By Stephanie Yost
Idyllwild Community Center President
With the advent of fall, it’s time to welcome back two traditional mountain community events, both of which the Idyllwild Community Center (ICC) puts on.
The first is Idyllwild’s annual Great Pumpkin Carnival. Door-to-door trick-or-treating isn’t done on the Hill, with no sidewalks, few streetlights and many second homes. Instead, for many decades community volunteers have put on a carnival for local and visiting ghouls and goblins.
The Great Pumpkin Carnival and Parade begins about 4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 31, at Fern Valley Corners (located at the top of North Circle Drive). Costumed children of all ages parade down North Circle toward the center of town to the happy cheers (and candy hand-outs) of family, friends, residents and visitors.
Immediately thereafter is the Great Pumpkin Carnival at Idy Park. Park Lane and a short section of Village Center Drive in the center of town surrounding Idy Park will be closed to traffic, as the area will be filled with trick-or-treaters collecting candy from local businesses and enjoying the special food offerings and generally festive atmosphere.
A $7 fee allows carnival goers to participate in Halloween-themed carnival games and activities for prizes. It includes a face painter, spin art activity, bouncy-house slide and costume contests with prizes courtesy of the Rustic Theatre and Idyllwild Brewpub in six categories broken down by age group.
The Great Pumpkin Carnival lasts until about 7 p.m. Community organizations hosting carnival booths this year include Rotary, Soroptimists, CERT/Mountain Disaster Preparedness, Idyllwild Association of Realtors, Art Alliance of Idyllwild, Friends of the San Jacinto Mountain County Parks, Idyllwild Bible Church, Riverside Mountain Rescue Unit, Idyllwild Fire Protection District, Idyllwild Brewpub and ICC.
Mountain Community Patrol will provide traffic support, and Mayor Max and his sister Vice Mayor Meadow will be there, too.
The second major fall event on the Hill is the annual Tree Lighting Festival, which will take place in Idy Park on Saturday, Nov. 25 (the Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend), starting at 2 p.m. with local nonprofits hosting food and booths and entertainment starting at 4 p.m. This will be the fifth year that all eight trees in Idy Park will be lit courtesy of various local business sponsorships, including Idyllwild Realty, Tahquitz Pines, Idyllwild Inn, Idyllwild Brewpub, Ferro Restaurant, Idyllwild Association of Realtors and new sponsor, Café Aroma.
Keep an eye on The Town Crier for more information on this holiday event.
