An update to this story was posted at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.

AMHERST — A crowd of what appeared to be several thousand people of all ages peacefully converged on the Amherst Town Common Saturday to kick off the 23rd annual Extravaganja bash.

Unlike the Blarney Blowout, which is unofficially centered around binge drinking and frequently leads to violent clashes between young people and police, Extravaganja is a much more mellow celebration, although the mood is equally festive in the small Massachusetts college town.

The 2014 affair represents the 23rd year that the gathering has been held in the progressive community, and over the course of the past two-plus decades, the festival has grown as much as attitudes toward marijuana have changed.

For 63-year-old Greenfield resident Franktinus Stuitje, he remembers when the festival was much smaller.

"Back when they first started this, there were just 300 or 400 people there at most. Now it's huge," Stuitje said. "I never thought in my lifetime I'd see marijuana be legalized anywhere in this country. I'm just amazed at what has happened in Colorado and Washington."

The two states Stuitje mentioned are the first in the nation to legalize marijuana not only for medicinal use, but also for recreation.

Sebastian Vivas, the president of the UMass Cannabis Reform Coalition, said the large crowd in downtown Amherst Saturday is representative of the growing movement to end the so-called prohibition of marijuana and move beyond decriminalization to full-fledged legalization.

"I think in the next five years we will see even more changes regarding marijuana across the country," Vivas said. "Look how peaceful everybody is here. Everyone here is just having a good time and not causing any trouble. It goes to show the difference between alcohol and marijuana. Once substance can lead to people having a more positive experience in their community and the other can lead to chaos, but it is still legal. That doesn't make sense."

The UMass Cannabis Reform Coalition, established in 1991, is the oldest student-run drug law reform organization in the United States. It organizes the annual Extravaganja festival by working hand-in-hand with the local town, police and businesses.

Visit MassLive.com later in the day for a report looking at how the attitudes toward marijuana have changed and pushed legislation along the way.