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Holidays seem to bring out the child in all of us. With all the parades, celebrations, sweets and decorations, October through December seem to pack in the best holidays of them all.
What child doesn’t enjoy getting dressed up and walking around town with friends to get free candy?
For many people, Halloween is the ultimate holiday. And nothing says Halloween quite like a haunted house. Solvang Recreation has been thrilling locals for 15 years with their haunted houses.
For the last five years, a team of more than 50 volunteer guides and monsters has led
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thousands of brave souls through elaborate sets at Solvang’s Theaterfest.
According to Parks and Recreation Director Fred Lageman, even little ones have enjoyed the ghosts and ghouls. “There’s no blood, no gore,” he says. “We try to make it scary fun rather than grotesque.” The approach seems to be working. More than 2,000 people made their way through Theaterfest during last year’s two-night run. “It’s become quite the popular community event,” says Lageman. The haunted house is open for two nights only, October 30 and 31. Call Solvang Recreation for times and prices, 688-7529.
For a more relaxing welcome to the fall, why not visit a pumpkin patch? At the corner of Baseline and Edison, Summerset Farm attracts loads of visitors with their colorful varieties of pumpkins and gourds. Kids always enjoy going through the corn maze, and while you’re there you can stock up on raspberries, apples, pears, squash, cucumbers and corn, all grown there on the farm. This year, Summerset will also be stocking Christmas trees, starting the day after Thanksgiving, and Sir Gregory is always on hand for holiday floral arrangements.
Quacken Farms opened in Los Olivos over the summer. Focussing on fun for the whole family, they offer tractor rides and pony rides, and like Summerset Farm, Quacken has a pumpkin patch and a produce stand.
You may see decorations around town, but Christmas does not officially start until Solvang lights the tree and has a parade. The holiday celebrations started off small, and although they’ve grown over the years, they still have a small hometown feel.
David Watts, owner of Jule Hus in Solvang, has watched Solvang’s Winterfest evolve for more than 30 years. |
“When I was a kid, Delbert Jensen would bring in a beautiful Oregon Christmas tree and there was a special plate in the middle of 1st Street and Copenhagen Drive that you could slide the tree into,” he recalls. “It was gorgeous, 20 feet tall. We would have our celebration right there in the street.”
These days visitors and locals gather to watch the tree lighting in Solvang Park on the first weekend of December. The Christmas parade follows on Saturday.
Local Olympic hero Todd Rogers and teammate Phil Dalhausser will light the tree this year and ride in the parade as Grand Marshalls (see sidebar).
One of Solvang’s most recognizable traditions is the nativity pageant. Originally started by Earl and Dolores Petersen in the courtyard of their Petersen Village Inn, the free performances have been held at Solvang’s Festival Theater for the past 20 years.
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Gingerbread House Workshops
Dec 2 Tuesday
City of Solvang workshop at Vets Wing.
Dec 3 Wednesday 4:00 pm
Afternoon Workshop at Solvang Bakery.
Dec 5 Friday Night 5-10 pm
Workshop at Solvang Bakery–evening with carolers.
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The nativity pageant comes together with the help of nearly one hundred volunteer singers, actors, musicians, stage hands, dancers and live animals.
Jim Colvin, manager of the Petersen Village Inn, remembers wrangling animals with his wife in the early years of the pageant. “Here we were newlyweds and we were chasing down llamas and sheep,” he laughs. “It was a fun time, it was really neat.”
Christmas just isn’t complete with Santa Claus, and the Santa Ynez Valley has been lucky enough to have him living here with us since 1977.
When Jack Pellerin and his wife moved to the Valley from Los Angeles, they had already been delighting youngsters for 10 years as Mr. and Mrs. Claus. Making appearances at Solvang’s tree lighting and parade, Los Olivos Olde Fashioned Christmas and Buellton’s tree lighting, Santa and his wife will be listening to wishes and sharing treats with every child who visits.
Thanks to generous donations from local businesses, no one has to pay for a photo or a visit with this Santa. Many children go home with an early present as well.
“We give thousands of toys away each year,” says Pellerin. “And everything is free of charge to the children who come to see me.”
Los Olivos celebrates an Olde Fashioned Christmas the first Saturday evening of December with hot chocolate, popcorn, roasted walnuts and other treats. Locals gather to watch a child light the tree on the flagpole at the center of town, shops stay open late and musical performances round out the evening.
The Halme family is once again offering fun workshops for making gingerbread houses, either at their Solvang Bakery, or through Solvang Recreation at the Veteran’s Hall. With pre-baked houses and loads of icing and candy for decorating, many families enjoy crafting their houses together without having to deal with the clean up. (See below for exact dates.)
With this many ways to welcome the season, it’s no wonder people come back every year to celebrate the holidays in the Santa Ynez Valley.
“Christmas in the Valley is very much volunteer, it’s not heavily commercial,” says Watts. “The neat thing about people coming here to enjoy it is that it’s really a step back into small town America.”
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Story and Photos by Sherrie Petersen