Most years, the town spaces its fall traditions out. The Saturday market winds down, there's a breather, then the orchard hosts its cider run, another breather, then downtown does its harvest weekend. You could catch all three without ever feeling rushed.
Not this year. Check the actual dates against each other and the gaps disappear. The farmers market's final Saturdays run through September 26. Almar Orchards runs its signature cider run the very next morning, September 27. And the Flushing Harvest Fest takes over Main Street six days after that, on October 3. Three fixtures that normally sit weeks apart have landed on top of each other, which means the window to catch Flushing's full fall lineup this year is nine days, not a season.
Why the gap closed
The orchard itself describes the Scrumpy Skedaddle as a first-Sunday-of-October tradition on its own site. In a typical year that would put the race on October 4 or later, safely clear of both the market's last Saturday and the Harvest Fest. This year the race lands a week earlier, on September 27, which pulls it right up against the market's closing weekend and pushes the whole run of events into a single stretch.
None of this is coordinated. The market follows the growing season. The orchard schedules its run around apple ripening and its own event calendar. The Chamber of Commerce sets Harvest Fest for early October regardless of what else is happening that week. They're three separate institutions making three separate decisions, and this year those decisions happen to collide.
Here's what the nine days actually look like:
| Event | Date | Location | What's there |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flushing Farmers Market | Saturdays through Sept 26 | 230 S Cherry St | Final Saturday markets before the season closes |
| Scrumpy Skedaddle | Sept 27 | Almar Orchards, 1431 Duffield Rd | 5K, 10K, 10M runs through the orchard, cider tasting and pancake breakfast after |
| Flushing Harvest Fest | Oct 3 | Downtown Main Street | Scarecrow contest, pie contests, chalk art, food trucks at Riverview Park |
The market's last stretch
If you've been meaning to get down to Cherry Street on a Saturday morning, the window is closing. The market's posted calendar shows Saturdays through September 26, which puts this month's remaining dates at September 12, 19, and 26. After that, the produce stands and the Saturday-morning routine that goes with them are done until next spring.
It's worth treating that last Saturday, the 26th, as more than just another market morning. It's also the last calm moment before the town's fall calendar gets busy fast.
The orchard's one big day
Almar Orchards is a working farm out on Duffield Road that's been making organic hard cider since Jim Koan converted the family operation to organic practices back in the 1980s. The farm's signature product, JK's Scrumpy, is fermented slowly at 55 degrees rather than heat-processed, and the taproom keeps at least ten taps flowing with its ciders and other drinks, including a Rye Barrel Aged variety that regulars single out as the one worth the drive. The farm also uses its own pigs to manage pest control, letting them eat the fallen apples under the trees, which is the kind of detail that only makes sense once you've actually walked the orchard.
The Scrumpy Skedaddle is the farm's marquee event, run through orchard paths and dirt roads with three distance options: a 10-mile at 9:15 a.m., a Kids' 1K at 9:40, and the 5K and 10K starting together at 10 a.m. Every finisher gets a cup and medal, and the day wraps with live music, hard cider tasting, and an all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast at the orchard. Parking is in the surrounding fields, so plan on a short walk to the start line.
The orchard's broader season runs from late August through early November, with hayrides and fresh donuts available on non-race days too. But the Skedaddle is the one morning when the farm turns into a full event rather than a stop on a drive.
Main Street's turn
Six days after the cider run, downtown takes over. The Flushing Harvest Fest, run by the Flushing Area Chamber of Commerce out of its office at 309 E Main St, lines Main Street with homemade scarecrows built by local businesses and residents, with prizes going to the top three. Past years have paired that with a pie-baking contest, a pie-eating contest, chalk art, a beard contest, and local entertainment and dance performances on top of the vendor booths. Riverview Park hosts food trucks and inflatables as a satellite to the Main Street activity, typically organized by a local church group.
Michigan's official tourism site lists Flushing Harvest Fest for October 3 this year, which is the date to build a Saturday around if you're planning to be downtown for it.
Mapping the nine days
If you want to catch all three fixtures before they close out for the year, here's the order they fall in:
- Saturday, Sept 26: Last confirmed farmers market Saturday at 230 S Cherry St
- Sunday, Sept 27: Scrumpy Skedaddle at Almar Orchards, races from 9:15 a.m., cider and pancakes after
- Saturday, Oct 3: Flushing Harvest Fest on Main Street downtown, plus Riverview Park
Downtown gives you an easy anchor point for meals between stops. Madison's on Main sits at 126 E Main St and runs Tuesday through Sunday, a solid lunch stop before a morning at the market or an afternoon at Harvest Fest.
What it means to actually live here
None of this changes anything about property values or market timing. What it changes is how a resident plans the next two weekends. Miss the 26th and the market's done for the year. Skip the Skedaddle and you're waiting until next fall for the orchard's one full-scale event. Show up to Main Street on the wrong Saturday and Harvest Fest has already packed up the scarecrows.
The calendar compressing this way is a one-year quirk, not a new normal. Next year the race may well fall back onto its usual first-Sunday-of-October slot, spreading things out again. This year, though, the town's whole fall identity fits into a single nine-day run, and knowing that in advance is the difference between catching all three and catching none.
If you're the kind of person who tracks these details because you already call Flushing home, you already understand what makes this stretch of Genesee County worth paying attention to. And if a season like this one ever gets you thinking about what your own house is worth in a town this specific, Jackie Stratton is a local starting point. Get Your Instant Home Valuation whenever you're ready to find out.
