I came to Rural Hill for the Amazing Maize Maze. Rural Hill is a beautiful place tucked away in Huntersville. The Maze had a high production value! Not only are you trying to navigate through the large twisting and turning space, but you're also trying to find a series of clues that have a theme. This was definitely one of the more difficult mazes that I've ever done. I went on Halloween and was also pleasantly surprised by the buckets of candy placed throughout the maze During COVID, they did a good job at managing crowds by having people buy tickets for certain time slots. The staff was wearing masks and asked people to wear masks during the beginning and end of the maze. read more

Rural Hill - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Huntersville, North Carolina

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Whether it's from the maddening crowds of an expansive metropolis, or the pressures of a career, Rural Hill is a pleasant place in which to escape. It's a quaint, restored throwback to the era when the Scots and the Davidsons timbered forests, tilling them into fields and farms. Eventually, the area was established and is known by their name. The Davidson family cemetery is prominently lined with a beautiful stone wall and is open most days. Trails exists for walking but not many use them (which is why I like going). There is an old dirt road that eventaually dead ends at a small shelter overlooking a pond--I think it leaves many disappointed. There's not much to see once you arrive and ALL the land is a County preserve with trespassing not allowed (yep, they got trail cams so if fishing is your plan, you've been warned). The magic, really, is the road itself. It winds through the woodlands for a couple miles with little traffic. I often park and walk portions with my binoculars. I grew up on such a road in Upstate New York. Fond memories rekindle. I am reminded of how happy was my childhood. Sometimes I see turkeys, deer, ospreys, and coyotes. Looking for a leisurely way to spend some time away? I say "give it a whirl." Breath it all in! read more

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Rural Hill is a beautiful place and a great venue. I participated in the Loch Norman Highland Games = GREAT.

For the 5th year running my family and I did the Amazing Maze and we loved it. It started with my daughter and I years ago then we expanded the family and others joined in and now we take quite the group. It is so much fun. We had great times trying to find our way out and doing the various puzzles as we move about. All of us have tried to lead and we have always shared many laughs. This year I was extremely excited to see the AFTER pandemic approach to the Hill as they had a festival feel with all types of retail and food choices. They even had places set-up for you to take selfies or have photo opportunities. What a nice touch. I cannot wait until next year. read more

Attended to BrightFire 2022 festival. It was so amazing and fun. What a calibration of earth loving human being. The Gad great shows, fire dancers, fantastic music, food trucks, vendors and arts. There was so many people there it was great. I'm hoping to come back and see the whole property. read more

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Rural Hill is a 265 acre nature preserve & farm, which is open for tours, festivals, weddings, sheepdog trails, walking, & field trips. It's also home to the "Amazing Maize Maze." Today's visit brought Milo & I here for the "Bark in the Park" festival. For the second year in a row, I'm really impressed at the layout. Festivals are held behind (& around) all the historical buildings on the property. There's plenty of parking, as well. There's so much to do here outside of festivals. It's worth reviewing their website, or checking out a festival being held there. read more

Rural Hill - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Huntersville, North Carolina

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I've only ever come here for amazing maize maze in the fall, but I love it! This is my favorite corn maze in the Charlotte area. I love that they have mailboxes scattered throughout the maze for you to collect a piece of the map at so that you aren't just wandering aimlessly trying to find the exit like you have to do at other mazes. It's very well coordinated with color zones that correspond to what piece of the map you're in. I make sure to come every year when my parents come down to visit me. It's $11 for adults and it usually takes us between 1-2 hours to find all of the pieces of the map and get out. They also had a bunch of inflatables set up this year and they have some food available. The only bathrooms on site are port a potties. I would highly recommend stopping by to do the maze! read more

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Rural Hill is over the hill and through the woods, long past grandma's house. This hidden patch of land is where many area events are held. I attended specifically for the "Amazing Maize Maze." It was a blast! There are checkpoints and quizzes along the way to help you navigate amidst the husks. Day or night, there's much fun to be had. *Pro Tip* - Don't go after the rain. Them there corn fields are slippery! They had food trucks and vendors as well as snacks, sodas, water, beer, and wine for sale. You can even take beer or wine with you through the twists and turns of the fields if you so desire; perhaps making it more interesting, or maybe more difficult. The jury is still out on that one. There is also an annual sheep dog show held at Rural Hill, and it is a popular spot for weddings. I definitely had a good time, and I know that I'll be back! read more

I am glad we crossed this off the list as a "fall thing", however I doubt I will make this a fall tradition. During the fall they have the Amazing Maize which is a corn maze. During the day it was $11 per adult. I believe at night it is a couple bucks more, but us not haunted. They do take cash and card. There is a brief orientation about the maze and then your sent out with this pole flag your group has to carry in the event you need to get out for an emergency. The maze is wide but it is so hard. It was crowded when we went and hot. Dress appropriate. There is no shade in the maze. They also had bouncy house activities for kids. A food truck and they did serve beer. There's a tractor hayride for a couple bucks more. They take you around the grounds. The grounds are pretty. Also, they have gorgeous pumpkins for sell. read more

Rural Hill - Corn Maze from a distance - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Huntersville, North Carolina

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What a tremendous hidden gem! We visited recently during their annual Sheepdog trials. Yes, there is a place right outside of Uptown that has annual tests of how well Sheepdogs herd sheep! Before you roll your eyes, let me set the stage - imagine a giant farm area with beautiful rolling hills and forest, easily accessible with tons of parking. Then add in happy couples and families, many with dogs, relaxing and watching various events. Now sprinkle in a food court, beer and wine, and a pumpkin catapult. Sounds good, doesn't it? This is just a really cool place - you feel like you are in the bucolic country, the views are great and it's a lot of fun to wander around and see the various historic spots, including a functioning blacksmith studio. It's exceptionally dog and child-friendly, which is a huge plus. Definitely worth checking out. read more

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Cool place. Relaxing to be there. Good trails. Enjoyed the Amazing Maize Maze (fun but frustrating). The Sheepdog Trials were really cool also. Great place to bring your dog. But DO NOT eat at the food trucks. Probably the worst burger I have ever eaten in my life. Overall, a great place to visit whether there are events or not. read more

Having been there multiple times for the Scottish Highland Games (I wear a kilt). This is awesome, wonderful, & great. So wish to return with sgian-dubh & spooran read more

This year was our third year attending the Loch Norman Highland Games at Rural Hill. Every year, the event and the venue have been great! The space itself is large enough to not feel crowded, but small enough that it is difficult to get lost. The other part that has impressed me every time, is how well the staff keeps up on keeping the grounds clean. Not an easy feat when you consider the number of people eating and drinking while walking through the grounds. Though we have not yet taken the opportunity, we will definitely continue to consider attending other events here in the future. read more

Let's face it -- it's out there, man. Way out there. You're not in Huntersville anymore. It's a huge plot that spans acres of land outside of Huntersville and close to parts of Lake Norman. Just outside of the 485 loop. Houses many family-friendly events and others of note: Warrior Dash Amazing Maize Maze (Fall) Other festivals of sorts. It's a great spot for education, too. There are old schoolhouses, farmlands, tons of walking trails, and other nature-centric activities. Check it out even when there isn't some event or other hoopla. read more

Came for the corn maze on a Tuesday which we saw on their website. No customers were there just one rude employee who told us we had to have a reservation 24 hours in advance. Nowhere on their website did they mention that. Very disappointed. You would think in the absence of any customers they would have been happy to see us. I guess customers service is not important to them. Plenty of other locations to choose. read more

I made it out to Rural Hill to partake in the Loch Norman Highland Games. I had never been out to this park before and getting to see it filled with spectators was great. It is my understanding that Rural Hill came under the Charlotte-Mecklenberg County Park System just a few years back. And, though it is way out there from the rest of the parks, It has become a favorite for events and activities like the Highland Games. The ground are impeccably kept, and the views are stunning. In addition to the games I enjoyed getting a chance to see some Carolina heritage activities at some of the buildings on-site. Moreover, I think that the staff at the facility was perfect. I think this would be a great venue for a wedding or large party. Concerts here would be great as well because of the massive amount of parking. Kudos to the staff. I look forward to heading out that way again. read more

What a nice location for events. Just make sure you have sun lotion or a hat. Not much shade so if you have or bring pets beware. We have been there a few times and enjoy it. Stone soup day on January 1st is the best. What a lovely event read more

I volunteered at Warrior Dash which was held at Rural Hill yesterday. It was a scorcher out there. I manned the beer tent and then helped with clean-up and breakdown. Overall, Rural Hill is massive. The cabins are really nice, but i didn't have much time to peruse the historical markers and what not. read more

Attended Oyster Festival Sunday, 11/15. Nice idea and a fair number of people attended so it looks like oysters are popular. Now the down side and I'm point this out only as a means of constructive criticism for next year's planning of this event. Attendees had 2 options for oysters. #1 a steamed basket (maybe 10 in the basket, and #2 grilled (8 oysters) for $10 each order. There were no directional signs telling people which line was for the steamed and/or which line was for the grilled. We purchased one order for each selection of oysters and my husband and I got in the line that appeared to be for the steamed baskets and after being in line for about 40 minutes we struck up a conversation with the couple in front of us and they said they purchased 1 order of each and was wondering if they could get both orders in the line they were in because the line was moving very slowly and the other line was moving even more slowly. We all talked and decided that they could not possibly make you pick up your order from one line and then have to go to the other line...but we were wrong. Bottom line, we waited in line for about 40 minutes and then learned that we would have to go over to the other line where we waited for about an hour. The grill used for grilling was WAY too small. So for future planning the vendor should use a VERY LARGE grill. There was no other option for food so if you didn't want oysters you were out of luck. I would suggest having 3-4 food trucks for next year. The only beverage available was beer at the cost of $6 for a cup. The beer was very much overpriced and I suggest that they have other beer vendors and beverage vendors. read more