U-Pick pumpkin season opens Saturday in Issaquah

A stock broker from Southern California, Glenn Dutro was looking for something a little bit different when he stumbled on the Trinity Tree Farm just south of Issaquah. He could work anywhere with Internet and a phone. So they bought the home with its 40 acres of Christmas trees, and embraced the farmer’s work schedule.

By Celeste Gracey • September 28, 2012 1:13 pm

A stock broker from Southern California, Glenn Dutro was looking for something a little bit different when he stumbled on the Trinity Tree Farm just south of Issaquah.

He could work anywhere with Internet and a phone. So they bought the home with its 40 acres of Christmas trees, and embraced the farmer’s work schedule.

“The farm is enjoyable, because you get to see your progress everyday,” he said as he patted Sophie, a brown spotted farm dog with grass and dirt tangled in her hair.

He now works the markets in the morning and the tractor in the afternoon.

While he’s sold the family Christmas tree experience – cut your own before huddling around a campfire – for about 17 years, this will be his fourth that he’s offering up pumpkins.

He opens his farm up Sept. 29, not just with a new fall season, but a new barn focused on hosting a number of festivities.

Families are invited to take a short hayride down to the pumpkin patch, where a few remaining vines curl around pumpkins. Dutro cuts back a number of the plants to keep kids from tripping. Few farms have enough stock to keep the crowds happy, and so he regularly has to restock his field with fresh pumpkins.

A few of the orange squash might have a bite mark. Deer and elk are fond of pumpkins. Sandwiched between Squak and Tiger mountains, Trinity has more than enough pass through to cause trouble.

Families are then invited to wheel-barrow their pumpkins to be weighed. A campfire, with large split timbers is a welcoming site on a cold day. He expects it will be well used during his busy season, mid-October.

The barn allows him to continue selling kettle corn, hot dogs and hot chili for families who hope to linger. Activities include a motorized train, which loops through the farm, and inflatable bouncy house and slide.

A log cabin, which is made from timbers from the property, acts as a large gift shop. It’s filled with Halloween decorations.

The small farm is expecting about 1,000 people to pass through its fields this fall.