Mountain State Apple Harvest Festival 2026: Martinsburg After the Freeze

On the night of April 8, Eli Cook and roughly 50 staff and friends worked through the dark at Spring Valley Farm & Orchard. They lit fires in the orchards and ran wind machines, Frost Dragons and row covers to keep the blossoms alive. Cook told Panhandle News Network they got through that night with a decent apple crop still on the trees.

Then the cold came back on April 21. Spring Valley's statement called it the worst freeze in the history of the business, with lows of 19 to 21 degrees on both nights. It said the farm was left with less than 5% of a peach crop and 20% of an apple crop, and that its plums and cherries were a total loss.

This Thursday, Martinsburg opens the 47th Mountain State Apple Harvest Festival anyway. It runs October 15 through 18. The parade, the pie contest and the fairgrounds all look the way they have for decades. The difference this year is the produce, because many of the apples sold around town this month were grown somewhere else.

A festival theme written for a short crop

Festival president Mary Beth Blair saw the April forecasts coming. She told The Journal that she asked people to pray for the region's orchardists. She also remembered wondering "how do we plan to celebrate the harvest in the fall when there may be very little harvest to celebrate?"

The festival kept its plans, and Blair told The Journal the year changed how she sees the event. It honors the people who plant and work the orchards, the families who care for the land, and the generations who kept the region's apple heritage going.

"It's about the people who plant. The people who work. The people who persevere."

That idea shows up in the 2026 slogan, "From Our Orchards to Your Family, an All-American Celebration," which also ties the festival to the nation's 250th anniversary. The festival has been run by an all-volunteer nonprofit board since 1979. Blair's own summary of this season, in the same Journal piece, is that "Apple Harvest has never really been just about apples."

Where this October's apples are coming from

Growers responded to the freeze by bringing in fruit from other places. Spring Valley's statement said much of its 2026 fruit would come from Central Virginia and Charlottesville, picked early in the morning and back in West Virginia that afternoon. It said some apples would come from as close as 30 miles away and some from Pennsylvania.

Orr's Farm Market expected even less than that. In an October 9 update, Orr's wrote that after the April freeze it "weren't expecting ANY apples this year," and that a few varieties had surprised them. Orr's labels every apple in its market by where it came from:

Orr's grew three of the seven varieties on that list. The freeze also wiped out Orr's pick-your-own crops for 2026. Orr's says orchard conditions vary this year and recommends checking the trees a day or two before coming out for fall photos.

There has been some government response. RealWV reported on June 22 that the state agriculture department under Commissioner Kent Leonhardt had asked USDA for a disaster declaration, which could open up low-interest Farm Service Agency loans. The West Virginia Department of Agriculture also asked growers to fill out a freeze-damage survey to help with federal assistance requests, and it said plainly that filling out the survey did not guarantee aid. We haven't found a later announcement that a declaration was approved.

The four days, with the apple events marked

In a freeze year, the apple judging, the pie baking and Sunday's peeling contests are the events still built directly around the fruit. The royalty, the parade and the rodeo carry the rest of the weekend. Here are the main events from the official schedule:

The organizers note that times and locations may change and point people to the festival's social media for day-of updates.

Saturday, from War Memorial Park to Golf Course Road

Saturday starts at War Memorial Park. The Apple Trample 5K has a refreshed course this year that starts and finishes in the park, and the start time is now 9 a.m. Registration is $35 for ages 13 and up and $20 for ages 12 and under.

The Grand Feature Parade steps off at 1 p.m. The festival says city officials designed the route, which is the same as last year's:

1. Start on W. King Street and head to Maple Avenue.
2. Turn left on Maple Avenue and continue to Burke Street.
3. Turn right on Burke Street and continue to Queen Street.
4. Turn right on Queen Street and finish at the main entrance of Martinsburg High School.

We couldn't find a 2026 notice listing downtown road closures or shuttle service. Closure lists that turn up in search are from earlier festivals and don't apply this year.

Out at the Berkeley County Youth Fairgrounds, 2419 Golf Course Road, admission is $5 per person beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, and parking is free. The Bob Elmer Pancake Breakfast costs $10 and is free for children under six. The craft area formerly called Pop Up Shops and Arts Fair is now The Makers Market, with juried makers, food, farm markets, fresh fruit and flowers. On Sunday, the new All-American Jeep Show runs 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. with Jeepin It Real. Registration is $20 early or $25 the day of and includes one fairgrounds admission.

Sunday is the most apple-heavy day

Sunday is when the festival is most about the fruit. Johnny Appleseed performs at 11 a.m. The winning pies from Friday's contest go up for auction at 12:15 p.m. in the Indoor Arena, and the apple contests start at 12:30 p.m. under the Food Pavilion. Those include longest-peel classes and hands-free apple-eating contests, and you can sign up at the display area once you're through the fairgrounds gate.

Entering a pie costs $2 in the Sprouts and Buds divisions and $10 in the Blossoms division. Every pie that doesn't win is sold for $10 throughout the weekend, and the money goes to the festival.

The festival is also running a program for children this year. Through the Benedum Apple Harvest Literacy Initiative, it is sending apple-themed materials to Eastern Panhandle elementary schools and libraries, including a Johnny Appleseed book and curriculum for every third-grade classroom.

Finding homegrown fruit after the parade

To buy apples grown in Berkeley County this month, it helps to read the labels. Orr's main market is at 682 Orr Drive in Martinsburg, with a second, market-only store at 8003 Charles Town Road in Shenandoah Junction. The homegrown Golden Delicious, Aztec Fuji and Gala are there alongside the varieties Orr's brought in. The main market lists hours of 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, closed Sunday. On Saturdays, Orr's Sweet Orchard Swirls truck sells apple nachos made with homegrown Honeycrisp.

The Orr's Pumpkin Patch has been open since September 12, with a hayride, corn maze, pumpkin picking and farm animals. The Orr's website gives two different closing dates. The homepage says November 9, and the events page says November 7. To be safe, plan on November 7.

In Falling Waters, Kitchen's Orchard & Farm Market lists apples as "Now Available" and calls these varieties orchard-grown: Golden Delicious, Gala, Daybreak Fuji, Cortland, Jona Gold and Mutsu. Its listed hours are 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekdays and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, closed Sunday. The page isn't dated, so call ahead before driving out.

Spring Valley's May statement ended by saying it was looking forward to "a beautiful crop in 2027."

If you're thinking about land with a few old trees, or a house close enough to watch the parade come down Queen Street, the agents at Kesecker Realty, Inc. know this part of the Eastern Panhandle well. Contact a local agent today.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.