Whitefish taps into Oktoberfest fun

 Dust off your lederhosen, grab your best beer stein and break out your dancing shoes.

The fourth annual Great Northwest Oktoberfest comes to Whitefish Sept. 26 to 28 and Oct. 3 to 5 under the big top at Depot Park.

Six days of authentic Bavarian food, drink, music and dancing, along with child- and family-oriented activities and audience participation contests, are planned.

Sept. 26 is Locals Night. All Flathead Valley residents get in free. Whitefish Mayor John Muhlfeld will open the Oktoberfest celebration with the ceremonial keg tapping.

A trio of top-notch bands will entertain at this year’s event. The Western Senators polka band from Canada will play the first weekend. In addition to traditional German polkas and waltzes, the band will add some Western swing and the Chicken Dance to its playlist.

The following weekend, Oct. 3 to 5, the band Europa returns to Whitefish, featuring traditional music from Europe.

The Flathead’s own Bavarian Echoes, a 17-piece band that specializes in German oom-pah, will perform on Saturday afternoons, bringing along a 20-foot Bavarian alpenhorn.

Hourly contests will be held each night.

Early sign-ups are encouraged for the stein-holding and log-sawing contests. The World Keg Hurling Championships also will be held, with qualifying rounds throughout the festival and the finals at 6 p.m. Oct. 5.

The Whitefish Waitress Races form another popular Oktoberfest tradition. Three-woman teams from some of the valley’s top watering holes and restaurants go head-to-head in a no-holds-barred, stein-toting relay race at 7:45 p.m. Oct. 3.

The Craggy Range Grill will serve authentic German bratwurst, sauerkraut, red cabbage and German potato salad. Cafe Max Soup Co. will prepare a variety of traditional German soups. There also will be desserts such as pflaumenkuchen (plum cake), Mandehorchen Almond Horseshoe Cookies and Apfelstrudel (apple strudel).

Traditional German Warsteiner beers will be on tap, along with four local microbrews, including a special Oktoberfest beer from Great Northern Brewery.

Admission to the climate-controlled Oktoberfest Big Top is $4 for adults, with children under 12 (accompanied by parents) admitted free.

For more information, call the Whitefish Chamber at 862-3501 or check out the website at www.whitefishoktoberfest.com