Thousands of people gathered in the village of Hilton on Saturday to celebrate the 42nd anniversary of the Hilton Apple Festival .
The colorful orange and yellow leaves making up the once fully green trees greeted the festival goers as they made their way into the village. It was a chilly morning, but sunny—the perfect weather for a fall festival.
Matt Hass said the weather is what brings him back to the Apple Fest every year. He’s the owner of SawDogs, a wood and ice chainsaw carving business. Hass said he’s been creating wood carvings for 24 years, and ice carvings for 10. The artwork at his booth ranged from big to smaller carvings. There were animal statues, carvings of beloved characters, like the Grinch, gnome carvings and more. This would be his fifth year selling his artwork at the festival, Hass said.
The weather was a selling point for Chris Pallace too. It was his first year selling his handcrafted Fairy Doors at the Hilton Apple Festival, he said. Pallace said he and his partner, Kevin Serwacki sell their magical Fairy Doors at about 25 shows per year. The Lilac Festival is where he was approached to participate in this year’s Apple Fest, he said.