Article courtesy of The Bulletin.
Summer may be fading, but the skies are still sunny enough for short
sleeves, the air is crisp, fresh, and tinged with the scent of cool
nights, and the leaves are just beginning to turn. And the Bank of the Cascades Bend Fall Festival — a homey harvest celebration with good-natured competition, kid-happy fun and arts of all kinds — is the perfect way to ease the spirit into the delights of the new season. Producer Cameron Clark of C3 Events enjoys watching what the event brings to the community. “It truly feels like the locals come out to say good-bye to summer,” he said.
The annual Bank of the Cascades Bend Fall Festival, presented by the
Brooks Resources and The Bulletin, will take place
Saturday and Sunday, October 6 and 7, and promises a fabulous array of
music, art, food, and fun.
The Clear 101.7 Main Stage, located at the intersection of Bond and Oregon will feature a new Saturday host, Bryan Flannery, along with the energetic State of Jefferson and talented newcomers Tyrone Wells and Intervision from Portland. Headlining the mainstage Saturday night will be fabulous funksters, Dr Theopolis. The Sunday stage welcomes the amazingly accomplished jazz bassist David Friesen, and local favorites Jason Graham and Slickside Down.
The PacificSource International Stage in the Wells Fargo parking lot will showcase such talent as Chayag, Bob and the High Fives, and One World Taiko.
As usual, dozens of talented artists will be on hand offering their work for sale. The Karen Bandy Design Jeweler Artist Promenade on Wall Street between Greenwood and Franklin will be lined by more than 100 artists selling pottery, jewelry, sculpture, photography, candles, clothing and painting.
For the fourth year in a row, visit the Souk de Fall Festival Area, located at Oregon Avenue between Wall and Brooks Street. This outdoor marketplace is a shopper’s paradise, whether you are looking for inexpensive baubles or finely-crafted textiles.
Because shopping, art perusing, and bobbing to the sounds of a variety of bands all work up a hearty appetite, the food court, located in the Wells Fargo Parking Lot with entrances on Oregon Avenue and Bond Street, will be well-stocked with culinary delights. Local restaurants such as Demetri’s, Goody's, the Bend Fish Company, and Longboard Louie’s will satisfy festival-goers’ cravings.
Located near Wall Street and Greenwood will be the 3E Strategies Harvesting Clean Energy and Green Building Fair, where dozens of booths will celebrate energy conservation, passive solar design and green building.
Festival attendees who love a good contest have plenty of competition options to choose from. Culinary artists can whip up their best-ever pumpkin pie to be judged by local area master bakers. A Pumpkin Painting contest will take place Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. for competitors 17 years of age or younger, and those 18 and older can try their hand at the Pumpkin Carving contest Sunday from noon to 3 p.m. Pumpkins and paint will be provided.
Central Oregon Pumpkin Company’s Produce Row at Wall Street and Minnesota Avenue hosts harvest events and offers a stunning array of produce – both edible and decorative — for shoppers to choose from.
The Family Harvest Area presented by Bobbie and Gregg Strome of John L. Scott Real Estate will be held at Minnesota Avenue between Wall Street and Lava Road. Headquarters for many activities for the Fall Festival’s youngest visitors, the area offers pony rides, old-fashioned hay rides, pumpkin painting and carving, apple bobbing, and Inflatable rides.
And for the health-conscious attendees at the festival — who isn’t health-conscious? — the Fall Festival boasts the Bend Memorial Clinic Health and Wellness Resource Exhibit, featuring some of Central Oregon’s finest health care professionals, who will come together to present a diverse array of health care options. Stop by for a chance to win some fabulous prizes!
Head to downtown Bend on October 6 and 7 for the Bank of the Cascades Bend Fall Festival and put your summer-end blues to rest!