As he gets ready to deliver presents next week, Santa Claus will cruise through Franklin County this weekend with two parades, all while collecting last-minute letters up in Bernardston.

Both parades will be held on Saturday, Dec. 21, with festivities kicking off at the Montague Center Common for the Five Village Santa Tour at 1:30 p.m. From there, in approximately 30-minute intervals, Santa will head to Rutter’s Park in Lake Pleasant, followed by Carroll’s Market in Millers Falls, Unity Park in Turners Falls, the lot across from the former Farren Care Center in Montague City and then the Montague Public Safety Complex, at 180 Turnpike Road in Turners Falls, at 3:45 p.m. He will end the parade back in Montague Center at 4 p.m. All times are approximate.

This is the third year of Montague’s Five Village Santa Tour, and it is sponsored by RiverCulture and the Montague Center Fire Department, which will be giving Santa the ride.

The sixth annual Whately Holiday Parade, also planned for Saturday, is sponsored by the Whately Police and Fire associations, with vehicles from South County EMS also appearing in the parade.

The Whately parade will kick off at around 4:30 p.m. at the Town Offices, 4 Sandy Lane, and will travel from east to west. The route is as follows: Grey Oak Lane, Straits Road, Herlihy Field, Christian Lane, Swamp Road, North Street, The Whately Inn, Masterson Road, Webber Road, Westbrook Road and Chestnut Plain Road. The parade will end at the Highway Garage/Fire Station at 63 Christian Lane.

Finally, if you’re a Bernardston resident with children who have still yet to get a letter sent to Santa Claus, then there’s still time. The Bernardston Kiwanis Club has set up a mailbox for letters to Santa, as it has done since 2016, near the decorated Christmas tree in Cushman Park. Santa will answer every letter dropped off by kids.

“It gives something for kids to still be kids,” said Kiwanis Club member Dan Devine.