The ride may be bumpy, and bales of hay are not the softest cushions, but autumn in Detroit’s Palmer Park would not be complete without a hayride through the colorful trails at People for Palmer Park’s annual Harvest Festival on Saturday, October 3 from 1-4 pm.
More than a century ago, Senator Thomas Palmer and his wife Lizzie Merrill Palmer would often invite guests to enjoy their Log Cabin Farm, drink freshly pressed apple cider, and enjoy the harvest. Palmer donated the land in the late 1800s to the city of Detroit to serve as a park “for the good of all.”
In honor of the harvest and in celebration of the Palmer legacy, the area across from the Splash Park on Merrill Plaisance, adjacent to People for Palmer Park’s community garden, will be filled with autumn festivities and free family fun.
Farmer John and his Barnyard Express show and petting zoo will return. Some of the season’s bounty will be shared: apple tasting (with five different varieties of heirloom apples); apple cider and donut holes for the first 500; corn grilling and pumpkin picking. In PFPP’s big blue tent, art classes with MAPP (Magic of Art in Palmer Park) will continue at Harvest Festival. Try your hand creating seed mosaics or painting pumpkins! A special squash display will demonstrate the wide variety of pumpkins and squash that grow in Michigan and how they look inside and out. Then try your luck at tug-of-war, sack races and other old-fashioned games.
This will be a fun opportunity for all ages to learn about how our food is grown, the lives of farm animals, and nature in the park.
The event takes place next to Palmer Park’s Splash Park and new playground, on Merrill Plaisance near Pontchartrain, between McNichols and Seven Mile Roads, west of Woodward Avenue. Parking is available at the Splash Park parking lot.
What: Harvest Festival with Petting Zoo, Farmer John Animal Shows and Hayride through the woods
When: Saturday, October 3, 2015, from 1 – 4 pm
Where: Palmer Park, by the Splash Park parking lot, Merrill Plaisance, west of Woodward between 6 & 7 Mile Roads, Detroit
Why: To celebrate and appreciate Palmer Park and harvest
Who: People of all ages, especially children!
How much: Free
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