Oxford will hold its third annual Oktoberfest — dubbed Oxtoberfest — from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sept. 21 at the uptown parks, at the intersection of Main Street and High Street. The family-friendly event is free to enter and includes several different activities for attendees of all ages.
Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in Stein-holding contests and games such as Corn Hole, giant Jenga and Connect Four.
Activities for families and children include pumpkin decorating, inflatable battle axes, a mechanical pumpkin ride and more.
Live music will accompany the event for its entirety. Contemporary Celtic group Dulahan will perform from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. followed by a digital accordion intermission by John Allan Mihevic from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. The Bergstrasse Boys, a group that performs classic Oktoberfest music, will play for the remainder of the festival.
The beer garden, a large attraction at the festival, features German beers Hofbrau Oktoberfest, Paulaner Hefeweizen, Hacker Dunkel and Hacker Munich Helles. The domestic beer selection includes Angry Orchard Hard Cider and Misrule Brewing.
A large variety of local restaurants and food trucks will be available as well, including Steinkeller, Oxford Charcuterie Co., Snow Dogs Fun Food and Holy Donuts!
Local artisans, organizations and vendors will also be present at the festival, selling a wide variety of items.
If you want to work off some of the food you will enjoy at Oxtoberfest, you can participate in the hike-a-thon beforehand. If you attend both, you will receive a commemorative beer stein.
The hike Saturday will begin at 9 a.m at the DeWitt Trailhead, located at 4824 Oxford Trenton Road. The event will conclude at 1 p.m.
The hike-a-thon is for all ages, pet-friendly and wheel-chair accessible. Participants have the choice to explore a one mile, three mile or five mile route. The Oxford Area Trails will also be leading guided educational tours – the schedules and topics for these tours will be posted here.
For more information visit https://enjoyoxford.org/hike-a-thon/.
— Chloe Southard and Kaitlin McDowell