The change of seasons brings a change of activities for our active family. With school starting and the normal rush of afterschool activities, we sometimes need to take a moment to ground ourselves. With autumn comes the traditional festival season. Being part of all those festivals is a great way to bring the focus more on the positive aspects of the seasonal change and less on the amount of schoolwork.

We are not farmers so we like to instill the importance of the harvest to our children. Whiteface Mountain celebrates each year with Oktoberfest September 29-30. This traditional Bavarian-style event brings all the elements of a fall festival together. A blending of music, beverages and traditional food makes for a jovial time for all. Don't forget the wagon rides and kids' carnival if children are coming along. Take time to ride the gondola to the top of Little Whiteface to truly enjoy the spectacular colors. The leaves are turning those glorious autumn reds, yellows and oranges. No one needs to worry about being the designated driver for this event. The Whiteface shuttle will be running from the Olympic Center in Lake Placid and Wilmington at various times throughout the event.

Gore Mountain brings their Harvest Fest the next weekend, October 6-7 with free admission. The Gore Harvest Festival is a pay-as-you-play type of festival. There are plenty of free activities likes hay maze, kids' crafts, music and petting zoo. There are extras like bounce houses, pony rides, climbing walls and scenic gondola rides that do cost a fee. With all the food and vendors you may want to just take a hike yourself to work off all the festival food.  

Diane Chase is the author of the Adirondack Family Activities™ guidebook series, Adirondack Family Time™