Cherry Festival 2015

Cherry enthusiasts, friends, families, and scruffy pets filled Main Street as the annual Polson Cherry Festival was in full swing Saturday and Sunday. 

Visitors were seeing the sights, hoping to get some local goods and local food; perhaps get a bison burger, or some shaved ice. Maybe even a good wrap.

A variety of events were held as people perused the tents, some looking for a good piece of local jewelry, some looking for a good frozen snow cone. Over 40 vendors set up shop up and down Main Street providing visitors with a quality attraction for downtown Polson. Although the local cherry harvest is the main draw at the festival, there were many more attractions offered to the casual visitor.

Cherry-eating contests, live music, and fresh food were the highlights of the festival.

Although Polson hosts the local cherry producers from the east side of Flathead lake, visitors and vendors travelled great distances to attend this year’s event. One such vendor traveled over 500 miles to set up for the Cherry Festival this year. Julie Peterson drove from south central Idaho by the Twin Falls area just for the Cherry Festival. “This is my fifth year here. It’s a great show to come and see, lots of different stuff,” Peterson said. Peterson came to Polson to sell top-quality sheets for any buyer needing a good night’s rest. “For a 500-mile one-way drive, it’s a great show to come to.”

Peterson was one of many people hoping to catch the big attendance and make some money with goods. She thought this year was bigger than the last year.

“I think they’ve come earlier this year than last year. I’ve been hit earlier. I remember seeing people up and down the aisles with nothing but people,” she said.

The Cherry Festival proved to be a fun time for children as well. The Polson High School cheerleaders set up a dunking booth by The Cove so kids could throw a tennis ball at a lever and dunk the cheerleader sitting at the top.

Even the little ones were encouraged to scoot up and dunk the cheerleader in a glorious and hilarious splash of water. Some spectators laughed as the water shot up into the air.

Some vendors were treating kids to face-painting and henna tattoos.

Haley Fyant, one of this year’s premier fast pitch softball players, was one such patron, getting an elaborate design on her ankle as people watched.

People strolled and took their time to see the sights and what other tents had to offer. There was plenty of handmade jewelry, knickknacks, and local trinkets at the tents.

At the Bison Bitterroot tent, a person could buy an engraving of a bald eagle carved out of granite. It was just one of the many examples of local artistry on display.

Some groups were raising money and collecting signatures for future endeavors.

The Good Shepherd Lutheran Church had a tent selling high-quality coffee beans to fundraise for mission trips, church upkeep, and other various uses.

The Lake County Democrats had a tent with signup sheets for people interested in different causes. Of course, not too far away, was the Republican tent looking to attract new members. Both sides of the political aisle were represented well.

Don Ross drove from Missoula to bring his vast array of jewelry – necklaces with turquoise stones, and rings with colorful designs.

“I had another vendor who told me this was a great market,” Ross said. “So I decided to come up and try my luck.”

Ross said being new he didn’t quite know what to expect, but hoped for some good sales.

“A lot of lookers,” he said. “But a few buyers. We’re hoping for the best.” Ross liked the layout of the festivial – the vendors lined up to encourage people to take aimless strolls and see something that might catch their fancy. “I think we’ll do well here,” he said.

Among the vendors, there were many who came with the fresh cherry harvest from the east shore – dozens of small farms.

Stacey Polson was a gaining interest with cherries for a cause: she was raising money for her high school senior project.

As part of her project, she was fundraising for a modeling competition in Jamaica. Her job at the festival was to sell a product – cherries – and write a paper about it to present her senior project.

As spectators who enjoyed the success of this year’s festival, it was a relief that the cherry harvest came in the nick of time so all these wonderful vendors and visitors could take part in a yearly festival and to enjoy the good weather.