Nauvoo Pumpkin Walk

In Nauvoo, the children do their "trick or treat" thing on October 30th, on All Hallow's Eve. I don't know where that tradition began, but it worked out very well this year. The real fun for Nauvoo in October is the annual "Pumpkin Walk" which is always the last Saturday in October. This year it fell ON Halloween! To read a wonderful article with photos from a better camera, see "Nauvoo Pumpkin Walk," in the Nov 6, 2008 issue of the online Meridian Magazine. It was written by my friend, Rosemary Palmer.

Here's an example of the intricate work done in this harvest medium--pumpkin carving!
This was the first time my parents were able to witness this celebration. We managed to keep Mom upright. She walked about a block and then back to the car--and slept like a baby afterwards, by her own report.

Lots of shops open, or folks set up a table and sell their wares--to benefit the library or boost someone's mission fund, or whatever their cause. By the end of the evening, you can get some considerable bargains. What had cost $4 was lowered to $3 etc. Here you could get Nauvoo Pie, whatever that is!

There was a long line of folks waiting to get into the spook alley. The streets are roped off so that visitors can walk in the streets, and the displays and contest entrants (carved pumpkins, of course) go on for about two blocks on both sides of the streets. Cars can actually drive the main street, but for this evening, the people rule the road!

Even the lamp posts are decorated with corn stalks--which are plentiful in the midwest, as you might imagine!

One of my favorite entries: WICKED! Fond memories to those who have seen the musical???

Here's quite a row of pumpkin offerings. Our Gospel Doctrine teacher is president of the Chamber of Commerce, and spends literally DAYS carving pumpkins and overseeing their being positioned down every alley and in front of every shop. It is a lot of work, and folks come from miles around to join in the festivities! If you ever wanted an excuse to visit Nauvoo, maybe this is it!!

Colorful characters abound. This beauty allowed me to take her picture! She could move the "skeleton spider" which was a type of puppet--scared some children to the extreme!

However, this little girls was a little more shy.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN to all!