ADAMS COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) -- Set up is underway at the South Mountain Fairgrounds for the 61st National Apple Harvest Festival. Organizers say there will be over 70 new vendors this year.
The festival is always held the first two full weekends of October. Festival Chairman Nick Zepp says it can attract a crowd as large as 25,000 people.
"We have activities for the whole family," Zepp says. "We have a petting zoo, we have a puppet theater. We have all sorts of entertainment all over the fairgrounds. We have four stages going at all times."
Mr. Ed's Elephant Museum and Candy Emporium is back for their 50th year. Co-owners Isaac and Nicole Bucher started setting up earlier this week. They say their store location also gets business from the event.
"This year we are unveiling a brand new fudge for us," Nicole Bucher says. "It's nutty caramel apple, and it has a nice tang of a Granny Smith apple, and it's top is completely covered in creamy homemade caramel and some granulated peanuts on the top."
Mary Grace Kauffman with Destination Gettysburg says nearby businesses and farms will have specials during the event too.
"Every year I look forward to trying to eat apples as many ways as possible from the apple pizza to apple grilled cheese, apple dumplings, apple crisp," Kauffman says. "For me it's a really fun way to taste the bounty of Adams County and the apples that this region is really for."
Zepp says proceeds from the festival go right back into the surrounding community. That includes projects the event sponsors and Oakside Community Park.
General Admission is $10. Senior tickets are $9. There's a military discount. Kids 12 and under are free.
Zepp says the shuttles from the parking lots to the festival are busiest at 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. Plan around those arrival times to avoid the rush.
Download the abc27 News+ app on your Roku, Amazon Fire TV Stick, and Apple TV devices
Kauffman says people often use the big red apple at the entrance as a meeting place, for example, meeting their friends and family there if they get lost.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.