Wellington Pumpkinfest Delivers a Day of Big Smiles, Big Crowds, and Bigger Pumpkins
Date: Oct 15, 2023
Thousands of residents and visitors gathered in Wellington over the weekend to celebrate the 27th annual Prince Edward County Pumpkinfest, enjoying a full day of parade fun, family activities, live music, and giant pumpkins.
The festivities kicked off with the popular Pumpkinfest parade, drawing large crowds along Main Street and setting the tone for a lively autumn celebration.
Despite cool temperatures from a lake breeze, sunny skies carried the event through a packed schedule of activities. Mayor Steve Ferguson praised the strong turnout, particularly the number of giant pumpkin growers traveling from across Ontario and Quebec to compete in the annual weigh-off, noting that Pumpkinfest continues to be a highlight of the County’s social calendar.
Family-friendly activities were spread throughout Wellington Park and surrounding areas, including a kids’ zone, games, face painting, a petting zoo, junior firefighter challenges, community vendor booths, food, and live entertainment. Local organizations and businesses also took part, hosting book sales, craft shows, markets, and fundraisers.
The afternoon featured the much-anticipated giant pumpkin and vegetable weigh-off, hosted by the Prince Edward County Pumpkin Growers. Growers competed with massive pumpkins, gourds, sunflowers, carrots, and tomatoes, drawing crowds eager to see the impressive harvest.
This year’s competition offered $17,500 in prize money, with $3,000 awarded to the heaviest pumpkin. The top honour went to Todd Kline, whose pumpkin tipped the scales at 1,565 pounds, followed by Dan Pitura and Dave Dudley in second and third place.
Organizers noted that Wellington’s weigh-off is the final event of the season in Ontario and attracted the largest turnout of competitors in Canada this year, reaffirming Pumpkinfest’s place as a major stop on the international giant vegetable circuit.
As the day wrapped up, Pumpkinfest once again proved to be a joyful celebration of community spirit, harvest season, and a whole lot of orange.
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