Time for classic fall festivities
It’s time for our region’s many fall festivals to take the center stage.
We New Englanders should feel fortunate; we’re blessed with four distinct seasons, with none more anticipated than this time of the year.
Crispy apples, gourds of all shapes and sizes, and cornstalks assuming their decorative duty after the summer harvest combine for an enticing taste of nature’s bounty.
With the weather cooperating, there’s no excuse not to experience one of these many weekend events.
• The popular Johnny Appleseed Arts & Cultural Festival, celebrating its 29th anniversary this year, will host close to 200 vendors on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in downtown Leominster.
The grounds span Main Street, Mechanic Street, Merriam Avenue and beyond; the large-scale family-friendly event will include live entertainment from two stages all day long. including a special performance from 10 to 11 a.m. by Cara Brindisi, a contestant on this season’s “The Voice.”
Participating vendors and organizations include city police and fire, food trucks, Central Massachusetts Genealogical Society, Friends of Sholan Farms, In The Meadow Farm, Leominster Historical Society, Rotary Club of Leominster and Warmer Winters.
• Wildwood Farm will host its second annual Fall Festival Saturday and Sunday at the picturesque 117-acre, multigenerational farm, located at 50 Woods Road in Westminster.
It will showcase more than 30 local craft vendors and three local food trucks.
The new outside bar will serve up eight choices of seasonal ciders and draft beers on tap; visitors also can enjoy hayrides, pony rides, a petting zoo, pumpkin painting, and scarecrow decoration.
There also will be live music on both days. Tickets info can be found by visiting their Wildwood Farm LLC Facebook page.
• The Lowell Memorial Auditorium, which just celebrated its 100th anniversary, will host its Fall Festival on Saturday from 1 to 8 p.m.
The 50 East Merrimack St. venue welcomes guests to enjoy a variety of live music and dance, along with dozens of local artists and vendors. There also will be activities for kids of all ages.
• The town of Groton plays host to Grotonfest on Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the American Legion Post #55, 75 Hollis St.
The comprehensive entertainment schedule includes dance performances, and exhibits that celebrate the community’s businesses, artists, crafts, and organizations.
• Westford’s Westfest takes place this Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. at the Stony Brook School, 9 Farmer Way.
This family day of fun includes a food truck festival, Shopfet vendors, Pie-in-theface Booth, a DJ, and carnival games.
• The West Concord Porchfest gets underway Saturday from 1-5 p.m. at the
Harvey Wheeler Community Center, 1276 Main St.,
Concord.
A free, all-ages grassroots community music festival, this third annual event will again fill the streets surrounding West Concord Village with music.
Porchfests have become a community-building tradition across the country as musicians, story tellers, poets and anyone with a talent performs on porches, driveways and stoops.
Beyond this weekend, several additional celebrations of the fall season await.
• The 19th annual Blacksmith Art & Renaissance Festival will take place on Oct. 1 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Fitchburg’s Riverfront Park;
• Davis Mega Maze in Sterling opens for the season on Oct. 1 with this year’s 8-acre cornfield maze theme “The Game of Life;”
• Sholan Farms in Leominster will host a Scarecrows in the Orchard Harvest Festival on Oct. 8 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.;
• Hollis Hills’ annual
Fall Fest takes place Oct. 8 through Oct. 10 at the Fitchburg farm;
• Westminster’s Wachusett Brewing Company will host a Fall Festival on Oct. 9 at 1 p.m.; its Applefest follows on Oct. 15 and 16;
• At Wachusett Mountain in Princeton, you’ll find familyfriendly festivals most weekends through October, which include the option to ride the Skyride chairlift for spectacular fall leaf peeping.
We can’t think of a better way to spend a few hours of a fall weekend.