What Makes a Corn Maze a Corn Maze?
Every fall, thousands of people make their way into our corn maze at Swans Trail Farms. But have you ever wondered how a giant field of corn turns into a maze filled with winding paths, turns, dead ends, and more than 700 signs and facts?
It takes a little more than planting corn and grabbing a pair of scissors!
Our corn maze has been a Swans Trail tradition for nearly three decades, and there's a lot of planning, growing, and good old-fashioned farm work that goes into creating it.
It Starts with the Corn
Before there can be a maze, there has to be a field of corn.
The corn is planted and carefully grown throughout the spring and summer. While it's growing, the maze design is already part of the plan. The timing is important because the corn needs to be tall enough to create those towering walls—but the field also needs to be ready when fall visitors arrive.
By late summer, the corn has grown tall, and it's time to turn the field into a maze.
The Design Comes First
A maze doesn't just happen once the corn gets tall.
The design is planned ahead of time, with pathways mapped out to create twists, turns, intersections, and plenty of opportunities to wonder, “Wait... have we been here before?”
And our maze isn't just a random collection of paths.
The pathways are actually designed to recreate roads and routes from around Washington State, including recognizable roads like I-5 and I-90. As you make your way through the maze, you're essentially navigating a giant agricultural version of Washington!
Then Comes the Cutting
Once the corn is tall enough, the pathways are cut into the field according to the design.
This is where the maze starts to take shape.
Instead of walking through rows of untouched corn, visitors follow the paths that have been created through the field. From above, the design becomes visible—but from inside the maze, all you see are walls of corn surrounding you.
And that's what makes getting a little turned around part of the fun!
A Tradition That Started in 1997
Our corn maze has a pretty special history.
Farmer Ben started the Swans Trail corn maze in 1997. Although he has since retired, he still comes back to help place the signs throughout the maze.
And there are a LOT of them.
More than 700 signs and facts are scattered throughout the maze, giving visitors something to discover around every corner.
So while you're trying to figure out which direction to go, you might also learn something along the way!
More Than Just a Maze
One of the things that makes our corn maze unique is that it's not simply about finding your way from the entrance to the exit.
You're exploring a giant map made out of corn.
The paths represent roads, the signs give you facts and information to discover, and the whole experience combines a little bit of farming, geography, history, and adventure.
And yes—getting lost is encouraged!
Why Corn?
So, why corn?
Corn is the perfect crop for a maze because it grows tall and creates natural walls between the pathways. Once the stalks reach their full height, they can make it surprisingly difficult to see what's waiting around the next corner.
Which means you might enter thinking, “This won't be too hard.”
And five minutes later... “Wait. Didn't we just see that sign?”
A Fall Tradition at Swans Trail Farms
From a tiny seed in the spring to a towering maze by fall, creating a corn maze takes months of planning and growing.
The next time you step into our maze, look around. Those tall walls of corn are more than just a place to get lost—they're part of a tradition that has been growing at Swans Trail Farms since 1997.
So grab your family, find your starting point, and see how well you can navigate Washington's biggest corn maze!
Just remember: the goal isn't necessarily to get through quickly. It's to have fun getting a little lost along the way.
