Harvest Festival Headed for Falmouth

Entering its 18^th year celebrating the harvest and welcoming fall to Cape Cod, the Barnstable County Fairground’s Harvest Festival is a showcase of local arts, crafts and agriculture. Moved up this year to take advantage of the waning days of summer and warm weather, the Festival has been expanded thanks to the addition of the first ever Cape Cod Brew Festival and an aggressive expansion of the overall Harvest Festival. With the addition of a pumpkin slingshot and a push to grow the arts and crafts vendor program, the Fair hopes to make the Harvest Festival into the Upper Cape’s “must-see” fall event.

The festival will take place September 29 & 30, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Entrnace is $5, with children eight and under free.

“There’s a huge opportunity for us to showcase very talented local artists and crafters, and to highlight area farmers doing great things with local, organic, Cape-grown produce,” says Wendy Brown, General Manager of the Barnstable County Fair. “It often gets lost that our full name is the Barnstable County Agricultural Society, and our mission is to promote and continue the agricultural tradition of Cape Cod and southeastern Massachusetts. The Harvest Festival is a great opportunity to do that.” The weekly Green Harvest Organic Farmers Market will be open for special Saturday and Sunday sessions at the festival, with local produce, vegetables, jams and organic snacks available for purchase.

Rockwell Amusements will be operating kiddie rides, providing a change of pace from the hayrides and pony rides that families from all over come for each year. The annual horse show, goat show and all-new pet show provide opportunities to both educate and entertain the next generation of Cape residents.

New this year is the Cape Cod Brew Fest, a separate ticketed event showcasing over 60 varieties of beer from 30 different breweries, most from New England. Brew Fest goers get a complimentary admission into the Harvest Festival and can go between Brew Fest sessions and the Harvest Festival as they please. The first event of its kind on Cape Cod solely devoted to craft beer, the Fairgrounds welcomes the brew fest to the Cape and hope it returns for many years to come.