Fall in Columbia and Montour Counties By Jenn Puckett It’s hayride and haunts season again and after spending far too much time thinking about what to write for this issue’s article instead of actually doing the work, I’ve realized my biggest fear may be deadlines. I told my teenage son as much this morning before he left for school. After he rolled his eyes, he began spouting topic suggestions – the fair, the leaves, the farm markets and the haunted houses. I said the problem wasn’t lack of options but too many to pick from. He said, well, write about that and bounced out the door. From the mouths of sleep-deprived teens, ideas are born. There’s so much that happens here all year round, but autumn really is something else. Around here, the Bloomsburg Fair feels like the week we officially start fall no matter when the equi- nox is. Apple cider and dumplings, giant pumpkins and prize livestock are some of PUMPKINS, PARADES AND.......... PICKLES?
apples by the bushel, to be stored in root cellars and enjoyed throughout the winter. When my son was still a toddler, we visited Rohrbach’s, where fruit picking didn’t interest him but the fall Playland absolutely did. He was immediately enamored with the “corn pit”, an enormous round, covered area filled with shovels, buckets and all the toys one would find at the beach, but the sand is corn! He also rode a e
pony, went a hayride and picked out his pumpkin but nothing was as riveting as the corn. Later that day, we found approximately
ten pounds of corn kernels in overall cuffs, his socks and every pocket he had. Long before Spirit Halloween and it’s plastic ilk existed, we had the Elysburg Haunted House, which is
now celebrating 50 years of scaring the daylights out of people for a good cause. I wasn’t brave enough to go when I was younger but my husband and son finally convinced me to go last year. The line was long, but the company was excellent, there were plenty of food options and the volunteers kept us en- tertained long before we got inside. And inside? Jump scares are certainly part of the thrills but if that isn’t enough to make you scream, the fine folks behind the design of the tour have found a way to target everyone’s phobias. I won’t divulge the details but I never expected to encounter some of the “wildlife” I did in the Pennsylvania woods. Even if you been before, this gets bigger every year. Scary season ends on an even sweet(er) note this year, the Catawissa Halloween Parade is October 31 and the theme of the 119 th annual parade is “Sugar Rush”. The ones I’ve attended in the past may have had different themes, but candy tossed from the dozens of amazingly decorated floats has always been the biggest draw for the kids. Then we catch our breath for a moment, but only briefly, since Thanksgiving Day brings us turkey with all the fixings, but only after the Run for the Diamonds in Berwick. While I’m putting the bird in the oven, fearless and frost-bitten runners vie for the jewels in this 9-mile road race that began way back in 1908. I admire their dedication from afar. Some folks like to start their Christmas shopping the day after Thanksgiving, but we prefer to skip the big-box stores for Bloomsburg’s the Parade of Lights and the Exchange’s annual “Cash and Carry” art sale. Winterfest at the Bloomsburg Fair- grounds happens that same weekend. Crafters have all sorts of items available, probably even something for that person on your list. (You know who I mean.) .............
the things folks come to see during this week-long, 171-year tradition. Some of my earliest memories of the fair are my sister and I being on our absolute best behavior, not because we were naturally inclined to do so but because my mother gave her usual talk about what would happen if we didn’t. (The “talk” consisted of the fact that if we fought or argued with one another, mom would take us home. Im- mediately. No need for a handstamp, we wouldn’t be coming back.) Last century ago, when I was youngish, fall also meant trips to the farm to pick our own
COLUMBIA MONTOUR Quarterly
26
Powered by FlippingBook