Every year East Coasters wait for summer with much anticipation. With every end to summer comes impending doom of the long winter. I think we should give more emphasis on how beautiful our province is in the Fall, it is one of the most beautiful times of the year out here!
If you live in Nova Scotia, here are the top three fall festivals that are a MUST to experience! And the best part – they are all family friendly!
The Scarecrow Festival
This year the 23rd Annual Scarecrow Festival is being held September 27 – 29th in Mahone Bay. Over 250 handmade scarecrows are displayed throughout the town. In years past we found scarecrows representing everything from Pokemon to the Royal Family, including my favourite (or least-favorite, depending how you look at it) Donald Trump Scarecrow! It attracts a big crowd, and parking can be scarce, but it is definitely worth checking out! There is also an antique fair, lots of children’s activities and live music!
You can find more info here: Scarecrow Festival website
The Pumpkin People Festival
The Pumpkin People Festival is located in Kentville and runs this year from October 5th-27th. There are over 300 Pumpkin People to be found spread across the town! I find the pumpkin people a little creepy, which is perfect leading up to Hallowe’en. I had never seen anything like it, so it’s something really fun to do as a family. In past years, Linden particularly enjoyed the Ambulance and Firetruck displays! This year’s theme is “Toon Town,” so they will be creating pumpkin people scenes from their favourite cartoons!
Keep in mind that the people are spread out in different displays around town, so you will probably be hopping in and out of the car to check out the different displays. If you are keen on walking and have small children, it would be advisable to bring a stroller.
Find out more information here: The Pumpkin People Festival website
The Pumpkin Festival and Regatta
This event happens in Windsor every year, and my guess is, it’s Windsor’s biggest event to happen all year round. It draws quite a crowd for the little town.
There are some massive pumpkins grown in the area, and people choose the best ones, hollow them out, paint them, and transform them into little boats to race across Lake Pesaquid.
We usually get there early and start off the day by watching a parade which shows off all the gigantic pumpkins before they compete in the regatta. After the parade we headed over to try and claim a front row seat at the lake. The pumpkin regatta is one of the strangest things I’ve ever seen, but so fun to watch! People actually paddling across the lake in huge, hollowed out pumpkins as their boats is quite a sight to see. It is a fun and quirky event that keeps us going back year after year!
Find more information here: Pumpkin Regatta Website
[Updated: Unfortunately, Hurricane Dorian has “squashed” this years Pumpkin Regatta. The storm caused major damage to the crop and therefore the regatta has been cancelled, but definitely keep it on the radar for next fall!]
Howard Dill’s Farm
I decided to add this to the blog post as a alternative to the regatta. It is not a festival, but a great place to check out in the fall. Howard Dill’s farm grows the world’s largest pumpkin variety. It’s pretty cool to take a little day trip out there to see some 500+ pound pumpkins and take some photos. They have regular size pumpkins and gourds as well that you can purchase and take home with you. Last year, we also checked out Long Pond, which is just a short walk through the field. It is believed to be the birthplace of hockey!
Find out more information here: Howard Dill’s Farm Website
Don’t forget to mark your calendar with these dates and let me know which festival you enjoyed the most! Make sure you share this post so your friends don’t miss out on these fun family activities this fall!