The Maple Leaf Festival started in 1958 in Baldwin City, Kansas. It began as a community even inspired by Dr. Ivan Boyd, a biology professor at Baker University, also located in Baldwin City. Dr. Boyd stated that the third weekend of October was the best time to observe the changing colors of the Maple leaves as well as celebrate a successful harvest.
Now, more than fifty years later, the event continues to attract hundreds of people (as we noticed as we were waiting in the slew of cars on the turnpike). With over 300 craft exhibits, quilt shows, performing arts, live music, and unique fair food, it is a family-friendly event with something for everyone. Moreover, it provides an opportunity for local non-profits to raise funds.
Once we found parking, we held back the temptation to try the BBQ sandwiches at the firetruck to see what the billowing smoke could mean in terms of meat cooking on a grill. We began to make our way through the crowds, stopped off to buy a lemonade from a group of kids with a lemonade/grape kool-aid stand, and finally ended at a huge grill with a variety of animals to choose from. We settled on a brat, a hamburger, and an order of nachos with the liquid cheese.
After we ate, we started walking back through the streets to check out the quilt display and some of the craft vendors. All the while, we reminded ourselves that we needed to make it back to the stand with the huge cookies. So, at the end of the day, we returned to the stand which packed full of homemade goodies. Just as I saw the word, "Patchouli" on what we originally thought were cookies, I knew that something had gone wrong. Nope, not cookies; rather, they were homemade soaps made from goat products.
Luckily, on the other side of the stand, there were some assorted jams, breads, and a couple of baggies of cookies. I picked out a large jar of blackberry jam, a loaf of pumpkin bread, and a baggie of chocolate chip cookies. All in all, it was a fine day at the Maple Leaf Festival!
