I am mostly German, some Norwegian, and some more Irish. Lake Geneva doesn’t care that I’m Norwegian, as they have no Norwegian Fest. They might have some sort of Irish Fest, but no one has ever told me about it, probably because I’m more German than I am Irish and those people who keep these Fests must know that. And those who set up Octoberfest must know now that I’m only mostly German, because where they use a K I still use a C, just because I feel a bit unsure about using their Germanic K. Anyway, It’s Octoberfest, and if you’re really into it, it’s Oktoberfest, and it’s happening this weekend in Lake Geneva.
The fall color report for Lake Geneva states that we’re at 50% of our peak color. I disagree. I’m going for 78%, and if you don’t believe me then look at that picture up there in the header and the one right up above in this story- those were taken this week and Photoshop did not adjust any color curves. I respect you more than that. I tell you about the colors in the event that you have no interest in Octoberfest, or the other one, Oktoberfest. If you want to skip the festivities and just take a short drive to breathe some fresh air, then the scenery alone is worth the investment.
But if you are the sort that likes festivals, then you should be packing your bags for this weekend right about now. We all know the weekend doesn’t start on Saturday morning, it starts on Friday. It’s starts right now when we get to our offices and wonder how quickly we can leave without causing any sort of distraction to our other co-workers. We’ve likely all met our quota’s this week, so Friday marks the start of our weekend. I’d leave soon. I wouldn’t even finish reading this. I don’t have anything particularly important to say today anyway.
In order to participate in Octoberfest, you’ll need to be downtown Lake Geneva sometime around Saturday afternoon. You can come earlier, at like 11 am, which is when they say the event starts, but I can tell you that you won’t really want to be there until around 1:30. The town will smell of brats and of apple cider, and if history is any indicator, there will be some hay on Broad Street by the old theater. The weekend is really set up for kids, with some pony rides and other horses milling about, and there’s going to be some games and if we’re lucky, a bouncy house.
For adults, there is food. Restaurants are going to feed you schnitzel this weekend, whether you ask them to or not. It’s just the way it is during Octoberfest, best not to complain or you’ll raise the ire of the Oktoberfest purists. There will be specials and drinks and eating a brat while walking down Main Street might make you look like a glutton on a Saturday in July, but on a Saturday in October you’ll beam with pride while wolfing down that portable snack.
I’ll be in town this weekend with my wife and my kids, and we’ll walk around for a few minutes and I just might take my own advice and shamelessly eat a brat or four. My kids will play in the hay and maybe ride a pony, and then they’ll melt down and we’ll have to go home to have timeouts for everyone. I ask you to do me one huge favor this weekend: Don’t just walk around downtown. Walk around for a while, patronize some business, eat the brats. But then, boldly, walk to the Southeast or the Southwest, and find yourself crunching leaves down the shorepath. Walk as far away from the buzz of town as you can, and when you find a bench or a chair, take a seat, facing the lake. Rest there for a while, breathe deeply, and be reminded that October is mostly about bright leaves falling into a dark blue lake. Yes, you can drive hundreds of miles to other lesser vacation destinations to see these colors this weekend, but why on earth would you?