If your vacation is all about relaxation, you may want to spend some time at Yankee Magazine’s 2010 New England pick for “Best Place to Go Nowhere.”

Fort Hill Farms in Thompson, not far from the Massachusetts border, has spent 17 years creating an agricultural wonderland of adventures, including a Lavendar Labryinth, a corn maze and  a blueberry picking patch.

And a neat tidbit: Fort Hill Farms’ cows provide milk and cream for the Connecticut -grown Farmer’s Cow brand. Fort Hill is a member of the Farmer’s Cow, a group of six CT dairy farms producing hormone-free milk and other products.

Stop by and say hello to the now-famous cows while you’re here enjoying some ice cream at the new Creamery. I love the sampler – a taste of each of the 10 flavors. If you can eat all 10 samples you get a free scoop! I haven’t achieved that goal yet, but each time I get closer and closer.

The Creamery also sells other Farmer’s Cow products as well as dried lavender from the Farms’ Quintessential Gardens. With 1,500 lavender plants planted in the stone foundations of an old barn and house, it’s truly a sight to be seen. The lavender is organically grown and can be used as an edible addition to different foods, including ice cream topping. Bouquets are sold June through July, too.

The corn maze is great for the kids (well-behaved ones, preferably) – and educational. In fact, co-owner Kristen Orr says the whole farm is educational for all ages. This is not a short corn maze. Leave time to enjoy all of the thinking that went into it. Bring water in if it’s hot.

This year’s maze theme is “The Farmer’s Cow-Lick.” You’ll be given a sheet to work with and off you go searching for clues to solve the year’s puzzle. Friday and Saturday nights are Flashlight Nights in the Maze. Very cool.  Check the website for opening day for the maze (late August) and hours.

The farm offers events as well, like the September poetry slam, an open storytelling competition.

Welcoming over 10,000 visitors each year, Fort Hill Farms is one of the best agricultural experiences in Connecticut. And the Orrs are wonderful, and so enthusiastic about their work that it’s contagious. You’ll find yourself sticking around just for the atmosphere. And you can bring some of the gardens home with you too – pick out some lovely plants while you’re here.

Photos courtesy of Fort Hill Farms.

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