Pumpkin Walk Trunk and Treat an afternoon of Halloween fun
Downtown Iron Mountain is the place to be for trick-or-treating as the Iron Mountain Downtown Development Authority’s fifth-annual Pumpkin Walk Trunk and Treat from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday. The 2026 signature sponsors are Sanford Health-Marshfield Medical Center-Dickinson and DTE Energy Foundation. From left are DDA Program Coordinator Tim McCauley, VP Regional CNO Michigan MMC-Dickinson Trenton Rankin and DDA Event Coordinator Katherine DeMars. (Terri Castelaz/Daily News photo)
Two participants dressed in furry husky-type costumes at last year’s Pumpkin Walk Trunk and Treat event in downtown Iron Mountain. (Contributed photo)
The entrance to the 2025 Pumpkin Walk Trunk and Treat event in downtown Iron Mountain. This year’s event takes from Saturday afternoon. (Contributed photo)
Downtown Iron Mountain is the place to be for trick-or-treating as the Iron Mountain Downtown Development Authority’s fifth-annual Pumpkin Walk Trunk and Treat from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday. The 2026 signature sponsors are Sanford Health-Marshfield Medical Center-Dickinson and DTE Energy Foundation. From left are DDA Program Coordinator Tim McCauley, VP Regional CNO Michigan MMC-Dickinson Trenton Rankin and DDA Event Coordinator Katherine DeMars. (Terri Castelaz/Daily News photo)
Two participants dressed in furry husky-type costumes at last year’s Pumpkin Walk Trunk and Treat event in downtown Iron Mountain. (Contributed photo)
The entrance to the 2025 Pumpkin Walk Trunk and Treat event in downtown Iron Mountain. This year’s event takes from Saturday afternoon. (Contributed photo)
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IRON MOUNTAIN -- Little ghosts, goblins and superheroes will fill downtown Iron Mountain on Saturday for an afternoon of Halloween fun.
The Iron Mountain Downtown Development Authority will host its fifth-annual Pumpkin Walk Trunk and Treat from noon to 3 p.m. at the downtown stage and parking lot on Iron Mountain Street, across from the Dickinson County Library.
The 2026 signature sponsors are Marshfield Medical Center-Dickinson and DTE Energy Foundation.
"It's such a fun community celebration of Halloween," DDA Event Coordinator Katherine DeMars said. "For many local families it has become one of their favorite fall traditions."
The free event will once again feature about 20 locations for kids to visit for treats. "We have so many great trunks signed up already to help with the trick-or-treating," she said, adding the DDA will distribute trick-or-treat bags to the first 800 children.
The costume contest begins at 1 p.m., with four age categories: 0-5 years, 6-11, 12-17 and teams of all ages.
First-place winners in each category will receive a Pumpkin Medal, DeMars notes.
Youngsters also can enjoy decorating mini-pumpkins to take home, get a free face painting from D's Creative Face and participate in a variety of Halloween-themed activities.
The Dickinson County Library is bringing back its Ghoulie Glowing Golfing activity from noon to 3 p.m., along with glow-in-the-dark crafts, cornhole, ring toss and other Halloween-themed games. Ghouls will even be hiding in the book stacks for kids to hunt down.
"They will have all kinds of fun things for kids to do," she said.
The library activities are on a first-come, first-served basis.
Sugar Jets and Billie's food trucks will join the event this year, offering new fall food and drink items.
Attendees also can vote for their favorite decorated trunk during the event. The trunk decorating contests will award DDA mini-grants to the top finishers. First-place winners will receive $400, while second-place winners will receive $200. The winners will be announced Monday, Nov. 2.
"I'm expecting some great contenders this year," DeMars said. "I've talked to several participants who have been working on their designs for quite some time, and they're bringing a lot of creativity to their displays."
DeMars said several new participants are joining returning businesses, organizations and nonprofits this year, adding to the variety of decorated trunks and displays. "I'm excited to see what they will bring," she said.
Businesses, schools, organizations and nonprofits still have time to sign up for the trunk and treat portion of the Pumpkin Walk. Registration is open until midnight Wednesday at downtownironmountain.com/pumpkin-walk.
Everyone is encouraged to have their trunks set up by 11 a.m., as children often begin lining up before the event starts.
Participation is free for downtown businesses, schools and non-profits. There is a $50 for businesses outside the downtown district, which supports future DDA events.
The event continues to grow each year. Last year, the DDA estimated attendance at about 800 children and 1,800 people overall.
"We love seeing all the fun costumes and families come out," DeMars said.
The DDA thanked the signature sponsors, community partners, participating businesses, nonprofits and school organizations for helping make the free event possible. They also acknowledged Kiwanis of Iron Mountain-Kingsford and Key Club students for their assistance in coordinating activities, as well as Slagle's Family Farm for providing pumpkins at a discounted price.
DeMars encourages families attending Saturday's festivities to also take the opportunity to explore downtown shops and restaurants while enjoying the Halloween atmosphere.
"We are expecting beautiful weather, with temperatures in the mid-60s and no rain in the forecast," DeMars said. "We are looking forward to making another year of Pumpkin Walk memories."
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Terri Castelaz can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 85241, or tcastelaz@ironmountaindailynews.com.