For several years, the Deer Festival has gone on without its parade. The Monticello-Jasper County Chamber of Commerce replaced the Deer Festival parade with a traditional Christmas parade in 2021. This year the Chamber is bringing the original back for the festival's 60th anniversary. According to The Monticello News, the Deer Festival parade "will serve as Jasper County's single, official parade of the season."
That moves the county's one parade of the season to the first Saturday in November. On Saturday, Nov. 7, the square will host a 5K, a craft market, the Venison Cook-Off and the parade. The Christmas Market on Nov. 28 will still bring Santa and the lights, but it won't have a parade.
A Parade That Started With the Deer Themselves
The Monticello News reports that the parade has deep roots, and Bailey Nieves, director of the Monticello-Jasper County Chamber of Commerce, described how it began.
"Historically, it started where the men would parade their deer around the square. And then over the years, it just grew to local businesses, promoting themselves, families, community members. It used to be like the highlight of the year was the Deer Festival parade."
The festival grew up around the same idea. The Chamber calls it a celebration of the heritage of the "Deer Capital of Georgia," and its listing still opens with the Venison Cook-Off, the Trophy Wall and the crowning of the Deer Festival Queen. When the Christmas parade took its place in 2021, the November Saturday kept its crafts and food but lost the procession that started the whole thing. The return fits the 60th: the anniversary year gets back the event the tradition began with.
Whether the parade stays after this year is still open. Nieves told the paper that a decision on making it a permanent part of the Deer Festival again "has yet to be decided." For now, Nov. 7 is the only confirmed parade on the county calendar this season, and nobody has said it will happen again next year.
How the Day Runs, From Packet Pickup to the Last Float
The Chamber lists the festival from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Downtown Monticello Square. The Deer Dash starts before that, and the parade comes after the midday crowd has arrived. Here's the order of the day from the Chamber and the race's RunSignup page:
- Friday, Nov. 6, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Early packet pickup and last-minute registration at the Monticello Chamber of Commerce.
- 6:30 a.m. Race-day registration and packet pickup for the 29th Annual Deer Dash.
- 7:30 a.m. One Mile Fun Run, out and back on Eatonton Street, $20.
- 8 a.m. The Deer Dash 5K starts, a chipped 3.1-mile run/walk around Monticello, $25. The festival officially opens at the same time.
- 9 a.m. Race awards.
- 1 p.m. The Deer Festival parade. The Chamber's listing blocks out 1:00 to 1:30 p.m., and Nieves expects the parade to last about 15 to 20 minutes.
- 3 p.m. The festival closes, according to the Chamber listing.
The race lists 119 West Washington Street as its location. Online registration closes Monday, Nov. 2, at 11:59 p.m. If you haven't signed up yet, note that race T-shirts were only guaranteed to runners who registered by Friday, Oct. 2, and that date has passed.
The race wraps up by 9 a.m. and the parade starts at 1 p.m., which leaves most of the morning and midday for the vendors. Because the parade comes this late, a lot of people may stay downtown longer than they would on an ordinary festival Saturday.
Forty-Two Vehicles and a Square With No Cars
The parade route stays close to the square. Floats line up at the Methodist Church, go down College Street, loop through the historic square along Washington Street, and come back past the post office on Green Street. School bands and cheer squads were invited to march with the community floats.
Because the route is short, the parade can only hold so many entries. "We can take 42 vehicles in the parade for it to not get jammed," Nieves told The Monticello News. She added that a longer route in future years would be complicated and would require coordination with the sheriff's department. Entry was free, and applications closed Oct. 1, so if you haven't already entered, you'll be watching from the sidewalk.
Parking is the biggest thing to plan for. The square will be completely closed to vehicle traffic for the vendors, and the Jasper County Sheriff's Office will manage road closures on the surrounding streets. The parade also uses College, Washington and Green streets in the early afternoon. If you live within walking distance of downtown, walking will probably be easier than driving in.
If you want a meal near the square, two places on the Chamber's dining list have West Greene Street addresses. Five Loaves is at 130 W Greene St., and Big Chic is at 229 W Greene St.
A Craft Market With 12 Food Vendors
Vendor spaces filled early this year. Registration closed with 122 craft vendors and 12 food vendors, and the hunting and outdoor section has no cap. The Chamber's festival page said it was still accepting outdoor and hunting vendors through [email protected].
"Craft includes woodworkers, jams and jellies, bakers, jewelry, boutiques, candles, organic soaps and honey," Nieves said, estimating about 20 categories in all.
That works out to roughly ten craft booths for every food vendor. The 12 food vendors will be feeding a crowd Nieves describes as "thousands of people from all over the state of Georgia." The Venison Cook-Off, where local residents prepare the dishes, also serves food, and the Chamber's festival page lists face painting, pony rides and train rides for children. In 2024, The Monticello News wrote that cook-off teams set up early and the food "typically running out early." The 2026 location and schedule for the cook-off haven't been published, but that history suggests getting to the venison earlier than you'd get to the parade.
The Weeks on Either Side of Nov. 7
The parade's return also changes the rest of the downtown fall calendar. The Chamber's events lead up to the festival, and then November ends without a parade.
Now through October. Voting in the 2026 Scarecrow Contest started Oct. 1. You scan a QR code on the downtown square to vote, so you'll need to walk the square to see the entries.
Thursday, Oct. 29. Haunticello brings trick-or-treating around the square with local businesses from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., and a costume contest on the square at 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 7. The 60th Annual Deer Festival, the Deer Dash and the parade.
Saturday, Nov. 28. The Chamber's Christmas Market on the Square and Shop Small Saturday runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with vendors, local shopping, Santa photos and Light Up Monticello. The Chamber's Light Up page lists pictures with Santa from 2 to 4 p.m. and doesn't list a parade route. That matches the Monticello News report that the Deer Festival parade is the season's only official parade.
Tuesday, Dec. 1. The Chamber calendar lists a "Festival of Trees- Chamber Edition." The listing has no venue or other details yet.
Nov. 28 still has Santa, the lights and shopping on the square. This season's parade happens three weeks earlier. Nieves told the paper why the Chamber wanted the 60th to bring the county together. "I think right now, we as a county need community more than ever," she said. "And I think it's a great day for everybody to come and celebrate this tradition as one, especially with it being the 60th year."
At Alliance Home & Land Group, we're glad to see the parade back around Monticello Square for the 60th. If you'd like to talk about life in Jasper County or anywhere in Lake Country, we'd be glad to hear from you.
