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East County News Service
October 17, 2017 (San Diego’s East County) -- This week’s Destination East County includes HauntFest on Main in El Cajon, Carnival for Canines in La Mesa, Borrego Days desert festival and parade, a Toast to East County, the Laguna Mountain Rendezvous, alpacas at the Summers Past Pumpkin Patch, Scotty’s Scare Trail, and the Pumpkin Express train ride in Campo.
Plus, we’ll have a preview of coming attractions, including a haunted Elks lodge, a Halloween Harvest Festival, the Hills Halloween Party, a spooky campover, the Boulevard Boo Parade, a “Hallowscream” night, a high desert mountain yoga retreat, an Autumn Fest and Plant Sale, the Ramona Art and Wine Festival, a live hawk demonstration, a Veterans Day ceremony and the 71st annual Mother Goose Parade.
So scroll down for all of these events and many more!
THIS WEEK
HAUNTFEST ON MAIN OCT. 20
The Sixth Annual “HauntFest on Main” will be held this Friday night, October 20th from 5:00 to 10:00 p.m. in Downtown El Cajon. This fun, family-friendly Halloween-themed event features live music on the Promenade Stage including the Stand-Up Guys from 5 to 7:15 p.m. and the Amazing ‘80s All-Starz from 7:45 to 10 p.m.:
This event also features costume contests on the Main Street stage, carnival rides, crafts, games, car show, a candy trail, kids zone with outdoor movies, face painting, inflatables for kids, pumpkin patch, Ghostbusters and more. This event is presented by the City of El Cajon and the Downtown El Cajon Business Partners.
(Admission is free, but some rides will charge a nominal fee.) For more information, you can visit Hauntfest.org or call (619) 441-1754.
CARNIVAL FOR CANINES OCT. 21 IN LA MESA
Harry Griffin Park is going to the dogs! Carnival for Canines will be held at the park on Saturday, October 21st from noon to 4 p.m., hosted by KSON radio and benefitting Jackie Blue's Rescue Angels, a Jacumba nonprofit that finds loving homes for abandoned and shelter animals.
A doggy costume contest will be held, with registration starting at 1 p.m. and judging at 2 p.m. Well-socialized dogs on leashes are welcome to join in the fun, but please be sure vaccinations are up to date.
This (free!) event includes games for kids, gourmet food, crafts and vendors plus microchipping services, pet agility course, animal welfare and conservation organizations, pet rescue groups, and an opportunity drawing.
There will be also a food & supply drive to benefit poor communities in rural East County, so please bring new pet food, toys, leashes, collars and other pet items to donate.
BORREGO DAYS OCT. 21-22
The 52nd Annual Borrego Days Desert Festival kicks off Saturday, October 21 from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and continues through Sunday, October 22, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Borrego Days Parade steps off at 10 a.m. on Saturday, October 21st along Palm Canyon Drive and Christmas Circle in Borrego Springs, complete with pre-parade flyover, floats, marching bands and trick-riding Western cowboys.
Borrego Days also includes arts and crafts and a carnival fun zone for kids both days, plus live music for dancing under the stars on Saturday night.
For more information, you can visit BorregoDays.com.
TOAST TO EAST COUNTY OCT. 22
The San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce will present this year’s “A Toast to East County” on Sunday, October 22 from 1 to 4 p.m. at the El Cajon Elks Lodge.
You can enjoy wine tasting, craft beer samples, restaurant tastings, honey and cheese, olive oil and more –plus live music, giveaways and Trailblazer Awards presented by Maness Vineyards. You can find details at EastCountyChamber.org.
LAGUNA MOUNTAIN RENDEZVOUS OCTOBER 13-22
Step back in time to a fur trading and colonial camp from the 1700s to 1840s at the Laguna Mountain Rendezvous. This event opened October 13th and continues through October 22nd at the Mataguay Scout Reservation in Santa Ysabel.
You can see demonstrations of survival skills such as cooking, archery, tomahawk-throwing, black powder shooting and tool making. For more information, you can visit the Laguna Mountain Rendezvous page on Facebook.
SUMMERS PAST PUMPKIN PATCH
The Pumpkin Patch at Summers Past Farms in Flinn Springs invites you Pumpkin Patch Weekends complete with corn maze, jumpy for kids, popcorn and more. There are also special dates for petting and meeting a variety of animals from alpacas to pigs, as well as a dog show, costume contest and more.
There is a different themed event each weekend in October. This Sunday, October 22nd, you can visit with alpacas from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and on Saturday October 28th, the Alpine Stagecoach Lions Club will host a dog show complete with costume contest from 1 to 4 p.m. For a full schedule of activities, you can visit www.SummersPastFarms.com.
SCOTTY’S SCARE TRAIL IN FLINN SPRINGS DURING OCTOBER
Scotty’s Scare Trail, located at the Marshall Scotty’s abandoned amusement park in Flinn Springs just east of El Cajon, is rumored to be haunted to old employees and children who never left., plus monsters roaming the premises.
Open Fridays and Saturdays in October from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., the scare trail aims create haunting memories for you – whether or not you’ve ever visited this once enchanting destination as a child.
For more chilling details, you can visit http://scaretrail.com.
PUMPKIN EXPRESS TRAIN RIDES EACH WEEKEND IN OCTOBER
The Pacific Southwest Railway Museum Association is hosting its 12th annual Pumpkin Express Halloween Celebration. You’re invited to ride decorated vintage railcars through the San Diego county mountains as fall descends upon the Campo community.
Trains depart from the Campo Depot three times daily each Saturday and Sunday in October. The Pumpkin Express will wind down the hill through some of the most scenic parts of the historic San Diego and Arizona Railway. Keep your eyes open for the Grim Reaper who may be stowed away onboard!
After the train returns to the museum grounds, passengers will be let off at the Display Building, where children and their parents will enjoy decorating pumpkins from an indoor pumpkin patch. You can also walk through one of our two haunted trains with a creepy cast of goblins and ghouls—and take home a pumpkin for each train rider.
For reservations and details, visit the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum at www.PSRM.org and click on the Pumpkin Express tab.
NOW FOR A PREVIEW OF COMING ATTRACTIONS…
HAUNTED LODGE OCT. 26-31
The El Cajon Elks Lodge 1812 is teaming up with a local Haunted House Production Company “Scareventures” to present a Haunted Lodge for the community in their parking lot from October 26th through 31st. This will be one of the only Haunted Houses in San Diego’s East Count.
The “Haunted Lodge” will feature a maze and four different key scare areas for guests to experience, plus activities and booths.
There will also be early evening hours set aside for children under 12 to experience a less scary version of the haunted lodge that is family friendly for youngsters where they will be treated to Halloween candy from nicer monsters they encounter as a part of their tour through the Lodge maze.
The Elks, who have been serving the community for 60 years, will donate 100% of proceeds from the event for children’s charities. The lodge is located at 1500 East Washington Avenue in EL Cajon.
You can purchase advance tickets at elcajonelks.com.
HALLOWEEN HARVEST FAMILY FESTIVAL ATOP MT. HELIX OCT. 29
The Mt. Helix Park Foundation and Grossmont Mt Helix Improvement Association (GMIA) are joining together for a fun-filled Halloween Harvest Family Festival at the top of Mt Helix Park for neighborhood families on Sunday, October 29th from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
A costume parade for kids, live music by Lenny & the Lounge Lizards, plus booths from local businesses offering crafts, games and treats will all be part of this fall festival.
Park at the San Miguel Fire Station on Vivera to take a free shuttle to the top of Mt. Helix.
For more information on the event, visit MtHelixPark.org.
THE HILLS HALLOWEEN PARTY OCT. 28
What’s Halloween without a scary good costume contest? You’re invited to put on those devil horns or vampire fangs and make your way to La Mesa’s The Hills Local Pub on Saturday Oct. 28th for a Halloween House Party-- and an opportunity to win $10,000 for best costume.
The second annual costume contest starts at 8 p.m. with the best dressed chosen by crowd vote, so you may want to bring your friends. The grand prize will be given out at midnight, but the party will continue all night long with special drinks such as Smoky Witches Brew and Jungle Juice, plus DJs spinning your favorite hit songs. For details, you can visit http://thehillspub.com/.
SPOOKY CAMPOVER AT LIONS, TIGERS AND BEARS OCT. 27-28
Lions, Tigers and Bears in Alpine will host its annual Spooky Campover from 3 p.m. Friday October 27 until noon on. October 28. Bring your own pumpkin to carve, food, camping gear and best costume. This event promises "a wild and ghoulish night under the stars with the rescued animals." There will be pumpkin carving, s'mores, campfire songs, a costume contest and animal feedings.
For ticket prices and reservations, visit www.LionsTigersAndBears.org (or see https://lionstigersandbears.org/upcoming-events/lions-tigers-bears-spooky-campover/ .) All proceeds benefit the nonprofit facility’s work to rescue exotic animals and provide a permanent home for them.
BOO! PARADE OCTOBER 28 IN COLLEGE AREA
Celebrating its 13th year, the Boulevard BOO! Parade will be held on Saturday, October 28th starting at 10 a.m. With over 70 entries of live entertainment marching on one mile of El Cajon Boulevard in the College area, the parade will entertain you with spooky ghouls, goblins, ghosts and witches to fill you with the Halloween spirit.
Grandstand seating is available for purchase, or arrive early to stake out space along the parade route. The best viewing is along the south side of El Cajon Boulevard between Rolando Blvd. and 60th Street.
SAPS AT SEA’S HOWLARIOUS HALLOSCREAM! OCTOBER 28
The Saps at Sea, the official Laurel & Hardy fan club in San Diego, will host its October event, Howlarious HalloScream! On October 28 at 7:00 p.m. with doors opening at 6:00 p.m. at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Spring Valley.
This month, the Saps are teaming up with the Theatre Organ Society of San Diego to bring you spooky silents and a Felix the Cat cartoon. Don’t miss a special screening of the classic silent horror film, The Cat and the Canary! Donation is $7 per person.
HIGH DESERT MOUNTAIN YOGA RETREAT OCT. 31-NOV. 3
You’re invited to soak and stretch your way to relaxation and Nirvana at the second High Mountain Desert Yoga Retreat, tucked among boulders high in the In-Ko-Pah and Jacumba mountains near the eastern San Diego County line.
This four-day healing event from October 31 to November 3 will include natural sulfur hot spring pools, healing sessions at the Desert View tower including Kundalini Tantra Yoga, Reiki healing, and crystal sound healing. Guests will also savor vegan meals scenic hikes and some desert surprises, plus a three-day stay at the nearby Jacumba Hot Springs Resort.
Find more details or register at DesertViewTower.com.
AUTUMN FEST AND PLANT SALE NOV. 4
The Water Conservation Garden at Cuyamaca College will hold its Autumn Fest and Plant Sale on November 4th from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The campus is located in the Rancho San Diego area of El Cajon.
This event features live entertainment, craft vendors, plant sales, kids’ activities, gardening workshops, ask the designer landscape consultations, advice from water agencies, and a beer garden. For more information visit www.thegarden.org.
RAMONA ART AND WINE FESTIVAL NOV. 4
The 5th annual Ramona Art and Wine Festival will be held at Begent Ranch in Ramona Saturday, November 4, 2017, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Guests can view and purchase fine art in a variety of mediums, taste hand-crafted wines, appetizers, lunch entrees and desserts while picnicking in style beneath the shade of a giant oak tree. Vendors will also be on hand offering art and wine-themed items. A highlight of the event will be a live auction of six wine barrels painted by local artists.
For tickets and details, you can visit http://ramonaartandwinefest.net.
LIVE HAWK DEMONSTRATION NOV. 5 AT MISSION TRAILS
You’re invited to join falconer Bob Gordon with his hawk "Huxley" for a live hawk demonstration and "Birds of Prey" talk. Find them at Mission Trails Regional Park, inside the Visitor Center the first Sunday of each month, from 9 a.m. to noon. The next demonstration is scheduled for November 5th. For details visit www.MTRP.org.
HONORING OUR VETERANS NOV. 11 IN EL CAJON
The city of El Cajon and the El Cajon Veteran Commission will host a special ceremony honoring our veterans on Veterans Day, November 11th. The ceremony will take place from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. at Centennial Plaza (200 Civic Center Way) in downtown El Cajon and the community is invited.
MOTHER GOOSE PARADE NOV. 19
The 71st Annual Mother Goose Parade will be on November 19th, the Sunday before Thanksgiving. This year’s parade theme is “Family Traditions!” The parade begins at 1 p.m. You can see over 100 colorful and exciting parade entries, including floats, marching bands, clowns, equestrians, local dignitaries, TV celebrities, and Santa Claus! The parade Grand Marshal is Randy Jones, former San Diego Padre and CY Young award winner.
The parade route runs along downtown’s Main Street, from El Cajon Boulevard eastbound, to First Street. This popular parade is one of the largest parades in Southern California and a wonderful way to officially kick off the holiday season. You can learn more at www.mothergooseparade.org.
That’s all for this week!
If you have an event you’d like added to our calendar, or if you would like to sponsor the Destination East County column on our website, or the Destination East County show on KNSJ Radio, you can contact editor@eastcountymagazine.org. Destination East County is the most-read feature on our website.
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