By Darlene Brace
The Cassadaga community invites you to join them for exciting outdoor and indoor activities at the annual Cassadaga Winter Festival. This year’s festival will take place from January 30th to February 1st at various locations around the Cassadaga area. For many years, this festival has been organized by Citizens for a Better Cassadaga, a local non-profit organization. They collaborate with area residents, businesses, and other organizations to host events like the Winter Festival and several other events throughout the year.
The Untouchables will perform on Friday night at the American Legion Post 1280 to kick off this year’s festival. The legion is located at 228 Maple Avenue in Cassadaga, and their performance will run from 6:30-9:30pm. This popular band plays familiar tunes from various genres spanning the 1950s to the 1980s, and they always put on a great show. On Saturday, the American Legion will also be the location for a vendor show from 10am-3pm. There will be a variety of vendors for you to browse and shop, and a light lunch will be available.
There will be lots of outdoor Fun at the Beach activities at the Cassadaga Beach from 12-2pm. At the beach you can enjoy sitting around fire pits and make delicious s’mores and participate in playing tetherball and street hockey. The Park Church will provide refreshments of hot cocoa and chili.
During the Fun at the Beach event, there will also be an ice sculpture demonstration by Jared Chrispell, who has been crafting ice sculptures for over 12 years. With his steel electric saw, he transforms ordinary blocks of ice into incredible works of art. This is a demonstration you won’t want to miss!
A highlight of this winter festival is the exhilarating Ice SCREAM Polar Dip, where brave participants jump into the frigid waters of Cassadaga Lake. There is a $20 entry fee, and all Polar Dip participants will receive a T-shirt to commemorate their bravery. The proceeds of this event will go to helping with the reconstruction of the Cassadaga Beach gazebo.
After your time outdoors at the beach, you might want to warm up a bit at the Cassadaga Library. From 2-4pm, you can enjoy seeing Tanya and her live chickens. She will provide information, and there will be a story and a craft to make.
At 5pm, head on over to Park Church, located at 25 Maple Avenue. They will be hosting a soup cook-off contest called the Souper Bowl. The soups will be free and will be served with salad and bread. If you would like to enter your soup into the contest, please call ahead at 716-962-2265. There will also be a door prize giveaway.
The festival continues Sunday afternoon at the American Legion Post 1280 with a Cornhole Tournament. This round-robin style tournament will begin at 1:30pm, with registration taking place from 12:45-1:15pm. Trophies will be awarded for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places, along with a cash prize for the first place winner. In addition, there will be a Chinese auction and a 50/50 raffle, where you could win additional prizes. Chili and soup will also be available for purchase.
The proceeds from this part of the festival will help raise funds for the CVCS Music Abroad Program, which supports the band students’ trip to Europe. Your participation in the cornhole tournament will help support the kids in this program, and it is greatly appreciated.
Then the community is invited to go sledding from 1-3pm at the Cassadaga Country Club. Hot cocoa and cookies will be available. To culminate this winter festival, you are invited to meet at Cassadaga Lake Nature Park, located at 8131 Rt. 60, at 5:20pm for a Moonlight Hike, Skiing, and Snowshoeing event. Enjoy the outdoors while on guided tours illuminated by the light of the full moon. Please bring your own equipment. Parking is limited, so carpooling is encouraged.
This year the Cassadaga Winter Festival offers a fun weekend that features a variety of indoor and outdoor activities that encourages community involvement and fun activities for the whole family to enjoy. For updated information, you can go to cassadaganewyork.org or visit Citizens for Better Cassadaga on Facebook.