BETHLEHEM, Pa. — It’s often said of cherry blossoms, “Blink twice and they’ll be gone.”
Bethlehem residents will cross their fingers and hope for the best after the Cherry Blossom Festival was postponed until Sunday because rain and strong winds are expected Saturday.
- Bethlehem's Cherry Blossom Festival has been postponed until Sunday
- The event takes place annually around the time the cherry blossoms open surrounding City Hall
- The National Weather Service said strong winds and rain are expected Saturday
The festival takes place around the time the Sakura (cherry blossom) trees surrounding Bethlehem’s City Hall are in bloom, which historically occurs in mid-April.
But instead of having a set date, organizers try to schedule the festival to coincide with the opening of the blossoms, which varies from year to year with the weather.
It’s the weather this year that’s making a mess of things.
The National Weather Service said clouds and rain are expected Saturday morning, with a strong southwesterly wind of 20 to 30 mph, with the potential for gusts above 40 mph.
The Cherry Blossom Festival will run Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. in the area around city hall and Payrow Plaza.
After temperatures push into the low 70s, a robust cold front is expected to push southeastward through the region Saturday night.
It should bring another round of showers and thunderstorms, forecasters say, with the potential for some locally damaging wind gusts.
A brisk northwest wind should push temperatures down into the upper 20s and 30s for most locations overnight Saturday into Sunday, the weather service said, and daytime highs on Sunday should only reach the upper 40s to low 50s.
The Cherry Blossom Festival will run Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. in the area around city hall and Payrow Plaza.
Participants can:
- Participate in a tea ceremony
- Try calligraphy
- Create Japanese origami
- Sample Japanese festival food
- Pound rice into a sweet treat with a giant wooden mallet
- Have a picture taken wearing a kimono or yukata
Strong wind gusts also are expected Sunday, so enjoy the cherry blossoms while they last.
