FALL FUN @ KLICKER'S

A Hometown Halloween Ritual

I've photographed and written about Klicker's in all four seasons because if ever there was an iconic tradition in Walla Walla, Klicker Berries and Antiques would be it. 

On a recent cloudy Friday, with the threat of wind and rain imminent, families with young children and groups of college-age friends were still on the hunt in search of that perfect pumpkin. And even though the traditional giant orange squashes are not grown by Klicker's, and going to the closest Safeway or Wal-Mart would be much easier, it's way more fun to wander up and down the aisles of pumpkins, stopping to judge, measure, and imagine which one will become this year's prized jack-o'-lantern. 

Besides, there's so much more to do at Klicker's than simply picking out a pumpkin as these kids can attest. A pyramid of straw bales holds the giant metal slide that takes kids on a speedy ride down one side while a crowd of camera-ready parents and grandparents record the glee-filled faces. I even spied a college-age young woman taking her turn to the whoops and hollers of her friends close by.

Once is never enough!

Those who know me well, know that I love anything RED, along with old and rusty--

 especially as potential objets d'art for the garden. So this collection of Radio Flyer wagons definitely caught my attention. 

Here at Klicker's they are used to load up with pumpkins, the bigger the better.

Every season has its heyday at Klicker's, and by the end of next month this building along with the grassy field that's now filled with pumpkins will be filled with row upon row of Christmas trees. For now, it houses many of the old and antique items that will eventually fill several rooms in the main store which is in another building nearby.

When I saw this hot-air balloon wind spinner hanging from one of the beams in the Christmas Tree barn, I realized this was the closest I was going to get to photographing the real thing this weekend. Unfortunately, the weather forecast of wind and rain cancelled all but Wednesday morning's Kids' Day tethered lift. The Balloon Stampede, another long-time local tradition, had been scheduled to fill the Walla Walla Valley sky with hot-air balloons all weekend, but it wasn't in the cards this year. Hence this photo.

Remember those menacing clouds? By the time I ventured inside the store to take a few photos, the sky let loose in a flurry of rain and small hailstones which vacated the pumpkin field forcing shoppers into the store and me into my car, or, as seen by this girl, waiting pumpkin in hand under the overhang for the rain to stop.