Swan Lake ready for huckleberry lovers
This Saturday a tiny berry will attract huge attention as the 34th-annual Swan Lake Huckleberry Festival returns to Swan Lake shores.
A baking contest, a silent auction and over 50 vendors will draw locals and tourists to the Swan Lake Day Park.
Crowds can warm up with an 8 a.m. pancake breakfast before the festival opens at 9. The huckleberry baking starts at 11 (but all entries should be in by 10:30) and live music starts at 11:30. Although children might not be able to touch the arts and crafts, they can find fun at the festival’s free games.
Chuck Cushman, pastor at Swan Chapel, helped bring children’s activities to this year’s festival. He was inspired by a memory of a young girl who wanted to be queen of the huckleberry festival last year.
“It just got me thinking that there’s not much happening for kids,” Cushman said.
Cushman and other volunteers will set up a marked area for games near the vendors. The fun starts at noon but the pastor advised families to sign up ahead of time. Activities will include a water balloon and a bean-bag toss. There might even be a game of trash-can volleyball using balloons in a garbage bag instead of a ball.
“It’s the same rules but a little bit more chaos if there’s a breeze,” Cushman chuckled.
Children’s games are a new addition but festival t-shirts are a tradition. Lyn Bienvenue has been ordering the shirts for 17 years and said women always get huckleberries and swans while men sport bears and mountains. The festival became a tradition in her childhood.
Bienvenue’s parents, Jan and Luther Chamber, started the festival. The event evolved into a family function and now Bienvenue’s children and grandchildren come to the festival each year. She sees many Swan Lake families doing the same thing.
“It’s like a reunion for Swan Lake,” Bienvenue said.
The afternoon will be as packed as the morning with a silent auction and several raffles for products from the area and a Kindle Fire. Festival favorites, including huckleberry ice cream and huckleberry pies by Swan Lake Search and Rescue and Volunteer Fire Department, will be available all day.
Festival co-chair Lesly Olsen said the departments always try to stock up, even with this year’s small huckleberry harvest.
“We just trust and have faith that people have made pies in the past just know where to get them,” she laughed.
The festival is sponsored by the Swan Lake Chamber of Commerce and Community Club. Festival proceeds will be used to fund maintenance of the Swan Lake Community Center and other Swan Lake infrastructure.
The festival runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Swan Lake Day Park near mile marker 72 on Montana Highway 83. Parking will be across the street and clearly marked. For questions or more information, call Festival Co-chairs Terry and Lesly Olsen, 886-2052 or Festival Treasurer Carol Beck-Edgar, 837-2061.