Can’t-Miss 2026 Fall Events in the Flathead Valley
From harvest festivals to pumpkin patches and haunted hayrides, the Flathead Valley offers a full slate of events this fall
By Lauren Frick
If the cooler, rainy weather rolling into the Flathead Valley over the last week wasn’t an indication that fall is just around the corner, the waning hours of a long weekend marking the unofficial close to the summer certainly seals the deal.
While the buzz of the summer tourism season is starting to fade, things in the valley won’t go quiet this fall as a full slate of festivals is on deck to keep you busy in between your coffee shop visits to get your favorite pumpkin-flavored drinks and treats. From kilts and quilts, to beer and fear, check out this guide to the Flathead Valley this fall:
Flathead Valley Celtic Festival
Sept. 11-12
Centennial Farm, 563 McMannamy Draw West, Kalispell
Now in its twelfth year, the Flathead Celtic Festival is set to return to the Flathead Valley this fall, bringing back its unique mixture of athletic competition, cultural history, food vendors, live music and dancing to Kalispell. The two-day celebration of Celtic culture is filled with Irish and Highland dancing, craft beer and mead, bagpipes, kilts and so much more.
Come by Centennial Farm to witness athletic feats in the Highland Games, which involve competitors participating in a series of strength-based events. The competition is sanctioned by the Scottish American Athletic Association, meaning athletes can earn points to qualify for national competitions. The six events are the caber toss, weight over the bar, sheaf toss, Scottish hammer throw, weight throw and stone put, and competitors have to participate in each event.
The Flathead Celtic Festival is scheduled to begin on Friday, Sept. 11, with the first day of the festival running from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. The festival concludes Saturday, Sept. 12 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information go to flatheadcelticfestival.com
North Valley Food Bank Harvest Fest
Sept. 12
251 Flathead Ave., Whitefish
As a way to build food security, protect wildlife, and enjoy all that’s abundant in the Flathead Valley, the North Valley Food Bank is inviting the community to pick apples from local trees, reduce bear attractants, preserve seasonal food, and share a meal at its annual Harvest Fest on Saturday, Sept. 12.
Apple picking will begin at 10 a.m. at the food bank where volunteers will be assigned to City of Whitefish fruit trees to harvest from, then bring back their bounty to June’s Kitchen, where the apples will be pressed for cider or processed into applesauce, frozen, and distributed through NVFB’s Free Grocery Store throughout the year. After the harvest, join NVFB for a celebration of abundance and community from noon to 2 p.m. Families, bring your kids for crafts, games, a pickle-making station, a cider press, and activities hosted by Wildtorium.
Local food lovers can enjoy delicious meals featuring favorites from local farms at the NVFB pay-what-you-can pop-up restaurant. NVFB’s Culinary Arts Manager, Rachael Broom, along with her kitchen volunteers, is preparing a menu of Japanese fusion dishes at a pay-what-you-can price.
Flathead Quilt Show
Sept. 18-19
Flathead County Fairgrounds Expo Building, 265 N. Meridian Road, Kalispell
The Flathead Quilters’ Guild Quilt Show features more than 150 quilts on display, in addition to a series of vendors and quilt raffles. Sylvia Bryan is the featured quilter at this year’s show, which has the theme of “Under the Stars.” Show exhibits include large quilts, wall hangings, original art quilts, challenge quilts, junior quilter displays and heirloom quilts. Tickets are $7 for a single day or $10 for a two-day pass, with some of the proceeds benefiting The Warming Center. The show opens at 9:30 a.m. on both days and concludes at 5 p.m. on Friday and 4 p.m. on Saturday.
Whitefish Songwriter Festival
Sept. 18-20
Venues across Downtown Whitefish
For three days in September, songwriters from Nashville and rising stars from across North America, including Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and Alberta, will share their songwriting, creativity and stories with the Flathead Valley.
More than twenty songwriters will perform in thirty plus shows filling the theaters, restaurants, coffee shops and bars of Whitefish with some of the best songwriters in the music industry. All songwriter shows will be held in a “round” format which includes two to three songwriters on stage taking turns sharing their original songs and stories. All the festival venues will become listening rooms, offering an intimate experience that allows the audience to be close to the artists and creating a unique, behind-the-scenes look at the songwriting world. Click here for more information, and click here to purchase tickets.
Harvest Moon Festival
Sept. 26, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
700 Mooring Road, Columbia Falls
Harvest Moon Fest is a fall festival benefiting The Making Place, a creative non-profit in the Flathead Valley that features a community workspace, tool library, and creative classes and events. The festival will include musical acts, food trucks, and local art vendors, as well as hands-on activities that let you create and take home your own art, and try your hand at new creative skills.
This year’s festival features an expanded lineup of immersive craft workshops: pine needle basket weaving, natural dyed bundle bandanas, birch wood paintings, and mushroom felting. Guests can purchase a “craft pass” to participate in hands-on classes led by local artists. Click here to purchase tickets or craft passes, and click here for more information on the festival.
The Great Northwest Oktoberfest
Oct. 1-3; Oct. 8-10
Depot Park, 510 Railway St.
The Whitefish Chamber of Commerce’s Great Northwest Oktoberfest is back for two full weekends of great German food, drink, music and dancing, crazy contests, food trucks, artists, and crafters. Tickets are just $10 — kids under 12 are free with a parent — and are available only at the main gate in Depot Park on the day of the festival. Events will run from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays, and from 12 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturdays. Click here for a full list of music performers, food vendors, and most importantly, beer.
Columbia Falls Area Chamber of Commerce Harvestfest
Oct. 17, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
Canyon Elementary School, 200 N. Street, Hungry Horse
Join the Columbia Falls Area Chamber of Commerce on Saturday, Oct. 17 for its 4th Annual Harvestfest in Hungry Horse at Canyon Elementary School. Events include an official 5k, children’s fun run and costume parade, dessert auction, pie eating contest, kids’ crafts, games and activities, chili cook-off, cornbread competition, free chili lunch while supplies last, kids’ competitions and more fall activities. Entry to the overall event is free, although a donation to Canyon Kids Christmas Fund is recommended, but not required. For more information and to enter the festival’s contests, click here.
Glacier Symphony 2026-27 Season
Oct. 17-May 8
McClaren Hall at the Wachholz College Center, 795 Grandview Dr., Kalispell
Glacier Symphony will launch Season 44 with a vibrant celebration of American music, featuring well-known works by American composers and a memorable performance of Rhapsody in Blue with pianist Jeffrey Biegel. The 2026-27 season includes a series of holiday performances for Halloween, Veterans Day, Christmas and Valentine’s Day, as well as themed performances such as a “Hans Zimmer Movie Music Spectacular.” The season concludes on May 8 with “Beethoven 9 ‘Ode to Joy.’” Click here to view the full schedule and purchase tickets. Click here to view all of the Wachholz College Center’s fall programming.
Pumpkin Pickin’ and Haunted Hayride
With the Flathead Valley’s lush soil being perfect for growing pumpkins, there are a number of options around Kalispell and across Northwest Montana to pick your jack-o-lantern to-be.
In addition to pumpkins, Sweet Pickin’s Pumpkin Patch offers the added bonuses of numerous family-friendly activities: rides, games, food and more. While Fritz Corn Maze doesn’t have a pumpkin patch, it offers fun activities and a sprawling cornfield maze — although you may be looking over your shoulder on Saturdays as the maze implements its haunted trail days.
Meanwhile, Clydesdale Outpost will deliver all the jump scares with its 5th Annual Haunted Hayride on Oct. 15-17 and Oct. 22-24. This year’s theme is The Asylum: “Step inside the gates of the infamous Flathead Asylum … where every guest is admitted as a patient and every ride brings you deeper into the nightmare.” Tickets are $25 per person and can be purchased here. Children under 3 are free.
Sweet Pickin’s Pumpkin Patch
1990 Holt Stage Road, Kalispell
sweetpickinskalispell.com
Open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sept. 19 – Oct. 30
Fritz Corn Maze
At the turnoff of 173 Birch Grove Rd. E., between Kalispell and Columbia Falls
fritzcornmaze.com
Open weekends September through October
Clydesdale Outpost Haunted Hayride 2026 – The Asylum
100 Outpost Drive, Whitefish
clydesdaleoutpost.com
Open Oct. 15-17, Oct. 22-24