Halloween Lands on a Saturday This Year, and Phinney Ridge Does It in Daylight
October 22, 2026
October 22, 2026
On Phinney Ridge, the main Halloween events end by 3 p.m. This year October 31 falls on a Saturday, so both daytime traditions run on Halloween itself. Woodland Park Zoo holds Pumpkin Bash from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. A few blocks north, the Phinney Neighborhood Association's Hunger Goblin' trick-or-treat runs along Greenwood Avenue North from noon to 3 p.m.
For more than a decade, the Greenwood half of the day has also been a food drive. Some of what families carry up the avenue ends up at a church pantry at North 76th Street, which serves families every week. Seen this way, the stretch from Halloween to Día de los Muertos on November 7 works as one community calendar that happens to include candy.
Both events stop at 3 p.m., so the order you do them in matters more than the distance between them.
| Saturday, October 31 | Where | Hours | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pumpkin Bash | Woodland Park Zoo, 5500 Phinney Ave. N. | 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. | Included with zoo admission or membership |
| Hunger Goblin' Trick or Treat | Participating businesses on Greenwood Ave. N., N. 67th to N. 87th | Noon to 3 p.m. | Free |
At the zoo, Pumpkin Bash includes zoo-wide trick-or-treating and a costume parade led by mascots. The animals get in on it too. Bears, tapirs, wolves, tigers and otters are among those getting pumpkins and autumn treats as enrichment. The zoo admits one child age 12 or younger free with each paid adult, which helps for a morning visit with small kids.
The Greenwood route doesn't open until noon, so the day falls into a natural order. Do the zoo in the morning while the animals are working on their pumpkins. Head north on Phinney after lunch and pick up the business route at North 67th. On Greenwood, look for the "Participating Business" sign in shop windows. That sign is how the PNA marks which doors are handing out treats.
The PNA says the PhinneyWood business district has held a daytime trick-or-treat on the Saturday closest to Halloween for more than 30 years. In 2013 the event became a food drive benefiting FamilyWorks in Wallingford, and the Hunger Goblin' name came with it. This year the PNA added a second beneficiary, Phinney Ridge Lutheran's new Community Food Pantry.
The collecting runs all month, so the boxes are already out. Decorated donation boxes sit at businesses across the district through October, collecting healthy, nonperishable food. The PNA's figure for the neighborhood's output is more than 1,500 pounds of food donated in 2022. Drop-off points on the PNA's list include:
The boxes at the north end, near 85th, line up with where the trick-or-treat route ends at 87th. A family finishing the route on Saturday afternoon can drop off a bag of groceries before heading home.
The newer beneficiary is close by. Phinney Ridge Lutheran Church is at 7500 Greenwood Ave. N., and its food bank doors are at the northwest corner of North 76th Street and Greenwood, right on the Hunger Goblin' route. PhinneyWood covered the pantry in September. On its own site, the church says its food bank serves about 50 families a week, is open to everyone with no ZIP code restrictions, and distributes on Tuesday afternoons from 1:15 to 3 p.m. and on Wednesday evenings.
The drive's longtime beneficiary, FamilyWorks, takes unopened nonperishable food and fresh produce. It does not take opened or cooked food, home-canned goods, or rusted or dented cans.
A box at Ken's Market might go to either pantry, so the items both lists ask for are the safest picks. Comparing the Phinney Ridge Lutheran needs list with the FamilyWorks donation page, these show up on both:
FamilyWorks asks for its vegetables fresh, with no cans, so canned vegetables appear only on the church's list.
Phinney Ridge Lutheran also asks for household and hygiene items, including toilet paper, toothpaste and toothbrushes, deodorant, shampoo, dish soap and sponges. If a box near you is full, the church accepts donations during distribution hours or at the church office.
The adult version of the season starts before the trick-or-treating. The PNA's Bingo Scaryoke runs two nights at Greenwood Senior Center, 525 N. 85th St., from 7 to 10 p.m. The PNA bills it as bingo, cash prizes and a chance to show off your costume. Saturday, October 24, is already sold out. The PNA's page still had a ticket link up for Friday, October 23, the night after this post goes live, so check there for any remaining seats.
The PNA warns that these nights sell out fast. Single tickets have a five-person limit, and tables of 10 are available. If you want your group to sit together, one person has to buy tickets for everyone. Prices are $45 for PNA members and $55 for the public. The same room hosts Jingle Bell Bingo Karaoke on December 11.
The senior center is also a food drive drop-off, so the bingo crowd has the same chance as the Saturday trick-or-treaters to leave a can on the way in.
The season wraps up a week after Halloween, back on the Phinney Center campus. The PNA's Día de los Muertos celebration is free and runs Saturday, November 7, from 2 to 5 p.m. at 6532 Phinney Ave. N.
The Ofrenda Comunitaria, designed by community member and poet Raul Sanchez, stands in the main lobby of the Blue Building and takes offerings during the week before the celebration. That week opens right after Halloween weekend. Anyone who wants to leave a photo or keepsake can do it on a quiet weekday visit, without the Saturday crowd.
The afternoon itself follows a set schedule:
2:30 p.m. Altar dedication with Raul Sanchez 3:00 and 3:45 p.m. Performances by Grupo Folklorico Citlali 4:30 p.m. Traditional ceremony and procession through the neighborhood by CeAtl Tonalli, moved indoors if the weather turns
The food comes from both ends of North Seattle. There's pan de muerto for $5 from Plaza Latina, tamales for $6 from Frelard Tamales, Mexican hot chocolate and a bake sale. For kids there are free crafts: paper flowers, papel picado, skull masks and flower headpieces. Sugar skull face painting is available for an optional donation. Adults can browse an artist marketplace with handmade jewelry and art, and anyone can enter to win a gift certificate to El Chupacabra on Greenwood. The PNA has also posted a guide to getting to and around the event.
Set next to Halloween, Día shows the same neighborhood pattern. Like the zoo and the Greenwood route, it runs in daylight. Like the food drive, it asks people to bring something as well as take something.
The neighborhood moves into its holiday stretch soon after. Tickets for the PNA Winter Festival go on sale November 1, for the December 4 through 6 holiday market at the Phinney Center. On November 28, the PNA's GloCone lights the Phinney Center's air-raid tower from 5 to 5:30 p.m., with carols and hot cocoa.
Before any of that, it comes down to one Saturday afternoon. Pack peanut butter and canned soup in the bottom of the treat bag, finish the Greenwood route by 3 p.m., and stop at the corner of North 76th and Greenwood on your way home.
Some of my favorite Phinney Ridge moments are afternoons like this one, when the neighborhood shows up for itself. If you're thinking through a move on or off the ridge, or just want to talk about what makes this part of Seattle work, Brooke Davis is always glad to hear from neighbors. Let's Connect.
Her passion is helping clients achieve their homeownership goals, from a home seller looking to upgrade or relocate to a first-time buyer and a seasoned investor looking to build their financial portfolio. Brooke will guide and advocate for you through the entire process from beginning to end. Contact her today!