| Sources |
- [S74] Atchley Funeral Home Records, Volume IV, 1987-1999, Larry D. Fox, (Smoky Mountain Historical Society), 10 Jan 1996.
Howard LeRoy Diltz obituary
- [S106] The Mountain Press, 24 Sep 2010.
Growing a business: Kyker family plugging along with seasonal attraction
by GAIL CRUTCHFIELD The Mountain Press
Drew, left, and Randy Kyker talk about the Kyker Farm Korn Maze as they prepare for their third year of business. Both are hoping for better weather this year than last year’s sopping wet conditions that kept business down by about half.
Can you navigate your way out of this year’s corn maze, as seen from an aerial view? The Haunted Trail winds around the perimeter of the corn maze.
The light at the end of this tunnel slide is indicative of how the Kyker family hopes this season at the Kyker Farm Korn Maze will be an improvement as they try to build their new business. Added last year, the slide has proved popular and swings were added this year.
The Corn Tub located next to the Straw Crawl is a new attraction at Kyker Farm Korn Maze this year; similar to a sand box, it’s instead filled with about 30 to 40 bushels of corn kernels.
The trails that run through the corn maze at Kyker Farms Korn Maze are carefully tended year-round.
The sign at the edge of Alder Branch Road claims the Kyker Farms Korn Maze provides a fun day for the whole family, and that’s something of which the Kyker family is working to ensure. The farm opens its gates for the third year today, offering more activities and amusements as they continue to grow their business.
Randy and Jackie Kyker, their children Drew and Brooke Ann and pretty much every other member of their immediate and extended families have a hand in the venture, that started as a way to supplement the cattle, wheat and corn growing operation’s income. Randy admits they haven’t made a profit yet, but they’re nurturing the business just as they do their cattle and land to hopefully one day see it run in the black.
Randy said he knows they need to be patient, that it takes time for a new business to turn a profit. Hopefully their continued growth will lure more customers through the gates.
In their second year, the farm added a few new features that went over very well with visitors, Randy said. One of those additions were two slides made from large drainage pipes. The longest is 30 feet long, with a shorter one for smaller children.
“But which one do they all go to?” Randy asked, before pointing to the larger slide.
The farm also added the Meadow Maze for children too old to appreciate the Tater Tot Maze but not old enough to tackle the main one.
The Tater Tot and Meadow mazes are next to each other this year, across from the main corn maze and haunted trail. The Kykers built the mazes from a field of sorghum stalks — the kind used for feed not for making molasses.
Other new features this year include a set of swings next to the slides and the corn tub.
The corn tub is a small backyard swimming pool filled with bushels of corn kernels.
“When I was a kid growing up on, you had to find fun things to do,” Randy said. Going through the Straw Crawl — tunnels made out of stacks of hay bales — is the same way he would play in the hay loft of the family farm. He would also play in the grain bin, which is where he got the idea for the corn tub.
The tub contains 30 to 40 bushels of kernels, which the children can wallow in. That should make for an interesting experience when moms sort the laundry.
“There will be corn in shoes, pockets, underwear,” Randy said.
One game Randy said he wasn’t familiar with until recently has also been added for all ages: corn hole games.
Activities which have been offered since day one will also return, including the corn maze designed by Drew and the accompanying scavenger hunt. Brooke Ann comes up with the story line for the scavenger hunt.
When visitors find their way out of the 5-acre maze, if they’ve completed it correctly they should have a phrase spelled out.
The Haunted Trail, hay rides and pumpkin patch and bonfire areas also return, as well as special events for groups such as schools, churches, scouts or even families.
Randy said they have seen an increase in school groups coming to the farm during the brief time they are open for the season. During that time, they get to help educate the children about farming and show them where the food on their table comes from.
“We love to entertain the kids,” Randy said.
He’s planted a larger crop of soybeans to give them an idea of other crops and show them their many uses.
“We talk about the uses for these crops in everyday life,” he said.
The children like to use their own imaginations on uses for crops, however.
“You should see what they do with the pumpkins,” Randy said, which the children can pick while on the hay rides. You’ll often see the pumpkins shooting from the end of the slide.
“The make it all the way down to the bonfire,” Drew said of the pumpkins he’s seen launched from the slide.
Groups enjoy reserving one of the three spaces for bonfires, Randy said, where they are welcome to bring hot dogs or the makings for s’mores.
Randy said a family could spend half a day on the farm going through the mazes and letting the children play. He encourages families to come early so there’s plenty of time to play before the sun goes down.
The farm will operate on weekends through Oct. 30. They will open on Thursdays starting Oct. 7. Hours on Thursday and Friday are 4 p.m. to dark and on Saturday from 10 a.m. to dark. The Haunted Trail will open Oct. 8 and be open from dark to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
General admission is $5 for ages 3-5 and $7 for 6 and over. General admission provides access to all three mazes and play areas. There are additional charges for the hayride and pumpkin patch ($5) and the Haunted Trail ($10).
Groups can schedule visits during the hours before the farm is open to the public, as well as reserve bonfire sites, by calling 679-4848.
gcrutchfield@themountainpress.com
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, d. 17 Feb 2011, Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center, Knoxville, Knox County, Tennessee