Home » Ahwahnee » Coarsegold Tarantula Festival Is All-Family Fun

Coarsegold Tarantula Festival Is All-Family Fun

Kids learning about Tarantulas - photo by Gina ClugstonCOARSEGOLD – Do you find yourself yearning for tarantula races, costume parade, and hairy leg contest? Perhaps you’re in the mood for some pizza eating, pumpkin cake and poetry, seasonal decorating, and fun for kids in an educational, if arachnidian, environment. Yearn no more.

Webs are being woven now for Coarsegold’s 19th annual Tarantula Festival on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 10:30 a.m. til 5 p.m. in the Historic Village along Highway 41.

The annual festival celebrates neighborhood tarantulas who emerge from their burrows each fall to find a mate, then hunker back down for the winter. The spiders’ emergence serves as a forecast for cooler temperatures and rain in the coming week, and is a reason to celebrate for local townsfolk. Tarantulas began appearing, and starring in locals’ social media feeds, this week.

Little Girls Holds TarantulaWhile some people may shy away from them, the tarantulas are harmless, and an important part of the local ecosystem. One purpose of the event is to educate people on the importance of the tarantulas. Thus, there are also plenty of vendors and the chance for kids to learn about tarantulas from experts, and even hold one.

Best of all? Activities are free.

Best Pumpkin Pie Contest
Decorate Pumpkins
Tarantula Poem Contest & Reading
Scream Off Contest
Community Dance & Theatre Performance
Hairy Leg Contest – Men & Women (ages 16-99)
Children’s Tarantula Race (ages 3-8)
Bubble Gum Blowing Contest
Pie Eating Contest
Children’s Costume Contest – Trick or Treat Parade with parents
Pumpkin Decorating Awards
Dance Demo
Pet Costume Contest and Parade
Pumpkin Dance
Live Tarantula Derby!

For more information, call (559) 683-3900.

Leave a Reply

Sierra News Online

Sierra News Online