Harvest Festival Closes Out the Summer Season

This year Harvest Festival, at the St. Albert Grain Elevator (SAGE) Park, took place on Sunday, September 15. It was a beautiful day, if a bit windy, and visitors came out in droves to enjoy the last few days of summer. We had a number of activities to partake in, including entertainment by Trevor Tchir, Steven Badach and Michelle Sabourin, who played great music all afternoon, including a number of requests (which included "If You're Happy and You Know It").

Trevor Tchir, Steve Badach and Michelle Sabourin kicked off the festival with a great array of music

ELF Stockdogs wow the crowd with a sheep herding demonstration by a blind dog

Longriders provided the very popular horse-drawn wagon rides

We also had demonstrations by ELF Stockdogs, who brought a herd of sheep (including a wily lamb) and a few herding dogs. The crowd was amazed by what the dogs could do; it was especially heartening to watch their blind dog, who herded with the best of them!

Longriders also came out to provide horse-drawn wagon rides. The rides were very popular with visitors of all ages; we had a line up "down the block" (of crops, that is).

The St. Albert Quilting worked together in the train station

The Edmonton Weavers Guild showcase spinning and weaving

Artist Samantha Williams-Chapelsky shows off her work

"Patchwork Pieces" by Sharon Monk

Crafters came out by the dozens to watch demonstrations of spinning and weaving by the Edmonton Weavers Guild, and even had the chance to try it out themselves! The same was true of the St. Albert Quilters Guild, who demonstrated the art of quilting. Visitors also had the chance to see artwork by Samantha Williams-Chapelsky, and sign their name on a commemorative painting. Sharon Monk of Patchwork Pieces also had a number of beautifully made quilts for show and sale.

Adults had the opportunity to sample beer from local brewery Alley Kat

Kathleen and a team of volunteers served hot dogs to hungry festival-goers

Hungry (and thirsty) festival-goers headed over to Kathleen and her team of volunteers to buy hot dogs, chips and pop or water. Other options included delicious kettle corn from KGW Enterprises, and homemade gelato from Cravings Artisan Gelato (not pictured). Adults had the opportunity to sample beer from local brewery Alley Kat.

Kids partook in harvest-themed crafts, led by volunteers

A volunteer helps a visitor count their scavenger hunt items

We also had a number of "hands on" activities for kids, including making their own harvest sheave to take home (pictured above), "Ewe'r Such a Lamb" hats, and decorating their own muslin bags to keep! The bags were also used for a scavenger hunt around the site, which took participants to every corner of the park looking for special items on the list. Those who completed the scavenger hunt got an old-fashioned candy stick to enjoy (yum!).

Visitors, helped by Gord, check out our Model T

Roy gives visitors a tour of the silver elevator

Lastly, visitors had the chance to interact with our Model T, assisted by Gord, taking photos in it or just looking around. We also had tours of the grain elevators, which were given by Roy (above), Sydney (not pictured), and our new Director, Shari (not pictured).

We would like to thank everyone who came out this year for Harvest Festival, making it once again a great success! We hope to see you again next year.