This holiday weekend marks the 49th annual hike up Massachusetts’ highest peak known as the Greylock Ramble. But, this year’s event could be extra magical.Organizer Ray Gargan says this year’s 6.6-mile roundtrip hike to the 3,491-foot summit is welcoming Greylock’s recent inclusion into the wizarding world of Harry Potter. In June, author J.K. Rowling revealed in her latest work that Mt. Greylock is the site of the Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
“A lot of fans of the books and movies came together to tie the Greylock Ramble into a fan event for the Harry Potter stories,” Gargan said.
Ray Gargan is on the board of directors of ProAdams, which has taken over organizing the Ramble from the retired Adams Event Committee. He says the group will hang a magic-themed banner on Bascom Lodge at the summit. He says hikers can enter to win a number of Harry Potter prizes.
“We bought a couple of official wands – Harry Potter wand and a Hermione Granger wand – and people will be able to enter their names into a guest registry and we’ll pick winners,” he said. “There’s also a magical walking stick that was created by the Berkshire Mountain Faerie Festival people and a handmade traditional, old-style which would certainly suit as a witch’s broom.”
Organizers are also looking to engage participants via social media. Anyone posting a selfie using the hashtag “MagicalGreylock” will get a free, non-alcoholic ButterBeer that is featured in the book and movie series.
“While supplies last,” said Gargan.
Gargan is hopeful people who wouldn’t typically come to the Ramble will this year because of the Harry Potter connections.
“Speaking with the people up at Bascom Lodge – they get a pretty regular stream of visitors up there,” Gargan said. “It hasn’t been overwhelming, but there are definitely ‘Potter Pilgrims’ that have wanted to go up and take a look at the site.”
Gargan says the hike has averaged between 1,000 and 2,000 people over recent years. Before Monday’s hike, Sunday’s RambleFest will feature a half marathon along the rail trail from the Berkshire Mall to the Adams Visitor Center. There, music and food will accompany horse-drawn trolley tours of the town.
The decision to have a Harry Potter-themed RambleFest came out of ongoing brainstorming sessions about how communities surrounding Mt. Greylock can benefit from being included in the internationally-celebrated series.
“What can restaurants do with special menus?” said Adams Town Administrator Tony Mazzucco in August. “Do we do a wizard week? We’ve been working with DCR [Massachusetts Department of Conservation] and looking at if we can do some co-marketing or co-naming with DCR where we would create a map of the trail system at Mt. Greylock. It would be a wizard’s map. The trails would all be the same, but they would have a name or theme related to Harry Potter of wizardry in general. It would be a great way for fans of the series to experience the same trails that we walk on every day, but with a slightly different twist for them.”
Click here for more information about RambleFest.
