By Elisabeth Skolny
For Charleston Gazette-Mail
HURRICANE — With temperatures dipping below scorching and the calendar officially indicating that the autumn equinox has arrived, it’s time.
For many folks in the Hurricane community of Putnam County, it is time to venture outside into the crisp, fresh air. It is time to gather with others, around tailgates or bonfires and in stadiums. It is time to welcome the fall season.
The City of Hurricane likes to be one of the first to celebrate the start of fall with its Hurricane Harvest Festival.
Assistant City Manager Amanda Ramey has been busy planning the event, which happens this Saturday.
“This is one of my favorite events because we sort of kick off the fall season,” Ramey said. “Our No. 1 goal is to provide free fall fun for our community — getting people outside enjoying each other’s company and also just enjoying all that the season has to offer.”
Ramey, a lifelong resident of Hurricane, said she loves seeing community members reunite.
“It’s a great gathering event,” she said. “You may run into people — friends, former co-workers, classmates, even family — that you haven’t seen for months or years. It’s always a great day in Hurricane.”
What you need to know
The Hurricane Harvest Festival will begin promptly at 1 p.m. Saturday. Festival-goers will park on the upper level of Hurricane City Park or in the gravel lot by the fishing area at the reservoir and carry their lawn chairs or blankets to the lower level of the park for the festival. Parking and admission are free.
More than 60 vendors and food trucks will be on hand.
“We will have art, craft, and food vendors who will have products ranging from fall crafts, books and jewelry to barbecue, burritos and dirty sodas,” Ramey said. “Many people come for the food trucks, and people really love our vendors to get a jump start on seasonal and Christmas shopping.”
Food trucks on site will include:
- The Brisket Club
- Caffeine & Chaos
- Marco’s Pizza
- Taquero
- Scragglepop
- Wheelhouse with Dippin’ Dots ice cream
Picnic tables will be stationed near the food trucks as well as scattered throughout the park.
The festival will feature many free child- and family-friendly activities such as inflatable slides, bounce houses, a mechanical bull, a petting zoo, face painting and a photo booth that prints free photos. In addition, there will be an apple butter-making demonstration, a cotton candy station and a cold apple cider booth.
“The whole day feels like we’re jumping back into a simpler era,” Ramey said, “and we all need that feeling from time to time.”
Caboose tours and other scheduled events
Jake Baker is a 16-year-old Hurricane resident who has been fascinated by trains and their history since he was a boy working on train sets with his grandfather. Last year, Mayor Scott Edwards named him the conductor of Hurricane, and he leads tours of the Chesapeake and Ohio caboose, which begin at 1 p.m.
His mother, Kathy Baker, said she is excited for her son to educate the public about the Chesapeake and Ohio caboose, which is stationed at Hurricane City Park but is normally closed to the public.
“Jake was born with a congenital heart defect called hypoplastic left heart syndrome,” Kathy Baker said. “He has had three open-heart surgeries, a complete airway reconstruction and many other surgeries in his 16 years. Through everything, he has had a love for trains. He loves sharing that passion with others.”
At the Hurricane Harvest Festival, Jake Baker will be sharing facts about the caboose and its journey to Hurricane while festival-goers can view the photos and historical displays inside the train car.
“Stop by and meet Jake and see the train,” Kathy Baker urged. “Jake loves doing this, so hopefully this gets a lot of people to come out.”
Beginning at 2 p.m., magician Joey Stepp will host mini-shows on the basketball court at the top of each hour. In between shows, Stepp will be on the move, twisting balloon animals and interacting with the crowd.
At 2:30 p.m., Truist has sponsored a pumpkin pie-eating contest on the main stage.
From 4-6 p.m., The In Crowd will perform bluegrass and gospel music, also on the main stage. Bleachers and hay bales will provide limited concert seating, so community members are encouraged to pack a lawn chair or blanket.
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