With the Grange Market Closed for 2026, Harvest Fest Puts Cider and Smoked Salmon on Wapato Way

The Manson Grange farmers market ran Wednesdays and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon, June through September, and its page now says the market has ended for 2026. This Saturday, October 17, the Manson Chamber's Harvest Fest fills downtown from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Its Fall Flavors Expo brings Manson Growers, Blueberry Hills, Frostad Fisheries, Sour Dad Bread and the Manson Fire Department to the same street. If you live in Crystal View Estates, that makes Saturday more than a street party. For one afternoon, cider, apples, smoked salmon and bread are all on one walkable street again, and after that the calendar moves into tasting rooms and evenings.

Start With the Street, Because It Closes First

The Lake Chelan Mirror reported on Monday that Chelan County Public Works will close Wapato Way from Totem Pole Road to Pedoi Street from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, and that drivers should use other routes. Coming into town from Crystal View Estates means arriving at a downtown with its main road closed to cars. Plan to park off the closure and walk in.

The day runs in this order, according to the Chamber's Harvest Fest page:

1. By 10:45 a.m. Dogs and their people taking part in Paws on Parade meet at the corner of Totem Pole and Wapato Way.
2. 11 to 11:30 a.m. The parade goes through downtown. KOZI Radio sponsors it, and costume prizes go to Best Owner and Dog Look-Alike Pair, Funniest Costume, and Scariest Costume. Spectators can stand along Wapato Way.
3. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The Taste of Harvest Restaurant Crawl, the Fall Flavors Expo, the Artisan Showcase, the games and the Sock Walk all run through the rest of the day.

The festival really starts when the dogs do. If a costumed dog in your household is going, aim to be at the corner before the road closure starts.

The Expo Is the Market's Stand-In for a Day

This is the part of Harvest Fest that a weekday errand can't easily match. The Chamber lists nine Fall Flavors Expo vendors, ranging from cider and apples to smoked salmon, sourdough and brats with locally made sauerkraut.

Several of these are things you can carry home. Cider, apples, a loaf of sourdough, smoked salmon and a jar of sauce will all keep longer than the festival lasts, so a tote bag is worth bringing. Deb's DeLights' decorate-your-own pumpkin cookies are the stop for anyone bringing kids.

Next to the food, the Artisan Showcase gathers five makers. Unbroken has a hat bar and permanent jewelry, Pogue's Creations brings metal art, Eva Barron Art has watercolors, Ktsis makes handcrafted jewelry, and Michele Binder sells resin art and plaster paint kits. Mid-October is early for holiday shopping, but a watercolor or a piece of metal art from a local maker is the sort of gift that's harder to find once the street is open to traffic again.

The Restaurant Crawl Is Still Filling In

The Taste of Harvest crawl runs 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., with participating downtown restaurants serving special harvest-season dishes. As of the Chamber's October 10 update, three businesses are confirmed:

• Big Foot Burger with the Scary Sasquatch Monster Burger
• Lake Chelan Brewery with farm-to-table chili
• VonHart Goods & Bakery with farm-to-table soups and salads

The page says more businesses will be added, and it doesn't list a price or ticket for the crawl. Check the Chamber page again Friday night for the final list. Chili, soup and a burger already cover lunch, and the Expo booths cover snacks and dessert, so you can spend the whole day on Wapato Way without planning a single sit-down meal.

For Kids, the Day Runs Through Mountain View Lodge

The Sock Walk starts at Mountain View Lodge, where kids pick up a map. They then go from business to business downtown looking for hidden socks and collecting stickers. It's a scavenger hunt that takes families into shops they might otherwise walk past, which is clearly why it's on the program.

Slidewaters sponsors the games, which include Apple Grab, the Hay Stack Slide, separate Duck Races for kids and adults, adult Cornhole, Pumpkin Pie Hole Golf, Pumpkin Bowling and Pumpkin Carving. The schedule also includes a Lil' Sprouts Kids Zone, a Pumpkin Carving Contest and a community Pumpkin Wall, a pumpkin display the Chamber says "will light up Manson." The Chamber hasn't posted rules for the carving contest or for adding a pumpkin to the wall, so ask at the festival before you carve one at home.

Same Saturday, Away From Downtown

Wapato Way isn't the only thing happening on October 17. The Manson Chamber's calendar lists three other events the same day, each on a different schedule:

• Harvest Lunch in the Vines at Amos Rome Vineyards, noon to 3 p.m. A vineyard and production tour, a crush update, new-release tastings and lunch among the vines.
• Trunk or Treat at 12 Tribes Lake Chelan Casino, 2 to 6 p.m.
• Cougar Football Watch Party at Tipsy Canyon Winery, 3 to 6 p.m.

The schedules make a split day easy. A family could catch the 11 a.m. parade, eat their way along the Expo, and still make Trunk or Treat. For hosting adult guests, the Amos Rome lunch gives you a crush update during the one stretch of the year when there's crush to talk about.

Around Saturday, the North Shore Moves Into Tasting Rooms

Harvest Fest is the big outdoor, all-ages day of the month. Most of what surrounds it on the Chamber calendar, the Wednesday before and the week after, takes place at a winery or cidery in the afternoon or evening.

The stargazing party comes first, this Wednesday, three days before Harvest Fest, and it stands out. The Chamber's listing describes it as free, open to all ages, with public telescope viewing. Rootwood's trivia night on the 21st is the one event on this list with a Manson theme built in, and it pairs nicely with the pumpkin painting if your Harvest Fest pumpkin didn't make it onto the wall.

All of this falls inside Fall for Manson, the Chamber's month-long promotion that runs October 1 through 31. It has an interactive passport you can check into at participating businesses, events and activities around the valley. You can register through the Fall for Manson page. Saturday's crawl and the following week's tasting-room events are both chances to add check-ins.

What the Grange Has Left on the Calendar

When October ends, the Manson Grange becomes the gathering place again, with a short list. Its final Bingo of 2026 is Thursday, November 19, with doors at 5 p.m. and games at 6 p.m. On December 5, the Tamarack Quartet plays a candlelit "Red Velvet Night" from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. The farmers market returns in 2027. Until then, Saturday's Expo on Wapato Way is your chance to stock up on Manson Growers cider and Frostad Fisheries smoked salmon in one walk.

If you're heading down to Harvest Fest from Crystal View Estates and want to talk about the north shore over a cup of cider, Jessie Simmons would love to hear which booth you went to first. And if you're thinking about what a year-round life near downtown Manson could look like, Jessie can walk you through it.