Every year, Old Wethersfield holds an event in October called Scarecrows on Main Street (also called the Scarecrow Walk). Neither Shawna nor I had ever been, but a few friends had mentioned it to me as possibly a good Out and About Mom outing. My basic understanding was that there was a scarecrow contest held by the local businesses and the entries were displayed on Main Street in Old Wethersfield during the month of October.
So, on a drizzly morning last week, Shawna and I met there to see what it was all about.
During our outing, we discovered some new restaurants, entertained the kids, found some cute shops and even made a playground discovery.
Old Wethersfield is close to 91 and pretty easy to get to from West Hartford. It is also a convenient meeting point for Shawna and I given that she is coming from Glastonbury.
We parked on Main Street near the Cove Deli. Parking was easy and FREE.
The deli also ended up being a good place to stop in, grab some coffee, get the lay of the land from the people in the shop, and start our tour of the scarecrows and Old Wethersfield.
The Cove Deli opens at 8:00 am most days (Sunday is 10:00 am) and would be a good place to grab a little breakfast or lunch. The kind people inside gave us some information on the area including letting us know that there is a farmer’s market held across the street every Thursday from 3pm – 6pm. For the winter, it is held inside at Trinity Episcopal church. So if you are visiting on a Thursday afternoon, you can stop by the farmer’s market and pick up some veggies for dinner.
So, starting from Cove Deli, we headed down Main Street towards the other shops and businesses. Here is a little map of our route. We basically walked down to Center Street, then crossed over and walked back on the other side of Main Street.
Along the way, we passed many different scarecrow displays.
Some were interactive.
Some were educational.
The one on the left is promoting the family friendly haunted house with the theme “Science Gone Wild” being held at the Eleanor Buck Wolf Nature Center. Admission is $4 and games are 50 cents. Here are the dates for that event:
- Friday, October 26: 6-9pm
- Saturday, October 27: 1-8pm
- Sunday, October 28: 1-6pm
And the “scarecrow” on the right is in memory of Neil Armstrong. 
And then some were just plain fun.
The kids mostly just hung out in their strollers while we checked out the various displays. Sparkles and Bruiser did need to get out at one point and stretch their legs a bit. Plus they had a very important meeting with Boo.
Also during our journey we saw some cute shops and museums that, if we had more time, might be fun to explore.
The Comstock Garden Seeds store was one we were able to get our strollers inside. They sold seeds, of course, plus products from local businesses. Shawna picked up some kettle corn while we were there, but there were lots of other fun items for sale. Plus it is in an old, historic building which is interesting to browse around.
We also passed by the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum, a few antique stores, a fire station, a building where George Washington slept for 5 nights, and several other shops and buildings that may have been fun to browse. Most of them would be difficult to enter with a stroller, so you can either let your child walk inside or bring along a baby carrier for the wee ones. 
If you are hungry while strolling through Old Wethersfield, there are several places we saw where you could grab a bite to eat.
I already mentioned the Cove Deli which would be a good option for breakfast or lunch. There is also an ice cream shop called the Main Street Creamery, a pizza place called Village Pizza, a bistro serving breakfast and lunch called Aroma Bistro, and a large restaurant serving lunch and dinner called Lucky Lou’s Bar and Grill. All of the locations had indoor and outdoor eating space. Lucky Lou’s also had high chairs and the people in the restaurant told me that there is a squirrel that likes to entertain the kids when they are eating on their outdoor patio. Supposedly the squirrel is very friendly. Hey, maybe it would clean up all the food my kids like to throw on the ground! Lucky Lou’s also has a basic verbal kids menu. Just ask for it.
Oh, and I mentioned that during our walk we had a playground discovery. Well, basically I told Shawna that the only thing missing on our outing was a good playground for the kids to run around on before we headed home. Shawna did a little brainstorming and then we realized that right around the corner from where we were was Mikey’s Place playground! It is located in Standish Park and was about a half mile from where we were on our walk. We were running up on lunch time so we didn’t go, but I scouted it out on my way home and there are sidewalks the whole way there and it would be a very easy walk from Main Street. Here is a quick visual.
You could just walk down Garden Street and you would run right into it. Might be a fun addition to the outing. Especially if the kids need to burn some energy!
So, that about sums up our trip to Old Wethersfield. Let us know if you go. We would love to hear what you think or if you discovered any other restaurants, shops or activities while there.
THE MOMSENSE:
Scarecrows on Main Street
Main Street, Old Wethersfield, Connecticut
Get directions here (I used the address for the Cove Deli):
Hours & Admission:
Scarecrows on Main Street is FREE and runs September 29, 2012 – October 29, 2012.
The shops and restaurants of Old Wethersfield are always open
Tips &Things to Bring:
- The scarecrows lined both sides of Main Street from Hart Street to Center Street.
- Bring a stroller if the kids are not up for walking. Any stroller will do as there are sidewalks the whole way.
- Bring a baby carrier if you have a baby and want to browse some of the shops. It would be difficult to get a stroller into many of them.
- We didn’t find a restroom with a baby changing station. All of the restaurants have restrooms, though.
- Restaurant Options:
- Breakfast: The Cove Deli or Aroma Bistro
- Lunch: The Cove Deli, Aroma Bistro, Village Pizza or Lucky Lou’s
- Dinner: Village Pizza or Lucky Lou’s
- Ice Cream: Main Street Creamery
- Entertainment for the kids:
- The scarecrows, of course!
- Fire Station (on Main Street)
- Mikey’s Place playground in Standish Park
- Other things of interest:
- Shopping
- Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum
- Farmer’s Market
- Every Thursday from 3-6pm
- During the Winter it is held in the Trinity Episcopal Church on Main Street
- Bring your walking shoes if you plan to do a lot of exploring.
- Bring cash if you want to get ice cream at the creamery.
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