This weekend was BBQ Fest up at Wachusett Mountain. The mountain is an easy day trip from Boston or anywhere in central Massachusetts. There were awesome barbecue vendors, lots of booths selling food and crafts, and a beer tent with Shocktop, Sam Adams and Woodchuck Cider. I had a 1/2-pound hot dog with melted cheddar and pulled pork from Firefly's Barbecue. (I swear I shared it with Kevin!) My brother and sister-in-law said it was very similar to the layout and vendor assortment of Applefest last weekend, so I am glad I didn't get tickets for both. Later in the afternoon I had fried dough and a Woodchuck cider. Why is it that in Connecticut, you can get fried dough with marinara sauce and Parmesan cheese, and in Massachusetts it only comes with powdered sugar or cinnamon sugar? What is this world coming to?
Kevin and I rode to the top of the mountain on the Skyride (ski lift). The views from the top of the mountain were fantastic. I went to the top once before, during Taste of Wachusett a few weeks ago and that was a little better because the skies were clear. But even on a cloudy day with intermittent rain showers, we could see the Boston skylilne, Mount Monadnock, Worcester, Springfield, and probably the Presidential Range of the White Mountains. We saw Mount Greylock to the northeast and identified the windmills in Winchendon that we kept passing on our camping trip in July.
Basically, the view from the top of Mount Wachusett is a to-do list for other trips I want to take in Massachusetts. Seeing them from 2000' up makes them seem so close! There was also a terrific view of the foliage. Kevin and I agreed that we need to climb Mount Wachusett sometime soon, too, instead of taking the slightly alarming trip up in the chair lift.
On the way out, I bought an assortment of dip mixes from one of the vendors: a super-garlicky one, pumpkin dip and gingerbread dip. I'm thinking ahead to holiday parties this year, for a change. We got a shuttle bus from the parking area to the event, which made parking painless. Overall, I wish BBQFest had a few more BBQ vendors and a few fewer miscellaneous vendors, but the quality of the food was excellent and the setting is unbeatable. Music from The Volunteers (whose website lists them as the "premier touring show band" of the U.S. Army) made the long lines for lunch at each food vendor less monotonous. This is a great event for families, couples and friends, and I hope they do it again next year.
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