This Wednesday through Saturday is the 25th annual Chainsaw Carvers Rendezvous in Ridgway, an event that attracts artists from across the United States and globally.
On Wednesday, the sound of chainsaws and the smell of pine filled the air at the Ridgway Mills Campground in Elk County.
In rows of tents, more than 130 carvers cut logs into different shapes, including a variety of animals and some pop culture figures, like Pikachu and a creature from "Stranger Things."
Many carvers were surrounded by nets to protect festival visitors from flying bits of wood.
“This is probably my 15th Rendezvous," said Jeffrey Donahue from Mill Hall, who also said he's missed a few years. "I’ve been coming here since 2008, I think.”
Donahue was carving a bear, which he said is one of his specialities. At the beginning of the four-day event, each carver gets an 8-foot-long log to work with, which are sourced from local trees.
Donahue said he’s happy to see the event continue to grow.
“A lot of us got our start here, so it’s nice to come back here and pay homage to what helped us make ourselves," Donahue said.
David Krezel, from Connecticut, said he started during the COVID pandemic and spent his stimulus check on chainsaw carving gear.
“It is growing in popularity because we live in the era of social media," Krezel said. "I’d be lying if I said when I got into it, I wasn’t searching YouTube. I actually searched some of the carvers here and used some of their works through YouTube videos to kind of learn how to make birds, like owls, over there.”
Katrina Dressler, also known as "KatCarves," lives in Connecticut, but said she’s originally from Wilkes-Barre. This is her first time at the Rendezvous.
“I’ve been carving for about three years, and everybody talks about Ridgway and how awesome it is and the learning opportunities and growth that you get from being around other carvers," Dressler said.
Liz Boni is the executive director of the Rendezvous. Since the event began, she says they’ve had to change venues seven times because it kept getting too big.
“Sometimes I can’t even wrap my head around what this has done and what it’s become, because it’s been very successful on every level as far as creativity and community and economically for our community," Boni said. "It’s just been kind of magical.”
Ridgway’s Chainsaw Carvers Rendezvous continues through Saturday, when there will be a live one hour “quick carve” and auction. But, many artists have pre-made carvings available for sale throughout the week.
You can learn more about the Chainsaw Carvers Rendezvous and other festivals in Pennsylvania by watching WPSU's Keystone Stories episode on "Quirky Festivals" below. (Go to 2:42 for the Rendezvous section.)
