Jump into autumn at Vander Veer
The transition from summer to autumn can be pretty jarring, but The Friends of Vander Veer and the City of Davenport have a way to make the leap a little more pleasant: the Fall Festival at Vander Veer Botanical Park.
Although the festival is more than a decade old, a new event will be added to the repertoire this year: a frog-jumping contest. In addition to the amphibians, there will be the usual festivities, which include an apple-baking contest, a fishing derby in the Vander Veer lagoon, live animals, an art and garden fair, and other activities for kids and adults alike. The event will be held a week earlier than usual this year, from noon to 5 p.m. Sept. 13, which is the second Saturday of the month.
“The Fall Festival is a great event for all ages. It is really a fun day for people to be outside and learn what is going on in our natural world,” said Susan Anderson, senior horticulture manager for the Davenport Parks and Recreation Department and executive director of The Friends of Vander Veer organization. “I’ve never met anyone who didn’t have a good time at the Fall Festival.”
To make the frog-jumping contest happen, organizers need some help lining up participants, namely the frogs themselves. Some children interested in the contest may come unprepared, so organizers are asking the public to the supply some entrants.
Beginning Sept. 6, frogs can be brought to the Vander Veer Conservatory for safekeeping. Most likely, it will not be possible to identify individual frogs, so Anderson suggests keeping a found frog until the contest if someone has a preferred amphibian for the contest.
Information will be posted on the City of Davenport Web site (www.cityofdavenportiowa.com) under “Vander Veer Fall Festival” with suggestions on rounding up frogs. Anderson recommends exploring the edges of various bodies of water such as those in Eastern Avenue and Duck Creek parks and along Credit Island.
The fishing derby and doll buggy parade have been the most popular events in years past. Nearly 100 people typically participate in the fishing derby, and the doll buggy parade has been a mainstay at Vander Veer for almost 100 years, Sottos said.
“We’re always looking for unique activities, but we try to do things that are old-fashioned fun,” she added.
“Garden of Oz” has been the summer theme for the park, and the festival will be a final chance to see that. Artistic depictions of “The Wizard of Oz” characters appear around the park, and visitors can follow “the yellow brick road.”
The festival is “our way of celebrating fall in the park and thanking the community for their support over the year,” Sottos said.
Sponsors, including the Quad-City Times, WQAD News Channel 8, radio station KUUL-FM, the RIA Federal Credit Union, Modern Woodmen of America and SSAB Inc. allow the event to be offered for free. A few of the contests and activities have small fees, though.
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