The Onalaska Alliance will host the 2024 Apple Harvest Festival with a theme of “Show Your Roots.”
The weekend will be filled with family-friendly fun including bingo, a bake sale, a beer garden, a quilt show, a pancake breakfast, a fun run, a farm and homestead tour, a parade and more.
Thursday, Oct. 3
The festival will begin with a bingo and bake sale at the Onalaska Elementary School gym from 6 to 8 p.m. The proceeds from the event will benefit the royal court. Attendees have the opportunity to win prizes if they participate in bingo.
Friday, Oct. 4
A quilt show will be featured from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Community Presbyterian Church. The royal court coronation will be held at the Onalaska Elementary School gym at 6 p.m. The titles that can be won include Little Miss Apple Harvest, Lil Apple Dumplin’ and Apple Harvest Royalty positions.
Saturday, Oct. 5
Saturday will bring a day full of festivities, starting with a pancake breakfast from 7 to 10 a.m. at the Presbyterian Church on Carlisle Avenue. Donations will be accepted, and all proceeds go to Onalaska Preschool.
• At 7:30 a.m., fun run 5K registration will open, with the run beginning at 9 a.m. Those who sign up for the run before Sept. 20 on either raceentry.com or by emailing apple.fun.run@gmail.com will save $5. Prizes will be drawn after the race. For more information about the race route or signing up, visit onalaskaalliance.org.
• From 8 a.m. to noon, the Onalaska High School football team will be at the Community Youth Center to press apples into cider for community members. Attendees are encouraged to bring their apples and jugs of any kind to have their apples made into cider.
• At 8:30 a.m., the apple pie contest will begin at Carlisle and Fourth avenues. Contestants can bring two pies and an entry form to enter. At 12:50 p.m., the pie auction will begin on the main stage. It costs $2 a bite to participate in public voting for people’s choice. Apple cider will also be for sale at the pie contest booth.
• Parade sign in and staging will run from 9 to 11 a.m. The parade starts at 11:30 a.m. To register a float in the parade or see the parade route, visit onalaskaalliance.org.
• The Onalaska Alliance welcome booth will be present at the festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Carlisle Avenue where festival vendors will be selling their goods from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The quilt show will also be available on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Community Presbyterian Church.
• The food court and busker stage will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the beer and cider garden will be open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Cornhole tournament registration will begin at noon. It costs $40 to enter. The tournament will be hosted by the Onalaska High School football team and will follow the American Cornhole Association’s rules. Teams of two can play to win a cash prize at the risk of double elimination. The tournament will begin at 1 p.m.
• Kids 14 and under can fish for trout at the red building by the Onalaska High School bus garage from 12 to 3 p.m.
• Onalaska Fire will host demonstrations at 1 and 2 p.m. at the fire hall following the parade.
• Live music will be played at the main stage on Carlisle Avenue from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. with acts such as Brian Green and the Highwaymen, Something Different and The Llewellyns.
Sunday, Oct. 6
On Sunday, participants are invited to take a free, self-guided tour of the surrounding local farms and homesteads from 10 a.m to 3 p.m. Farms available to visit include Cathy’s Cut Flowers, Turner Garden, Premium Quality Hay & Feed, LaCamas Creek Farm, Rabbit Ridge Nursery, Shady Grove Orchards, 3 Dog Cider & Brewstillery Orchard and 3 Dog Cider & Brewstillery Tasting Room.
To see details on each farm and their location, visit onalaskaalliance.org/farm-tour.html. The Onalaska Alliance asks that attendees not bring their pets to the farms.
The last event of the 2024 Apple Harvest Festival will be the farm-to-table dinner at the Mason Jar event venue from 5 to 8 p.m. The evening will be catered by Joy Templeton of Chehalis’ Once Upon a Thyme restaurant. Pre-ordered tickets will be required.
This year’s menu will include apple and butternut squash soup served with focaccia bread, mixed organic greens salad with local beets, apples, goat cheese, red onion and pistachios served with a lite vinaigrette, a meat or vegetarian entree choice and homemade cheesecake with caramel apple topping for dessert.
To pre-order tickets and learn more about what will be available at the farm-to-table dinner, visit www.onalaskaalliance.org/store/p4/farm-to-table.html. All proceeds from the dinner will go toward funding the Onalaska Alliance’s community projects.
