The Bay Area is home to this massive, world-record corn maze

DIXON, Calif. – Many Bay Area residents might be surprised to know that a sprawling, world-record corn maze is operating right in their backyard, drawing hundreds of maze enthusiasts to its site every year around this time. 

The vast labyrinth is located in Dixon, in Solano County, at Cool Patch Pumpkins off Interstate 80.

Visitors have reported taking anywhere from an impressive 45 minutes to about two-and-a-half hours on this year’s 40-acre mind-twisting design.

Cool Patch is suspected to be the largest crop maze in the country and has twice earned the distinction of being named the largest in the world by Guinness World Records. A maze located in Quebec, Canada is the current record holder, according to Guinness.

Solano County officials said the farm is run by the Cooley brothers, Matt and Mark, second-generation Dixon-area farmers, who decided to expand into the agri-tourism field back in 2000.

“Finding would-be customers scarce the first few years, Matt decided to etch a maze into one of their corn fields.  Business increased, and so did the size of the corn maze,” the county said, calling the Cooleys’ designs an artistic endeavor. 

“Each year, Mark lays out his complex ideas on an Excel spread sheet and then the planting and cutting begins,” county officials said, adding, “Family, friends and even local school sports teams in Dixon help out.”

The maze is so large, it has reportedly led to 911 calls from those who get lost in the meandering puzzle, a tactic Cool Patch urged panicked visitors not to take.

“Please do not call 911 unless it is an emergency,” the farm said on its website. “Instead, carefully walk between the rows of corn until you exit the maze. Then, walk back around the outside edge until you return to the plaza.”

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Every season, the family-run pumpkin farm comes up with a new design and theme for its world-renowned maze. 

The corn maze at Cool Patch Pumpkins in Dixon, California on October 17, 2024. The giant maze takes about two hours to complete and has twice earned a Guinness World Record as the world’s largest corn maze.  ((Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP) (Photo by JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images))

This year, the theme appears to be related to the election season, with an American flag as its centerpiece along with the words “God Bless America.”

As part of the theme, Cool Patch has put out a message of unity. “We encourage our visitors and society as a whole to band together for the greater good of our nation,” the pumpkin farm wrote on its website, adding a Bible verse used by Abraham Lincoln in his famous 1858 speech: “A house divided shall not stand.” 

This year, the maze is also being used to honor fallen police officer and Dixon resident Matthew Bowen. The 32-year-old Bowen was a Vacaville police officer who was killed during a traffic stop back in July.  

Those who want to visit the maze only have a few more days to do so, or they’ll have to wait until next season.

Cool Patch, which began operations this year on Sept. 21, is set to mark its last day of the season on Thursday, on Halloween.

Entrance to Cool Patch Pumpkins’ massive maze. ((Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP) (Photo by JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images))