BETHEL – Saturday’s gloomy skies and soaking rains couldn’t keep the crowd from the seventh annual Bethel Harvest Fest held on the Common.

The draw for the majority of the crowd seemed to be the annual Chowdah Cook-Off held as part the festivities.

“The crowd was surprisingly good considering the weather,” said Bill White, co-owner of the Sudbury Inn. “I think it’s comparable to other years.”

“I want to say the crowd is about the same despite the weather,” agreed Heather Hale-Nivus of The Good Food Store.

Twelve area restaurants served up their best to the crowd gathered under the tent. Chowders were judged by the public and by a panel of judges. Judges rated the various chowders for texture, body, flavor, seasoning and potato firmness.

The judges’ choice for best chowder was Birches Grill with its “Blue Ribbon Winning New England Clam Chowder.” People’s Choice winner for the fifth consecutive year was the Grilled Seafood Chowdah of The Sudbury Inn.

Contacted Sunday, Nancy White, co-owner of the Sudbury Inn said, “It feels great to win five consecutive years. We appreciate the support of the community. For us, the People’s Choice Award is extra-special because it’s the community that supports us and knowing that they enjoy our chowder makes it extra special.”

Members of the crowd agreed.

“It was fun having 12 different kinds of chowdah to choose from and to vote for them,” said Kim Ramharter of Bethel. “My favorite was the Roasted Pepper and Chicken from Bethel’s Best. It had a nice combination of chicken and vegetables. My husband really missed out on trying the Mussel Chowdah from The Good Food Store, it would have been his favorite.”

Other chowders available were Cho Sun’s Spicy Seafood Chowdah, Bethel Inn and Country Club’s Roasted Corn Chowdah, Phoenix House and Well’s Traditional Clam Chowdah, S.S. Milton’s Shrimp and Corn Chowder, Rebel Family Restaurant’s Haddock Chowdah, Sunday River Brewing Co.’s New England Style Clam Chowdah, and two different seafood chowders from Liam’s and Cinnamon Stick Caf.

The camaraderie was also a crowd favorite.

“These events are so awesome because they bring the community out,” said Caroline Ochtera of Bethel, who was attending with her son Max.

Representatives of the restaurants involved seemed to enjoy the event as much as the patrons do.

“I think it’s a great community event. I just like being part of it,” agreed Hale-Nivus.

“I get to see a lot of friendly faces and interact with the local community,” said Glen Horner of Bethel, a chef at Liam’s. “An event like this brings people together.”

Another favorite part of the event is a recent addition to the event. The second annual Bethel Harvest Fest Apple Pie Contest drew 19 entries in three categories: traditional, non-traditional and professional. Pies were judged for appearance, crust, texture and flavoring. Winner for the traditional pie was the Telstar High School “Intro to Foods” class team of Tiffany Jordan, Kara Jacques and Shaun Hunt. Winner for the non-traditional pie category was Carol Nielson of Bethel with an apple with black raspberries and lime pie with a pecan crumb topping and claiming the professional award was Beverly Sylvester, a baker at The Sudbury Inn.

Though the weather kept 16 of the 39 registered vendors away, organizers weren’t worried.

“The crowd seems to be good though some vendors didn’t show,” said Rosalie Holliday, a volunteer and spokesperson for the Chamber. “People came for the chowder and pies.”

The vendors that did show weren’t disappointed either.

“Considering the weather, there’s been a lot of people that have come through,” said Rachel Turcotte of Rachel’s Floral and Crafts of Auburn, “The turnout has been great.”

Other crafters present included The Gnommery of Conway, N.H., Eileen’s Handwoven Baskets of Farmington, Carol Toothaker’s Cat Creations of Woolwich, Pine Cone Enterprises’ Handcrafted Jewelry of New Sharon and B & W Crafts of Norway.

Other events held as part of the weekend festivities included informative tours and open houses on Friday held at Maine Line, Bethel Furniture Stock, Hancock Lumber, and Chadbourne Tree Farms.

Other Saturday events were a pumpkin and apple fest at the Bethel Historical Society and free horse-drawn carriage rides through Bethel Village provided by Meadow Creek Farm of West Sumner.

Sunday events included scenic 10 and 25 mile guided bike tours, a self-guided Androscoggin River Heritage Tour, Apple Picking at Gibson’s Apple Orchard and a Cider Mill Tour, also at Gibson’s Apple Orchard.