It is that time of year again, the sad reality that summer is coming to an end. A time and place in August marked by the abundance of sunflowers reaching up towards the skies. Which also means that the one of the Fraser Valley’s most popular attractions is back. The Chilliwack Sunflower Festival has returned as of August 10th, 2022; and we were visiting almost a week later to ensure all the blossoms were in full bloom.
The majority of this post is written with exerts taken from the Chilliwack Sunflower Festival press release, as to report with the most accurate information. The photos presented are my own and help to encapsulate the experience best.
As taken from the press release, Hundreds of thousands of blooming flowers, and plenty of other family attractions will be offered to draw visitors of all ages to the famed Royalwood Drive fields. This is the same location of the springtime favourite: Chilliwack Tulip Festival.
This year over 50 varieties of sunflowers have been planted in three display gardens. This is alongside more than 50 varieties of dahlias, 8 varieties of gladiolas, and a large bed of zinnias and cosmos.
Guests are free to roam more than 3km of pathways throughout the entire fields. A well thought out plan to ensure that all of the flowers can be enjoyed throughout the season, in various locations. While weather conditions determine when the greatest number of flowers are in bloom, between 5-8acres will be in full bloom at all times.
As in past years, the flowers themselves are complemented by a variety of onsite photo opportunities, including an operational windmill, three vintage bicycles, a 1950s Morris convertible, a horse carriage, seven swing sets, a three-wheeled Harley-Davidson motorcycle, and new this year is a 1965 Airstream trailer. Here are some of my favourite photos from our early morning shoot, to help inspire your own.
Additional attractions include lawn games; U-pick sunflowers; a field-side store offering fresh-cut and potted sunflowers, sunflower seeds, bulbs (tulips and daffodils), souvenirs, ice cream, snacks, cold drinks, fresh Chilliwack corn, and local garlic.
And for those planning on making a day of it, a local food truck will be on site daily to feed; with two on weekends. Today we snacked on berry smoothie bowls by Stormy’s and cookies and blueberries from Klaasen Farms.
The 2022 Chilliwack Sunflower Festival
Wednesday, August 10, to Monday, September 5 (Labour Day)
Hours: open daily from 10am — 6pm
41310 Royalwood Drive, Chilliwack, BC V2R4J1
chilliwacksunflowerfest.com
