm have quietly turned their working family farm into a full-blown pumpkin-patch event — complete with pumpkin picking, outdoor games, a quirky farm shop and plenty of rustic charm.
What to expect at Stouslie Farm pumpkin picking
Pumpkin picking is obviously the highlight: you arrive in your session (timeslots are used to control numbers) and head out to browse the patch, find your ideal pumpkin and pay accord to the size of your pumpkin.
Stouslie Farm pumpkins
Beyond just picking pumpkins, there are fun side-activities: a bale mountain to climb, a hay bale obstacle course, soft archery, bean-bag tosses, marshmallow toasting, a ‘Beat the Ghoulie… Goalie’ game…and plenty of photo-ops.
Other activities at Stouslie Farm
Inside of a covered area, you’ll find the farm’s shop & vending setups: locally-reared beef, lamb, pork, as well as a milk/milkshake vending machine with rotating ‘spooky’ flavour specials in October. This adds a lovely “farm produce” bonus to the outing (so you can pick up something for dinner too).
Stouslie Farm shop
Given the rural setting, the open space, the mix of activities and the warm, low-hassle feel, this is especially good for families — younger children can explore and have fun, older children can pick pumpkins and play outdoor games, and adults can relax in the countryside setting.
Tips & Notes for Planning
- Pre-book your session: Tickets are per car not per person, and numbers are controlled. What this means is that if you book the 10am timeslot, you will have around 2 hours to explore everything and pick your pumpkin. At the end of the session you will hear a sound to let you know that the timeslot has finished and it is time to pack up.
- Bring wellies / outdoor shoes: Being a working farm and an outdoor patch, things may be muddy depending on weather. We were lucky to be there on a dry day, so the mud was dried out and easy to walk on.
- Arrive on time: The sessions are limited and you’ll want to allow your family the full allotted time to explore without rushing. Try to arrive as close as you can to the start of your timeslot to make the most of it.
- Budget for pumpkins: The ticket covers the session; pumpkins are sold separately. Prices range from about £1.50 to £3 for the smaller pumpkins and they are categorized from small to large and the price increases with size.
- Combine with the farm shop stop: It’s a good idea to leave some space in your car for produce from the farm shop if this is the type of food you enjoy.
- Weather caution: Given it’s October and outdoors, bring layers, waterproofs & cosy extras so everyone stays comfortable. We found the wind to be really cold and each child who normally refuses a coat had on a coat, neck scarf tube and gloves (at least the gloves were on for a while).
- Car parking: Since tickets are per car, so consider sharing a car with grandparents or cousins if you want to get the most of your money or if parking spaces are scarce.
- Good for younger children: Together with outdoor games, the mix of chasing around, climbing bales, marshmallow toasting is very kid-friendly. Smaller kids will need help to climb the hay bales, especially the mountain so make sure one adult is prepared to climb!
If you’re looking for a wholesome, relaxed, fun-filled outing that feels more “rustic autumn farm adventure” than big-theme-park, then Stouslie Farm’s pumpkin patch event ticks so many boxes. The mix of pumpkin-picking + outdoor fun + farm produce makes it feel like a full day out rather than just a quick stop. Plus the setting in the Scottish Borders adds that extra rural charm.
For our family, the highlight was the hay bales obstacle course and the hay bale mountain. My kids just absolutely love climbing, running and jumping so this really ticked all of the boxes for them.