Midcoast Maine’s best of fall 2015: Fall Foliage Festival, Pumpkinfest and more

There were cartoon characters, pirates, pilots, and goblins galore at the annual Halloween Parade in Boothbay Harbor Saturday afternoon, Oct. 31. Sponsored by the Boothbay Harbor Memorial Library as part of its Harvest Fest, the event also featured entertainment, food and prizes for pumpkin painting before the parade started.

Children’s librarian Mary Pinkham, dressed as a bar of soap, led the paraders out of the library lot and down the Bath Savings driveway and the first stop for…

From butternut squash bowling and the scarecrow relay race, to the pumpkin pie contest and prizes galore, the second annual Great Pumpkin Hunt at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens promises to be fun for the whole family this weekend.

Come to the Gardens from 1-3:30 p.m. this Saturday, Oct. 24, for a fall day that is packed with games, contests, activities and prizes!

Admission will be free during this event and donations to the Boothbay Region Food Pantry will be gratefully…

It's hard to quantify pumpkin destruction, but here goes:

Three cameras, one waterproof housing, two clunkers, one pool, hundreds of people, 180 feet, more than a ton of pumpkins and more than two hours of footage.

All of that leads to about a minute's worth of pumpkin destruction set to a classical soundtrack.

Watch and relive the majesty of pumpkins falling from a 180-foot crane on Sunday, Oct. 11, because Damariscotta’s Pumpkinfest and Regatta happen but once a year.…

Late summer and early fall seemed unusually warm and dry to me. Experience, as a well documented “fall lover,” tells me that this is not a good combination for much color in the trees, which is another nostalgic favorite of mine.

But, so far, it seems my past recollections are incorrect — imagine! This fall is turning up some dandy color, in sort of fits and starts, as it were.

Autumn color along the shore has always seemed elusive around here, for me at least. There’s something…

The leaves are turning red and gold, and orange pumpkins line the streets of the Twin Villages, but now is the time to think pink.

The 15th Damariscotta Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk will be Sunday, Oct. 25. In the years since that first walk, walkers in Damariscotta have raised more than a million dollars to help fight breast cancer and help breast cancer patients in Maine.

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The 2015 Pumpkinfest pie eating contest had strong family ties in the 12 and under and 12 and over contests. The Canny and Rock families had competitors who placed in both competitions.

In the age 12 and under, Carlos Canny was the winner. He was followed by runner-up Zachary Reed, and third place finisher Alexa Rock.

In the age 12 and over, Canny’s father, Bob, finished third, while Alexa’s sister, Daja, finished first. The 12 and over runner-up was John O’Leary from Kerry…

Thirteen new and returning vendors have reserved tables at St. Patrick’s Christmas Fair and will sell locally made items on Saturday, Nov. 21 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Cheverus Hall. Cheverus Hall is located at St. Patrick Church on Academy Hill Road in Newcastle. There will be something for everyone from soaps and creams to baskets and wood turned crafts to hand knitted items and ornaments. Highlighted below are some of the region’s finest…

This year, the lunatics will get a shot at upper management at the asylum.

Or something like that.

The annual Great Salt Bay School Fall Harvest Fair is scheduled this year for Halloween, and with that spooky date the eighth graders have started packing in the scares.

“Each year there's a different theme and this year's theme is going to be different,” said Grace Canny, who is one of the GSB eighth graders in charge of running the haunted house. “We're going to have an…

The annual Damariscotta Pumpkinfest and Regatta features pumpkins in many settings — as boats, as art, and as spectacle.

On Sunday, Oct. 11, one of the massive squash was dropped 180 feet into a large inflatable pool.

See more Pumpkinfest videos and coverage on the Boothbay Register/Wiscasset Newspaper Best of Fall page by clicking…

One tell-tale sign that attendance is good at the annual Fall Foliage Festival is that the Boothbay Region Lions Club's fish chowder booth gets sold out on the first day.

And what a first day it was, according to Margaret Hoffman, executive director of the Boothbay Railway Village, which hosts the festival, now in its 48th year.

Approximately 1,624 people passed through the gates on Saturday, Oct. 10, despite the overcast skies and cool breezes during the first few hours of…

A large crowd meant large, repeated cheers going up in the vicinity of Damariscotta’s Elm Street on Sunday morning, Oct. 11 for heat after heat of the Pumpkin Derby.

The third annual event, part of the Damariscotta Pumpkinfest & Regatta, had light moments when alleged overweight pumpkin entries were smashed by smiling officials; and exciting ones as entrants progressed to semi-final and final rounds.

In results provided by event volunteer Beth Morris, Amelia Rice won the…

If Joe Hoyt of Edgecomb hadn't broken his leg playing basketball at CLC YMCA in Damariscotta in late September, he thinks he probably would have run in the Y's Zombie Run on Oct. 10.

Instead, he was standing next to the course in his cast Saturday, volunteering his help at one of the event's features: a new addition this year, several hanging strips with a florescent orange coating that caught on runners' clothes, as planned.

The orange comes off, Hoyt said.

On the other…

Despite rain in the forecast, pumpkin artists showed up early on Friday, Oct. 9, to begin carving and painting giant pumpkins on Main Street in Damariscotta.

About a third of the artists assigned began the process of sculpting, painting and decorating 75 pumpkins delivered from Pinkham’s Plantation on Thursday afternoon. Some artists were sheltered by tents while others deferred action until Saturday and drier weather.

Artists and observers commented how this year's crop of art…

With colder weather coming on, a brisk walk may be a frigid experience for your dog, especially if it is a small breed, such as a chihuahua. The Lincoln County Animal Shelter in Edgecomb may be just the answer, as it has a supply of doggie coats for sale at reasonable prices.

"A lot of small breeds are susceptible," said Shelter Executive Director Joe Montisano this week.

Montisano said that the shelter has a limited supply of donated dog jackets in good used condition to go…

The Boothbay Railway Village has grown two Atlantic Giant Pumpkins this season and both will be carved live throughout the day on Saturday, Oct. 10, by artist Thomas Block of Boothbay Harbor.

Block is the beloved illustrator of many Maine children’s books including “Togus” by Don Carrigan, “Star of Wonder” by Paige Pendleton, and the newly released “Bear Moonlight Sonata” by Stephen Powell.

Saturday, Oct. 10

10:30-11:30 a.m.: Fay Christy Murphy
Noon-1 p.m.: The Boothbay Alumnae Band
1:30-2:30 p.m.: Kaity Newell and the Oyster Creek Fiddlers
3:30-5:30 p.m.: The Space Heaters

Sunday, Oct. 11

11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.: Amber, Pip and Paul
1-3 p.m.: Pumpkin Carving Competition
3 p.m.: Pumpkin Carving Judging
3:30 p.m.: Pumpkin Carving Contest Award Ceremony

The Boothbay Railway Village invites guests to meet Master Blacksmith Sam Smith of the Portland Forge during this year’s Fall Foliage Festival.

Sam’s first introduction to the craft was at Allaire State Park in New Jersey, site of the Pine Creek Railroad and a living history museum called Allaire Village. Soon after, he began his profession at age fourteen when he entered the Howell Works Blacksmith’s Guild as an…

Americans have a day for giving thanks. We have two for getting deals (Black Friday and Cyber Monday). Now, we have Giving Tuesday, a global day dedicated to giving back.

On Tuesday, Dec. 1, charities, families, businesses, community centers, and students around the world will come together for one common purpose: to celebrate generosity and to give.

A group of 26…

Ten local authors from Maine Authors Publishing of Rockland will be attending the 48th annual Fall Foliage Festival on Oct. 10 and 11 for book signings.

“We are thrilled to be able to participate in this festival for the first time,” said Jane Karker, president of Maine Authors Publishing. “We love any opportunity to bring our authors and the local community together.”

The authors attending on Saturday, 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., are Jean Flahive of South Portland (“The Galloping…

Another year, another record squashed.

Literally.

During the professional growers' weigh-in Sunday at Pinkham's Plantation in Damariscotta, a new Maine State pumpkin record was established when Jefferson's Edwin Pierpont's pumpkin tipped the scales at 1,727.5 pounds, which obliterated last year's record, which was also set during the Pumpkinfest weigh-in.

Pierpont, who set the record in 2010 with a 1,471-pound pumpkin, saw his record smashed last year when Readfield's Joe…

For many months now, Fall Foliage Festival organizers in Boothbay have been collaborating with the volunteers who plan the Damariscotta Pumpkinfest & Regatta just a few miles up the road. One of the results is the addition of the pumpkin carving contests to the stage schedule for this year’s fair.

Entering the pumpkin carving contest is just a $5 fee and includes a pass for…

Autumn: When pumpkins fall like leaves in the Midcoast.

When wood and aluminum and fiberglass boats are put away for the winter and pumpkin boats instead dot the Damariscotta River, it’s fall.

That's right: Summer may be over, but the Damariscotta Pumpkinfest and Regatta is about to begin.

The Twin Villages celebration of all things pumpkin (and squash) kicks off officially on Saturday, Oct. 3, when volunteer pumpkin growers drop off their monsters at Pinkham's Plantation…

The Morris Farm Store will be transitioning into fall hours beginning Friday, Oct. 2. The store will be open Friday, noon to 6 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and Monday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

We will be offering a selection of holiday items including Christmas trees, wreaths, and other decorations. We will continue to offer a selection of local food products, including raw milk, farm fresh eggs, cheese, seasonal produce, local preserves and frozen meat. We will…

Discover history and mystery on a lantern lit walking tour led by The Lady in the Red Cloak. Tour the streets of Boothbay Harbor and Wiscasset this October and get into the “spirit” of the season.

Sally Lobkowicz, an experienced genealogy researcher — and the original Lady in the Red Cloak - began looking into local ghost stories after hearing tales from in-town residents and businesspeople.

“I discovered that there are quite a lot of buildings that people feel are haunted in…

Harvest Fest is Friday and Saturday, Oct. 30 and 31, at the Boothbay Harbor Memorial Library.

This event has been expanded upon from the library’s annual children’s parade to include a new two-day family celebration with fun events for all ages. The whole community is invited to participate in an event that encourages family togetherness and support of the library.

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October is just around the corner, the evenings are drawing in, and all over Maine craftspeople and artists are preparing for the busiest shopping season of the year.

As in previous years, a number of them will join the crafters of St. Patrick’s Church from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov.…

Haven’t we always had apples?

In legend, yes. Many people are happy to tell one another about Adam and Eve in Eden, about Eve’s being tempted by the sneaky snake to eat some fruit from that God-forbidden tree.

“An apple!” they say. Yet the story isn’t about an apple, but the “fruit” of the tree. Might it even have been a…

Everyone is invited to come celebrate Sheepscot Valley’s narrow-gauge railroading history at the Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington Railway Museum in Alna on Saturday, Sept. 26.

The museum will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. with trains departing from Sheepscot Station in Alna from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Special events include steam-train rides, Model AA truck rides, Model T rail-Car rides, hand-car rides, children’s games, pumpkin patch, pumpkin painting, bluegrass music plus more,…

David Seybold, coordinator of the Maine Champion Oyster Shucking Contest, has issued a challenge to oyster shuckers statewide: “You may think you’re the best shucker in the state, but there’s only one way to prove it — by winning the Maine Champion Oyster Shucking Contest.”

The Maine Champion Oyster Shucking Contest will be…

The Boothbay Railway Village and the Boothbay Information Center will once again be presenting the Fall Foliage Festival on Columbus Day weekend, Oct. 10 and 11. A very different kind of craft fair, it is known just as well for its live entertainment, activities for children, steam train rides as the large variety of crafts and arts available for purchase.

Applications from craft artisans, artists, nonprofits and…