If you were in Pennsylvania last month, you might have heard about the annual Pennsylvania Cannabis Festival. The popular cannabis festival was hosted in Kutztown after being cancelled last Spring due to Covid-19 concerns. Lucky for me, Kutztown is but a short thirty minute drive from my house so it was a no-brainer this year.
There are a few things I should mention for my friends unfamiliar with the Pennsylvania weed scene. We only have medical legalization, so we aren’t allowed to use cannabis at all without a medical card. Fortunately, I have my card and have been enjoying the benefits as a patient here in PA.
For this reason, our Pennsylvania Cannabis Festival can be thought of as more as an advocacy event than a smoke fest. The Delta 8 craze was on full display since many vendors were selling the little brother to Delta 9 THC products.
Pennsylvania Cannabis Festival First Impressions
My personal highlight happened early as I was entering the festival and getting a general sense of things. As we walked through the parking lot there was a line of cars leaving the event. One driver caught my eye because he looked familiar. It took about three seconds to realize I was staring at Pennsylvania’s Lieutenant Governor, John Fetterman. He was likely there with NORML of PA.
As I had my fanboy moment he pointed at me and yelled “Legalize PA weed!!”.
It was pretty awesome because Fetterman is not your usual politician; he’s a tough looking guy with a ton of tattoos. In Pennsylvania of all places, it feels like a good sign to have such a cannabis friendly state leader, especially since he is running for U.S Senate.
Pennsylvania Cannabis Festival Activities
It felt pretty surreal being at such a huge cannabis event in Pennsylvania, especially after so many years of harsh opposition. The vibe was really positive and the organizers did an amazing job at putting the event together.
There were a ton of booths for services to assist people in getting their medical certifications and many booths selling CBD and Delta 8 products.
As this is rural Kutztown, we’re talking Amish country. There was also a farmers market feeling to the event. Dozens of vendors had booths offering handmade honey’s, soaps, beers, wine, cheese, jerky, you name it. I had the pleasure of sampling a delicious Blueberry vanilla CBD honey.
Once we’d made our way through two massive pavilions filled with booths, it was time to investigate what looked like fifty food and drink trucks. My girlfriend and I walked through the rows of food trucks, sipping a Lambrusco wine slushy before settling on some Nashville hot chicken, a choice I don’t regret one bit.
Final Impressions of Pennsylvania Cannabis Festival
The festival was a great experience and it almost felt as if I stepped outside of Pennsylvania for a few hours. It was a comforting feeling being around so many like-minded lovers of all things cannabis.
We haven’t hit widespread adoption yet in PA, so it was amazing to be in a safe place amongst friends for the afternoon.
The weekend felt like a positive sign of things to come for Pennsylvania cannabis. The next big cannabis event is the Fall Marketplace October 2nd and 3rd so I will look forward to that event.
