Foliage, Tree Sitters Star in Appalachian Festival

John Roach
for National Geographic News

October 6, 2005

Upwards of 75,000 people are expected to trek this weekend to a small
New York town in the Appalachian Mountains to catch an eyeful of fall's
crimson, gold, and yellow leaves shimmering in the breeze.

And as the leaf peepers gaze into the sugar maple trees ringing the local elementary school, they'll also catch the peculiar sight of people hanging out in the branches. These folks will be participants in the Cohocton Fall Foliage Festival's trademark event: tree-sitting.

"Everything has a gimmick, and the tree-sitting thing is kind of our gimmick," said Tom Cox, chairman of this year's festival, which runs from Thursday night through Sunday afternoon.

The contest begins at 5 p.m. on Friday with about 20 participants clambering up into the trees. There they'll try to stay until 5 p.m. on Sunday. The grand prize is a check for $200 (U.S.).

The official winner is the person who stays in the tree for the longest time with the least amount of equipment, such as food, water, or a hammock, according to Keryn Shaver, who organizes the event.

"The guy who won last year took nothing except the clothes he had on and just sat in the tree. That's hard to do without falling," she said.

Contest Roots

The tree-sitting contest started in 1968, two years after the annual festival began.

"All the adults were down on the ground selling stuff, but there was nothing for the kids to do, so some decided to go sit up in a tree," Cox said.

In the early years tree sitters played guitars, sang songs, and "did the kinds of things kids did back in the sixties," Cox added. Now the event is more organized, with a set of watchers and official rules.

For example, three minutes are deducted for any out-of-the-tree bathroom break. "The ones that end up winning don't come down at all," Shaver said.

In addition to such time deductions, participants are disqualified if they drop anything. Spectators are not allowed to touch the tree sitters or give them food or drink.

Some of the tree sitters use the event's popularity to advance their charitable causes. One woman this year will have a can at the base of her tree to collect money for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.

According to Shaver, the tree-sitting contest has become the festival's calling card, "but if we didn't have such a variety of arts and crafts and good food, people wouldn't come back."

Scenic Attraction

Cohocton's population hovers near 900, and the number climbs to 1,200 if residents in the surrounding countryside are included. The low population has kept the tree-draped hills pristine, so in 1966 the townspeople decided to capitalize on the scenery.

"We just wanted to do something to have people come out and see the fall foliage," Cox said.

At first locals set up arts and crafts booths in their yards. Once the idea caught on, the city moved the fair to public spaces around town. It has since grown to become one of New York's largest fall festivals.

In addition to the tree sitting contest, festival goers this year will be treated to a soccer tournament, an arts and crafts flea market, live music, and a parade and fireworks show in celebration of Cohocton's bicentennial.

"And all our food is unique to the area. We do a lot of stuff with potatoes, like salt potatoes and baked potatoes," Cox said.

Fall Festivals

For leaf peepers in search of other fall festivals in the Appalachians, consider the following:

• The Shawnee Fall Foliage Festival, Shawnee on Delaware, Pennsylvania, October 14 to 16. Take a hot-air balloon ride to view the foliage in and around the Appalachian Mountains, Delaware River, and Delaware Water Gap National Park.

• Shenandoah Fall Foliage Bike Festival, Staunton, Virginia, October 14 to 16. Cycle winding country roads and trails through rolling hills and countryside with the mountains on the horizon in a riot of fall colors.

• New River Gorge Bridge Day, Fayette County, West Virginia, October 15. Walk out on the Western Hemisphere's longest single steel arch bridge and view the splendor of fall foliage below.

• Keene Pumpkin Festival in Keene, New Hampshire, October 22. Thousands of people are invited to carve a gourd and stick a candle in it. Last year, 27,854 lit jack-o-lanterns graced the street.

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