Green Street turns red, yellow, and green – Tehachapi Apple Festival, Oct. 14-15

Red, yellow, and green are the various colors of apples. Local vendors will be bringing a variety of apples available in Kern County so that we can try to meet everyone's taste for delicious and nutritious apples. Besides apples we'll have apple pies, apple fritters, apple nachos, candy apples and other various apple delights.

The Apple Festival is about so much more than apples, though. This festival is meant to bring families together to have fun. We have a large variety of games that we offer for free for kids to play, including ball and frisbee toss, balloon car races, fishing, putt golf, knock down the clown and more. Kids can try doing modern apple bobbing from a string and often adults engage in the challenge, as well. This year we're featuring a fun Street Maze for kids to try to get through. Several times a day you can enjoy a fun and entertaining marionette show or get your face painted for free. We are moving all the kid action to F Street between Curry and Green streets. Of course, we have our bounce house area at the Depot Museum lawn, where you can purchase a bracelet for $10 that's good all day long. The Friends of the Library have a great book sale and book reading. On Saturday families can watch the apple drop from a crane on to a target or enjoy the madness of watching grown people stick their head in an apple pie to compete in a pie eating contest. New this year in Centennial Plaza will be a Line Dancing demonstration and lessons from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Saturday. Also new on Sunday is an Aerial Silk Show on F Street by the movie theater, several times during the day. We're bringing back the Vintage Trailer Show, which was a big hit, on F Street between Green and Robinson streets on Sunday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. and have the Pie Baking Contest on Sunday in front of Centennial Plaza at 1 p.m. (contestants: pies are to be delivered by 11 a.m.).

There will be over 100 vendors at the Tehachapi Apple Festival. You'll find handcrafted knives or Cutco knives, aprons, candles, home décor, soaps, clothes, toys, pens, yard art, signs, stickers, tumblers, T-shirts, jewelry, artisan crafts and more. All this just in time for holiday shopping. You certainly won't go hungry or thirsty. There will be tri tip, Chinese food, twisted and topped potatoes, tacos, tamales, shaved ice, desserts, corn on the cob, kettle corn, hot dogs, Philly cheesesteak, chicken nuggets, sliders, and so much more.

For the adults we have beer and wine available in Centennial Plaza where you can watch live music and dance 'til you can't dance no more. How can one town offer so much fun. For more information you can reach The Apple Festival at (818) 519-7144 or email [email protected]. Check out our website at http://www.tehachapiapplefestival.com.

The Greater Tehachapi Chamber of Commerce will have their Fall Carnival at the Rodeo Grounds on Oct. 13, 14 & 15 (for info call (661) 822-4180) and TMRA has rescheduled the Mountain Festival Rodeo, cancelled due to Tropical Storm Hilary, to Saturday, Oct. 14. (for info call (661) 557-7336).