SEPTEMBER 29, 2016 // 9
Celebrate autumn at a harvest festival in Nehalem
NEHALEM — The Lower
Nehalem Community Trust
will hold its 14th annual
Harvest Festival from noon
to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 1
at its Alder Creek Farm,
located at 35955 Underhill
Lane. This is a free event
to celebrate conservation in
the region, the talents of lo-
cal residents, the wonders
of autumn and the bounty
of the harvest.
Fun for all ages awaits
at the Harvest Festival.
Staff from the North
County Recreation District
will lead youth activities at
KidZone. For all ages there
will be the famous apple
slingshot, old-fashioned
cider pressing, and horse
and pony rides by Nehalem
Bay Horse Excursions &
Pony Rides.
Look for live music and
dancing in the barn with
the Nehalem Valley All
Stars. The lineup includes
Fred Lackaff on vocals and
keyboards, Mark Wagner
on backing vocals and
bass, Scott Wagner on
vocals and guitar and Ernie
Zolka on percussion. The
All Stars provide music
ranging from ragtime to
reggae, with an emphasis
on danceable rhythms.
The festival will host the
last farmers market of the
season in Tillamook Coun-
ty. This year’s vendors
include Happy Handmade
LLC, Cintamani Tonics,
Handy Creek Bakery, OK
Ranch, Joe’s Bigfoot BBQ,
Brickyard Farms, Fraga
Farmstead Creamery LLC,
North Coast Soap Compa-
ny, R-evolution Gardens,
Sustaining Space, Com-
munity Supported Fishery,
and Tallwoman Tonics.
Pumpkins by Nehalem
Valley Naturals will also be
available.
Ecology talks for kids
and adults alike will be
held under the Listening
Tree at the farm. Except for
the first talk, which is an
SUBMITTED PHOTO BY ADELAIDO BAUTISTA
The community garden will be open for tours at the Lower Ne-
halem Community Trust’s 14th annual Harvest Festival at Alder
Creek Farm on Saturday, Oct. 1.
hour long, the talks last 20
to 30 minutes. They are:
• 12:30 p.m. – “It’s a
Bug’s Life” by Kim Miller,
who is a teacher at Ne-
halem Elementary School.
• 1:45 p.m. – “All About
Dirt” by Karen Matthews,
of Lower Nehalem Com-
munity Trust.
• 2:30 p.m. – “Discov-
ering Cape Falcon Marine
Reserve” by Chrissy Smith,
of Friends of Cape Falcon
Marine Reserve.
• 3:15 p.m. – “Fred the
Fish’s Journey” by Alix
Lee, of Lower Nehalem
Watershed Council.
Lots of community
groups will have booths at
the Harvest Festival this
year. They include Tilla-
mook County Master Gar-
deners Association, North
Coast Basin Coalition &
Friends of Nedonna Marsh,
Nehalem Bay Garden Club,
Friends of Cape Falcon
Marine Reserve, Lower
Nehalem Watershed Coun-
cil, the Clatsop-Nehalem
Confederated Tribes, Food
Roots, and Nehalem Valley
Farm Trust.
Alder Creek Farm is a
59-acre natural area and
wildlife sanctuary on the
north edge of the Nehalem
Estuary. It’s where elk,
eagles, great herons and
otters live and roam. The
farm is also a hotspot for
birdwatchers on ebird.org
and a stop on the Oregon
Coast Birding Trail. This
small-scale working farm
has an extensive orchard
and community garden
tended by 40 volunteers
who share produce with
families served by the
North County Food Bank.
The farm also has a native
plant nursery, greenhouse,
ethnobotanical trail, and a
sustainable irrigation sys-
tem that keeps everything
growing strong.
Be sure to catch one
of the tours offered at the
Harvest Festival:
• 12:30 p.m. – Commu-
nity garden tour by garden
coordinator Karen Mat-
thews.
• 1:15 p.m. – Natural
area and wildlife sanctuary
tour by stewardship coordi-
nator Max Broderick.
• 2 p.m. – Nehalem
Teaching Trail tour by
LNCT co-founder Doug
Firstbrook and botanist
Celeste Lebo of Oregon
State Parks.
• 2:45 p.m. – Native
Plant Walk by botanist Ce-
leste Lebo of Oregon State
Parks.
• 3:30 p.m. – Commu-
nity garden tour by garden
SUBMITTED IMAGE
This map of the 2016 Harvest Festival shows the location of Alder Creek Farm in Nehalem as well
as four starred shuttle bus stops with ofsite parking.
coordinator Karen Mat-
thews.
The event is free, and
all vehicles are required
to park offsite. Walking
and cycling to Alder Creek
Farm are encouraged.
There will be four satel-
lite parking lots with free
shuttle bus service to the
farm. The four Nehalem
lots include the Lighthouse
Restaurant (36480 N.
Highway 101), St. Cath-
erine’s Episcopal Church
(36335 N. Highway 101),
the NCRD (36155 9th St.),
and the municipal lot at the
corner of Highway 101 and
Seventh Street in down-
town Nehalem. Look for
parking signs on Highway
101 in downtown Nehalem
the day of the event.
For more information,
visit nehalemtrust.org
The Harvest Festival
is part of Explore Nature,
a series of hikes, walks,
paddles and outdoor
adventures throughout
Tillamook County. Created
by Tillamook Estuaries
Partnership, Lower Ne-
SUBMITTED PHOTO BY ADELAIDO BAUTISTA
Richelle Newkirk, right, of Nehalem Bay Horse Excursions &
Pony Rides leads a young festival-goer on a irst-ever ride.
halem Community Trust,
Lower Nehalem Watershed
Council, Friends of Netarts
Bay WEBS, Tillamook Bay
Watershed Council and
Friends of Cape Falcon
Marine Reserve, these
meaningful, nature-based
experiences highlight the
beauty of Tillamook Coun-
ty and the work being done
to preserve and conserve
the area’s natural resources
and natural resource-based
economy. This effort is
partially funded by the
Economic Development
Council of Tillamook
County and Visit Tillamook
Coast.