Wellfleet Oyster Fest – 2022
Oysters with wine or champagne are an escape from reality. The fresh, meaty taste of the oysters has stolen the hearts of many over the generations. Oyster festivals are the celebrations held especially for these oyster-loving hearts. Wellfleet oyster festival is one of the grandest oyster festivals held in the US. An oyster lover should visit this festival at least once in their lifetime as they have the freshest Wellfleet oysters and much more oyster activities.
Wellfleet, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, is renowned as the home of one of the world’s greatest oyster beds for years. The Oyster Fest is a magnificent event that converts this small town into a street fair crowded with participants from different regions and many sources of entertainment. The signature event of the Wellfleet Oyster Fest is the shucking contest. This is an opportunity to eat lots of food, buy homemade chocolates, jewelry, and art from local vendors. Contrasting from other food festivals, Wellfleet oyster festival has educational booths, poetry readings, and live music. If this sounds like a fun moment for your oyster devoted heart, here are some more facts you might be interested to know about the Wellfleet Oyster Fest.
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1. When is the next Wellfleet Oyster Fest?
5. About the Wellfleet Oysters
1. When is the next Wellfleet Oyster Fest?
Traditionally, the Wellfleet Oyster Fest is held in the month of October every year. The event for the year 2021 was scheduled to be held on the 16th and 17th of October but the organizing committee had to make a hard decision to postpone the Wellfleet Oyster Fest this year due to prevailing health restrictions in regards to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The next Wellfleet Oyster Fest is planned to be held on the 15th and 16th of 2022. Please refer to the official website for further updates. https://wellfleetspat.org
2. Location
Wellfleet, MA 02667
3. Events
- The shuck off!
This is the traditional oyster shucking competition of the Wellfleet Oyster Fest. Many new and experienced shuckers join this contest every year to show off their shucking skills. In 2020, the shucking competition was held virtually due to the Covid-19 conditions. Many oyster lovers watched the live-streamed event and celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Wellfleet Oyster Fest.
The shuck off contests is always fun to watch but sometimes thrilling and fierce. Every contestant has to open 24 oysters as quickly as possible and the outcome should be a perfect-looking oyster on the half shell. Time alone does not decide the winner as the penalties will be added for breaking the shells, killing the oysters, and even for hurting yourself. The winning Shucker will earn a $1,000 cash prize, second place will receive a $500, and third place a $250.
4. Accommodations
If you can arrange a long weekend out to Wellfleet and attend the OysterFest, it can be assured that you will have a joyous gateway from the busy life. You have the option to find a vacation rental in the Outer Cape to make your plans happen easily.
If it is a day trip that you want to make to attend the Wellfleet Oyster Fest, or you need to find a rental within walking distance of Wellfleet town center, there are many options from different budgets levels offering for short-term stays during the fall.
5. About the Wellfleet Oysters
Do not go to the Wellfleet Oyster Fest without knowing what makes the Wellfleet Oysters special. It is the water that flushes through Cape Cod Bay is provided by the Gulf of Maine. When the waters flow over to the inner Cape they are comparatively warm. The water of the Gulf of Maine is rich in phytoplankton. So it provides the Wellfleet oysters all the nutrients they need to grow faster and become high-quality oysters.
Wellfleet’s oyster industry runs back to the late 1700s and early 1800s where the Wellfleet oyster beds were destroyed by plague and overfishing. To remedy this situation, the wise locals brought a small number of oysters from the Chesapeake Bay area and placed them in Wellfleet Harbor as seed stock. As same as expected, the oysters once again were grown.
