There’s no question that people love Summit Hill’s Hootenanny.

The 13th annual event was held Sunday and for its full nine-hour duration, Ludlow Park where it was held was packed with people.

“This is a very great turnout,” said Teri Kane, chairman of the Hootenanny Committee.

She said she feels this was one of the largest — if not the largest — Hootenanny staged in the borough.

“We had 65 vendors, the most ever,” she said. “We had a lot of craft vendors. There were 120 raffle items donated.”

Obviously, the weather was a contributing factor to this year’s success. Temperatures were seasonal and the shade in the park made comfortable conditions for the attendees.

Six bands performed throughout the day. There also were three additional vocalists who took the stage.

The food selections were varied. Individuals had choices from such foods as bacon pickle dogs, bratwurst, as well as normal fare like barbecues, hamburgers, hot dogs and Leiby’s Ice Cream.

The entire festival was put together by a three-member committee. On the Hootenanny committee besides Kane, who is serving her fifth year as chairman, are Sara Ruch, who started the Hootenanny festival, and Clayton Ayers.

Kane said her mother, Shirley Allen, traveled to the Hootenanny from her home in Mystic, Connecticut. Kane said he heard about the fun-filled festival and wanted to witness it first-hand.

Also present were Kane’s husband, Ed, a member of Summit Hill Borough Council; their daughter, Sami Puksar and her husband Chris, and their one-year-old son, Derek. “We have four generations here,” Kane said.

At the festival stand, you could purchase T-shirts, participate in a Chinese auction, or get a free copy of the Times News.

Along the midway, there were stands selling crafts, clothing and miscellaneous items including candles and engraved keepsakes.

The Head Start Program had an activity booth for children featuring water fun and crafts.

There also was a children’s play area containing various blow-up rides.

A new attraction this year was the Josh JungleSkate skateboard display, operated by Josh Schaeffer of Lehighton.

Not only did Schaeffer put on array of jumping maneuvers but allowed any visitor so desiring to utilize the skateboard ramps for free.

Dozens of people took advantage.

Among them was Franklin Klock of Summit Hill. Klock said he has been riding skateboards for 52 years and enjoyed taking advantage of the skate park that was set up.

“A lot of people are coming down,” Klock said. Of JungleSkate, Klock said, “It’s not just a closed group. Helmets and skateboards are here for loan if you want to try it.”

He added, “It’s a long time coming to get a skateboard ramp in Summit Hill.”

Carbon County Commissioner Michael Sofranko said, “This really grew. I come up every year and it is awesome to see this event continue to grow year after year.”

“It’s nice to see it is community supported,” he said. “That’s what makes Carbon County special.”

Terese Derr of McAdoo said, “This is my first time here. I heard about it and I can say I’m surprised. It’s pretty neat. I’ll be back next year.”

Bands which performed were The Pennsylvania Villagers and Free Range Folk, who have appeared at all the Hootenanny events; Cross Tie Walker, Harmless Heights, Dave Brown & Dylan Skursky and War Bonnett.

Kevin Ruch of Free Range Folk said Ayers works hard at getting good bands to the festival. “We always have a good time,” he said, noting that his band plays all original songs.

Individual performers were Lyle Frantz, Sienna McGeehan and Matt Filer.