The Rise of the Taylor Swift, Jimmy Kimmel, Game of Thrones, Donald Trump (and More!) Jack O'Lanterns

You've never encountered Halloween pumpkins quite like this. Descanso Gardens' annual Rise of the Jack O'Lanterns experience is a walk through some of the spookiest, weirdest, most elaborate and just plain cool pumpkins you'll see anywhere this time of year.

Yes, that includes a Taylor Swift pumpkin (above), which for my money is the scariest of them all.



Above, Jimmy Kimmel.

So what is The Rise? Per the site: "The Rise is a unique and iconic family friendly fall event featuring more than 5,000 hand-carved illuminated jack o'lanterns crafted by professional artists and sculptors and arranged in creative displays along a 1/3-mile scenic walking trail, all set to an original music score produced exclusively for The Rise."



Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton.

More details: "New themes this year include a safari with larger-than-life animals carved from dozens of jack o'lanterns, an auto show featuring classic cars that have been re-imagined in a new way, and a dragon that's over 50 feet long and contains hundreds of jacks! You'll also see our talented artists hand-paint and hand-carve the images of some of your favorite TV and movie stars into giant 100 pound pumpkins at our live carving station!"



William and Kate!

The Rise says it has to rotate in new pumpkins all month to replace rotted ones. But they also "use carvable foam pumpkins, called Funkins, as well because they last longer. All 5,000 of our Jack O'Lanterns are hand-carved by our talented staff of carvers."

The Rise continues through Nov. 1 at Descanso Gardens. More info here. And now, more photos!



Entrance.



Brad and Angelina.



The kids' favorite: Minecraft!



Game of Thrones!



RIP, Leonard Nimoy.



RIP, Christopher Lee.



RIP, Wes Craven.



Darth and the Death Star!.



Star Wars.



Go Yoda!



Sesame Street.



Emojis.



Inside Out's Sadness.



Heads in a box!



Minions.



Spider-Pumpkin-Man.



Truck.



Dino-pumpkin.



Skeleton pumpkin.



The view at Descanso Gardens.



Pumpkin spider catches its prey.



The pumpkin graveyard.



Getting their groove on.



Skeleton pumpkins on parade.



Zoo pumpkin.



Hollywood pumpkins.



The pumpkin king.



BOO!



Fishy.



Pumpkin dragon.

The View from Above Descanso Gardens

Not only is Descanso Gardens in La Canada Flintridge one of our favorite spots to visit, but hike it a bit and you'll be rewarded with some fantastic views of the foothills.

Later this month, check out Descanso's Cherry Blossom Festival. (Check out more March events here.



Descanso Gardens
1418 Descanso Drive
La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011
Descanso Gardens is open daily except for Christmas. Hours are 9 am to 5 pm (last entry is 4:30 pm). There is ample free parking.
General $9. Senior/Students $6. Children (5 to 12 years) $4. Guild members and children under 5 free.

Franklin Avenue Visits the Los Angeles County Arboretum

For several years we held a membership to the Huntington Library and Gardens (thanks to one of the best Groupons we ever bought), but at a point last year we realized we just weren't going enough to justify our investment. Meanwhile, we were probably visiting the Descanso Gardens (closer to us) more often. When Maria discovered that a membership to the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanical Gardens in Arcadia also covered entrance to Descanso, we were sold.



We'd visited the Arboretum in the past to attend California Philharmonic concerts, but have now spent some time exploring the gardens themselves. The kids get a kick out of the peacocks roaming the grounds; I like the Queen Anne cottage, as seen at the start of each episode of "Fantasy Island."

But there's a downside to all those birds roaming the grounds: All that bird poop. Watch out. It's everywhere on the yards. I was told that a massive cleanup takes place every single morning -- but I noticed plenty of it by the afternoon. Watch where you walk.

Also on the grounds: The old Santa Anita train depot, now open for tours on the weekends. Also, the Peacock Cafe -- fine if you're hungry, but pretty mediocre food.

Here are some pics from an afternoon at the Arboretrum:










The Queen Anne cottage


"De plane, boss, de plane!" RIP, Herve.


Inside the cottage











The boys




Santa Anita depot








Inside the depot

The L.A. County Arboretum is open daily from 9AM to 5PM
301 North Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007