Hear ye! Hear ye! Come one, come all, to the Annual Harvest Moon Celebration in Boerne (BURHN nee). Held every year on the last Saturday in October, the event follows the ancient Celtic tradition, Samhain (SAH win), by some accounts the origin of Halloween, when the summer harvests were celebrated with festivals of food, drink, music and other entertainment. Boerne's Celtic-themed festival offers old world music, period costumes and activities designed to appeal to all ages.
The Harvest Moon Celebration is held on the lawn of the Historic Kingsbury House, now home of the Boerne Visitors Center, sheltered by heritage live oak trees on a bluff overlooking Menger Creek. Wendy Little is Director of Marketing for the City of Boerne's Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) which, along with Parks and Recreation, sponsors and produces the annual festival. "The event takes place at one of Boerne's most historic locations. The Kingsbury-Shumard house was built around 1900, but the old original ranch house on the property dates back to the 1850s. The two-room limestone structure has a tower and portholes," which the settlers used to protect themselves, "and is surrounded by a limestone wall built by English immigrants under the instruction of Dr. William Kingsbury, one of the period's most prolific figures from the area," Little said.
The festival begins at 12:00 noon on Saturday, October 25, and continues until 8:00 p.m. that evening. There is no admission charge. An estimated 2,000 people attended last year's celebration.
Stroll around the grounds, enjoying the vendor booths, many of them selling handcrafted items. A variety of food and drinks will be available at the food court, including a beer and wine booth. Early in the day, enjoy the sound of dulcimers and other wooden stringed instruments played by the local group, Hill Country River Pickers. Costumed festival participants add to the old world theme, and adults and children who attend are welcome to dress in period style or traditional Halloween garb if they wish. The day's goal is to have lots of family fun!
Get an exciting and up-close look at hawks, falcons, vultures and other raptors during presentations by Master Falconer John Karger, of Comfort, and the team from Last Chance Forever Bird of Prey Conservancy in San Antonio. See the flight demonstrations of these majestic birds as they fly just inches over the crowd's heads.
A spectacular highlight of the festival, this bird of prey exhibition will be presented twice, at 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. and is not to be missed! It's the most popular event of the day.
There may be face painting, after which you may want to stop by the Screamin' Fun Photo Booth. If you aren't in costume, props are provided. Have a fun psychic reading or try a beautiful temporary tattoo from henna artist Tiffany. Henna by Tiffany is one of the most popular booths at the festival.
Don't miss the Karavan Belly Dancers and the Apple Doonkin. "We called it doonkin, not dunking because the apples are suspended from strings and the kids have to bite them - no hands," Little explained. "We grease them up a little to make it more challenging - the apples that is, not the kids!" she laughed, giving an indication of the fun vibe surrounding the whole day's celebration. There's a special Kids Games and Crafts area, with more activities and a kids-only costume contest.
As mentioned, there is no admission charge and almost every activity is free, including the birds of prey exhibitions, the psychic, Henna by Tiffany, musical entertainment and just about everything else throughout the festival. Pay for your food and drink, t-shirts and other souvenirs and items you purchase from vendors. Other than that, just enjoy your day's outing, and the whole family is encouraged to attend.
As you walk to and fro, taking in the sights and sounds, you'll pass Wild Hearts, a Wildlife Art Exhibition, which is a gallery of new art in all media by local artists.
Later in the evening, continuing the old-world theme, enjoy the Celtic music of Ravenmoor, a band from San Antonio. And the Great Giani roams around the festival grounds from 6-8:00 p.m. (You may have seen him on America's Got Talent?) "Giani is a mentalist, and he is very good. He walks around the event in plain clothes, and will randomly select and surprise his participants. He has many tricks up his sleeve. He will guess who you are thinking of, does card tricks, bends spoons with his mind, that sort of thing," Little explained. Another favorite of fairgoers, the mentalist will perform mind reading, magic and paranormal entertainment for your Halloween pleasure.
Watch - or participate in - the pie-eating contest, another all-in-good-fun event. "We usually have eight participants coerced and yanked from the event, and it's hilarious and gross at the same time," Little said. Last year she was dressed as a pirate, carrying a sign announcing the contest in order to drum up "volunteers". "It's one pie each and whoever finishes first wins," she said, with no word on whether forks or spoons are involved. But the winner is rewarded with good prizes, usually from local businesses.
Be sure to stay until dark, when there's another very special presentation known as the Owl Trail. "Last Chance Forever will bring approximately 6-8 different owl species," which have intentionally not been in the earlier bird show exhibits, "and perch them on tree stumps in the woods after dark," Little explained. Interpreters from the conservancy take small groups for a walk down the Owl Trail, with informative talks along the way.
As night falls, the wise owls and their caretakers are a most fitting end to the day's wonderful Harvest Moon Celebration.
Activities may vary slightly as the festival date gets closer. For a complete schedule, with times of events and a map of the festival grounds, vendor or other information, call the Boerne CVB at 830-249-7277. See their website http://www.harvestmooncelebration.com, or email Wendy Little: [email protected]. Also be sure to follow them on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/harvestmooncelebration and twitter, https://twitter.com/hmc_5. There are many beautiful pictures of the Harvest Moon Celebration as well as other popular Boerne events at https://flickr.com/photos/visitboerne/.
How to get there: The Boerne CVB's address is 1407 South Main Street. Boerne is located on IH-10, just a few miles west of San Antonio. From San Antonio, take exit #542. If you're driving from the west, take the Bandera Rd/Hwy 46 exit #540. Just look for the Walmart sign and parking lot and you're literally right there!
