The Witches Walk is Back: Parry Sound’s Most Bewitching Night of the Year Returns on October 24th

By jake
October 8, 2026

There are Halloween events, and then there is the Parry Sound Witches Walk. On Saturday October 24th, downtown Parry Sound transforms into something genuinely magical. Broomsticks, elaborate costumes, street performances, a costume contest, themed photo moments, and the kind of infectious community energy that has turned this once-modest Halloween parade into one of the most talked-about fall events in cottage country.

What started as a small grassroots celebration – a costume parade and street party through the Georgian Bay town – became a regional phenomenon after a petition to shut it down backfired spectacularly, attracting national media attention and turning a quiet local tradition into a must-attend autumn event. The event that 68 people wanted cancelled turned out to be exactly the kind of thing that thousands of people wanted to attend. And they did.

In 2025, Explorers’ Edge partnered with the Parry Sound Downtown Business Association and local photographer Thom Morrisey to document and celebrate the Walk – and the images that came out of that October evening made their way across social media feeds from Ontario to beyond. Capes swirling under the streetlights. Painted faces. Families and friends laughing and parading past the Georgian Bay waterfront shops. Pure, unapologetic autumn joy in one of Ontario’s most beautiful small towns.

This year, the Walk takes place on Saturday, October 24th at 6pm in downtown Parry Sound. Walkers will gather at Market Square Park from 5pm. Costumes are not just welcome, they are enthusiastically encouraged. Come as a classic witch, a zombie, a giant pumpkin, or something entirely your own. Come with friends, come with family, come solo and make new ones on the street. Stay for dinner at one of the downtown restaurants, explore the shops, and raise a glass to the most spirited evening on the fall calendar.

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