The 13th annual Solvang Scarecrow Festival, scheduled to kick off on Oct. 1, will include scarecrow entries from businesses and organizations across the Santa Ynez Valley. Throughout the month of October, participants will showcase their own unique scarecrow creations outside their locations. The public will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite scarecrows online at syvscarecrows.com.
Awards will be given out to winners in six categories: “Best Scarecrow Photo Op,” “Best Use of Recycled Materials,” “Best Use of Business Theme,” “Most Danish,” “Spookiest,” and “Most Humorous.”
“Best Solvang Scarecrow” and “Santa Ynez Valley Scarecrow Fest Winner” will also be named. The latter will receive the contest’s exclusive handcrafted trophy, known as the Harvest Cup, made by famed blacksmith Hans Duus. The winner will be able to keep the trophy on display in their place of business until the end of next year’s competition, when a new winner is named. Last October, the Solvang Senior Center was awarded the Harvest Cup.
Questions about the 2022 Scarecrow Fest may be directed to the Solvang Chamber of Commerce by emailing mitzi@solvangchamber.com. The contest will conclude on Oct. 31.
This article appears in Sep 22-29, 2022.