One of Fall’s Big Events — Scarecrow Fest — Set For Oct. 6-8 in St. Charles
The 32nd annual Scarecrow Fest, presented by ComEd — cited once again as one of Country Living Magazine’s top Fall Fests for 2017 — will take place on Oct. 6 through Oct. 8 in downtown St. Charles.
All of the Scarecrow Fest’s signature events will be present, including a full roster of live entertainment and returning popular headliner bands, and two new attractions have been added to the 2017 lineup.
New to the fest this year is The Greater St. Charles Farm Tour, featuring access to the features and activities of six working farms in the Greater St. Charles service area: Historic Corron Farm, Garfield Farm Museum, Norton Farm, Primrose Farm, St. Charles Farm and The Royal Lusitano.
Also new is the “All Wheels In” Family Bike Ride Extravaganza, starting at local business Sammy’s Bikes, 602 S. 1st Street. “All Wheels In” features two custom bike ride adventures: the Family Ride, encompassing 12 to 15 miles of scenic trails along the Fox River; and the Farm Ride, a 38-mile cyclist challenge, perusing the city and countryside of the area from St. Charles to Maple Park.
Four Zones For Fun
Four zones of activity will once again frame the fest:
The Meijer Zone in Lincoln Park, featuring Cars on display from sponsor, Fox Valley Auto Group. The Meijer Zone is also home to the Lincoln Park Entertainment Stage, featuring the fest’s hottest entertainment, including headliners bands Rockstar Rodeo, American English and 7th Heaven.
The Meijer Zone, on Main Street between 4th and 5th streets, is also the home of the Scarecrow Contest, presented by St. Charles Bank and Trust and featuring 100+ scarecrows on display. This year’s contest includes six categories: Mechanical, Mega Scarecrows, Clubs and Not-for-Profits, Family, Individuals and Greater St. Charles Businesses. And there is still time to enter. The deadline is Sept. 29!
The Pheasant Run Resort Zone, on 3rd Street between State and Cedar streets, features the Greater St. Charles Business category Scarecrow Contest entrees plus the popular Windy City Amusements Carnival, which runs Oct. 5 through Oct. 8. This year, $25 wristband specials will be available daily at key times during the fest.
The Gerald Kia of North Aurora Zone, on 3rd Street between Cedar and Main streets, features the Fox Valley Ice Arena Challenge and one of two of the beloved Make Your Own Scarecrow stations, a fest family favorite.
And St. Charles’ own Baltria Vintage Auto Gallery will again display part of its classic car inventory at the fest. The Baltria Vintage Auto Zone, on the east side of the Fox River and north of Main Street, will also feature professionally carved pumpkins, Make Your Own Scarecrow, Glowby the Bubbler, a petting zoo, fest T-shirts on sale by local business Button Man printing; and photo op stations featuring classic cars, and appearances from Miss America and Chicago Steel Hockey Team’s mascot “Rusty.”
Crafts Show, Free Shuttles and More
Pottawatomie Park will house the Autumn on the Fox Arts & Crafts Show, with handmade arts and crafts from more than 150 exhibitors.
At the conclusion of the fest, a celebratory dinner will take place at 6:45 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 8, at local The Finery and Blacksmith Restaurant, 305 W. Main St. Chefs and owners Juliette & David Reyes will create a custom three-course dinner in “Farm to Table” style, featuring food from local fields.
As always, admission and parking are free. Fest guests are encouraged to take advantage of the free shuttles from The Quad (formerly Charlestowne Mall) and School District 303 parking lots. The trolley route will once again extend to Pottawatomie Park.
The GSCCVB thanks presenting sponsor ComEd and the many additional sponsors who make this year’s festival possible. For more information about Scarecrow Fest, visit newly updated www.ScarecrowFest.com.
The GSCCVB is funded by the Illinois Office of Tourism and a portion of the hotel/motel tax collected by the City of St. Charles hotels to promote the Greater St. Charles area as a destination for leisure tourists, conventions, sports events, and meetings. For additional information regarding the bureau’s marketing and sales activities, contact the bureau at 630-377-6161 or www.visitstcharles.com.
SOURCE: Greater St. Charles Convention and Visitors Bureau news release