News Nearby: Duluth Fall Festival Opens Saturday

It’s traditional for fall festivals to have Santa in his sleigh at the end of the parade waving to the crowd.

Santa is traveling a different way in the parade launching the 29th annual Duluth Fall Festival at 10 a.m. Saturday — he will be riding in the official Wells Fargo stagecoach and ushering in two fun-filled days at the festival.

"Santa told me he was very pleased the stagecoach was available, and while the horses can’t fly they’ll do just fine on Saturday," said Scott Asher, Wells Fargo’s community bank president for Gwinnett. "Most of all, he’s happy to have someone else do the driving for a change."

Festival hours are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 24, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 25, on the and adjacent city streets. A 5K Road Race will start at 8 a.m. Sunday.

The parade will feature more than 80 units, including the Duluth High School Wildcats Marching Band, the Peachtree Ridge High School Lions Marching Band, dignitaries, performers, schools, civic organizations, businesses and more.

PGA golfer Stewart Cink is this year’s parade grand marshal, with Dr. Miles Mason III as honorary grand marshal. The parade starts at Brock Road and will travel a portion of Main Street, Ga. Hwy. 120 and Buford Highway.

The parade lineup also includes the calliope from the Gold Medal Shows Carnival back for a second year at the festival. The carnival opened Wednesday and will continue through Sunday, Sept. 25. Carnival hours are 6 to 10 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

An opening ceremony at 11:15 a.m. and an appearance by the Duluth High School cheerleaders at 12:20 p.m. will follow the parade.

The festival offers 400 arts, crafts, sponsor and food booths and a children’s activity area. The Man’s Corner has been expanded to include football viewing, automobiles, all terrain vehicles, mountain bikes, Gwinnett sports teams, outdoor cooking demonstrations and more.

Entertainment on the Duluth Festival Center Stage begins at 12:30 p.m. Saturday with a Tribute to Elvis show by Mark Pitt. Performers will play music on the Gazebo Stage starting at noon Saturday. Georgia gardener Walter Reeves will appear from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday in the Gazebo. Continuous entertainment will be presented on the two stages both days of the festival. Reeves is also appearing from noon to 1 p.m. Saturday in the Man's Corner.

A shuttle service will operate from designated parking lots and drop off riders at the Monarch School near the Duluth Town Green during the festival.

The festival is put on by nearly 50 committees and 400 volunteers who wear colorful Duluth Fall Festival T-shirts specially designed each year. For 2011, the T-shirts are gold.

The Duluth Fall Festival Committee has used proceeds from the fall event to build the Duluth Festival Center, which will be paid off next year. The committee shared with the city the cost of purchasing land to develop Taylor Park next to and has funded many other improvement and beautification projects in downtown Duluth, including an Eastern Continental Divide Marker on the Duluth Town Green that was dedicated Thursday, Sept. 22.