We tended to do adventure games - pioneers, mad scientists, anything that involved the woods and mud. There were some serious clay deposits around, so we'd make horribly mishappen little bowl and wait for the sun to dry them - which didn't happen since we're talking western PA here.
We played with trolls in the winter and in the summer either played pioneers, explorers, or astronauts. A downed tree makes a dandy aircraft....lotta branches to use for levers.