54th Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival Runs October 17-18 With 275 Artists and the Great Pumpkin Parade
HALF MOON BAY, California — The 54th annual Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival will take over historic Main Street on Saturday and Sunday, October 17 and 18, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with free admission, according to the organizers' press release. The San Mateo County coastal town is known as the World Pumpkin Capital.
This year's festival brings together 275 artists and makers on four entertainment stages, with food prepared by more than 20 community nonprofit organizations. The centerpiece Great Pumpkin Parade steps off at noon on October 17 from Miramontes Street, traveling north on Main Street to Mill Street. Former San Francisco Giants pitcher Sergio Romo, a three-time World Series champion, serves as honorary grand marshal, and this year's weigh-off champion pumpkin will ride in the parade and pose for photos at Main and Miramontes.
The festival week opened with the 53rd Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off on October 12 at the IDES Grounds, 735 Main Street, where the champion earns $9 per pound, with a $30,000 bonus for a new world record. The standing world record of 2,749 pounds was set in Half Moon Bay in 2023; the 2025 champion was Brandon Dawson of Santa Rosa, whose pumpkin weighed 2,346 pounds. Carver "Farmer Mike" Valladao marks his 40th year sculpting giant pumpkins at the festival, and Sunday features the Made on the Coast local artists showcase.
(Source: Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival)
Source: Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 半月湾艺术与南瓜节大南瓜游行（资料图，图中花车载的是2025年冠军南瓜，重2,346磅）。图片来源：Wikimedia Commons，MegalithAgency 摄，CC BY 4.0 授权
