Peach festival
In the DMV, August means thick heat, county fairs and peach festivals. The latter are so popular, in fact, that this state alone holds more than 10 of them in the four-week span. The two-day annual celebration in Leitersburg is a peach festival that never disappoints, and this year was no exception.
In its 36th year, tucked away deep into Washington County, the festival is scenic if nothing else. The mountains in the distance of the highway don’t even look real as you ride through the winding roller-coaster roads. As you approach the parking region, there are many families who’ve set up yard sales on their lawns along the road. They really set the tone for the homey feel you’re about to encounter.
After parking (for free, but the firehouse volunteers do accept donations), you will smell the kettle corn before anything else. Admission is also free, so walk on in. The word “peach” is visible on more than a half a dozen signs directly in front of you.
Ivy Hill Farm is the first booth to the left, and it gets the award for most inventive. On its tables, you’ll find more peach-incorporating foods than you thought possible. We’re talking peach cotton candy, peach honey, peach slushies, peach jelly, canned peaches, even peach dressing. Of course, there are plain ole succulent peaches sitting perfectly in their cartons on top of this array, but there are loads of new things to try.
All of Ivy Hill Farm’s peaches are grown within three miles of the festival on a family farm in Smithsburg, where Tim Martin, the owner’s son, is among the seventh generation of the family’s farmers.
“[Our family] has been doing this festival for a long time; we’ve been here since almost the beginning,” Martin said. But the work is all love. “Peaches are just the optimal summertime treat. There’s just something about eating a ripe, juicy peach, and getting all that juice rolling down your arms, and just enjoying that flavor.”
Opposite to this stand there is another stand offering — you guessed it — more peachy foods. This stand, run by the firehouse volunteers and their families, offers peach cobbler, peach tea, peach pie by the slice and my personal favorite, peach ice cream.
Contrary to popular belief, peach haters can rejoice at a peach festival, too, because not everything has a peach in it. In fact, right beside the peach ice cream stand is another stand offering barbecue pork sandwiches, french fries, sausages and, the best part, dollar beverages. When was the last time you paid a buck for a bottle of water? I can’t remember, either.
And if food is not what you’re interested in (for reasons I won’t understand), no fear; there’s plenty else to do. The two-day festival allows for plenty of vendors to display their work. There are a few big-name vendors among the hundred or so littered across the grounds, such as Origami Owl, Thirty-One and even Avon. The rest of the space is occupied by people who handcraft some pretty amazing stuff, including tie-dyed everything, repurposed license plates, headbands in every possible fabric, handbags, burlap wreaths, sand art, pillows, pottery, jewelry and cosmetics. Pony rides and tractor parades are available, as well. There’s also that kettle corn mentioned earlier, and the taste certainly meets the expectation created by the smell.
Peach lovers and even peach haters are welcome to come again next year, when the Leitersburg Peach Festival will see its 37th year in business. Try the infamous peach ice cream, ride a pony and get a chance to encounter some of the kindest people this coast has to offer.
