By Jennifer R. Hill
jennifer@athensnews-courier.com
September 22, 2008 07:39 pm
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Fall is officially here and along with the colorful leaves and cool weather the season brings many festivals.
There seems to be a festival close by for just about anyone’s taste. In October, The Tennessee Valley Old Time Fiddlers Convention and the Story Telling Festival will be held in Athens, and several towns within a short drive will hold festivals of their own.
Upcoming festivals include:
• Friday, Oct. 3, and Saturday, Oct. 4 – The Tennessee Valley Old Time Fiddlers Convention
The Tennessee Valley Old Time Fiddlers Convention will be Oct. 3 and 4 at Athens State University.
Special guest for the 42nd Annual Tennessee Valley Old Time Fiddlers Convention at Athens State University will be the bluegrass group Bobby Osborne and the Rocky Top X-press. The group will kick off the event’s competitions with concerts at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., Oct. 3.
Competitions in a variety of forms, including fiddle playing, banjo, mandolin, dulcimer, buck dancing, old-time singing and more take place on the steps of historic Founders Hall beginning at 7 p.m. Friday night, Oct. 3 and continue at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 4.
Prize money totaling $11,870 in various categories will be awarded.
Crafters and food vendors at the convention open their booths Friday morning and remain open all day Saturday.
Gates open at 8 a.m.
Cost is $8 for Friday, $10 for Saturday and $15 for both days. Children ages 12 and under are free with a parent. For more information, visit http://www.athens.edu/fiddlers/
• Friday, Oct. 3, and Saturday, Oct. 4 – Harvest Festival
Boaz will showcase its outlet shopping and more at The Harvest Festival held from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Oct. 3 and 4 in the Downtown Mall located off Billy Dyar Boulevard in Boaz.
The festival will include a children’s play area, the Rod Run Car Show, Little Miss and Miss Harvest Festival Pageant, arts and crafts, and a Farmer’s Market with fresh fruit, flowers, and vegetables.
Live entertainment will include the Studio B Cloggers, The Senior Center Sunshine Band, The Dandi Line Dancers, Boaz High School Choirs, Sand Mountain Dulcimers, St. Paul Methodist Church Choir, Servants of the King, Boaz High School Band and more.
The Moon Pie Eating Contest will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday. There is no entry fee and all the moon pies and RC Cola you can take will be available.
Armbands for the children’s area are available for $10, which grants access to all of the inflatables throughout the day on Saturday and tickets may be purchased at $1 per ride.
Admission is free to all other areas of the Harvest Festival.
For more information call (256) 593-8154.
• Saturday, Oct. 4 through Sunday, Oct. 12 – Oktoberfest
Octoberfest will take place Oct. 4 through 12 in downtown Cullman. Festivities will include a car show, arts and crafts show, bratwurst tasting, guided tours of the historic district, bratwurst eating contest, wiener dog race, the Burgermeister Ball, tennis tournament, 5K run, a quilt show, a sidewalk art show, and cemetery tours.
Opening ceremonies will be held at 1:30 p.m. Oct. 5 at Festhalle Markt Platz, located at 201 First Ave., NE. Senior Day is Oct. 9. Family Fun Day, including a community fair from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. will be Oct. 11. Most events are free admission.
Also in celebration of its 75th Anniversary, Ave Maria Grotto will offer a reduced admission from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. The Cullman County Museum will also have free admission on Oct. 5.
For more information call 1-800-533-1258 or (256) 739-1258.
• Saturday, Oct. 11 – Bankhead Trade Day
Among the forestry and wildlife of Bankhead National Forest the annual Bankhead Trade Day will be held from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 11 in downtown Double Springs.
A variety of vendors will be showcase their items for “trade” including, arts and crafts, furniture, and clothing, as well as hamburgers, hot dogs, homemade desserts and other traditional festival food. Many downtown shops will offer special sales.
Admission is free. For more information call (205) 489-3534.
• Thursday, Oct. 18 through Friday, Oct. 19 Alabama Gourd Festival
The Alabama Gourd Festival will be held Oct. 18 and 19 at the Cullman Civic Center, located at 504 5th Street.
The festival will offer arts and crafts made from gourds, gourd art crafting classes, free demonstrations by artists and a tour of the ribbon competition exhibit hall.
Show hours are from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Sunday.
Crafting classes will be held at 10 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday, and at 10 a.m. Sunday.
A free Kid’s Patch has been added to the event where children can decorate a gourd to take home. The ribbon competition is open to anyone and there is no cost to exhibit a gourd in the competition. Admission is $2 for adults, free for children age 12. Door prize drawings will be held throughout the day.
A dinner will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday at St. Bernard Abbey Cafeteria located at 1600 St. Bernard Drive off U.S. 278. The cost is $12 per person and reservations are required.
For reservations or more information call Pam Montgomery (256) 355-4634.
• Saturday, Oct. 25 through Sunday, Oct. 26 – Alabama Renaissance Faire
The Alabama Renaissance Faire will be held the fourth weekend in October in Wilson Park in downtown Florence. Hours are 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. Oct. 25 and from noon until 6 p.m. Oct. 26. Admission is free. The festival is a celebration of the Renaissance Period featuring musical programs, theatrical performances, art exhibits, dance programs and public lectures. Everyone is invited to dress in period attire, as well. The festival also includes handcrafts and wares typical of the Renaissance period available for purchasing, entertainers performing with ancient instruments, sword fighters and even trolls.
A special exhibit by the Shoals Artist Guild will be on display at the Kennedy-Douglass Art Center located at 217 E. Tuscaloosa Street.
A free costume-making workshop will be held at 9 a.m., Oct 11 at the Kennedy-Douglass Art Center. People of all ages are invited to bring fabric and the measuring, cutting, and sewing will be handled by men and women connected with the Faire. The costume can be embellished and worn to the Faire.
Also, the Renaissance Feast with authentic food and entertainment of the period will be held at 7 p.m. Oct. 18 at the Florence-Lauderdale Coliseum, 702 East Veterans Drive. Cost is $20 per person.
For more information call (256) 768-3031.
• Saturday Oct. 25 – Blount County Covered Bridge Festival
The Blount County Covered Bridge Festival arts and crafts show will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 25, in downtown Oneonta. The Covered Bridge Festival also includes several other events and activities a golf tournament, beauty pageant, pancake breakfast, arts and crafts, a 5K and Fun Run, car and motorcycle show, river walk, food, quilt show and activities for the kids.
Vendors will sell items including homemade items, handmade jewelry, artwork, wood creations and traditional festival food. Live entertainment on the main stage will include Bama Blu Grace, Jordan Harrison, Robert Glass (Elvis), the Oneonta High School Choir, Three Generations, Miss Covered Bridge, and Chris Green and Tommy Prickett.
The Children’s Area, open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Region’s Bank located at 201 First Ave., in Oneonta, will offer a child identification station and child safety demonstration by the Oneonta police and fire departments.
An addition to the festival is the Doggy Parade at 11:30 a.m. on the second stage between Region’s Bank and Creative Frame and Trophy. Canines are dressed up to compete for the Covered Bridge Festival Doggy King and Queen.
For information call (205) 274-2154 or (205) 559-4127.
• Saturday, Oct. 25 – Peinhardt Farm Day
The Peinhardt Family will hold Farm Day from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 25 at their family farm in Cullman. The day offers a look into the 1930s and 1940s agricultural activities of the area such as old time woodworking, sorghum syrup making demonstration, blacksmithing, pumpkin painting, hominy demonstration, wagon rides and live music.
The North Alabama Antique Tractor Club will offer activities including a parade from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. An 8,000-square-foot museum filled with agricultural, household and forestry tools of the late 19th and early 20th century will be open for tours. Exhibits and vendors consist of log splitting, soap making, shingle making, cross cut saws, bee keeping and honey along with food vendors. An authentic log cabin and a gristmill have been relocated to the Peinhardt Farm and will be open for tours.
Admission is $5 for ages 13 and up, $3 for 4 to 12-years-olds, and children 3 and under are free. The Peinhardt Family Farm is located off I-65, exit 308 on Talley Ho Street in Cullman. For more information call (256) 734-0850.
• Thursday, Oct. 30 through Saturday, Nov. 1 – Athens Storytelling Festival
The second annual Athens Storytelling Festival will be Oct. 30-Nov. 1 in downtown Athens.
Five of the nations best storytellers –Kathryn Tucker Windham, Donald Davis, Carmen Deedy, Bil Lepp, Andy Offutt Irwin — will share their lives, legends and lies as they entertain.
Newcomer to the event, Lyn Ford, will tell ghost stories.
Tickets are now on sale at the Greater Limestone County Chamber of Commerce or online at http://athensstorytellingfestival.com/.
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