SOLVANG, Calif. - A Santa Ynez Valley fall tradition will carry on this year despite the pandemic.

The 11th annual Scarecrow Fest kicks off on October 1. The month-long festival runs through Halloween.

Businesses and other organizations in Solvang, Buellton, Los Olivos, and Ballard create scarecrows for visitors to check out. The festival started in Solvang, but has since expanded to include other local areas. Organizers say scarecrows will also be found in Santa Ynez and Los Alamos in October.

Organizers are focused on maintaining COVID-19 health guidelines during this year's event. The awards ceremony will be held virtually, and community members are asked to vote for their favorite scarecrows online. Scarecrows can be viewed throughout the month of October outside of participating businesses.

Awards will be given out in several categories, including Best Scarecrow Photo Op, Best Use of Recycled Materials, Best Use of Business Theme, Most Danish, Spookiest, and Most Humorous.

The winners of the competitions in Solvang, Buellton and Los Olivos will compete in a larger Santa Ynez Valley-wide competition where the winner will be crowned the "Valley's Best Scarecrow" and will receive the Harvest Cup.

"This is the eighth year that the Scarecrow contest is going Valley-wide, and the other Santa Ynez Valley towns have definitely embraced the 'Fest'. The more that each town gets into this, the better the experience for both our locals and visitors – whose community involvement and visits, respectively, benefit the local economy of the entire Valley," said Tracy Beard, Executive Director of the Solvang Chamber of Commerce, in a press release.

Organizers say the festival has drawn visitors from as far away as Alaska in past years.

To participate in the festival, businesses and organizations must fill out an entry form and pay a $25.00 entry fee. Organizers will release a map featuring participating scarecrows. Entry forms are due on Thursday, September 17 in order to be featured on the map.

For registration information, click here.